WHO ARE WE? Embark on a Journey of Self-Discovery by Exploring Your Heritage with Black Genealogy and History. Understanding our heritage is not just a matter of curiosity; it is a fundamental part of our identity.
History is not the past; it is the present. We carry our history with us; we are our history. -James Baldwin, I Am Not Your Negro
SETTING GOALS
Have you ever received a check in the mail and wondered where it came from? That is precisely what happened to me after my father’s death on August 4, 1994. I was intrigued by the small checks I began receiving and set out to discover the source. This quest led me to my great-grandfather, Jules Bayonne. Long story short, in 1870, Jules Bayonne and a friend purchased 71 arpents (two-thirds of an acre) of land in Pointe Coupee Parish, Louisiana.
In the 1980s, oil and gas were discovered on the Parlange Plantation, and the land that Jules Bayonne and Francois Frances owned was part of the oil and gas pool. The checks my siblings and I had were royalties for my father’s pool share and were signed by Walter Parlange. The checks motivated me to research Jules Bayonne, my paternal great-grandfather, and my first genealogy project:
Who was Walter Parlange, and why is his name on the checks?
Why are we receiving the checks?
Where was Jules Bayonne born, and who are his parents?
Was Jules enslaved?
My goal was to find the answers to those questions.
Define your research goals. What do you want to know? Since enslaved people could not read or write, stories were passed down orally. Have there been stories passed down in your family?
ORAL HISTORY
“When an old man (old woman) dies, a library burns to the ground.” - African Proverb
Many genealogists failed to interview the oldest member of their family and only remembered they did not after the relative died. I am guilty, but my sister passed on the stories she heard while caring for our maternal grandmother every Saturday. My grandmother was 99 years and two weeks old when she died. She had a good memory and recalled much of her past until a few weeks before she passed. Getting secondhand information from my sister was not the best, but it was better than nothing.
Oral history, the practice of passing stories from generation to generation, is an African tradition in most African American families. In Africa, the storyteller is known as a griot. The Griot is a living history book, stated Tony Burroughs, the genealogist and author of Black Roots. He memorizes the history of his village. When you are interviewing older people, you become the family griot.
Talk to your parents and older relatives. Record their stories and take notes, even if you are recording. The recordings are memories of your elders’ voices and sources of information. Our elders are cherished resources of history and wisdom.
HOME SOURCES
Gather as many documents as possible about your family members to add data to your tree. Start with the family members you know best: you, your parents, your spouse, your children, your siblings, your four grandparents, and your eight great-grandparents. Your home is an archive holding many records. Search attics, basements, drawers, trunks, bookcases, file cabinets, etc. Your home has many valuable sources of genealogical documents: the bible; certificates of births, marriages, deaths, and divorce; photographs; military papers; scrapbooks; wills, deeds, letters, diaries; obituaries; newspaper clippings; land, etc. If you lack vital records (birth certificates, marriage licenses, death certificates, and divorce records), check with your relatives before ordering copies.
Ask your relatives if they have any documents to share.
ORGANIZING YOUR RESEARCH
One of the genealogist’s biggest challenges is organizing the papers and digital files collected about the family. Some charts available on the Internet can assist in organizing the family data, including names, dates, and oral history:
A family tree, also called a pedigree chart, shows ancestry, descent, family members, and their relationships with each other. On the National Genealogical Society (NGS) website, www.ngsgenealogy.org/free-resources/charts, one can find two Family Trees, Basic and Standard, and a Family Group Sheet. You create a free subscription to access the charts and the instructions for completing them. The charts are “fillable,” and can be downloaded as a PDF; information can be typed into the chart and saved to your computer. Your chart can be updated anytime. Click on “Welcome to NGS Free Genealogy Course. Many free resources are awaiting you. They are just a click away.
Family Group Sheet is a form for all the couples on your family tree. Complete a form where you are the child on your parents’ form and another where you and your spouse are the parents. A Family Group sheet should be completed for every couple on your family tree. Free forms are available on the NGS, Ancestry, and Family Search websites. Locate other genealogical forms by googling “Free genealogical forms.”
Research Log assists you in keeping track of the research you have done and prevents you from duplicating your research. Free forms are available on Ancestry and Family Search websites. Of course, you can Google “Free Genealogical Forms” and find numerous forms.
There are many forms to assist you in organizing your research: research calendars, record checklists (roster of sources), questions for oral history interviews, source documentation forms, correspondence logs, etc. These forms can be found on the websites mentioned and on the internet. Google is your friend!
Be sure to cite your sources. From the National Genealogical Society, “If you didn’t document it, you didn’t do it.”
REFERENCES:
Burroughs, Tony. Black Roots: A Beginner’s Guide to Tracing African American Family Tree. New York: Fireside,2001.
Smith, Franklin Carter, and Croom, Emily Anne. Genealogists Guide to Discovering Your African-American Ancestors: How to Find and Record Your Unique Heritage.Cincinnati, Ohio: Betterway Books, 2003.
Lackey, Richard S. Cite Your Sources: A Manual for Documenting Family Histories and Genealogical Records. Jackson, Mississippi: University Press of Mississippi, 1985.
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