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African-American genealogy program set
YOUNGSTOWN
African-American genealogy will be the topic of a 6:30 p.m. Feb. 28 program at the East Side Library of the Public Library of Youngstown and Mahoning County, 430 Early Road.
The program, offered by Tim Seman, genealogy and local history librarian, is new to the library’s Black History Month events series. It will focus on the unique challenges in researching African-American family history.
The biggest challenge can be summed up in one word: “slavery,” Seman said.
“In many cases, there simply isn’t a documentary record,” he noted.
“Usually, slaves aren’t even mentioned by name, other than maybe a given name, but they didn’t have surnames. Marriages were not legally recognized,” among slaves, he explained.
The program’s co-presenter will be Judy Williams of Youngstown, an African-American library genealogy program volunteer, who has traced her ancestors, many of them free-born, to the 1630s in Virginia colony.
The program will cover the process of using U.S. Census records, starting with 1940, the most recent census from which individually identifiable information is publicly available, and working backward in 10-year increments to the slave schedules in the 1860 and 1850 censuses.
Other sources include records of those who served in the Union Army’s Colored Regiments during the Civil War; the Freedmen’s Bureau and Freedmen’s Bank records from the post-Civil War Reconstruction era; the wills of slaveholders, who freed their slaves upon the slaveholder’s death; and the baptismal, marriage and death records of churches.
Some church records may have been transferred to public or university libraries or historical or genealogical societies for safekeeping, Seman noted.
Census records can help families trace the early 20th century movement of African Americans from the South to work in Youngstown-area steel mills, Seman observed.
“You start with what you currently know, and you begin working backward,” Seman said, comparing genealogical research to detective work.
“It is important to a community to recognize and value the experiences and the history of all of its members; and this is an opportunity for us to help people discover what their own ancestors have contributed to their history,” said Josephine Nolfi, library programming director.
Genealogy volunteers are available from 1 to 4 p.m. each Thursday at main library to help patrons with individual research questions.
To register for the genealogy program at East Library, call 330-744-8636 and ask for the information services department.
While adults and teenagers are attending the Feb. 28 East Library genealogy program, a separate program there for school-age children, titled “Proud to Be Me,” will offer stories and crafts that celebrate community diversity.
These programs will conclude a series of Black History Month events and activities at various local library branches.
Other major events in the series are three appearances by Andrea Davis Pinkney, a New York Times best-selling author, who has written more than 30 books for children and young adults, including picture books, novels and historical fiction and non-fiction.
Her appearances will be at 10 a.m. Friday at the Austintown Library, 600 S. Raccoon Road, and at 1 p.m. that day at the Newport Library, 3730 Market St., and at 11 a.m. Saturday at main library, 305 Wick Ave.
Also at the main library on Saturday will be a noon program, in which families will make their own drums and other musical instruments.
At 12:30 p.m., Sogbety Diomande, an Ivory Coast native living in Mansfield, will give an interactive performance that will include drumming, dance, colorful costumes and songs. Admission is free to all events.