I would like to find out about my ancestry but I dont know how to go about it because my mom’s people came from India and my dad’s people came from Africa
I would like to find out about my ancestry but I dont know how to go about it because my mom’s people came from India and my dad’s people came from Africa
0 Answers
GenFriend wrote on :
Here are some links that may give you a start in your search. I do not work with Caribbean genealogy, so I have not had occasion to use these, but they may help –
Caribbean Genealogy Resources (including links for Antigua, Barbuda, Tobago, Trinidad) – http://www.candoo.com/genresources/
National Archives of Trinidad and Tobago – http://www.natt.gov.tt/features.aspx?id=75
A searchable Genforum board for discussing Trinidad and Tobago families – http://boards.ancestry.com/localities.caribbean.trinidad/mb.ashx
The site for TriniGenWeb, a country level genealogy website – http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~ttowgw/
The Antigua Genforum (also searchable) – http://boards.ancestry.com/localities.caribbean.leeward.antigua/mb.ashx
A listing of Antigua and Barbuda Genealogy resources, a road map of sorts – http://www.genealogytoday.com/genealogy/planet.mv?gc=ATG&Location=Antigua and Barbuda
GeneaNet which gives you a way to search for records in other countries – http://en.geneanet.org/search/?country=ATG
The Caribbean Genealogy Library Family History search site – http://caribbeanfamilytrees.com/tag/antigua-and-barbuda/
The absolute grandmother of all genealogy source sites – Cyndi’s List – http://www.cyndislist.com/topical.htm
On your genealogy searching, look with a broad scope rather than a narrow focus. If you narrow in too much, you may miss a good source just because the name was misspelled (common) or the date or place was off just a bit (also very common). It is not unusual for counties and states to move borders, leaving family records stuck in the archive one state or county over. If you are doing a Google search, try putting quotes around the name “James Robert Wilson” instead of putting it in without quotes. In the first instance, you ONLY get the James Robert Wilsons. Without the quotes, you get every James, every Robert, and every Wilson – a real mess!
Go now and get information from everyone in the family, including the younger ones. There may be a story that a grandparent shared with a small child that is important to you. Are there old Bibles, school yearbooks, church directories, news clippings, other paper stuck away somewhere? Look for immigration and naturalization papers for each of your parents to get descriptions, dates, next of kin, a whole raft of extra information. Look up “Genforum” and your last name to see if there is a genealogy forum of people that are talking about your family.
I spent the last couple of years as one of Ancestry.com’s Experts for Hire before they bought an in-house service to provide the service. I hope some of these ideas will get you a jump start on putting your tree together.
Enjoy your search. Getting there is half the fun!
Ultimate-Genealogy wrote on :
As a researcher I can help you when you are ready to hire someone. For now you should write down everything you do know, dates of birth, death, marriages along with locations, sibling info and parental info as well, do this for as many generations as you can going back. Start with your parents and see what information they might be able to give you, such as their parents or grandparents info. This will be very helpful as you (or a researcher) try to sort through things. Until then one of my websites http://www.jillsgenealogy.com has many helpful links for researching genealogy. There is also a forums section for posting questions or answers. Searching for genealogy answers is a life long project. Good luck!
Jeanette Jeanette wrote on :
I dont know the area where they originated but my dad was born in Antigua & Barbuda and my mom was born in Trinidad & Tobago.
Galapoochi wrote on :
Genealogy research involves a lot of unraveling. First of all, write down everything you know – full names of all family members, birthdates, marriage dates, occupations, etc. There are several websites that can help you in Caribbean research – http://growyourownfamilytree.wordpress.com/2010/05/11/british-west-indies-records-online/
http://www.candoo.com/surnames/index.php
http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~caribgw/
Most online records deal with earlier records from the 1700s and 1800s, but there are many online forums where you can find other people who are specifically researching the Caribbean. Best forums I have found are the ones on rootsweb.com, genforum.com, and, of course, ancestry.com (you cajn get a free two week trial at ancestry – the other two sites are free). Clues aremj to be found in every written record – US Census records can give you alternate spellings of names, dates when your people immigrated to the US, occupations, actual addresses, other family members – every piece of information you find is a clue to another piece.
Two other great sites are http://www.familysearch.org. This is operated by the Church of Latter Day Saints, also known as Mormons. Part of their religion requires them to research their family history and they have tremendous resources – some are online for free – others are on microfilm and can be ordered and viewed at an LDS Family History Center for a small fee. Some libraries also provide this service – check with yours.
Eventually, you should be able to. take your search further back in time to Africa and India. Be patient, ask a lot of questions and share information as you learn – the person you help out today may provide a vital clue tomorrow!
Galapoochi wrote on :
Sorry – I said two other sites and only gave you one – it may seem too simple but don’t forget google.com! Try searching for the surnames you are researching with key words such as Barbados or Trinidad.
susaneking wrote on :
Jeanette,
I assume you mean Antigua & Barbados. Since both were British Colonies as was India after 1857. This is where Google comes in. If you type in all the countries followed by the word genealogy, you will get the same information we as professionals do. Sorting through the information may take some time. http://www.familysearch.org has been adding quite a bit of data online from these areas. Remember, if you do not find anything, does not mean it does not exist. It means the data has not been indexed. Locals on the ground may be the best option.
Susan
http://www.susaneking.com
Jeanette Jeanette wrote on :
My dad was born in Antigua & Barbuda and my Mom was Born in Trinidad & Tobago.
clcrss wrote on :
You should start with the most recent info you have and start building a family tree. Get copies of birth, marriage & death records for parents and grand-parents to discover clues about their parents and where they originated. Once you have current basic facts, work backward in time for ancestral details. If your parents we not born in the US – check immigration or passport records to find out where to focus your search and then use the internet to find experts for that part of the world who can help with your heritage research. If your parents were born in the US and if they were here in 1930 – check the 1930 US Census records for clues about the family and its origins. clcrss
nanjones wrote on :
Do you know when they came here? Lots of records are available on immigration which often will list background, family etc. Plus if you know where they came from: region/city, you can ask them to do research for you for a fee. Easier since you don’t speak the language, or know much about the area. Also cheapier than going there. Peolpe are usually very helpful. Could even try the embassy here for facts. Not sure about the last bit. Good luck.