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Native American
Heritage
From: Phyllis hayden @mailstation.com
DearMYRTLE,
Hi, my name is Phyllis [...] and Barbara [...] has referred me to you. I hope
you can give me some guidance in finding out about my Indian Heritage. I have no
living relatives and all I know is that I am from Mohawk or Blackfoot descent.
Barbara also told me there is a blood test that will identify this for me. Any
info you can give me would be appreciated.
DearPHYLLIS,
STARTING YOUR FAMILY HISTORY: Every family historian must use documents
created at the time an ancestor lived to prove relationships one to another.
Some documents are more obvious and easier to find than others. For instance, we
think immediately of birth, marriage, death, family bible and obituary records.
We also look a land, probate and church records. These must be collected,
beginning with you, and working back through the generations to your parents,
grandparents, etc. It is as if you are preparing a court case, and must come up
with evidence to prove your lineage with as little doubt as possible. For
instance, your birth record lists your parents, and so forth.
Having said that, it is well known that typical Native American lineages are
kept as a verbal recitation, rather than a written record of ancestry. To prove
your relationship to a documented Native American, you will have to rely on
records typically created by the so-called "white men" who often had
less-than-favorable view of Native Americans. It is known in other tribes (such
as Cherokee) that claims to native ancestry have been denied by the US
government, but are by tradition valid family relationships in the eyes of the
native nation. This doesn't mean your research is doomed, it just means that as
with any family history research, you must keep an open mind, and carefully
consider the reliability of each source document.
SCANNED IMAGES and semi-ok indices of US Federal Census records are
currently available online from 1790 through 1930, and are indexed at
Ancestry.com, HeritageQuestOnline.com, etc. They are also available via
microfilm, but it is just so much easier and less time consuming to join both
services and work through these records with a concerted effort. The 1850 to
1930 records list every member of the household by name, age, etc. The 1880 US
Federal Census is available free online at www.FamilySearch.org, and it is more
reliable. The 1880 is particularly helpful since it was the first to explain
relationship to the head of household of each individual in the household.
Sometimes Native Americans are listed as colored, black or mulatto, or are
enumerated on special censuses. Other Native Americans passed for white, and
preferred to be enumerated as white.
MIGRATION patterns become particularly important, with any ethnic group,
because people tended to move around in groups, or with a friend. Sometimes we
can't figure out "where were they before this?" We may find clues
among the members of the cluster group about an earlier place on the migration
trail. Then by studying other surviving records in that other place, we find our
ancestor. This is what's fun about genealogy -- this hunting for ancestors is
great detective work.
BASIC PRIMERS FOR GENEALOGISTS INCLUDE:
-- Researcher's Guide to American Genealogy by Val Greenwood (available free
online) http://www.genealogical.com/gpc_002.pdf
-- The Source: A Guidebook of American Genealogy (Native American chapter) http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0916489671/qid=1094740785/sr=ka-1/ref=pd_ka_1/002-1222091-6104047
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DNA BLOOD TESTS: There are several companies that do this sort of
testing, often to confirm paternity, but in the last few years to determine the
continent where your distant ancestors originated.
-- FamilyTreeDNA http://www.familytreedna.com/
From this site: "Am I of Native American ancestry? If you have questions
about your heritage, Family Tree DNA has the Y-DNA and mtDNA tests that in
conjunction with the largest comparative databases of their kind may provide
clues leading to the answer to this and many other questions."
-- Sorensen Molecular Genealogy Group http://www.smgf.org/
This site collects DNA and compiled pedigrees to draw conclusions about our
relationships. See also: http://smgf.org:8081/pubgen/site24.jsp
for a good basic explanation of how to bring together a basic pedigree chart.
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LEARN MORE ABOUT THE TRIBE'S CULTURE (to consider where there are similar
family traditions)
-- Blackfoot Nation - http://www.blackfeetnation.com/
-- Blackfoot http://www.geocities.com/bigorrin/blackfoot_kids.htm
Although made for kids, you will find links to explanation of language of Native
Americans living on reservations in Montana and Alberta, Canada.
-- Blackfoot Indian - Canadian Department of Indian Affairs - These records are
available on microfilm through interlibrary loan. Please have your local
librarian cite the call numbers indicated in the inventory below. There will be
a $10.70 charge for this service which will be collected by your library. http://ww2.glenbow.org/archhtm/black.htm
-- Mohawk Nation - http://www.peacetree.com/akwesasne/home.htm
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FIND OUT WHAT RECORDS ARE AVAILABLE IN ARCHIVES, LIBRARIES & THE NET
-- Bureau of Indian Affairs http://www.doi.gov/bureau-indian-affairs.html
-- Cyndi's List - Native American http://www.cyndislist.com/native.htm
-- NARA Microfilm Publications - Native
American
--- USGenWeb http://www.usgenweb.com
-- Montana
Research Outline From this we read: "About four percent of the
present population of Montana is American Indian. The major groups include the
Blackfoot, Cree, Crow, Northern Cheyenne, Chippewa, Flathead, Kutenai, and
Assiniboin. The Family History Library has microfilm copies of Indian records at
the National Archives—Pacific Alaska Region (Seattle). These include excellent
collections for the Blackfoot, Crow, Flathead, Northern Cheyenne, and other
tribes. The available records include heirship, school, welfare, census,
annuity, and family documents. The records are listed in the Locality Search of
the Family History Library Catalog under MONTANA - MINORITIES or MONTANA -
NATIVE RACES. Records are also listed in the Subject Search of the Family
History Library Catalog under the names of the tribes."
-- New
York Research OUTLINE
-- CANADIAN
RESEARCH OUTLINE
From this we read: "see the Family History Library Catalog, Subject
section, under the names of the tribes or:
INDIANS OF NORTH AMERICA
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PRINT OUT CATALOG ENTRIES SHOWING MICROFILM OR MICROFICHE NUMBERS
-- FAMILY HISTORY LIBRARY CATALOG http://www.familysearch.org/Eng/Library/FHLC/frameset_fhlc.asp
Here I clicked the subject "search" button, and typed in "Indians
of North America" (without the quotes). The hit list included 533 topics.
These are often divided by US state or province in Canada. Some topics have ten
or twenty items.
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VISIT YOUR LOCAL FAMILY HISTORY CENTER TO ORDER/VIEW MICROFILM
"Family History Centers are branch facilities of the Family History Library
in Salt Lake City. Centers provide access to most of the microfilms and
microfiche in the Family History Library to help patrons identify their
ancestors. Everyone is welcome to come to the centers and use Family History
Center resources." IBID. To locate a FHC near you, go to: http://www.familysearch.org/Eng/Library/FHC/frameset_fhc.asp
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IN THE MEAN TIME, since you have no other KNOWN living relatives, it is
IMPERATIVE that you write down what you know about your parents, grandparents,
aunts, uncles, etc. Make it a priority during the next few months to devote X
number of hours each week to labeling old photographs (with photo-safe pens) and
writing a series of your personal recollections concerning those individuals.
These could be archived on free web pages at RootsWeb.com so other researchers
can benefit from your work. Where you've inherited a tea pot, iron skillet,
quilts, etc. be sure to take pictures of these, and include them in your
compiled family history. I like one-page stories, because you don't have to
worry about timeline. You can put the pages in chronological order as you go
along.
Documenting the recent generations will make it easier for distant cousins that
you don't know you've got. For instance, if your great-grandparents had ten
children, and each of their children had ten children, you can see that by your
generation there could be 10,000 descendants. You may not know that a 1st cousin
4 times removed may be trying to do family history as well.
Myrt :)
DearMYRTLE
Your friend in genealogy.
6023 26th Street West PMB 352
Bradenton, FL 34207
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