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African Ancestry in Indiana
HISTORY & BACKGROUND The Land that is now Indiana was once part of a great
wilderness. By early 1700's, the wilderness was called New France, a few
settlers, fur traders and explorers had seen this wild land,but few
records were kept.
Some explorers bought slaves with them, so it is very likely that blacks were
among the first to explore Indiana. The first records of blacks in Indiana were written in 1746. There were forty white men and five Negroes in a French
settlement on the Wabash River. This was the beginning of the city
Vincennes; which is along Indiana's southwestern border. Some French settlers had Indian slaves, but soon the French were buying black men from trading post on the lower Mississippi River.
In 1787, congress passed a group of laws called the Northwest Ordinance.
One of the Laws indicated that there would be no slavery. Slavery was legal when
Virginia still owned the land which is now Indiana.
Slave holders soon found ways to bring slaves into the territory as
long-term indentured servants. Substantial debates continue about the status of blacks in the state. Indiana was perceived as a hostile state toward people of color during the most unfriendly years of 1816-1865. Many thought that indentured servitude was just another form of slavery. In 1831, legislators passed a bill to keep 'Negroes' out of Indiana.
The American Colonization Society was established in 1817 to send Blacks
Back to Africa. In 1850, Indiana Govornor, Joseph A. Wright, petitioned the legislature for money to help build a settlement for Blacks in Liberia. Most Indiana blacks were against the Back to Africa Movement. By 1853, thirty three Blacks had sailed for Africa and another fourteen followed in 1854. By 1851 article 13 had been passed (93 - 40) to keep 'Negroes" from coming to Indiana. More than
1,350,000 people lived in Indiana by 1860, and a little over 11,000 were of African descent.
Not all Blacks in the Territory were slaves or indentured servants. By the time Indiana became a state, in 1816, many free men were already settled in Indiana. Some were born free, others were set free and moved from other states. There were over 20 black settlements, (most inhabited by people of mixed race) in the years before the Civil War. Most of the settlers were born in North Carolina and move to avoid restrictive laws of the South. Over 1300 Black men from Indiana fought with the Union Army in The United States Colored Troops.
Indiana Ethnic History Hoosier Heritage Indiana History OnLine Indiana Native American Bibligraphy
STATE & LOCAL RESOURCES Indiana State Library Genealogy Division Allen County Public Library Indianapolis-Marion County Public Library St. Joseph's County (South Bend area) County Public Library - Local History/Genealogy Indiana Marriage Index up to 1850 Indiana Genealogy Indiana African American Genealogy Indiana Family History Centers Everton's Genealogy Resources in Indiana Indiana Genealogy Online - INGenWeb American Indian Center of Indiana 1850 Allen County Slave Owner Schedule Indiana Vital Records Information - birth or death certificates, divorse records, marriage license, etc. Marion County Health Department (Order your Indianapolis Birth/Death Certificates here) Genealogical Societies - Indiana Genealogical Society Of Marion County Kentuckiana Genealogy Census Online - IN Indiana African American Census Schedules on-line Marion County County Census (actual pages) 1850 Census of African Americans in Washington County, Indiana Free Black Men in Washington County, Indiana in 1820 Gibson County, Indiana Births - WPA readings Gibson County, Indiana Deaths - WPA readings Cyndi's List - Indiana Links Find-A-Grave, Indiana Crown Hill Cemetery and Funeral Home - Marion County Internet Funeral Service Directory - Indiana Indianapolis OnLine, the Community Network for Central Indiana City of Indianapolis/Marion County Homepage The Indianapolis Star Newspaper Indiana Avenue Revisited Madam C. J. Walker Indiana Yearbooks Indiana High School Alumni The
Indiana Page Coordinators are Dona Stokes-Lucas and Mary E.
Jewell. They can be contacted at Donnastokes-lucas@juno.com or mejewell@ix.netcom.com
This area will contain other transcribed African American records
for various IN counties in the very near future.
QUERIES, SURNAMES & LOOKUPS Names, and email addresses of volunteers willing to
do research and/or lookups will be posted soon.
Until then please send queries to Query
Coordinator
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Questions or comments: Donna Stokes Lucas or Mary E. Jewell Copyright © 1999-2002 by AfriGeneas. All rights reserved. |
