Dekalb County Georgia Vital Records - Laurel Wilson is a historian and genealogist who focuses on African American heritage in Decatur and DeKalb counties. She holds a master's degree in public history from Georgia State University and has been practicing genealogy for over 20 years. You can learn more about her work and contact her through Decaturhistory.com.
DeKalb County, GA - It is well known that researching African American genealogy is difficult, especially when you are trying to break through the wall of the Halloween period.
Dekalb County Georgia Vital Records
But in many ways, DeKalb's research on African Americans going back to at least 1870 is very similar to research on white residents from the same time period, with a few caveats. You will be looking at most of the same types of records and you will encounter many of the same problems, such as name variations, loss of records due to disaster, changes in place names, and census errors.
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– Historical records regarding African Americans were generally less accurate and complete than those of white residents
– Documented ages vary more for African Americans, sometimes more than 10 years
– Birth and occupation discrepancies are reported more for African Americans than for white Americans
– African Americans may be in multiple households in the same year if they worked at home, so the data may conflict and people may not be listed with family members.
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– Contrary to popular belief that enslaved people kept the names given to them by their enslavers, after emancipation many people changed their first or last name or both, making it difficult to identify them find before 1870 records.
- The source of everything. You will inevitably come across inconsistencies in your research, but keeping a good record of your sources will make it easier to compare facts and analyze the reliability of certain information.
– Use genealogy software to store and organize your results. There are many options, both paid and free, and while some offer more features than others, they all have basic features such as recording names, relationships, important dates and places, and resources. I personally use MacKiev's Family Tree Maker to manage multiple family trees, but there are free alternatives like RootsMagic Essentials. Ancestry.com and FamilySearch.org allow you to save family tree records for free on the web.
- Record all family members, not just your immediate ancestors. Since extended families often lived together, the names of siblings and other family members can help you overcome blocks. If you come across people whose relationship you are not sure about to your ancestors, write down their names and all the information about them in a separate table, together with where you got the information. You can add them to your tree later when you get stronger evidence.
A Guide To Researching African American Genealogy In Dekalb County
- Pay attention to names. Look for unusual names and possible spelling variations. Individuals can be listed in different records using any combination of first or middle names or even nicknames. Also, be careful not to confuse juniors with seniors.
– Search for existing trees for your family on websites such as Ancestry.com. Not only can you find new ancestors, but you can also connect with family members who may still be alive. However, if you find an existing tree, don't add it to your tree right away. Due to many factors, there is a lot of inaccuracy in family trees, so if you are not completely sure of the details, use what you find as a guide and not as hard evidence.
Joseph Samuel Ebster was born in Decatur in 1902 to Fannie Paschal Ebster and Reverend Donald Grant “D.G. Ebster, after whom Ebster Park and Recreation Center is named. Joseph Ebster attended Morris Brown College, where he was a pitcher on the school's baseball team, a member of the glee club, and president of the Omega Psi Phi chapter, a historically African-American fraternity. In 1926 he married Jessie Mae Ware from Atlanta and they moved to Chicago to find a better life. I received this photo and Joseph's biographical information from his granddaughter Deb Ebster after I discovered her public family tree on Ancestry.com and contacted her. Image courtesy of Deb Ebster.
– Census: With very few exceptions, African Americans generally do not appear on the federal census for DeKalb County until 1870. However, when looking for ancestors between 1870 and 1940, the census is the best place to look. start because of the wealth of background information. it provides, including names, ages, relationships with other family members, occupation, place of birth, residence, and sometimes approximate date of marriage. You can search the census online at Ancestry.com (paid) and FamilySearch.org (free). Note that the 1890 federal census no longer exists for most of the country, including DeKalb County, due to a fire in the nation's capital in 1921 that destroyed nearly all records.
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– Death Records: Historical death records for DeKalb are primarily in the form of death certificates, Georgia Death Index, 1919-1998, and US Social Security Death Index, 1935-2014. Real DeKalb County death certificates are only publicly available from 1919-1942 with online access for various years through Ancestry.com (paid), FamilySearch.org and the Georgia Archives virtual vault.
Death certificates are a great source of information they can provide, such as specific dates of birth and death, specific place of birth and death, cause of death, last known residence, place of burial, and parents' names and places of birth. . Keep in mind that birth and family information on death certificates is only as reliable as the information of the informant; it is not uncommon to find only an approximate date of birth or "unknown" for one or both parents. Especially when researching people who were enslaved or whose parents were enslaved, death certificates can help you break through brick walls by providing names, dates, and places that you wouldn't find anywhere else.
This death certificate for Louise Kyle Turner gives us her exact date of birth (25 Jan 1892), exact date of her death (16 May 1930), when and where she was buried (18 May 1930, Decatur Cemetery), and names. of her parents, including her mother's maiden name. The informant is Mrs W.H. According to this, Brooks and Louise's last residence was 338 McDonald St. Comparing this information to the 1930 census shows that her actual address was 338 McDonough, that she lived with her mother in the Brooks home, and that her aunt was Violet Brooks. So, while a death certificate gives us a lot of information, comparing it to other sources gives us a more accurate and detailed picture. Image from Georgia, Death Index, 1914-1940, Ancestry.com.
– Military records include draft registration cards, service records, and even headstone applications and can be found online through a paid subscription to Ancestry.com and for free at FamilySearch.org. You can even order copies of records directly from the National Archives if the person's issue date was more than 62 years ago.
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Military records can be an excellent source of information such as full name, date and city of birth, current residence, occupation and name of employer, name of next of kin and their relationship, and physical description of the enrollee.
– Newspaper obituaries and obituaries are an invaluable resource when trying to reunite families. Death notices are useful for finding out or confirming the date and place of someone's death, and funeral notices can be a gold mine of information, listing surviving family members and where they lived at the time, the church where the funeral was held and who officiated, and place of burial. Funeral notices are very useful when trying to research a woman's family, as you can find out her maiden name through male siblings or surviving parents.
This John Edwin Tolbert funeral notice gives us a good overview of basic information about him and his family. We find the name and address of his father in 1948, the surname and address of his unmarried wife in 1948, the names of his brothers and the married names of his sisters. We also learn that he died in Italy on May 18, 1944, while serving in World War II, and was interred in Decatur Cemetery four years later. To learn more about his military service, you can compare this information to his application for a military headstone.
Death and burial notices for DeKalb residents can be found in the Atlanta Constitution (1868-1984), the Atlanta Journal-Constitution (1985-present), and the Atlanta Daily World (1931-2003), an African-American newspaper. The Atlanta Constitution and Atlanta Journal-Constitution are available through the Newspapers.com paid service. Alternatively, you can access the Atlanta Constitution 1868-1984 through the ProQuest historical newspaper database and the Atlanta Journal Constitution 1985 - present through several libraries. The Atlanta Daily World appears to be available only through ProQuest Historical Newspapers. ProQuest's historical newspapers are not widely available online to the general public, but you can access them by visiting the institutions' subscriptions in person. Both Georgia State University and Agnes Scott College will make this possible
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