Volume 1, Issue 1 FEBRUARY 2013
C A R T E R E T C O U N Y P U B L I C L I B R A R Y
L o c a l G e n e a l o g y a n d t h e
A f r i c a n - A m e r i c a n s t o r y
My personal introduction to African-American history in Carteret County began in a little family room in Beaufort. My grandmother, Odessa Joyner Ellison, was one of the greatest storytellers that I have ever known. Her favorite time to tell stories was during one of our frequent summertime “squalls” or seasonal storms. During a squall, we turned off the television and all of the lights. Talking on the telephone was forbidden during a storm. No boisterous play. No sitting on the floor. We were to show reverence: “God is talking...,” through the thunder, she would say. So, with none of the usual entertainment or distractions, and amid the threatening dialogue between the thunder and lightning, my grandmother (Ma) wove together threads of family history and community culture. Ma was a master at painting word portraits of local characters who were way too colorful for fiction. Among my favorites were stories of the high-stepping marching band of Queen Street High School. Though the band had limited resources, it had soul and verve to spare. Those characters were everyday heroes who walked the streets of
Beaufort, raised families, built businesses, and made miracles out of very little.
The heritage of African-Americans in Carteret County is extremely rich. Your family (like mine) is a significant part of that legacy. It is my hope that the information and beginner tips contained in this newsletter will encourage you to become your family’s historian and share your own story .
~ Vikki R. Ellison, Newsletter Editor
Library Assistant
W e n e e d y o u r s t o r y . . .
“The Carteret County Public Library in Beaufort, NC has collected family histories and genealogies for over fifty years. The library’s collection is well-respected and heavily used by individuals seeking their roots in Carteret County. Unfortunately, the African-American community has little representation in this collection. And yet, African-Americans were and are important contributors to our local history and heritage. The Carteret County Public Library would be honored and pleased to add to its
Local History and Genealogy Collection, any family histories or genealogies that relate to local African
-American families, past and present.” - Susan Simpson, Regional Library Director

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G e n e a l o g y & T h e A f r i c a n - A m e r i c a n s t o r y
What is ‘Genealogy’?
Simply defined, genealogy is the study of a family’s ancestral lineage and history throughout its generations. This study may include the examination of oral and documented family history narratives, legal documents, and public records, to name just a few.
African-American genealogy and family history research first gained popularity with the publication and subsequent dramatization of the novel Roots by Alex Haley (1976). In Roots , which is heavily based on Haley’s own family history, the author documents his discovery of an ancestor (Kunta Kinte) dating back to 1767, who was kidnapped from the Gambia (West Africa) and taken to a port in Maryland to be sold as a slave. Though much of Roots was a fictional interpretation, the work was remarkable because it demonstrated that tracing the African-American lineage back to its origins - though challenging - is possible.
Since that time, television shows such as Who Do You Think You Are (NBC) and Finding Your Roots
(PBS) have also encouraged people to trace their own family heritage. People have many reasons for tracking their family lineage, from personal curiosity to a sense of responsibility to preserve family history for future generations. Whatever a person’s individual reason for this pursuit, the collective efforts of millions of researchers has made genealogy one of the most popular hobbies in the United
States.
The Challenge of African-American Genealogy Research
Seasoned professional genealogists and family history hobbyists agree that research of African-
American families is the one of the most challenging due, in part, to the unique circumstances of African ancestors’ arrival to the United States. Most African-Americans are descendants of approximately
400,000 Africans who were kidnapped from their homeland and brought to North America to serve as slaves, during the 18th and 19th centuries. Since slaves were not regarded as human beings, they had no legal rights, and therefore not much official documentation is available to trace original names or specific countries of origin.
The fact that much of African-American family history was passed down through the generations as oral history or stories, but was never documented in print, presents another challenge.
Don’t let these potential challenges discourage you. As a beginner family historian, you have several decades in which to start your research, before you begin delving into your African ancestry. You should be able to trace your lineage back to end of the Civil War (1865) without much difficulty.
Note: Free African-Americans and their families were included in the 1850 and 1860 U.S. Census.
The U.S. Census records of 1870 were the first to list former slaves and free African-Americans by name.

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Start With What You Know
Professional genealogists and family historians suggest starting with yourself and your immediate family members, and charting your research backwards. Consider your own first-hand knowledge of your family’s history, traditions, and stories passed down through the generations. One very simple way to start your family research is by writing down your immediate family lineage (grandparents, father, mother, siblings, etc.) using a basic family tree or family group sheet.
Family group sheet templates can be found online or at your local library.
Collect Information About Your Family History
Once you have written down all that you know about your family lineage, begin collecting items that can provide clues about your family’s history. A wealth of information can be found right in your own home, or in the homes of your family members. Search attics, old trunks, filing cabinets, closets, and hope chests for items such as photos, heirlooms, letters, post cards, marriage licenses, birth certificates, draft cards and other vital documents. Collecting information about your family history should also include conducting interviews of as many of your family members as possible. Family friends and neighbors also serve as priceless resources in understanding the relationships and local history that helped to shape your family’s story.
Explore Genealogy Websites
Genealogy and family history websites like Ancestry.com and HeritageQuest.com help to fill in the gaps in your research. Genealogy websites can also save time with compiling and organizing vital statistics information, such as census records, birth dates, marital information, and military service records.
Document Your Discoveries
One of the more challenging areas of genealogy research is keeping your information organized in a way that is useful, accessible, and easy to share with others. The tools and methods used by genealogists and family historians are as varied as the people who use them. However, there are some basic tools that have proven to be effective and widely used among researchers.
Family Group Sheets : A Family Group Sheet is a form that contains genealogy information about a nuclear family (i.e. a father, a mother, and each of their children). Family group sheets usually include the birth date and place of birth, as well as date of marriage, and date of death.
Pedigree Charts : Pedigree charts (most commonly called family trees) are diagrams used by genealogists and family historians to record and organize their research. The chart usually begins with an individual and lists their parents, grandparents, great-grandparents, tracing back through the preceding generations. Depending on the amount of space and information available, pedigree charts typically include each family member’s name, birth date and place, marriage date and place, and the date and place of death.
Family History Journal: One of your challenges as you begin your family history research may be managing your personal reflection notes and the all of the information that you accumulate. There are many options for keeping your research together. However, when you are just starting, simple is best. A generously sized three-ring binder with tabs should do the job. The binder can be used to house your family group sheets and pedigree charts. The binder becomes a family history journal as you record your personal notes and impressions. Include questions you may have that you want to research, interesting facts, or surprising discoveries that you make about your family or local history. You may even want to include notes about methods or resources you used in your research.

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T
The Internet has revolutionized genealogical research, making information more accessible than ever before. Research that once required multiple trips to courthouses, archives, or historical societies, over several states, can be accomplished through a few keystrokes from the comfort of your home or local library. Search engines, social networking sites, and online courses are changing the way researchers approach genealogy. Greater access to documents, such as the U.S. Census, has encouraged an increased interest in researching family heritages. The advent of websites like Ancestry.com has made it possible for novice genealogists to conduct research like professionals. Note: While the Internet is a valuable tool, it is important to verify the accuracy of your research through reliable library resources.
The websites listed below are among the most reliable and user-friendly sites for beginner genealogists.
www.ancestry.com
Ancestry.com is a favorite among professional and novice genealogists for ease of use and its comprehensive collection of over 7 billion U.S Census, birth, death, and marriage records. The site also provides access to family trees, an active network of genealogy researchers, and site user tips. Basic access to this website requires a monthly fee. However, patrons and visitors of Carteret County Public Library can access the library version of ancestry.com onsite, at no charge. www.heritagequestonline.com
Heritage Quest Online is a research database that features U.S. Federal
Census images from the year 1790 to 1940, an online library of 28,000 family and local history resources, and the Freedman’s Bank search resource that covers the year 1865 through 1874. The library version of
HeritageQuest can be accessed through NCLIVE.org. www.familysearch.org
FamilySearch.org is a free genealogical and historical research service established by the Church of Jesus of Christ Latter-Day Saints. The organization is the largest genealogy and archival organization in the world, with an expansive collection of documents, such as civil registration records,church records, census, land, tax, and military records, as well as family histories, lineage genealogies, and local histories.
www.archives.gov
Archives.gov is an online service provided by the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA). NARA is known as the “Nation’s Record-Keeper”. In addition to acting as the keeper of such documents as the Declaration of Independence, the U.S Constitution, and the Bill of Rights, the NARA provides a comprehensive website with a vast collection of useful reference information and tools for genealogy researchers. The website also offers access to military service records and immigrant naturalization records. Archives.gov has a limited number of actual records online, but features an impressive collection of articles and research tips for genealogists and family historians. ( www.archives.gov/ research/genealogy ) www.genealogy.about.com About.com is an online content provider that offers helpful articles and videos for new genealogists and researchers of family history. The articles featured on about.com assist researchers with understanding how to use documents and vital data, such as census, birth, death, and marriage records in genealogical research. The website also includes tips for organizing research data, creating family trees, and a list of websites for advanced genealogy research projects.

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The Value of Local History Information in Genealogy Research
Genealogy researchers are often surprised at the family connections that can be derived from reading local history narratives. Local history makes your research interesting and adds texture and substance to the sometimes flat facts and figures associated with genealogy research. These rare works are usually written by people from the local area, who can give intimate details of a town, the people and their relationships. Local history can often supply the missing piece to your genealogy research.
What Are Local History Research Treasures?
Local history research treasures are found in rare books, articles from state or local magazines, newspaper microfilm, local memoirs, compiled family histories, or community scrapbooks with funny anecdotes and vintage photographs.
These resources contain information that is unique to your local area, provides a historical backdrop for your genealogy research, and perhaps clues and links to your own family history. These works are usually so small, and specialized that they are rarely found online. Local research treasures are found in the special collections rooms of local libraries, museums, or historical societies.
Carteret County Public Library has an impressive collection of these resources in the Adult Non-fiction and Reference areas of the library. Among the reference selections, a few treasures stand out for local African-American genealogy research. Three of those resources are listed below.
Beaufort: An Album of Memories [NC 975.6197 D]
Beaufort: An Album of Memories compiled by Morehead City resident Jack Dudley, is a pictorial history of Beaufort,
North Carolina. The author captures the culture of the town through vintage photographs of citizens and landmarks of
Beaufort with detailed photo captions. Many of the photos date back to the early 1900’s. Beaufort also features a collection of African-American portraits (pages 118-135) and a brief history of Purvis Chapel, AME Zion Church, the oldest recorded African-American church in Beaufort (pages 74-75).
Black Town Fathers of Beaufort: 1865 - 1900 [R NC 929.3 P]
Black Town Fathers of Beaufort features short biographical profiles of African-Americans who served as Town Officials in Beaufort, North Carolina between the years 1865 and 1900. Each of the town fathers were citizens of Beaufort who worked, served, ran businesses and raised families locally. This survey is an important supplement to local genealogy research because the author provides a surprisingly generous amount of information on the marriages, family histories, census records, church involvement, occupations, and land rights of the these early public officials. Black Town Fathers was written by Carteret County historian, Charles Pitts.
History of Beaufort/Queen Street High School: 1928-1968 [NC 975.6197 D]
Written by North Carolina historian and Beaufort native Lenwood Davis, this book is the first and only published work about all-Black schools in Carteret County, prior to county-wide school desegregation in 1968. A History of Beaufort/
Queen Street is an important genealogy resource as it provides short local history narratives of Beaufort and surrounding towns, and also brief family histories. The book also includes graduating class lists and dates, as well as the occupations, and accomplishments of students, faculty and staff of Queen Street High School.

Library References
Burroughs, T., (2001). Black Roots: A Beginner’s Guide to Tracing the African -American Family Tree . Fireside Publishing (Simon & Schuster, Inc): New York, NY [929.1 C - New Bern-Craven County Public Library ]
Carmack, S. D., (2000). A Genealogist’s Guide to Discovering Your Immigrant and Ethnic Ancestors - 1st ed.
, F& W
Publications: Cincinnati, OH. [929.1 C]
Franklin, C. S. and Croom, E. A., (2003). A Genealogist's Guide to Discovering Your African-American Ancestors :
How to Find and Record Your Unique Heritage . Betterway Books: Cincinnati, OH. [R GEN 929 S]
Davis, L.G. (1996). A History of Beaufort/Queen Street High School: 1928-1968. NC: Davis [NC 975.6197 D]
Dudley, J. (2004). Beaufort: An Album of Memories.
Coastal Heritage Series: Morehead City, NC [NC 975.6197 D]
Merrill, A. (2011). Genealogy for Librarians: Online Resources, Definitions, Tips, and Techniques . Beaufort, NC:
Merrill [ Carteret County Public Library Administrative Office]
Pitts, Charles (1991). Black Town Fathers of Beaufort: 1865-1900 . P&C Publications: Beaufort, NC [R NC 929.3 P]
Szucs, L.D. and Lukebking, S. H. (2006), The Source: A Guidebook to American Genealogy 3rd ed.
, Ancestry Publishing: Provo, UT [ R GEN 929.1 S ]
Online References
African American History Step By Step, (2012). Retrieved October 10, 2012, from http://genealogy.about.com/od/ african_american/ss/slave_research.htm
Record Your Progress - Online Genealogy , (2013). Retrieved January 12, 2013, from www.netplaces.com/onlinegenealogy
“ We (the library staff) are happy to assist patrons with locating resources to help with their family history and genealogy research. We don’t have a professional genealogist on staff to conduct your research for you. However, we are more than happy to assist you with finding materials in the collection and with using the technology in the Adult Reference section of the Library.”
David Montgomery
Local History & Genealogy Library Assistant