Native American Genealogy… the Trail of Tears

The Trail of Tears is a sad story and might belong in your family tree, but you’ve not been told. Like my uncle telling my brother, “Soft pedal that Indian stuff.” That said, I grew up in California and Nevada, with schoolteachers who respected Native American history and culture. My uncle grew up in Kansas, during a time when Native people were often disrespected. Society was prejudiced against them.

Take a look at your family records. What went on in 1835? Did your family live in Alabama back then? How about Tennessee or Georgia? North Carolina? It was from these states that the government gathered up sixteen-thousand American Indians and drove them to Oklahoma, on what’s known as the Trail of Tears.

Suellen Ocean is the author of Secret Genealogy IV – Native Americans Hidden in Our Family Trees:

Slaves’ Names Were Not Listed on the Census

If slaves’ names were not listed on the census until 1870, according to the federal government, they literally did not count. Back then, the census takers went across America taking a count of each household that they could. Slaves might be listed but not by name. How are we supposed to do our genealogy if our ancestors were not respected enough to have their names recorded?

 Suellen Ocean is the author of the Civil War Era Historic Romance, Black Pansy:

Genealogy… Trying to Find Native American Ancestry

American Indians who lived in the Southeast, did not want to be relocated, but when they had no choice, they at least wanted to remain east of the Mississippi River. Here are the 26 states that are east of the Mississippi River: Alabama, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Mississippi, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia, and Wisconsin.

Those of us who live in the west, don’t think about the Mississippi River as a boundary. We think of the Sierras, the Coastal Mountain Range, and the Rocky Mountains. But we need to imagine what a loss it would be, to be relocated across the big Mississippi. Far from family. From tribal lands.

Suellen Ocean is the author of Secret Genealogy IV – Native Americans Hidden in Our Family Trees:

The Spanish Were More Open to Interracial Romance

Before the Louisiana Purchase (when Spain ruled) there were laws against interracial romance, but people in Louisiana were laxer about who they loved, and got away with it. Many public places were open for people to mix about freely. The French had created the “Black Code,” modeled after rules set up for French Caribbean colonies. In it, were these rules that were supposed to be adhered to but weren’t (as strictly) when Spain was in charge:

We forbid our white subjects, of both sexes, to marry with the blacks, under the penalty of being fined and subjected to some other arbitrary punishment. We forbid all curates, priests, or missionaries of our secular or regular clergy, and even our chaplains in our navy to sanction such marriages. We also forbid all our white subjects, and even the manumitted or free-born blacks, to live in a state of concubinage with blacks.

Suellen Ocean is the author of the Civil War Era Historic Romance, Black Pansy:

Didn’t People Have a Heart?

In 1619 twenty slaves were brought to Jamestown in Dutch ships. They were sold. Like livestock. Wouldn’t you think that people’s hearts would have stopped them? Isn’t there something in the human soul that inherently says, this is not right? I guess not, as history shows us that slavery took such a hold in America, it took a Civil War to stop it. I would love to meet the descendants of those twenty slaves and hear the oral history of their lives. What they must have endured and what they must have accomplished. February is Black History Month. Let us never forget the price they paid.

Suellen Ocean is the author of the Civil War Era Historic Romance, Black Pansy:

Native American Genealogy… Looking for Your Cherokee Ancestors?

In 1817, the US government offered land grants of 640 acres to Native American Cherokees who (during forced relocation) desired to remain east of the Mississippi River. Before this period, Cherokees did not individually own land. Most applicants were unsuccessful obtaining one of these grants, and those who were, were granted the land for their lifetime. The land passed to their children, if they had any, but reverted to the government if they didn’t. This was supposed to be an option for those who wanted to stay east of the Mississippi, where they were from. This was in lieu of going to Arkansas, which was west of the river. Check your family records for a large land grant. It could be a clue to finding your ancestors.

Suellen Ocean is the author of Secret Genealogy IV – Native Americans Hidden in Our Family Trees:

Slavery… What’s a Jayhawker?

The word jayhawker is thought to derive from two birds, the jay and the hawk, due to their aggressive nature and reputation that they eat other birds and their eggs. During the Civil War, the term jayhawker was applied to men from free states (especially Kansas) who were outspoken and militant about slavery. These antislavery militants travelled in groups. (The term goes back to 1849, when some California travelers passing through Kansas called themselves Jayhawkers.) The Confederates used the term to describe those from Kansas, and later it became synonymous with stealing. Whether the Civil War era Jayhawkers were thieves or not, their detractors called them, bandits and robbers who were against slavery. General Sherman famously referred to some Louisiana outlaws as “Jayhawkers.”

Suellen Ocean is the author of the Civil War Era Historic Romance, Black Pansy:

Do You Have Secret Jewish Ancestry? You Might

When Jews first began arriving on North American shores, the Inquisition was still on their minds. If not the Inquisition, surely the persecution European Jews took upon their shoulders, was not to be forgotten. Understandably, they worried about their children. Little ones usually don’t have the wisdom to withhold information that might put their families in danger. Because of this, some Jewish parents held back teaching them Judaism. But because of their parent’s reticence, their children were vulnerable to other religions. Hence, they became Christians. Do not be so sure that your Christian family did not have Jewish ancestors. Watch for it. It may be closer than you think. It is a lot of fun to uncover it.

Suellen Ocean is the author of Secret Genealogy – A How-to for Tracing Ancient Jewish Ancestry. Available here:

The Brutal Honest Anglo-Saxon Truth About January

Winter can be rough. It’s cold and dark. This first month of the year is named after the Roman mythical god Janus. Statues of him are two-headed. One head looking one way, the other looking in the opposite direction, representing both a good beginning and a good ending. Sounds positive. Uplifting. But that’s not what the old Anglo-Saxons said. They were brutally honest about this time of year. They called it Wolfmonath, because this is the time of year that wolves become so hungry, they become savage.

Suellen Ocean is the author of the Civil War Era Historic Romance, Black Pansy:

Go to the Rivers, Lakes, Streams and Oceans to Feel Your Native American Ancestors

Like we do today, Native Americans settled densely along waterways, where they could fish and grow food. The coast especially held large Native populations. Native Americans living in Florida and California, take pride in their history and fight vigorously to defend it. Many of us search for answers. Some of us must settle for studying various tribal cultures and take a guess. Others with Native blood, believe that the ancestors speak to them, guide them, and give them clues. We have so much to learn about our genealogy. The new DNA technology is one tool that will no doubt get more precise through the years. For now, we stand on a bluff overlooking the sea, the river or the desert plateau and wonder. Who am I and who were they?

Suellen Ocean is the author of Secret Genealogy IV – Native Americans Hidden in Our Family Trees: