Unearthing Treasures: Tracing Your African American Ancestors

The South Carolina Historical Society will present a one-day introductory seminar on the topic of tracing African American ancestry in South Carolina. “Unearthing Treasures: Tracing your African American Ancestors at the South Carolina Historical Society” will take place on Saturday, November 9, 2013 and is offered in partnership with Lowcountry Africana. SC Humanities supported this project with a Mini Grant in September 2013.

The seminar will cover the most important aspects and research strategies for finding ancestors of African American descent and will showcase the rich archival resources available at the South Carolina Historical Society. Toni Carrier, a noted genealogist who did research on Michelle Obama’s family tree on behalf of Obama for America, will lead the workshop with support from Ramona LaRoche, Paul Garbarini, and the South Carolina Historical Society’s archival staff.

Participants will spend the morning learning how to decipher meaning from archival records such as plantation journals, maps, and plats, and images. In addition, the wealth of web-based resources for conducting African American genealogical research, many of which are available through Lowcountry Africana’s website, will be discussed. After lunch, the remainder of the seminar will be spent conducting hands-on archival research in the collections of the South Carolina Historical Society with assistance from seminar leaders and archivists.

Registration for the workshop is required, and the cost is $10 for lunch. To register, contact Virginia Ellison at 843-723-3225, ext. 11. For more information, visit the South Carolina Historical Society’s website: http://www.southcarolinahistoricalsociety.org/?page_id=2451.

The mission of SC Humanities is to enrich the cultural and intellectual lives of all South Carolinians. SC Humanities programs and initiatives are balanced, reflecting sensitivity to the diversity of ideas, encourage open dialogue, demonstrate integrity, and are ethical in operations.