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Finding My West Indian AncestorsExtract from Guy Grannum, Tracing Your West Indian Ancestors, 2nd edn (Public Record Office, 2002). The guide was written to describe the wealth of material held by The National Archives of the UK (formerly Public Record Office) for the study of Anglo-Caribbean genealogy. The following extract has been slightly updated to reflect the name change from Public Record Office to the National Archives. First stepsThis book is not intended to be a guide to general genealogical sources or techniques but you may find it useful to have some general guidance to help start your research. There are many published guides to family history and your local library may have some. I have listed some guides at the end of this chapter; unfortunately, there are only a few for the British West Indies (see 1.2). However, research techniques and records are very similar whether you are carrying out family history research in the UK, Canada, the United States or the Caribbean.
1.1 Who are the West Indians? West
Indians are a diverse population comprising British, Dutch, Spanish, French,
Portuguese, African (from a wide variety of countries and ethnic groups),
Danish, American, German, Lebanese, Chinese and East Indian migrants.
They are a mixture of voluntary (planters, merchants, adventurers, economic
migrants, indentured servants and discharged soldiers), involuntary (transported
prisoners and slaves) and displaced migrants (refugees from American colonial
wars, from religious persecution, liberated Africans and fugitive slaves).
Although people often refer to West Indians as if they are a single group,
they are not: each country has its own cultural identity based on history,
language, religion and ethnic makeup.
There
has also been much migration between the islands and with Africa, Europe
and North, Central and South America. It cannot be assumed that your ancestors
came directly from the ‘mother’ country to the West Indies.
For example, an English family in Jamaica may have reached there after
first settling in Barbados, then migrating to South Carolina, and then
arriving in Jamaica as loyalists following the American Revolution. An
African family in Trinidad may not be a product of West Indian slavery
but may be descended from a freed refugee from Georgia, USA, who enlisted
with the British forces during the War of 1812.
To
use an extreme but possible example, an African family in Trinidad could
have been descended from a slave who moved with his owner from Barbados
to Jamaica and who later ran away and joined the maroons (see Glossary).
A descendant was captured during the Maroon War against the British in
1796 and transported to Nova Scotia and was one of the black settlers
to Sierra Leone in 1800. A son enlisted in the West Indies Regiment, was
discharged and then settled in Trinidad. 1.2 How do I start my research?There is no set way to go about tracing your family but you should always start with what you know about yourself, your parents, brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles and grandparents etc. Try to collect as much information as possible on the dates of births, marriages and deaths and locations. If dates are unknown try to approximate and for births try to find out the order of siblings. Talk to your family and relatives, identify people in family photographs and how they fit into your family, and collect or copy documentary evidence such as certificates of baptism, births and marriages, family bibles, wills and personal correspondence. Listen to family tales and oral traditions which if not totally factual may have some truth in them – these may have sparked your interest in your family in the first place! At some point your research will take you beyond your immediate family and you will need to visit archives and libraries. To do this you need to know which island your family came from and ideally which parish. It will have a significant bearing on the sources you need to research if you also know their religious denomination, ethnic group, status, occupation and the approximate dates they lived in that country. The next step after collecting family papers and speaking with family members is to search civil registration records of births, marriages and deaths in the countries where your family lived. These records are held by each country’s registration office or archive, although many have been filmed by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS) and can be ordered through your nearest Family History Centre (see 1.5). These records will usually provide addresses and the names of one or both parents, depending on the event, and ages may be recorded on marriage and death records, which will help approximate dates of birth. State registration for each country started at different times from the late nineteenth century, and before then you will need to check church records, which are arranged by parish and then by church or chapel. Many early church records have been deposited with the registration offices or other archives but most are still held by the individual churches. Again, many have been microfilmed by the LDS. Before the early 1800s the Anglican Church was the predominant church in the older British West Indian islands; the former French and Spanish colonies were predominantly Catholic. Increasingly from the late eighteenth century various non-conformist denominations, for example Moravian, Baptist and Methodist, established chapels. There are a few points to bear in mind:
The culmination of your research may be to find the country of origin for your ancestor. Christopher Columbus first discovered the West Indies in 1492 and, with the exception of a minority of surviving indigenous Amerindians, West Indians are all immigrants. You may be lucky enough to find clues to the homeland for your first West Indian ancestor, in which case you may be able to start researching archives in that country. If your ancestor migrated before the nineteenth century you may also need to know from which town, village or parish he or she left because most of the records were generated by the church or local authorities rather than centralized by the state. However, not all countries recorded events in legal documents and you may need to research oral evidence and traditions. 1.2.1 Further readingI have found these guides for West Indian genealogy:
The following guides relate mainly to British genealogy. However, the sources and research techniques for West Indian genealogy are very similar and these will provide some guidance on how to start your family history (see 1.3 for guides on African-American genealogy).
1.3 My ancestor was a slave. Where do I start?Descendants of African slaves make up the majority of populations on most West Indian countries. On the British islands, slavery became an established form of labour from the 1640s when Dutch merchants from Brazil introduced sugar cane into Barbados. Sugar farming was physically demanding and mentally monotonous. Africans were used to tropical conditions, food and disease, and were considered more suitable for this unpleasant form of agriculture than white indentured servants who had previously made up the labour market.However, if you have African ancestors you cannot assume that they were slaves as many Africans migrated to the West Indies from the 1830s and many Africans freed from illegal slavers also settled in the West Indies. Slaves were personal property who could be bought, sold, gifted, inherited and bequeathed, according to the whims of their owner. Personal records of slaves are limited, they could not possess property, and in some British colonies they were actively discouraged from attending church. 1.3.1 Records to start your research withUntil the establishment of slave registries from 1814, most records of slaves, their births and deaths, are to be found among the personal papers of their owners and records relating to their owners and plantations. Many of the sources for slaves will be discussed in greater detail in Chapter 7, under records of the Colonial Office (Chapter 2), slave trade American Loyalists, births, marriages and deaths, wills and plantation records.Useful sources for information relating to slaves include:
Most of these records are to be found locally, if they survive, in the relevant country’s archive or register office, but copies of some of these types of documents are found in the National Archives (Public Record Office). The owner or plantation will be found in most of these records, which will help identify family or estate papers for further clues. Often racial information is given, for example ‘Black’ or ‘Negro’ for predominantly African slaves and ‘coloured’ or ‘mulatto’ for slaves of mixed racial ancestry. Some colonies had a grading scale of ‘whiteness’ denoting the proportion of European to African blood. The term ‘Creole’ is often found which means someone born in the West Indies. Occasionally ethnic origin may be recorded but often this is not accurate, having been based on information provided either by one of the merchants in the chain from the forts and trading posts (factories) in Africa, the officials on the ships or the merchants selling the slaves on the islands. Often this may be where the slave was transported from rather than his or her true origin. The most important records for information on slaves in the National Archives (Public Record Office) are those of the Colonial Office (see Chapter 2), the slave registry and the Slave Compensation Commission (Chapter 7). Colonial Office records relating to slaves are numerous and include reports of slave rebellions, reports of protectors of slaves, inhabitants of workhouses, slaves granted their freedom, numbers of slaves being imported, and registration of slaves. Colonial newspapers contain notices of runaways, which name the slave and often give a brief physical description, and notices for slave auctions. The records of the central slave registry are in the series T 71, for the period 1812 to 1834 (when slavery was abolished), although most do not start until 1817. The registers are arranged by colony and most are arranged by parish and then alphabetically by owner or estate; most also contain indexes to owners. The registers contain much information on the slaves and their owners. For slaves they give at least name, age, colour and country of origin. The information given in the registers differs between colonies. Most registers list slaves by sex and age but some, such as those for St Lucia and Trinidad, are arranged by family and record other family members such as brothers, sisters, and cousins if on the same return. Mothers are occasionally noted in the returns but fathers are rarely recorded. After the first registration most colonies only note increases (births, inheritance and purchase) and decreases (deaths, bequests, sales and manumissions) in their numbers of slaves. Some, such as Bermuda, list all slaves. 1.3.2 SurnamesIt is commonly believed that slaves took the surname of their owner, and that this will help in identifying records for family history. Although this did occur, it was not always the case. British slave law denied slaves surnames because they had no legal father and they were the property of their owner. A good example of this can be found in the baptismal entries of slaves where usually only their first name is given.However, from a brief examination of church baptismal records for the period after 1834, following the abolition of slavery, it seems that most former slaves already possessed titles or surnames. There was no established way for slaves and free people to have a surname. It is possible that on freedom former slaves found that they needed a surname for personal or legal reasons, for example when baptised or married, or to purchase or rent land or property, or for employment. An analysis of the Barbados baptism registers shows that most surnames used by slaves and former slaves were ones that were common on that island. Slaves may have retained surnames from earlier owners which were carried by their descendants from one owner to the next. Gutman, in The Black Family in Slavery and Freedom, shows that American slaves were often known by the name of their original owner, who was not necessarily their last owner. A brief examination of manumission returns and the ‘Book of Negroes’ compiled by the British military authorities in 1783 of Black refugees from the American Revolution (PRO 30/55/100, no 10427) shows that few slaves possessed the same surnames as their owners. The Guy Carleton Branch of the United Empire Loyalists’ Association of Canada has indexed this list. Little is known on the origins of slave surnames or the local practices on how they were adopted and used. I have found one contemporary official source which explains one route surnames were to be adopted. The orders in council establishing the slave registries in Trinidad (1812) and St Lucia (1814) say that the registers should record the surnames of slaves where they were already in use. Where the slaves did not have surnames they were to be chosen for them by the owner, or person making the return, as they thought fit. Families were to use the name of the ‘superior relation’ (usually the mother) unless there was already a family with that name. If that was the case another name was to be chosen so that ‘no two families on the same plantation, or belonging to the same owner’ had the same surname. These orders further state that these surnames were to be passed onto descendants. If the parents were married the father’s name was to be used, otherwise the mother’s name was to be used. The returns do not show which surnames were already in use when the registers were introduced, or which surnames were chosen for them. Surname practices of slaves and freedmen and women is complicated and can have several origins:
It is interesting to note that surnames of slaves and former slaves reflect those in common use in the parish or in the country, rather than being made up or exotic ones as is common for first names. 1.3.3 Further readingI have not found any guides for African-Caribbean genealogy but these African-American guides provide useful clues and insights.
1.4 What can I find on the Internet?The Internet is an extremely useful resource for family historians, containing personal family histories, databases of primary and secondary sources, reading lists, archive and library catalogues, digital images of documents, discussion groups, introductions to family history, guides to sources and genealogical groups.The first place to start for quick hits is by using your favourite search engines. Start with a simple search, such as your surname or country, and such terms as ‘family history’ or ‘genealogy’ or ‘ancestry’. If you get too many hits you can add the country of origin, or restrict the search to a specific ancestor. If you get too few, try just the surname. Because each search engine has indexed different sites in different ways you should try several search engines. This approach should reveal family historians with an interest in your surname. However, most family history data is held in databases which cannot be found using the normal web based search engines and you will need to search these databases directly from the compilers’ sites. There are many useful sites, far too many to include here, and the number continues to grow. However, I have included a few useful sites in the relevant chapters of the guide. Please note that web site addresses may change and it is important to verify family history information with the original sources.
Discussion groups and newsgroups
1.4.1 General guides on using the internet for family history
1.5 What does the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints hold?The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS), also known as the Mormons, has microfilmed many records which can be used by family historians. These include parish registers, registers of wills, civil registration returns, censuses, military records and publications. They have indexed many millions of birth, baptismal and marriage event from parish registers and submitted entries by their members, which have been published as the International Genealogical Index (IGI) and various Vital Records Listings. The IGI is a most important resource, it is arranged geographically and there is a section for the Caribbean. However, at present most entries for the British West Indies relate to Barbados families, but it is continuously added to. They also have other computerized and online resources. All of these can be seen at their Family History Centres, which if not actually housed at your nearest Centre can be ordered from their main library in Utah. The IGI and many other resources are also available on their website . You can also check their library holdings for every country by the type of record and the location of every Family History Centre. 1.6 Is there anything I should know about using archives and libraries?Most archives and libraries will not carry out research for you. You will need either to visit or arrange for someone to visit on your behalf, which may mean employing a local researcher. Before visiting an archive or arranging for research to be carried out decide what you are looking for and the types of records which may hold that information. Most archival material is not indexed or catalogued beyond the title and asking for information on a specific individual will not usually be fruitful. The records may also be arranged according to who created them rather than by parish, subject or person. For official records they are then usually filed by date. Contact the archive to find out if they are likely to hold the material you want and if they have any other relevant material. Ask about opening hours, location, facilities and access conditions as well. For example, what kind of identification do you need, do you need to book, is there a fee and does it close at lunchtime? If you use a tape recorder or computer ask whether these are allowed and whether power points are available. When using primary sources you should use a graphite pencil. You may be asked not to use an eraser in case documents are damaged. Many popular records, such as registers of baptisms, marriages, burials and wills, have been microfilmed to preserve them and you may find that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has copies which can be ordered through one of their Family History Centres. 1.7 How do I make best use of The National Archives (Public Record Office)?The National Archives (PRO) holds the records of central government departments and the courts of law of the United Kingdom, England and Wales. In general terms the records are arranged first by the department which created, inherited or transferred the records to TNA and, second, by the series, which often represents the type of document, for example musters, government gazettes or correspondence, or records of an internal department or division. The records are then usually arranged chronologically or sequentially by former departmental file references. Each document has a unique three-part reference. The first part is the Department code, for example CO for the Colonial Office, BT for the Board of Trade, and PC for the Privy Council, according to the department which created it. The second part is the Series number, which represents the series within the department code. The third and final part is the Piece number, which represents the individual document. For example the description book for those who enlisted in the 5th West India Regiment, 1811–1817, is WO 25/656, and the 1951 electoral register for Barbados is CO 32/124. To identify the department and series, consult the online catalogue or the printed Current Guide to the Holdings of the PRO. There is no overall index to the records of TNA. The catalogue describes each record title, the detail of which varies greatly from a brief description such as ‘minutes’ to a detailed description of individual letters within a document. The catalogue has a very powerful search engine and you should read the help notes to the catalogue, together with its tips and suggestions, to make best use of it. You cannot usually search for names unless the record of the family or individual makes up a whole file or the description contains more than the document title, for example when the catalogue describes individual letters or papers in a piece. Very few documents are currently available online. There is a programme to digitize and make available popular genealogical series such as registered copy wills (PROB 11) and censuses of England and Wales for 1841 to 1901. In addition, images from the National Archives’ online exhibitions and news items are available. Most images can be seen using Documents Online and the censuses. The National Archives has two offices: all documents, with the exception of the censuses for England and Wales 1841–1891 are held at TNA, Kew. The censuses for England and Wales 1841–1901, non-conformist registers, miscellaneous overseas registers of births, marriages and deaths, and registered wills and administrations granted by the Prerogative Court of Canterbury can be seen at the Family Records Centre (FRC). The Office of National Statistics is also located at the FRC and holds the indexes to births, marriages and deaths for England and Wales from 1837. The National Archives (Public Record Office) Opening hours:
Note that documents may be ordered till 4 p.m. on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays; till 4.30 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays; from 9.30 a.m. to 12 noon and from 1.30 p.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturdays. TNA (PRO) is closed on public holidays, on Saturdays preceding a public holiday and for annual stocktaking (usually for one week in December). You do not need an appointment but you will need to obtain a reader’s ticket. To do so when you first visit TNA please bring with you formal documentary proof of identity. Citizens of Britain and the Republic of Ireland will need to provide a valid cheque card or driver’s licence. If you are not a British citizen you will need to bring your passport or national identity card. If you do not have any of these forms of identity, please contact TNA for advice before visiting. Without a valid reader’s ticket you cannot order documents. You do not need one to visit the Family Records Centre. Family Records Centre The FRC is closed on public holidays and Easter and Christmas weekends. The National Archives does not undertake research. If you are unable to visit, TNA maintains a list of independent professional researchers who for a fee may undertake research on your behalf. Please write enclosing a stamped addressed envelope for researchers on a particular topic; the list is also available on TNA’s website at. Researchers also advertise their services in family history magazines and directories, and on genealogical websites. You may use only graphite pencils in TNA reading rooms. Pens of any kind are not allowed. You may use personal computers, typewriters and tape recorders in most of the reading rooms. 1.7.1 Some general genealogical guides to The National Archives.
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