African American Migration

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United States

African American Genealogy

Migration

African American Online Genealogy Records

African American Migration

A record of major migrations of African Americans and precipitating events.

American Revolution

Enslaved Americans migrated to Canada in search of freedom after the American Revolution See: Africans in Canada

Emigration to Canada

• A north-side view of slavery : the refugee, or, The narratives of fugitive slaves in Canada related by themselves, with an account of the history and condition of the colored population of Upper Canada, by Benjamin Drew. Boston: John P. Jewett and Company, 1856. Online at FamilySearch Digital Library
• Black refugees in Canada : accounts of escape during the era of slavery, by George Hendrick. Jefferson, McFarland & Co., 2010. FS Catalog book 971 H6h; At various libraries (WorldCat)
• The Refugees from Slavery in Canada West. Report to the Freedmen's Inquiry Commission, by S.G. Howe. Boston: Wright & Potter, printers, 1864.
• Freedmen's Inquiry Commission
• The underground railroad : next stop, *Toronto! by Adrienne Shadd, Afua Cooper and Karolyn Smardz Frost. Toronto, Ontario : Natural Heritage Books, c2002. FS Catalog book 971.3541 F2sa; At various libraries (WorldCat)

Underground Railroad

• Underground Railroad National Historical Park - Selected Routes of the Underground Railroad. NAID 33754822 - National Archives
• National Scenic Byway- Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad (Maryland) NAID 68886418 - National Archives
• Freedom on the Move. A database of fugitives from American Slavery. Cornell University
• The Underground Railroad : a Record of Facts, Authentic Narratives, letters, &c., Narrating the Hardships, Hair-breadth Escapes, and Death Struggles of the Slaves in their Efforts for Freedom, as Related by Themselves and Others or Witnessed by the Author : Together With Sketches of Some of the largest Stockholders and most Liberal Aiders and Advisers of the Road, by William Still, Philadelphia: Porter & Coates, 1872.] Online at Internet Archive

Network to Freedom - National Park Service

• Network to Freedom - Index
• Underground Timeline
• Underground Railroad Map
• People,Places,Stories
• Underground Railroad Terminology

• Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad - National Historical Park Maryland

Reference Sources

• Encyclopedia of the Underground Railroad, by J. Blaine Hudson. Jefferson, North Carolina : McFarland & Co., 2006. FS Catalog Book 973 H26hj. At various libraries (WorldCat)
• Reminiscences of Levi Coffin, the Reputed President of the Underground Railroad : being a brief history of the labors of a lifetime in behalf of the slave, with the stories of numerous fugitives, who gained their freedom through his instrumentality, and many other incidents, by Levi Coffin. Cincinnati, Ohio : Western Tract Society, 1876. Online at FamilySearch Digital Library; Also at various libraries (WorldCat)
• The Liberty Line : The legend of the Underground Railroad, by Larry Gara, Lexington, Kentucky : University of Kentucky Press, 1961. FS Catalog Book 973 F2ag; At various libraries (WorldCat)
• The Underground Railroad, by William Still. reprint of 1871 ed. New York, New York : Arno Press, 1968. FS Catalog Book 973 F2asL; At various locations (WorldCat)
• The Underground Railroad from slavery to freedom, by Wilbur H. Siebert. Reprint of 1898 ed. North Stratford, New Hampshire : Ayer Pub. Co., 2000. Online at Internet Archive
• Encyclopedia of Antislavery and Abolition. by Peter Hinks and John McKivigan, eds., R. Owen Williams, assistant Ed., , Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press, 2007. FS Catalog Books 326.803 H593e vols. 1-2; At various libraries (WorldCat)

State and Local Source

District of Columbia

• District of Columbia D.C. Department of Corrections runaway slave book, 1848-1863 : U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia fugitive slave cases, 1862-1863, by Jerry M. Hynson. Westminster, Maryland : Willow Bend Books, 1999. FS Catalog Book 975.3 F2hj

Illinois

• The Underground Railroad in Illinois, by Glennette Tilley Turnr. Glen Ellyn, Illinois: Newman Educational Pub., 2001. FS Catalog Book 977.3 H2tg; At various libraries (WorldCat)
• The Underground Railroad in Western Illinois, by Owen W. Muelder. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Co., 2008. FS Catalog Book 977.3 H2mo; At various libraries (WorldCat)

Kentucky

• Fugitive Slaves and the Underground Railroad in the Kentucky Borderland, by J. Blaine Hudson. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Co., 2002. FS Catalog Book 976.9 F2h; At various libraries (WorldCat)

New Jersey

• The Underground Railroad: Ties that Bound Unveiled ; a History of the Underground Railroad in Southern New Jersey from 1770 to 1861. by Emma Marie Trusty. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania : Amed Literary Inc, 1999. FS Catalog Book 974.9 F2te; At various libraries (WorldCat)

New York

• The Underground Railroad in the Adirondack region, by Tom Calarco. Jefferson, North Carolina : McFarland & Company Inc., Publishers, [2011?}}, 2004. FS Catalog Book 974.75 H6c; At various libraries (WorldCat)
• Underground Railroad Tales with Routes through the Finger Lakes Region, by Emerson Klees. Rochester, New York : Friends of the Finger Lakes Pub., 1997. FS Catalog Book 974.78 H2k; At various libraries (WorldCat)
• Underground railroad in Tompkins County, (N.Y.) Ithaca, New York : S.H. Gallwey, 1963. Online at FamilySearch Digital Library
• Final stop, freedom! : the Underground Railroad Experience in Wayne County, New York, by Marjory Allen Perez. S.l. : Herons Bend Productions, c2017. FS Catalog Book 974.787 H6p; At various libraries (WorldCat)
• In defiance : Runaways from slavery in New York's Hudson River Valley, 1735-1831, by Susan Stessin-Cohn and Ashley Hurlburt-Biagini. Delmar, New York : Black Dome Press Corp., 2016 FS Catalog Book 974.7 H6c; At various libraries (WorldCat)

Ohio

• The Underground Railroad of Meigs County, Ohio, by Margaret A. Parker written and compiled. Pomeroy, Ohio : Meigs County Historical Society, c2007. FS Catalog Book 977.199 H2p; At various libraries (WorldCat)

Pennsylvania

• Underground Railroad in Pennsylvania, by William J. Switala. Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania: Stackpole Books, 2001. FS Catalog Book 974.8 F2sw; At various libraries (WorldCat)
• History of the Underground Railroad: in Chester and the Neighboring Counties of Pennsylvania. by R.C. Smedley. Reprint. Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania: Stackpole Books, 2005. FamilySearch Catalog; Online at FamilySearch Digital Library; At various libraries (WorldCat)
• The Trackless Trail : the Story of the Underground Railroad in Kennett Square, Chester County, Pennsylvania, and the Surrounding Community, by Frances Cloud Taylor. Kennett Square, Pennsylvania : F.C. Taylor, 1976. FS Catalog Book 974.813/K2 F2ta; At various libraries (WorldCat)

Vermont

• Vermont's Anti-Slavery and Underground Railroad Record, with a Map and Illustrations, by Wilbur Henry Siebert. Reprint. (New York, 1969) FS Catalog Book 974.3 H2si; At various libraries (WorldCat)

Archives and Libraries

Ohio Historical Society

• Wilbur H. Siebert Collection MSS 116 AV

Historical Society of Pennsylvania

• Uncovering William Still's Underground Railroad - Digital History Project

Harvard Library

• Wilbur Henry Siebert Collection Relating to the Underground Railroad and fugitive slaves. Collection Identifier MS AM 2420

Indiana Department of Natural Resources

• Wilbur Siebert Underground Railroad Index

Additional Sources

• Harriett Tubman was a woman of remarkable skill, determination, and dedication. She was a "conductor" for the Underground Railroad where she assisted enslaved runaways to find freedom not only in the northern U.S. but all the way to Canada.
• Freedom Train : the Story of Harriet Tubman, by Dorothy Sterling. Garden City, New York : Doubleday, 1954. FS Catalog Book 921.73 T79s; At various libraries (WorldCat)

There was a notable community in Nova Scotia. Some of the formerly enslaved persons would intermingle with Canadian Indians, as they often did in the U.S. Don't ignore Canada when looking for your African American ancestors! Check out this site about Harriet Tubman

For more, see : Canada First Nations Genealogy Research Community on Facebook

• See routes to freedom taken by enslaved runaways: Many Rivers to Cross, the African Canadian Experience

Fugitive Slave Laws

• Fugitive Slave Laws
• Fugitive Slave Act of 1783
• Fugitive Slave Act of 1850

• Fugitive Slaves in the United States

• The slave catchers : enforcement of the Fugitive Slave Law, 1850-1860, by Stanley W. Campbell. Chapel Hill, North Carolina: University of North Carolina Press, 970. FS Catalog book 973 F2acm
• Judicial Cases Concerning American Slavery and the Negro: edited by Helen Tunnicliff CatterallFS Catalog book 973 F2aca v. 1 - V. 5 and fische

National Archives Catalog - US District & Circuit Courts Records of Fugitive Slaves Cases

• Fugitive Slave Case Files, 1851-1863. US District Court for the District of Columbia. NAID 4306299
• Fugitive Slave Case Files, 1850-1860. US District Court for the District of Maryland. NAID 278775
• Fugitive Slave Record Book, 1850-1860. US District Court for the District of Maryland. NAID 278889
• Law Case Files,1837-1911. U.S. Circuit Court for the Southern (Detroit) Division of the Eastern District of Michigan. NAID 2814290
• Fugitive Slave Claims, October 11, 1850–December 12, 1857 U.S. Circuit Court. for the District of Missouri NAID 7065148
• Records Relating to Fugitive Slaves, 10.17.1837-4.30.1860. U.S. Circuit Court for the Southern District of New York. NAID 278341
• Fugitive Slave Case Files, 1850-1860. US Circuit Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. NAID 279005
• Stovall v. Archy, a Slave. US Circuit Court for the Northern District of California. NAID 295961

National Archives at New York City

• Fugitive Slave Case: Stephen Pembrook. National Archives at New York City

FamilySearch Wiki Coverage Table

• Fugitive Slave Law Court Records - Maryland - National Archives Catalog
• Fugitive Slave Law Court Records - New York and Pennsylvania - National Archives Catalog

FamilySearch Catalog

• Judicial cases concerning American slavery and the Negro. by Helen Honor Tunnicliff Catterall. Five digital volumes. Carnegie Institution of Washington, 1926 reprint. New York, New York : Negro Universities Press, 1968. FS Library Digital Books linked from here

Runaway Enslaved Advertisements

Online Websites

• North Carolina Slave Advertisements, 1751-1865
• Freedom on the Move - Cornell University
• Louisiana Runaway Slave Advertisments,1836-1865
• Geography of Slavery, in Virginia, 1736-1803
• Library of Congress - Fugitive Slave Ads - Topics in Chronicling America
• Texas Runaway Slave Project - Stephen F. Austin State University

Publications

• Runaway slaves : Rebels on the Plantation, by John Hope Franklin and Loren Schweninger. Oxford, England : Oxford Univ. Press, 2000, ©1999. FS Catalog book 975 H6fj; At various libraries (WorldCat)
• Runaway Slave Advertisements : a Documentary History from the 1730s to 1790,by Lathan A. Windley, comp.. 4 volumes. Westport, Connecticut : Greenwood Press, c1983. FS Catalog book 975 F2wL; At various libraries (WorldCat)
• Running for Freedom : Slave Runaways in North Carolina, 1775-1840. by Freddie L. Parker. New York, New York : Garland Pub. Co., 1993. FS Library 975.6 H6p; At various libraries (WorldCat)

FamilySearch Catalog

• Alabama. Mobile County. Record book of Run-away Slaves; 1857-1865; index, 1857-1865, Mobile, Alabama, Probate Court, 1991. FS Catalog film 2218263; At various libraries (WorldCat)
• River Roads to Freedom : Fugitive Slave Notices and Sheriff Notices Found in Illinois Sources compiled by Helen Cox Tregillis. Bowie, Maryland : Heritage Books, Inc., 1988 FS Catalog book 977.3 H6t; At various libraries (WorldCat)
• Runaway Slave Advertisements of the Pennsylvania Gazette & index, 1740-1776. by Billy G. Smith. Salt Lake City Utah, Genealogical Society of Utah, 1988. FS Catalog film 1421885; At various libraries (WorldCat)

Emigration to Liberia

Liberia History

• Recommended Website: 'African-Americans to Liberia, 1820-1904,' by Michael Hait, African American Genealogy Examiner.
• Liberia, Monrovia, Census, 1843 FamilySearch Historical Records
• U.S. Navy Department, Correspondence of the Secretary of the Navy relating to African colonization, 1819-1844

American Colonization Society Sources

• Wikipedia. American Colonization Society

Library of Congress

• Library of Congress. American Colonization Society
• American Colonization Society Records
• Finding Aid: Collection Summary for American Colonization Society records, 1792-1964.

State Sources

• Maryland Historical Society. American Colonization Society/Liberia Collection
• Maryland Historical Society. Maryland State Colonization Society Papers, 1827-1871. MS 571
• New York State Colonization Society Records, 1849-1968. New York Public Library - Archives & Manuscripts

National Archives

• Letters Received Relating to African Colonization, 1/5/1819 - 3/10/1841. National Archives Catalog. NAID 1786936
• Letters Sent Relating to African Colonization, 1/17/1820 - 1858, National Archives Catalog. NAID 1768603

Publications

• The American Colonization Society, 1817-1840, by Early Lee Fox. 1919 reprint. New York, New York : AMS Press, 1971. Online at FamilySearch Digital Library
• Liberia, or, the Early History and Signal Preservation of the American colony of Free Negroes on the Coast of Africa : compiled by American Documents, by William Innes. Edinburgh, Scotland : Waugh and Innes, 1831 FS Catalog book 966.62 H2i; At various libraries (WorldCat)
• Emigrants to Liberia, 1820 to 1843, an Alphabetical listing, by Tom W. Shick. Newark, Delaware : University of Delaware Department of Anthropology & Liberian Studies Association in America, 1971. FS Catalog book 966.62 W2e; At various libraries (WorldCat)
• Behold the Promised land : a History of Afro-American Settler Society in Nineteenth-century Liberia, by Tom W. Shick. Baltimore, Maryland : Johns Hopkins University Press, 1980. FS Catalog book 966.62 H2s; At various libraries (WorldCat)
• Slavery and the Peculiar Solution : a History of the American Colonization Society, by Eric Burin. Gainesville, Florida : University Press of Florida, 2005. FS Catalog book 973 C4be; At various libraries (WorldCat)
• ''"On Africa's Shore." A History of Maryland in Liberia, 1834-1857, by Richard L. Hall. Baltimore, Maryland: Maryland Historical Society, 2003. FS Catalog book 966.62 H2d; At various libraries (WorldCat)
• Maryland in Africa: the Maryland Colonization Society,1831-1857, by Penelope Campbell. Urbana, Illinois : University of Illinois Press, 1971. FS Catalog book 966.6 H2c; At various libraries (WorldCat)
• Report of the Select Committee, to Whom was Referred the Subject of the Removal of the Free Colored Population from Charles County. Maryland. Maryland: General Assembly. House of Delegates, 1844. At Internet Archive
• An African republic : Black & White Virginians in the Making of Liberia, by Marie Tyler-McGraw. Chapel Hill, North Carolina : University of North Carolina Press, c2007. FS Catalog book 966.62 H2t; At various libraries (WorldCat)
• The Price of Liberty : African Americans and the Making of Liberia, by Claude A. Clegg, III. Chapel Hill, North Carolina : University of North Carolina Press, 2004 FS Catalog book 966.62 H2c; At various libraries (WorldCat)

Migration within the United States

Enslaved Populations before the Civil War

By 1790, nearly all Africans to be imported to the United States had already arrived. They lived in primarily four states.

• Virginia—293,000
• South Carolina—107,000
• Maryland—103,000
• North Carolina—101,000
• No other state had more than 30,000 enslaved people.

Between 1820 and 1860, huge increases in the enslaved population occurred across the South. Enslaved populations in 1860 are listed below:

• Virginia—491,000
• Georgia—462,000
• Mississippi—437,000
• Alabama—435,000
• South Carolina—402,000
• Louisiana—332,000
• North Carolina—331,000
• Tennessee—275,000
• Kentucky—225,000
• Texas—183,000
• Missouri—115,000
• Arkansas—111,000

Migration after the Civil War
Between 1790 and 1900, 90% of African Americans lived in the South.
By 1960, 50% of African Americans lived in the South.

• 100,000 African Americans moved to Kansas in late 1870's, early 1880's
• 500,000 African Americans left the south during WWI (1916-1919)
• 90,000 to Pennsylvania
• 73,000 to Illinois
• 43,000 to Michigan

• 1 million African Americans left the South in the 1920's
• 5 million African Americans left the South between 1940-1960
• During 1970's, African Americans started returning to the South, especially to larger, urban cities.
• By 1990, 84% of African Americans lived in urban areas.
• See Field to Factory: Afro-American Migration 1915-1940 by Spencer Crew - at Internet Archive.

Enslaved in the North
By 1800, approximately 37,000 northern African Americans were still reported in bondage. By 1830, most northern states had required freeing of enslaved persons, although 3,600 people remained in bondage, mostly in New Jersey.

Free Blacks
In 1860, there were 488,000 free Blacks or about 10% of total African Americans in the U.S.

• 46% of free Blacks (226,000) lived in North and West
• 46% lived in upper South (KY, MD, MO, TN, VA, NC, DC)
• 8% lived in deep South