Free Genealogy Webinar Explores Black Native Heritage

The Genealogical Forum of Oregon African American Special Interest Group will host its monthly meeting via Zoom on Saturday, Feb. 17, noon to 1:30 p.m. The topic, Researching Your Cherokee Freedmen Ancestors, will be presented by Angela Walton-Raji.

Walton-Raji will examine three of the five tribes from eastern Oklahoma. These tribes were among the five slave-holding tribes that were removed to Indian Territory. Today numerous records from Indian removal to Oklahoma statehood can be explored to find and to tell their stories. This session will examine three tribes in detail and look at the unique records that pertain to each of them.

Walton-Raji is known nationally for her genealogical and historical research and work with Oklahoma Native-American records. Her book, “Black Indian Genealogy Research,” was the first book of its kind focusing on the unique record set reflecting Freedmen found within the Dawes records. The book also discusses records that reflect blended families—Black and Native American families in many households. Among other genealogical focus areas are Black Civil War soldiers west of the Mississippi, African American benevolent societies, and the early days of freedom.

Walton-Raji is a founding member of MAAGI, the Midwest African-American Genealogy Institute. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Spanish from St. Louis University and a master of education from Antioch University. She resides in Maryland, where she continues to teach, research and write.