Do those Ancestry sites really work? You know the ones that look for you past re

Question:

Do those Ancestry sites really work? You know the ones that look for you past relatives?

I just dont know how they can possibly find all of your past relatives with the limit resources they had back then. I mean how far back does it go? And im blk, so my ancestors were slaves, so you know they couldnt careless about who gave birth to this slave and that slave...

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker: Ancestry has the U.S. Censuses for example. Your relatives would be there using surnames in the 1870 Census and on. If you find a relative living in the south after the Civil War, perhaps, it is a clue as to the plantation they lived on. Or, the area where that plantation was located.

At that point you can work on finding those plantation's records and yes, there are records. Last names aren't included, but if you have some information, you can deduce who your family would be on an inventory.

If you had relatives who fought in WWI or WWII, you may find information on them on ancestry.com

Are you aware that the Freedman's Bureau bank records are available? You may have had a relative who had an account. The Freedman's Bureau assisted former slaves. These records are not online, but if you give me the surname and possible locations, I can check on the disk that I have here.

If nothing else, please do not think that there are no records due to the fact that your ancestors were slaves. There are all kinds of records out there. Heck, Oprah did a whole special on this and found out that here ggrandfather? or gggrandfather not only owned a bit of property, but put a school on it. Keep in mind that her relatives were just ordinary folks and not mega stars.

So, if you are really into the idea of trying to put together a family tree, it is possible. Alex Haley did and he didn't even have computers available.

Good luck on your search and if you decide edit your question to include your earliest family surnames and locations for your family, I will check the Freedman's Bureau Records for you. :-)