African American Resources for Delaware

African American Online Genealogy Records

Online Resources
Record Collections

Discover Freedmen - this site searches all of the Freedmen's Bureau record collections on FamilySearch altogether (and redirects there) 1800-1932 Delaware, Birth Records, 1800-1932 at Ancestry ($) 1815-1955 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection  1846-1867 U.S., Freedmen’s Bureau Marriage Records, 1846-1867 at Ancestry ($) 1861-1872 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection  1865-1872 at FamilySearch; images — How to Use this Collection  1865-1874 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection  1913-1954 at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection </li> African American Digital Bookshelf - a growing list of digital books on FamilySearch and other websites</li>

Digital Archives

Slavery Collection, 1749-1929 at Delaware Historical Society-Digital Collections</li>

History
Black Americans in Delaware: An Overview</li>

Census Records
Selected African Americans in Delaware, 1890 U.S. Census - lists name, occupation, enumeration district, and residence. Ancestry</li>
 * List of selected African Americans from the 1890 and 1900 Federal population censuses of Delaware and related census publications; agriculture in the state of Delaware (1901) and Negroes in the United States (1904) : M1919; Record Group (RG) 29; Record Group (RG) 287 FamilySearch Catalog

Church Records
A few parish registers list slaves who attended church with their enslavers (see Church Records).

Land and Property
Slaves in Delaware are sometimes mentioned in deeds (see Land and Property).

Law and Legislation

 * State slavery statutes:Delaware, ca. 1790-1865 (13 fiche) FHL 6118904

Military Records
[https://catalog.archives.gov/id/2802316 List of African American Men from the State of Delaware, 1864-1865. NAID 2802316 - National Archives]</li>

Newspapers

 * Last Seen: Finding Family After Slavery

Probate Records
Slaves in Delaware are sometimes mentioned in wills (see Probate Records).

Delaware: Enslaved and Free Persons, and Slaveholders is a database of enslaved and free persons extracted from Sussex County, Delaware will books from 1836-1851, with ongoing updates. Slaveholders occasionally provided surnames or exact birthdates in their wills.

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 enslaver 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:


 * at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection
 * U.S., Freedman's Bank Records, 1865-1871 at Ancestry ($)

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 enslavers 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:


 * DiscoverFreedmen - the search on this site will utilize all of the Freedmen's Bureau records on FamilySearch, including:
 * at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection
 * at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection
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Other FamilySearch collections not included:


 * at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection
 * at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection
 * at FamilySearch; Images — How to Use this Collection
 * at FamilySearch; Images — How to Use this Collection

Slavery Records
Slaves in Delaware are sometimes mentioned in deeds (see Land and Property), in wills (see Probate Records), in tax records (see Taxation), and in court order books (see the Court Records pages of these Delaware Wiki pages). A few parish registers list slaves who attended church with their enslavers (see Church Records). For more information about slaves see the Place Search of the FamilySearch Catalog under:


 * DELAWARE - MINORITIES


 * DELAWARE - COLONIZATION


 * DELAWARE - EMIGRATION AND IMMIGRATION

Birth

 * Delaware, Birth Records, 1800-1932 at Ancestry ($) - information usually includes name; birth date and place; gender; race; father's name, age, occupation, and birth place; mother's name, age, and birthplace; and child's number in the family

Marriage

 * at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection

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

 * at FamilySearch — How to Use this Collection

Societies
Jane and Littleton Mitchell Center for African American Heritage Delaware Historical Society 504 N. Market Street Wilmington, Delaware, 19801 Phone: (302)656-0637 Website: Center for African American Heritage Slavery Collection, 1749-1929