A Student's Guide to African American Genealogy

ANNE E. JOHNSON holds a degree from the University of Wisconsin. She has spent many years researching and performing traditional ballads and songs from the British Isles and Ireland. This work inspired her interest in British history and emigration and in her own British roots. ADAM MERTON COOPER holds a degree from the University of Wisconsin. He became interested in African linguistics and the cultural diaspora when he began to trace his own genealogy as a child.

Chapter 1. A Heritage to Celebrate, 1 Back to Africa, 4 Be Proud and Realistic, 6 Resources, 9 Starting Your Exploration, 9 African American Language and Culture, 11 African Language and Culture, 21 Chapter 2. Immigration in Chains, 25 The Modern Slave Trade, 25 Slave Life, 30 The End of the Slave Trade, 35 Resources, 38 Africa: Past and Present, 38 The Slave Trade, 44 Slavery and Slave Life, 46 Chapter 3. Freedom and the African Cultural Diaspora, 49 The African Cultural Diaspora, 58 Resources, 61 Free Blacks and Freedman, 61 Reconstruction and Modern History, 62 Success Stories, 65 Modern Immigration, 71 Video, 73 African American Theater, Film and Television, 74 African Films, 76 African American Films, 78 African Music, 80 African American Music, 81 African Dance, 86 African American Dance, 88 Chapter 4. Getting Started on Your Search, 91 Talking to Your Relatives, 91 Organizing Your Search, 93 Graveyards, 98 Working in the Library, 99 Resources, 102 Searching in the United States: Manuals, Bibliographies, 102 Societies and Journals, 106 Attics and Heirlooms, 108 Graveyards, 110 Oral Tradition, 112 Chapter 5. The Census, and What It Doesn't Tell, 116 Interracial Unions, 122 Resources, 126 Chapter 6. Searching for Slaves, 131 County Deed Books, 132 Colored Troops, 133 Early Black Organizations, 134 Working Back Toward the Middle Passage, 137 Resources, 140 General References and Indexes, 140 Libraries, 142 Chapter 7. High-Tech Genealogy, 144 Resources, 147 Family History on Computer, 147 The Internet, 148 Chapter 8. Nontraditional Families and Family Issues, 149 Resources, 152 Registers/Support Groups/Advocacy for Adoptees, 152 Adoption and Other Family Issues, 153 Chapter 9. Preserving Your Family History, 156 Family Tree, 156 Oral History, 157 Written History, 158 Resources, 161 Writing Your Family History, 161 Great Writing by African Americans, 162 Glossary, 166 Index, 168