Way to go Virginia! In a first-of-its-kind move, the state will participate in a project to index and digitize Freedman’s Bureau records. This will allow the descendents of emancipated slaves, freed slaves and Union soldiers to electronically search for information on their ancestors.

The Freedmen’s Bureau records are effectively the “genesis records” of African- American identity post Civil War. They provide the earliest major compilation of information on the African-American community, documenting for the period 1865-1872 names, legalized marriages, educational pursuits, work contracts, and receipt of rations, health care, legal, and other services.

After nearly five years of effort, the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) of the United States recently completed the microfilming of all Bureau records, which produced over 1,000 rolls of microfilm. The Genealogical Society of Utah (GSU) will scan these records and provide overall direction to the extraction effort, and FamilySearch will provide online access to the genealogy-related data extracted.

The GSU is now scanning the 203 rolls containing the Virginia records, and will assess over 300,000 digitally scanned images for inclusion in the Virginia Freedmen Project. Ultimately, Howard University will place the broader collection of extracted and indexed records on the Internet for access to genealogists and historians.

Well, I hope that other states soon follow. I would be interested in looking up some history on my own family.

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