8/8/2019 New Web 2.0 Resource Fuels African American Research 8_2010

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New Web 2.0 resource fuels African American research

Web 2.0 resources such as web applications, blogs, and social networking sites arehelping consumers to interact online instead of merely digesting information. One

 particular site, Wikis providing a platform for family history enthusiasts and

 professionals to share genealogical resources. This online encyclopedia is a great placefor those researching African-American ancestors to find resources that may have been

overlooked.

Focus on topics

The wiki has been a great help to me in locating records and in broadening my research

to locate even more records. Use the wiki to learn more about the following researchtopics which will link you to other helpful resources. You may want to concentrate on

these basic topics in the beginning:

・

geographical area・ African American genealogical resources

・ time period・ events

Too often, researchers rely only on specific record types and run out of resources prematurely. Concentrating more extensively on specific topics will widen your research

 possibilities, and you will develop a knack for predicting which resources are most

 beneficial to you.

Search by geographical area

Let's demonstrate how this broader approach helps you turn up more avenues of research.Select county or parish and state where your ancestor lived and search FamilySearch

Wiki according to the following example:

Example: Search using terms Abbeville County, South Carolina.” (search results)

The results show all articles which mention Abbeville County. The counties which were

created from Abbeville County are show as well as Abbeville District which existed prior to Abbeville County. In this type of search, usually the first article in the results is the

main article and will link to most of the others.

If you select the first article, Abbeville County, South Carolina, you have the choice to

reading through the entire article or using the outline on the top left-hand side of the

 page to select the sub-topic that interests you. The Abbeville County, South Carolinaarticle currently links to several other resources such as marriage records, death records,

cemeteries, and will transcriptions.

The Family History Library Catalog is also linked in the section entitled “Web Sites,” and

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following this link to connect you directly to resources for Abbeville County, South

Carolina which are available through the Family History Library (FHL).

Search by ethnicity

A search using the terms “African American” or “ethnic resources” will link you to evenfurther resources and helpful articles. Narrow your search by including other topics such

as churches, newspapers, genealogy, cemeteries, and research.

Example: Search African American Resources to explore available topics.

Search by time period

When records are scarce, search the eras in which your ancestor would have lived. Time

 periods in American history are well documented. Even if your specific ancestor is notnamed, you may discover histories of local areas, and biographies of those who were

contemporaries. Quite often histories will reveal further historical documentation.

Studying the lives of those from the same vicinity who may have had similar experiences

as your ancestor may be as close as you will get to understanding what life was like for them.

Example: Searching “Antebellum” and “Georgia” leads to the reference for a book inFHL: Farm tenancy and the census in antebellum Georgia , (Athens, Georgia: University

of Georgia Press, 1986), Bode, Frederick A., Ginter, Donald D., [FHL Book 975.8 R2bg].

This book, which is also available at Google Books, is a valuable resource for those whowant to understand the process and evolution of tenant farming in Georgia from 1860 and

 beyond the end of slavery.

Search specific events

Birth, marriage, and death are the most common and usually the first events that you will

document for your ancestor. Your ancestor was a living, moving, and breathingindividual who interacted in the world--nearby and sometimes far from home. If you

make a concerted effort to determine other events (slavery, war, migration, land sales or 

 purchases) that influenced them, you will understand their world a little better, and youmay find further historical documentation.

Do not hesitate to research extended family or former slave owners. Sometimes your ancestor may be mentioned in records such as the wills and probate records of other 

 people.

Example: Currently 127 articles exist on the wiki for African American slavery.”

Give back: Become a contributor

I relocated to South Carolina to be close to the many resources that have been preserved

to document my maternal ancestry. Everyone is not able not make a decision like that,

8/8/2019 New Web 2.0 Resource Fuels African American Research 8_2010

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 but with resources like FamilySearch Wiki, family historians can connect to records from

one place many times without leaving the house.

I have felt a great obligation to share resources that I have discovered. I feel wonderful

about contributing information about resources that were difficult to find. I hope that

other African Americans are able to learn about this great resource and are able to use todiscover more about their ancestors. You need to register to create a page or contribute to

existing articles.

This is a page I am building:

Resources and Strategies for Documenting African American Ancestors

I feel one of my greatest discoveries were the Reconstruction resources listed on theabove page. I found a testimony of my great great grandfather, Beverly Vance (1832-

1899) in the South Caroliniana Library on the main campus of University of South

Carolina. It was given before a the South Carolina Senate in 1876. Tears just streamed

as I read the actual words he spoke.

I was successful in finding this testimony after researching all I could find on the topic of Reconstruction in South Carolina. You never know what may exist to document an

ancestor. I hope other descendants of those who testimonies were preserved are able to

discover them through the wiki page.

More links:

Saving Stories

Columbia Ethnic Community Examiner