Fifth Annual African-American Research Series Held in Salt Lake City

As part of Black History Month, the fifth annual African-American Research Series was held on February 10 at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah. Co-sponsored by the Utah chapter of the Afro-American Historical and Genealogical Society (AAHGS) and the Family History Library, the series focused on the tools available to individuals working on genealogy involving those of African-American descent. In recent years many new genealogical resources have become available to the African-American community. Such resources include the 1880 United States Census—one of the first censuses to include former slaves—and Freedman's Bank Records, which contain information on those who deposited money in Freedman's Bank. Millions of African-Americans living today can trace their roots back to customers of the bank. Workshops focused on everything from the basics, like how to begin African-American research, to the more complex aspects of genealogical work, such as the power that DNA holds to discover relationships. Library staff and volunteers were available to assist series participants in research. Although genealogical work is done for various reasons, Phyllis Caruth, AAHGS chapter president, saw the series as a way to introduce Utah's African-American community and others to the resources that are available to help "preserve the heritage of Utah's community of African and African-American descent." Even with today's technological advances, many may not know of their heritage. For keynote speaker Pastor France A. Davis of the Calvary Baptist Church in Salt Lake City, that causes a problem. "It seems to me that one of the important reasons for keeping track of our own heritage, our own histories, our own families, is so that the people who come along behind us will be able to find out, to relate to, and make sense out of where they have come from," Davis said in his address. "I'm one of those who believes that if you don't know where you come from, you will miss wherever it is that you're trying to go. You'll never really get anywhere unless you know where you have come from." Even if one does not fully understand the technology of genealogical research, the simple, old-school method of storytelling can pass down one's heritage. For centuries, storytelling has been successfully used to pass down the history and traditions of civilizations, and it is something that everyone should do, Davis said. "I think we ought to take a proactive approach. We should sit our children down and tell them the story." Those interested in working on their genealogy or learning more about genealogical work can visit www.familysearch.org. © 2007 Intellectual Reserve, Inc. All rights reserved.