How to Research Your White Family's History: Slavery, Native Dispossession, and the Records That Tell the Truth
Most white Americans assume the records aren't there — that slavery was too long ago, or that Indigenous history was never documented, or that their particular family left too small a footprint to trace. That assumption is usually wrong.
The archives are extensive. Census records, property deeds, probate files, military records, newspaper accounts, Freedmen's Bureau files, slave schedules, land patents — the paper trail of American racial history is enormous, and much of it is now digitized and searchable from your kitchen table.
What follows is a curated list of the most useful databases and archives, organized by what you're looking for. None of these require specialized training. All of them require a willingness to look.
A note before you begin: this research is not easy. The records are incomplete. The language is often euphemistic — 'servant' where the record means enslaved, 'removed' where the record means dispossessed. What you find may be difficult to sit with. That is the point. The time-travel conversation method exists precisely for what comes after you find it.
Resource List
A list of helpful resources
Enslaved — enslaved.org
A hub of interconnected databases of enslaved people drawn from historical records including wills, manifests, plantation documents, and freedom papers. Search by name, location, or enslaver.
Freedmen's Bureau Records — familysearch.org/freedmensbureau
Records of formerly enslaved people created in the years immediately after the Civil War: labor contracts, marriage records, ration rolls, and claims. One of the most significant genealogical databases ever assembled, and free to access. If your ancestors were enslaved in the South, start here.
Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade Database — slavevoyages.org
Documents the forced movement of enslaved people across the Atlantic, with searchable records of individual voyages, ship manifests, and in many cases names.
Ancestry — Slave Schedules — ancestry.com
The 1850 and 1860 U.S. censuses include separate slave schedules listing enslaved people by age, sex, and description under the name of the enslaver. Search your ancestor's name to see whether they appear as an enslaver. Subscription required.
Find A Grave — findagrave.com
Can locate plantation cemeteries and provide context for enslaved people buried on family land. Free to use.
FamilySearch — familysearch.org
Free access to billions of records including land deeds, wills, and probate documents from every U.S. state. The single best free starting point for any family history research.
The National Archives — archives.gov
Federal land patents, military records, court documents, and pension files going back to the founding of the country. Use the online catalog at catalog.archives.gov to search by name, place, or record type.
Bureau of Land Management — General Land Office Records — glorecords.blm.gov
Federal land patents showing the original transfer of public land to private owners. Searchable by name and state.
Your County Clerk's Office — Search: '[your county name] deed records online'
Deed records are maintained at the county level and are increasingly digitized. A deed can tell you exactly what land your ancestor owned, what they paid for it, and sometimes who they bought it from.
Native Land Digital — native-land.ca
Enter any address and see which Indigenous nations' territory it sits on. The essential first question: whose land was this before your family was there?
Newberry Library — Atlas of Historical County Boundaries — publications.newberry.org/ahcbp
Tracks how county and territorial lines changed over time. Useful for understanding the legal context of land transfers and the pace of dispossession in a specific region.
Indian Land Tenure Foundation — iltf.org
Resources on land history and dispossession, with guidance for researchers approaching Indigenous history respectfully.
Individual Tribal Nation Websites — Search the nation's name directly
Many nations maintain their own historical archives and welcome researchers doing this work respectfully. Go to the source.
FamilySearch — familysearch.org
Free, comprehensive, and the best place to begin. Census records, immigration records, vital records, and military records. Create a free account and start with your grandparents' names and birthplaces.
Ancestry — ancestry.com
The largest genealogy database in the world. Census records, immigration and naturalization records, military records, and family trees. Subscription required, but often available free through public libraries.
Chronicling America — Library of Congress — chroniclingamerica.loc.gov
Digitized historical newspapers from across the United States, free to access. Search your ancestor's name and see what turned up in the local press.
Newspapers.com — newspapers.com
A broader digitized newspaper archive than Chronicling America, with records extending into the 20th century. Subscription required.
Fold3 — fold3.com
Military records including Civil War service records for both Union and Confederate soldiers, pension files, and draft registrations.
Your State Historical Society — Search: '[your state name] historical society digital collections'
Most state historical societies have digitized significant portions of their holdings and offer free public access.
Create a free account at FamilySearch.org. Search for your great-great-grandparents. Note where they lived in the 1860 and 1870 census records.
Then go to Ancestry.com and search the 1860 slave schedule for the county where your ancestors lived. Enter your ancestor's name. See whether they appear as an enslaver. If they do, you have a specific name, a specific place, and a specific set of records to follow.
If they don't appear in the slave schedule, go to native-land.ca and enter the address of the land they farmed or the town they founded. See whose territory it was before it was theirs.
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