Links

A great starting point for those new to the subject of researching their African American ancestors.

Here you can search, by location and slave owner's name for the records of enslaved individuals. Slaves themselves are not enumerated by name, only by age and sex.

Here you can search, by location and slave owner's name for the records of enslaved individuals. Slaves themselves are not enumerated by name, only by age and sex.

The story of the African American experience in Missouri is told through the personal papers of individuals and families as well as the records of black organizations and churches. Civil War pensions shed light on the aftermath of the war, while photographs, letters, scrapbooks, writings, and newspapers provide insight into the daily life of African Americans living in the state. The State Historical Society of Missouri is pleased to make available these rich resources that document their lives as Missourians.

An overview of Civil War era records for African Americans who fought for the Union during the Civil War.

Find-A-Grave listing of burials of African Americans at the Old Pilot Knob Cemetery, aka the Pilot Knob Colored Cemetery in Pilot Knob, Missouri. A full list of all known African American burials in Iron County with some additional genealogical information is available in the historical society's book, "Witnesses to History: Stories from Park View Cemetery". This book is available in our bookstore.

Find-A-Grave listing (incomplete) of burials (mainly African American) at Park View Cemetery in Ironton, Missouri. This cemetery was originally established in the late 1850s as a paupers' cemetery. After the Civil War, it became the main burial location for African Americans who lived and died in the Arcadia Valley. The cemetery has been known by many names including, the Ironton Cemtery and the Ironton Colored Cemetery. A full list of all the burials with some additional genealogical information is available in the historical society's book, "Witnesses to History: Stories from Park View Cemetery". This book is available in our bookstore and documents burials of African Americans in all Iron County cemeteries where they were buried.

An overview of the records of the Freedmen's Bureau with links to access those records.

This free collection, part of the Chronicling America Historic Newspaper Project, provides access to digitized copies of the Iron County Register from 1880 through 1922. From the late 1880s to the mid 1890s, The Register often contained the column "Colored Society Notes" which was devoted the coverage of local African Americans in the area. The collection is searchable. Outside of this column, the newspaper often included information about local, individual African Americans.

The Missouri State Archives database index project began in 2000, with the goal of creating a finding aid for the Missouri portion of the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) War Department Collection of Confederate Records (Record Group 109.14.4 Miscellaneous Records). In addition, through the cooperation of the Julius K. Hunter & Friends African American Research Collection at the St. Louis County Library, the Archives is happy to provide access to the African American recruitment lists from Missouri for the years 1863-1865, part of the NARA Records of the Adjutant General’s Office, 1780’s-1917 (Record Group 94). These records were generated by the provost marshal before being forwarded to the Colored Troops Division of the Adjutant General’s Office in Washington. This represents a virtually untapped manuscript collection detailing the national experience in the trans-Mississippi West. Completed in 2010, the database contains over 72,000 entries relating to Missouri, some 18,000 these relate to St. Louis.