Recovering Enslaved Ancestors Using Probate Records

The first step to restoring ancestors to history is to discover their names. The names of enslaved people were obscured by their legal status. But they are most often found when an enslaver dies and the debts and assets of the estate are laid out. Those materials, formerly locked inside wills and estate packets within courthouse vaults and archives, are now often easy to find online. If you can locate and read the records, you can find the names of many enslaved people and often other details about them. Find out how! This presentation was originally given along with a segment on bills of sale for the enslaved at last year's (2020) virtual AAHGS (Afro-American Historical and Genealogical Society) Conference.