African American Resources for Minnesota

African American Online Genealogy Records

Online Resources

 * 1846-1867 U.S., Freedmen’s Bureau Marriage Records, 1846-1867 at Ancestry.com ($)
 * 1861-1872 United States, Freedmen's Bureau Marriages, 1861-1872 at FamilySearch
 * 1865-1874 Freedman's Bank Records, 1865-1874 at FamilySearch
 * African American Digital Bookshelf - a growing list of digital books on FamilySearch and other websites
 * Discover Freedmen - this site searches all of the Freedmen's Bureau record collections on FamilySearch altogether (and redirects there)
 * Minnesota Digital Archives

Research Strategy

 * Taylor, David Vassar. African Americans in Minnesota Call Number 977.6 F2td (includes index).

History

 * Duluth Lynchings: Background and Chronology
 * African Americans in Minnesota


 * Johnson, Frederick L. Uncertain lives : African Americans and their first 150 years in the Red Wing, Minnesota area. Call number 977.614/R1 F2j (includes bibliographical references and index).
 * Taylor, David Vassar. African Americans in Minnesota Call Number 977.6 F2td (includes index).

African American

 * Duluth Lynchings, 1920 from the Minnesota Historical Society

Cemeteries

 * Minnesota Cemeteries (Find A Grave)

Oral Histories

 * T. Harry Williams Center for Oral History
 * Minnesota Black History Project at the Minnesota Historical Society
 * Our Gathering Places Oral History Project at the Minnesota Historical Society
 * Rondo Oral History Project at the Minnesota Historical Society
 * Oral History Interview with Nettie Sherman at Minnesota Historical Society
 * Oral History Interviews with S. Edward Hall at Minnesota Historical Society

Military Records

 * Board of Commissioners. Minnesota in the Civil and Indian Wars: 1861-1861. St. Paul, Minnesota: Pioneer Press Company, 1890.
 * Minnesota Adjutant General’s Report of 1866. Roseville, Minnesota: Park Genealogical Books, 1997. (Family History Library .) The report lists 26,088 names of men who served during the Civil War period, including citizen soldiers who served in local militias. It gives name, age, state or country of birth, dates of service, and remarks, and is arranged alphabetically. Family history researchers should look at both.

Newspapers

 * Archives.com: Minnesota Obituaries
 * Digital Newspapers at the Minnesota Historical Society

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 master or mistress 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:


 * United States, Freedman's Bank Records, 1865-1874
 * U.S., Freedman's Bank Records, 1865-1871 ($)

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 masters 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:

Other FamilySearch collections not included:


 * Images only. These reports primarily contain statistical and historical information.
 * More collections are available in the FamilySearch Catalog. Search for "FREEDMEN - MINNESOTA" in the Subjects search bar to find.
 * Images only. These reports primarily contain statistical and historical information.
 * More collections are available in the FamilySearch Catalog. Search for "FREEDMEN - MINNESOTA" in the Subjects search bar to find.

Visit the African American Freedmen's Bureau Records page to learn more about utilizing these records.

Marriage
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

 * Minnesota Deaths and Burials, 1835-1990 - information may include name, gender, death date and place, age, birthplace, race, marital status, and parents and their birthplaces

Archives and Libraries
For a list of archives and libraries in Minnesota: Minnesota State Archives and Libraries.

Minnesota State Archives

Minnesota Digital Library University of Minnesota Wilson Library, Room 60 309 19th Avenue South Minneapolis, MN 55455 Phone: 612-624-4002

Societies
Minnesota Historical Society 345 W. Kellogg Blvd. St. Paul, MN 55102 Phone: 651-259-3000