YEARS
YEARS OLD
YEARS OLD WHO ARE TRANSITIONING OUT OF STATE CUSTODY OR OUT OF FOSTER HOMES. GENEOLOGY IS A
PERFECT INDOOR ACTIVITY WHICH
EXPLAINS ITS BOOMING POPULARITY
DURING THE PANDEMIC AROUND
BRANDON LEWIS STARTED
RESEARCHING HIS OWN ANCESTORS
FOR BLACK HISTORY MONTH AND
MADE SOME UNEXPECTED FINDINGS.
TONIGHT HE SHOWS US HOW YOU CAN
ALSO GET STARTED THE JOURNEY
THROUGH MY FAMILY'S HISTORY
TOOK ME FROM THE BEACHES
OF BARBADOS TO ELLIS ISLAND AND
THE STREETS OF HARLEM ALL
WITHOUT EVER LEAVING MY HOME.
IT STARTED LIKE MANY HOBBIES
WITH TOO MUCH TIME ON MY HANDS
DURING THE PANDEMIC A GOOD TIME
BECAUSE THE SAN DIEGO LIBRARY
MADE ITS ANCESTRY.COM RESOURCES
AVAILABLE FOR EVERYONE AT HOME
FOR NO COST. THE SECRET IS TO
START WITH YOURSELF AND YOUR
PARENTS AND WHAT YOU KNOW AND
FROM PARENTS AND RELATIVES WHAT
THEY KNOW. KEN ROBINSON IS A
MEMBER OF THE SAN DIEGO
GENEALOGICAL SOCIETY WHO
NORMALLY VOLUNTEERS THE LIBRARY
TO HELP PEOPLE GET STARTED
USING THEIR VAST RESOURCES.
IT'S WONDERFUL TO HELP THEM DO
THAT AND IT'S ALSO FOR THEM
IT'S EITHER TEARS OR JUST
EXCITEMENT THAT IT'S LIKE OH MY
GOSH, I DIDN'T KNOW THAT THE
VOLUNTEERS ARE OFF DURING THE
PANDEMIC SO I STARTED ON MY OWN
WITH MY PATERNAL GRANDMOTHER
WHO CAME THROUGH ELLIS ISLAND
RECORDS SHOW MY GREAT
GRANDFATHER GOT A JOB WORKING
ON A SHIP TO BRING THE FAMILY
FROM BARBADOS TO THE U.S. AND
SETTLED IN HARLEM. THEN I GO
BACK EVEN FURTHER TRACING SOME
RELATIVES THROUGH 200 YEARS
OF BAPTISMAL RECORDS WHICH WERE
EVEN BETTER THAN GOVERNMENT
DATA. BUT NOT EVERY FAMILY,
ESPECIALLY AFRICAN-AMERICAN
FAMILIES HAVE DETAILED RECORDS.
THE REASON BEING IS WE WERE
CONSIDERED CHATTEL DURING
SLAVERY AND SO BEING PROPERTY
WE WEREN'T NECESSARILY LISTED
ON THE CENSUS REPORTS
EVAPORATOR RUNS A LOCAL
GENEALOGY SERVICE THAT HELPS
AFRICAN-AMERICAN FAMILIES TRACE
THEIR ROOTS. OUR HISTORY IS
DIFFERENT AND WHILE WEBSITES
LIKE THE LIBRARIES ANCESTRY
SERVICE ARE CATCHING UP, THEY
DON'T ALWAYS HAVE THE RECORDS
WHERE OUR ANCESTORS ARE LISTED.
WE HAVE THE TAX RECORDS. WE
HAVE AGRICULTURAL RECORDS, WE
HAVE SLAVE MANIFEST RECORDS AND
AND INTEREST IN WILLS FOR ME.
THE TRAIL WENT COLD AT 1704, A
POSSIBLE SHIP RECORD OF AN
ANCESTOR WHO MAY HAVE TRAVELED
FROM LIVERPOOL TO WHAT WAS THEN
A NEW ENGLISH COLONY
OF BARBADOS. BUT I WASN'T SURE
THAT WAS RIGHT AND TURNED TO A
DNA TEST THAT CAN HELP FILL IN
THE PUZZLE EXCEPT IT PRODUCED
SOME PUZZLING RESULTS ON MY
PATERNAL FAMILY DID LIVE FOR
THE LAST 200 YEARS IN BARBADOS
.IT TURNS OUT I'M ONLY ABOUT
10 PERCENT AFRICAN MORE THAN 40
PERCENT OF MY ANCESTRY IS
ACTUALLY FROM HALFWAY AROUND
THE WORLD SOMEWHERE IN
NORTHEAST INDIA OR BANGLADESH,
A REGION I NEVER WOULD HAVE
LOOKED INTO. I ALSO FOUND 11
PERCENT NATIVE AMERICAN AND NO
SURPRISE 30 PERCENT SPANISH
GIVEN MY PUERTO RICAN HERITAGE
AND DOES REALLY HELP THE DNA IS
JUST ONE OF THOSE THINGS. IT'S
JUST ONE MORE TOOL BUT YOU
REALLY HAVE TO DO THE PAPERWORK
AND LOOK AT THE ALL THE PAPER
RECORDS OUT THERE. AT SOME
POINT YOU'LL REACH THE LIMIT
OF WHAT YOUR LOCAL RECORDS TOLD
THEN THAT MEANS YOU MAY HAVE TO
PLAN A HERITAGE TRIP FOR ME
THAT COULD MEAN A TRIP TO
BARBADOS OR EVEN NORTHEAST
INDIA IF I COULD EVER NAIL DOWN
A LOCATION. OTHER
AFRICAN-AMERICANS HAVE HAD LUCK
ON THE PAPER TRAIL AND I
ACTUALLY WENT TO NORTH CAROLINA
AND I WAS TOLD BY THE LIBRARIAN
THAT I WAS EXACTLY WHERE THE
LAND WAS OWNED BY MY GREAT
GREAT GRANDMOTHER AND I DIDN'T
REALIZE THAT UNTIL I WENT TO
THE LIBRARY WITH TRAVEL LIMITED
BY THE PANDEMIC YOU COULD ALSO
CONNECT WITH OTHERS SEARCHING
FOR THEIR RELATIVES. THERE ARE
MANY SOCIAL MEDIA PAGES
DEDICATED TO EXCHANGING
INFORMATION WITH PEOPLE AROUND
THE WORLD WHICH IS WHERE
PORTMORE SUGGESTED I TRY FIRST
AND IT JUST STARTS BUILDING AND
THERE'S SO MUCH INFORMATION AND
IT JUST ONE LEAD LEADS TO
ANOTHER. THE BEST PART IS IT'S