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Dee Parmer Woodtor

Dee Woodtor

Finding a Place Called Home: A Guide to African-American Genealogy and Historical Identity Hardcover – February 9, 1999

by Dee Parmer Woodtor Ph.D. (Author)

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"I teach the kings of their ancestors so that the lives of the ancients might serve them as an example, for the world is old but the future springs from the past."
Mamadou Kouyate "Sundiata", An Epic of Old Mali, a.d. 1217-1257

Two major questions of the ages are: Who am I? and Where am I going? From the moment the first African slaves were dragged onto these shores, these questions have become increasingly harder for African-Americans to answer. To find the answers, you first must discover where you have been, you must go back to your family tree--but you must dig through rocky layers of lost information, of slavery--to find your roots.

During the Great Migration in the 1940s, when African-Americans fled the strangling hands of Jim Crow for the relative freedoms of the North, many tossed away or buried the painful memories of their past. As we approach the new millennium, African-Americans are reaching back to uncover where we have been, to help us determine where we are going.

Finding a Place Called Home is a comprehensive guide to finding your African-American roots and tracing your family tree. Written in a clear, conversational, and accessible style, this book shows you, step-by-step, how to find out who your family was and where they came from.

Beginning with your immediate family, Dr. Dee Parmer Woodtor gives you all the necessary tools to dig up your past: how to interview family members; how to research your past using census reports, slave schedules, property deeds, and courthouse records; and how to find these records. Using the Internet for genealogical research is also discussed in this timely and necessary book.

Finding a Place Called Home helps you find your family tree, and helps place it in the context of the garden of African-American people. As you learn how to find your own history, you learn the history of all Africans in the Americas, including the Caribbean, and how to benefit from a new understanding of your family's history, and your people's.

Finding a Place Called Home also discusses the growing family reunion movement and other ways to clebrate newly discovered family history.

Tomorrow will always lie ahead of us if we don't forget yesterday. Finding a Place Called Home shows how to retrieve yesterday to free you for all of your tomorrows.

Finding a Place Called Home:  An African-American Guide to Genealogy and Historical Identity takes us back, step-by-step, including: Methods of searching and interpreting records, such as marriage, birth, and death certificates, census reports, slave schedules, church records, and Freedmen's Bureau information.

  Interviewing and taking inventory of family members
  Using the Internet for genealogical purposes
  Information on tracing Caribbean ancestry

Print length

464 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Random House Reference
Publication date

February 9, 1999
Dimensions

8.75 x 1.75 x 10 inches
ISBN-10

037540595X
ISBN-13

978-0375405952
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Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

Woodtor (DePaul Univ.) has written a detailed and easily accessible guide for readers searching for their African roots. After a general introduction to African American genealogy and the importance of family history, she sets readers on the path of researching their own family history. "If you are of African American ancestry," she writes, "you should know that most of your ancestors had arrived in the United States by the year 1790. Your American ancestry runs deepAin fact, deeper than that of the majority of Americans." Much of the book focuses on finding information from the Reconstruction era, locating military records from the Civil War, and analyzing the schedules of slave owners, old newspaper notices, and county registers to trace ancestors who lived as slaves. Throughout, Woodtor clearly explains what to expect from various sources and gives many intriguing examples from the field. While the reader may need to check other guides for locating information about other eras (e.g., African Americans in World War I), this book is highly recommended for all genealogy and African American history collections.ALinda L. McEwan, Elgin Community Coll., IL
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From the Publisher

Praise for Finding a Place Called Home

"This handsome publication is a must for anyone who is serious about their research."
-- Blackfamilies.com

"A major work of encyclopedic scope. This book belongs on every African-ancestored family historian's bookshelf."
-- Afrigeneas.com

"A detailed and easily accessible guide. Highly recommended."
-- Library Journal

"Sprinkled with personal stories, historical information, and examples of documents and records used in roots-finding ventures. . . a valuable reference book."
-- Ebony

"One of the best. . . comprehensive guides to finding ancestral lines. Woodtor provides an invaluable guide through the tangled African-American historical lineage."
-- New Orleans Times-Picayune

From the Inside Flap

h the kings of their ancestors so that the lives of the ancients might serve them as an example, for the world is old but the future springs from the past." Mamadou Kouyate "Sundiata", An Epic of Old Mali, a.d. 1217-1257 Two major questions of the ages are: Who am I? and Where am I going? From the moment the first African slaves were dragged onto these shores, these questions have become increasingly harder for African-Americans to answer. To find the answers, you first must discover where you have been, you must go back to your family tree--but you must dig through rocky layers of lost information, of slavery--to find your roots. During the Great Migration in the 1940s, when African-Americans fled the strangling hands of Jim Crow for the relative freedoms of the North, many tossed away or buried the painful memories of their past. As we approach the new millennium, African-Americans are reaching back to uncover where we have been, to help us determine wh

About the Author

Dr. Dee Parmer Woodtor is an instructor at DePaul University's School for New Learning in Afro-American Family History and Genealogy and at Chicago's Newberry Library. She is the author of the children's book Big Meeting. She lives in Evanston, Illinois.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

Ten Most Important Points for Beginning Genealogists

1. Know that the records about your family's past are there, and your task is
to find them.

2.  Try filling out your first set of genealogy forms -- a five-generation
chart and a family group sheet.  That will tell you how much you know and how
much you have to find out from family members.

3. Call or write all important family members to let them know you plan to do
the family's genealogy and you pray for their cooperation in this important
project

4.  This is not a do-it-alone project. Ask a close family member to be your
partner, preferably in the state where ancestors lived.

5.  Collect and copy all of your own family's  records -- birth marriage, and
death certificates as well as other records.

6.  Collect and copy form your parents and grandparents all of their old
records -- old funeral programs, employment records, photos, bible entries,
school or military records.

7. Create an address book of all  your relatives who are 50 years old and
over.  These are the people you will interview first.

8.  If you've done the above things, you have already collected quite a bit of
material.  Time to get organized! A small two-drawer filing cabinet in which
you file all your materials is a must.

9. Join a local genealogy society.

10:  Try your first set of interviews starting with your parents or
grandparents.

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Random House Reference; 1st edition (February 9, 1999)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 464 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 037540595X
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0375405952
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 2.4 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 8.75 x 1.75 x 10 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #1,170,294 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #1,568 in Genealogy (Books)
- #6,434 in African American Demographic Studies (Books)

Customer Reviews:
38 ratings

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E Alexander

Finding A Place Called Home

Reviewed in the United States on April 11, 2012

Verified Purchase

For any one researching African American genealogy, "Finding A Place Called Home" is a must read, simply because of the fact that before 1870, African Americans were not listed in federal censuses (the most accessable resource available to the African American Researcher) by name, but rather as property, the same as a horse, cow or pig. "Finding A Place Called Home" introduces the researcher to many other forms of records that tell the story of the life of the African American before the emancipation proctlimation. As with any property, whether realestate or personal, the owner was by law required to pay taxes on his property and since the African American was his property, the transcation left a paper trail, as well did the owner's wills, bills of sales and purches, also in his estate and family records, his human property was often his greatest asset and threfore he left many recorded documents that are useful to any one researching the African American Family Genealogy, and a harty hats off to Mrs. Dee Palmer Woodtor PH. D. for all of her hard work and detication to the couse of reconstructing the African American Family, after the most immoral and inhuman treatment of a group of human beings in the history of our world.

Even for some one who may not be interested in family research, this book is a bright light on a dark path for any one who would like to know what the life of their ancestors was like , whether their ancestors were property owners or property of the owners, I recomment this book as a healing aid for the uncontented souls.

3 people found this helpful

Helpful

Denice

Informative and in good condition.

Reviewed in the United States on January 24, 2020

Verified Purchase

Informative book. Read it in an afternoon at least for what I wanted. Interesting, came from a Goodwill in TX. It was in pristine condition.

Helpful

R. Brooks

Essential for researchers of black american family history

Reviewed in the United States on September 14, 2016

Verified Purchase

Great book for the beginner and intermediate genealogist with a focus on the african american family. This book has been an excellent guide for me to ensure 1)I'm taking advantage of all the available resources out here and 2) following best practices for verifying my research data. Very easy to read and entertaining. Informative without being overly technical. Highly recommend.

2 people found this helpful

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P. Blum

She is thrilled with this book and claims that it is the best in the field

Reviewed in the United States on May 19, 2016

Verified Purchase

I purchased this for my wife who is writing her memoirs regarding her search for her african ancestors. She is thrilled with this book and claims that it is the best in the field.

3 people found this helpful

Helpful

Nappycp

The Best Black Genealogy Guide To Have

Reviewed in the United States on March 28, 2016

Verified Purchase

This is by far the very best Black African-American genealogy resource book written. I bought this book over 10 years ago. It has educated me on Black genealogy research and it continues to inspired me to learn more and honor my ancestors. By following this book I learned to not only research my family, but also our African-American culture during their time. I learned how to read the census and document records and flesh out my ancestors. With the help of this book I have written family narratives to help my family members get to know our ancestors. I am so impressed with this book that I have gifted it to family & friends, and I have recommended it to others.

3 people found this helpful

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N. Burns

Excellent resource. If this book falls apart because I ...

Reviewed in the United States on July 27, 2015

Verified Purchase

Excellent resource. If this book falls apart because I use it so much. I will purchase another.

3 people found this helpful

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wise tech

Three Stars

Reviewed in the United States on March 26, 2015

Verified Purchase

Good resource and guide for genealogy research. The information provides tools that can be helpful in family research.

Helpful

A. Jones

a very valuable resource

Reviewed in the United States on September 21, 2013

Verified Purchase

Although the book was written in the late 1990s it is still useful today as I am researching my family - it gives lots of clues to how to read documents

One person found this helpful

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Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

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