African American Resources for District of Columbia



Introduction
The following resources are useful for researching African Americans in the District of Columbia.

Online Resources
Record Collections
 * Discover Freedmen - this site searches all of the Freedmen's Bureau record collections on FamilySearch altogether (and redirects there)
 * Freedman's Bank Records, 1865-1874
 * U.S., Freedmen's Bureau Records of Field Offices, 1863-1878 ($)
 * United States, Freedmen's Bureau Marriages, 1861-1872
 * U.S., Freedmen’s Bureau Marriage Records, 1846-1867 ($)
 * Images only
 * Freedmen's Bureau Field Office Records, 1865-1872 Images only
 * Images only
 * Washington, D.C., Slave Emancipation Records, 1851-1863 ($)
 * Washington, D.C., Slave Owner Petitions, 1862-1863 ($)
 * Washington D.C., Ex-Slave Pension Correspondence and Case Files, 1892-1922 ($)
 * Images only
 * Washington, D.C., Slave Emancipation Records, 1851-1863 ($)
 * Washington, D.C., Slave Owner Petitions, 1862-1863 ($)
 * Washington D.C., Ex-Slave Pension Correspondence and Case Files, 1892-1922 ($)
 * Washington D.C., Ex-Slave Pension Correspondence and Case Files, 1892-1922 ($)

Digital Archives
 * Moorland-Springarn Research Center

History

 * DC Emancipation Day - learn more about the history of slavery in the District of Columbia
 * Avoice: the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation's Virtual Library Project.
 * Sherman's Directory and Ready Reference of the Colored Population in the District of Columbia. Washington: Sherman Directory Company. [1913] 1 v. Micro 54541 L of C

Biographies

 * Caldwell, A.B., editor. History of the American Negro, Washington, D. C. Edition. Volume 6. Atlanta, Georgia: A.B. Caldwell Publishing Co., 1922. Digital version at Internet Archive. Biographies of many prominent black men and women of Washington, D.C.
 * Brown, Letitia Woods. Free Negroes in the District of Columbia, 1790-1846. - New York: Oxford University Press, 1972. 226 p. (The Urban Live in America Series) E185.D6 B69

Cemeteries

 * Colombian Harmony Cemetery Records, District of Columbia. 1831-1899. By Paul E. Sluby, Sr. for the Harmony Society. Washington, D.C. - [Washington]: Sluby, [197-?] - 357 leaves. F193 S58 FHL Book 975.3/W1 V22s
 * The Old Methodist Burying Ground, Georgetown, Washington, D.C.: a section of the Mt. Zion Cemetery as distinguished from the adjacent Female Union Band Society Burying Ground section. By Paul E. Sluby, Sr. -: [S,1.}: Sluby, 1975. - 70 p. FF193 S583 FHL Book 975 Al #7
 * Woodlawn Cemetery, Washington, DC : Brief history and inscriptions / compiled by Paul E. Sluby, Sr.; edited by Stanton L. Wormley. - Washington: Columbian Harmony Society, 1984. 70 leaves F193. S585 1984 FHL Book 975.3 V38s

Emancipation Records

 * Images only - records include emancipation papers, fugitive slave case papers, petitions, court minutes, and manumission papers
 * Washington, D.C., Slave Emancipation Records, 1851-1863 ($)

Newspapers

 * The Bee Full-text of this African American D.C. newspaper digitized and hosted online by the Library of Congress. Covers 1882-1884.

Freedman’s Bank
An excellent source is the Freedman’s Savings and Trust Company (visit the African American Freedman's Savings and Trust Company Records page to learn more). This company was created to assist African American soldiers of the Civil War and freed slaves. Freedman’s Savings and Trust Company signature cards or registers from 3 March 1865 to 25 July 1874 may list the name of the depositor, date of entry, age, birthplace, residence, complexion, name of employer or occupation, wife or husband’s name, death information, children’s names, name of father and mother, brothers’ and sisters’ names, remarks, and signature. Early books sometimes contained the name of the former master or mistress and the name of the plantation. Copies of death certificates were sometimes attached to the entries. The collection is organized alphabetically by state, then city where the bank was located, then date the account was established, then account number.

Online collections of Freedman's Bank records:
 * United States, Freedman's Bank Records, 1865-1874
 * U.S., Freedman's Bank Records, 1865-1871 ($)

Freedmen's Bureau
The Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned Lands was created by the US government in 1865 until 1872 to assist former slaves in the southern United States. The Bureau created a wide variety of records extremely valuable to genealogists. Such documents include censuses, marriage records, and medical records. These records often include full names, former masters and plantations, and current residences. For 1865 and 1866, the section on abandoned and confiscated lands includes the names of the owners of the plantations or homes that were abandoned, confiscated, or leased. It gives the county and location, a description of the house, the number of acres owned, and the number of cabins of former slaves. These films do not appear to contain the names of former slaves.

To find Freedmen's Bureau records:

Other FamilySearch collections not included:
 * DiscoverFreedmen - the search on this site will utilize all of the Freedmen's Bureau records on FamilySearch, including:
 * Images only.
 * Images only. These reports primarily contain statistical and historical information.
 * Images only. These reports primarily contain statistical and historical information.
 * Images only. These reports primarily contain statistical and historical information.

Slavery Records

 * Images only - records include emancipation papers, fugitive slave case papers, petitions, court minutes, and manumission papers
 * Christine's Genealogy Website - an indexed transcription of the "Manumission Papers, 1857-1863" portion of the above collection
 * Washington, D.C., Slave Emancipation Records, 1851-1863 ($)
 * Washington, D.C., Slave Owner Petitions, 1862-1863 ($)
 * Washington D.C., Ex-Slave Pension Correspondence and Case Files, 1892-1922 ($)
 * Washington D.C., Habeas Corpus Case Records, 1820-1863 ($)

Birth

 * - information usually includes name, gender, birth date and place, race, and parents and their birthplaces

Marriage
The Freedmen's Bureau (1865-1872) was created by the US government to assist former slaves in the southern United States. One of their responsibilities was to record the marriages (past and present) of the former slaves. These records can be found in the collections below and include the lists of marriages that occurred previously, marriage certificates, and marriage licenses. The information contained on the records may include the name of the husband and wife/groom and bride, age, occupation, residence, year or date of marriage, by whom, number of children, and remarks.
 * United States, Freedmen's Bureau Marriages, 1861-1872
 * U.S., Freedmen’s Bureau Marriage Records, 1846-1867


 * Index only - information usually includes the bride and groom's name, age, race, and marital status and the marriage date and place

Death

 * Index only - information usually includes name, death date and place, burial date and place, gender, age, birth date and place, race, marital status, spouse, and parents and their birthplaces
 * - information usually includes name, death date and place, gender, age, race, marital status, occupation, birthplace, parents' birthplaces, and cause of death