Breaking through the 1870 brick wall to discover more about ancestors prior to the end of slavery can prove challenging. Changing surnames, families ripped apart, and identifying the former enslaver are just a few roadblocks when researching enslaved families. This session will dive deep into creating a research strategy and organizing the records uncovered. We will also provide tips for making sense of all the information unearthed in the search and constructing a proof argument when records are limited. Best suited for those with intermediate-advanced genealogical skills.

The American War of Independence was not only a fight for freedom from a tyrannical world superpower. For the thousands of Black soldiers who fought for the patriot cause, and even more—tens of thousands—for the Loyalists, emancipation was on the line. In this online lecture, we will provide a brief history of Black soldiers during the Revolutionary War and their motivations for joining either side; and discuss several resources, records, and strategies for piecing together the service and stories of individuals.

There are hundreds of resources available physically and online through the New England Historic Genealogical Society and other New England repositories to assist you with researching African American ancestors. This online lecture will highlight useful collections including court and account records, local histories, original manuscripts, rare documents, and online databases, plus provide advice for searching for less obvious source material in archives and repositories in New England.

Our colonial war ancestors may appear in a variety of sources: militia rolls, payment for services, town records, and manuscript materials such as account books and correspondence. Luckily, many of these materials have been transcribed and published or are available online. This lecture will point you to both original and published records and provide useful tips for evaluating other published materials you may encounter. 

The first Scandinavians arrived in North America nearly 1,000 years ago on Viking ships. Today, an estimated 11 million Americans have Scandinavian ancestry. This webinar will provide an introduction to essential records, repositories, and strategies for exploring your Scandinavian roots, focusing on Norway, Sweden, Denmark, and Finland. You’ll learn how to address challenges in Scandinavian research including language barriers, common names, patronymic surnames, name changes, and more. We will also discuss the historical context that transformed the region and influenced the lives of your ancestors.

American Ancestors has one of the largest collections of genealogical papers in the United States. Learn how these unique items can benefit your genealogical research. We will provide research case studies and highlights from our special collections.

For many living in New England during the 17th through 19th centuries, their livelihood and even survival was inextricably linked to the sea. In this webinar we will provide a brief history of mariners in New England, discuss major ports and sources of industry, highlight key records, and demonstrate how to reconstruct your ancestor’s life on the sea and along the shore.

When we think of Christian records, we may immediately think of baptism and marriage records. While these are crucial records, there are many more! This lecture will look at what records exist, what information is provided, and how they differ among denominations. 

Ireland has a unique and rather confusing system of land divisions, all of which need to be known and understood to effectively and accurately look for your ancestors. 

Unclear as to what date “21 1mo 1708/9” refers to? What about “4 Mary”? While dates are foundational to your family history research, they’re not always straightforward in the record or follow a modern calendar system. This online lecture will go over common calendar systems that you may encounter in your research, discuss how to interpret and record them, and suggest several online conversion tools to understand these dates in familiar terms.