Today Ancestry®, the global leader in family history, has announced the publication of approximately 38,000 newspaper articles related to enslaved people in the United States from 1788-1867. Featuring details on more than 183,000 formerly enslaved people, the new free collection could help millions of descendants discover more about their families. This collection is the latest step in Ancestry’s commitment to make culturally significant history that is at risk of being forgotten available to everyone at no cost.
To help contextualize the African American experience during the period of enslavement, Ancestry turned to experts, academics, and historians like Dr. Karcheik Sims-Alvarado, Assistant Professor of Africana Studies at Morehouse College.
“Greater access to these records on Ancestry will enhance understanding of how chattel slavery and the forced movement of enslaved people became normalized in the United States,” shared Dr. Sims-Alvarado.
“This collection is invaluable for providing descendants of enslaved individuals with insights into their ancestral histories and their forebears’ acts of resistance and resilience, despite the Emancipation Proclamation being largely ignored by enslavers, newspaper publishers, and lawmakers. By piecing together individual stories, researchers can construct a more detailed picture of the lived experiences of Black Americans, enriching our collective understanding of history.”
Read the full press release at APNews.com