Family History Friday: Native American Research!

-Chief Hole in the Day-

You know how you hear stories about your ancestors, while growing up in your family? Have you heard a story about being related to a Native American? 

I heard those stories, too! 

It wasn't until I was in my teens, that the story became more concrete. If you have heard this story, some things you will want to know in order to do research are: 

• Do you have a name?
• Do you know when and where they lived? (a location will help you identify a tribe)
• Who was it in your family that said you had a Native American ancestor? Can you go talk to them and find out more?

If you don't have much information and can't ask for more information, you will just have to work you way back, starting with you, until you find them. 

Sometimes it is just a story.

• Another important piece of information would be to know the tribe or nation the ancestor belonged. 

There are 100's of tribes. My ancestor came from the Great Lakes Region. Most of the records for my ancestor were found at the tribal agency. 

If your ancestor was a member of what they call the 

"Five Civilized Tribes",

Cherokee, Creek, Choctaw, Chickasaw, and Seminole, they ended up in Oklahoma. All tribes where not relocated and my be close to their original location. Even though my ancestors tribe was placed on a reservation, they remained in Minnesota. If your ancestor was in Oklahoma, there are some very helpful Federal records called the "Dawes Roles". They are a good source for information. You can read about them here!

Happy Family History Friday! Love, Joy