United States, Freedmen's Bureau, Records of the Assistant Commissioner - FamilySearch Historical Records

United States

Why Should I Look at This Collection?
The United States Freedmen's Bureau, records of the Office of the Assistant Commissioner identifies African Americans who sought help from the Bureau at the end of the Civil War. Most supplicants were freed slaves, some of which were military veterans. In addition, a few veterans who were not African Americans also sought help from the Bureau. Freedmen’s Bureau records are usually reliable, because the records were supplied through first-person correspondence or the recording of a marriage.The following link will provide a description of the record types found in this and other Freedmen’s Bureau collections. Freedmen's Bureau Record Types

Administrative Histories
 * Office of the Assistant Commissioner Alabama
 * Office of the Assistant Commissioner Arkansas
 * Office of the Assistant Commissioner District of Columbia
 * Office of the Assistant Commissioner Florida
 * Office of the Assistant Commissioner Georgia
 * Office of the Assistant Commissioner Kentucky
 * Office of the Assistant Commissioner Louisiana
 * Office of the Assistant Commissioner Maryland
 * Office of the Assistant Commissioner Mississippi
 * Office of the Assistant Commissioner North Carolina
 * Office of the Assistant Commissioner South Carolina
 * Office of the Assistant Commissioner Texas
 * Office of the Assistant Commissioner Virginia

What is in This Collection?
The collection consists of images of records of the Assistant Commissioner of the Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned Lands (often called the Freedmen’s Bureau) which was established in the War Department in March of 1865. It was commonly called the Freedman’s Bureau and was responsible for the management and supervision of matters relating to refuges, freedmen, and abandoned lands. The Bureau assisted disenfranchised Americans, primarily African Americans, with legal and financial matters including the distributing of food and clothing; operating temporary medical facilities; acquiring  military benefits such as back pay, bounty payments, and pensions; facilitating the creation of schools, including the founding of Howard University; reuniting family members; handling marriages; and providing banking services. Banking services were provided by the establishment of the Freedman’s Saving and Trust Company, or Freedman’s Bank. The intent of the Bureau was to help people to become self-sufficient. The Bureau functioned as an agency of the War Department from approximately June 1865 until December 1868, and assisted over one million African Americans, including many of the nearly four million emancipated slaves, which was over 25% of the population of former slaves in America. In 1872, the functions of the Bureau were transferred to the Freedmen’s Branch of the Adjutant General’s Office.

These records include, letters and registers of letters sent and received, reports, endorsements, telegrams, issuances, account books, applications for rations, applications for relief, court records, labor contracts, registers of bounty claimants, registers of complaints, registers of contracts, registers of disbursements, registers of freedmen issued rations, registers of patients, reports, rosters of officers and employees, special and general orders and circulars received, special orders and circulars issued, records relating to claims, court trials, property restoration, and homesteads.

This collection corresponds with the following NARA microfilm publications:
 * Alabama, M809
 * Arkansas, M979
 * District of Columbia, M1055
 * Georgia, M798
 * Louisiana, M1027
 * Mississippi, M826
 * North Carolina M843
 * South Carolina, M869
 * Tennessee, M999
 * Texas, M821
 * Virginia, M1048
 * Florida, M1869

Filmed with the Florida Assistant Commissioner Records:
 * Florida, Field Office Records
 * Records with Freedmen and Refugee Names:
 * Reports: Roll 9, Monthly Reports of Abandoned or Confiscated Lands
 * Reports: Roll 10, Unregistered Monthly Reports of Homesteads Located by Bureau Agents
 * Other Records, Rolls Records Relating to Restoration of Property
 * Other Records, Roll 11, Applications of Freedmen for Rations, Acre-Owens
 * Other Records, Roll 12, Applications of Freedmen for Rations, Page-Young
 * Claims Agent, Roll 14, Register of Bounty Claimants
 * Jacksonville, Roll 14, Register of Freedmen Issued Rations
 * Quincy, Roll 15, Register of Freedmen Issued Rations
 * Tallahassee, Roll 15, Records Relating to Court Trials; Register of Freedmen Issued Rations

For additional information about the Freedman's Bureau and the microfilm publications included in this collection visit the African American Records: Freedmen's Bureau page of the NARA African American Heritage Collection.

What Can This Collection Tell Me?
The records usually include:
 * Name of the freedman
 * Name of the freedman’s former owner
 * Date of the record
 * Birthplace
 * Residence
 * Age
 * Document dates

How Do I Search This Collection?
You can search the index, view the images or both. Before using this collection, it is helpful to know: To begin your search, it is helpful to know one or more of the following:
 * The name of your ancestor.
 * The approximate age of your ancestor.
 * The place where your ancestor lived.
 * The name of the former slave owner.

Search the Index
Search by name by visiting the Collection Page.
 * 1) Fill in the search boxes on the Collection Page with the information you have
 * 2) Click Search to show possible matches

View the Images
'''View images in this collection by visiting the Browse Page then select the appropriate "NARA Roll Number-Contents".

How Do I Analyze the Results?
Compare each result from your search with what you know to determine if there is a match. This may require viewing multiple records or images.

I Found the Person I Was Looking For, What Now?

 * Add any new information to your records
 * Check the image the index was taken from to see if there is additional information that could lead you to additional records or family members (Witnesses or bondsmen were usually relatives)
 * Make sure to fully transcribe and cite the record entry for future reference; see the section Citing this Collection for assistance. Save or print a copy of the image
 * Use the age to calculate a birth date and to find other records such as birth, christening, census, land and death records
 * Repeat this process with additional family members found, to find more generations of the family
 * Church Records often were kept years before government records were required and are a good source for finding ancestors before 1900.

I Can’t Find the Person I’m Looking For, What Now?

 * Try viewing the original record to see if there were errors in the transcription of the name, age, residence, etc.
 * Remember that there may be more than one person in the records with the same name.
 * Collect entries for every person who has the same surname to help you identify possible relations
 * Try searching records of a nearby locality in an area search
 * Try variations of your ancestor’s name while searching the index or browsing through images
 * Former slaves may have had used multiple names or changed their names until they decided upon one particular name; search all possible names along with variations or spellings of their known names
 * Remember that sometimes individuals went by nicknames or alternated between using first and middle names; try searching for these names as well.
 * Search the indexes and records of United States Genealogy.
 * Search in the United States Archives and Libraries.

Related FamilySearch Historical Records Collection Articles

 * Alabama, Freedmen's Bureau Field Office Records (FamilySearch Historical Records)
 * Arkansas, Field Offices Records of the Freedmen's Bureau (FamilySearch Historical Records)
 * District of Columbia, Freedmen's Bureau Records (FamilySearch Historical Records)
 * Georgia, Freedmen's Bureau Field Office Records (FamilySearch Historical Records)
 * Kentucky, Freedmen's Bureau Records (FamilySearch Historical Records)
 * Louisiana, Freedmen's Bureau Records (FamilySearch Historical Records)
 * Mississippi, Freedmen's Bureau Field Office Records (FamilySearch Historical Records)
 * Missouri, Freedmen's Bureau Records (FamilySearch Historical Records)
 * North Carolina, Freedmen Bureau Field Office Records (FamilySearch Historical Records)
 * South Carolina, Freedmen Bureau Field Office Records (FamilySearch Historical Records)
 * Tennessee, Freedmen's Bureau Records (FamilySearch Historical Records)
 * Texas, Freedmen's Bureau Field Office Records (FamilySearch Historical Records)
 * Virginia, Freedmen's Bureau Records (FamilySearch Historical Records)
 * United States Freedmen’s Branch Records (FamilySearch Historical Records)
 * United States, Freedmen's Bureau, Records of the Commissioner (FamilySearch Historical Records)
 * United States, Records of the Superintendent of Education and of the Division of Education (FamilySearch Historical Records)

Citing This Collection
Citations help you keep track of places you have searched and sources you have found. Identifying your sources helps others find the records you used.


 * Collection Citation:


 * Collection Citation:

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