African American Resources for New Hampshire

African American Online Genealogy Records

Online Resources
1846-1867 U.S., Freedmen’s Bureau Marriage Records, 1846-1867 at Ancestry ($) 1861-1872 United States, Freedmen's Bureau Marriages, 1861-1872 at FamilySearch 1865-1874 Freedman's Bank Records, 1865-1874 at FamilySearch African American Digital Bookshelf - a growing list of digital books on FamilySearch and other websites Discover Freedmen - this site searches all of the Freedmen's Bureau record collections on FamilySearch altogether (and redirects there)

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. These reports primarily contain statistical and historical information.
 * More collections are available in the FamilySearch Catalog. Search for "FREEDMEN - NEW HAMPSHIRE" in the Subjects search bar to find.
 * Images only. These reports primarily contain statistical and historical information.
 * More collections are available in the FamilySearch Catalog. Search for "FREEDMEN - NEW HAMPSHIRE" in the Subjects search bar to find.

Visit the African American Freedmen's Bureau Records page to learn more about utilizing these records.

Birth

 * New Hampshire Birth Records, Early to 1900 - information may include name, birth date and place, gender, race, living or stillborn, number of child, and parents’ name, birthplace, race, age, residence, and occupation
 * New Hampshire Birth Certificates, 1901-1915 - lists name, birth date and place, gender, race, living or stillborn, no. of child, and parents’ name, birthplace, race, age, residence, and occupation

Marriage

 * New Hampshire Marriage Records, 1637-1947
 * New Hampshire Marriage Certificates, 1948-1959

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

Death

 * New Hampshire Death Records, 1654-1947 - information may include name, death date and place, age, birth date and place, age, gender, race, marital status, occupation, cause of death, and parents’ name, birthplace, and occupation
 * New Hampshire Death Certificates, 1938-1959 - lists name, death place, gender, race, marital status, spouse, birthdate, age, birthplace, occupation, parents and their birthplaces, and burial date and place

Societies
Seacoast African American Cultural Center 10 Middle Street Portsmouth, NH 03801 Phone: (603) 430-6027