Caribbean FEMALE ANCESTORS

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The Digital Library of the Caribbean is a cooperative digital library for resources from and about the Caribbean & circum-Caribbean.

The Early Caribbean Digital Archive is an open access collection of pre-twentieth-century Caribbean texts, maps, and images. Texts include travel narratives, novels, poetry, natural histories, and diaries that have not been brought together before as a single collection focused on the Caribbean. The materials in the archive are primarily authored and published by Europeans, but the ECDA aims to use digital tools to "remix" the archive and foreground the centrality and creativity of enslaved and free African, Afro-creole, and Indigenous peoples in the Caribbean world.

History Hub is a research support community for everyone, including genealogists, historians, and citizen archivists.

I Am Queen Mary is a transnational public art project created by La Vaughn Belle of the US Virgin Islands and Jeannette Ehlers of Denmark-two artists connected by their shared Caribbean roots and colonial histories. Together they created the first collaborative sculpture to memorialize Denmark’s colonial impact in the Caribbean and those who fought against it. This monumental work debuted in March 2018 in front of the West Indian warehouse in Copenhagen in commemoration of the 100th anniversary of the sale and transfer of the Danish West Indies (now the U.S. Virgin Islands) to the United States. As the first monument to a Black woman in Denmark, I Am Queen Mary made international headlines as a symbol that celebrates and centers the story of people who resisted Danish colonialism in the Caribbean. In 2020 the Danish government granted permission to permanently install I Am Queen Mary in front of a former colonial warehouse in Copenhagen, acknowledging the work's shift from a temporary artwork to an important landmark in the city.

The Our HERitage project highlights the stories of Caribbean women during the colonial period (including slavery and indentured labor) of the Netherlands. The initiative aims to give more recognition to this often forgotten heritage and to make the diversity within the Caribbean community (including Suriname and Guyanas) visible.

Het project Our HERitage belicht de verhalen van Caribische vrouwen tijdens de koloniale periode (inclusief slavernij en contractarbeid) van Nederland. Het initiatief wil meer erkenning geven aan dit vaak vergeten erfgoed en het wil de diversiteit binnen de Caribische gemeenschap (inclusief Suriname en Guyana’s) zichtbaar maken.

In the past, women appeared in records with far less frequency than men, especially under their own names (rather than their husbands’). If you don’t already know who they married, it’s easy to lose track of women before or after their surnames changed. For these reasons, it often takes extra effort to identify and trace women throughout their entire lives. Try these five tasks to get to know the females on your family tree.

This thesis examines the experiences of the inhabitants of St. Vincent during the first fifty years of freedom. It examines social changes, work opportunities and areas of conflicts that developed during the period. It also details the effects of the declining economy on the islanders. The main subjects of the thesis are the agricultural labourers who were freed from slavery. It investigates their working lives, their attempts to achieve independent status as
freeholders and their family and religious experiences. It also examines the changing attitudes towards them that were held by the planter class, the clergy and colonial officials, and how these views influenced the formation of a free society. In particular, the thesis investigates how perspectives of race, class and gender differed within the island, and how these divergencies created hostilities between different social groups often leading to unrest.

Dr. Fernandez-Sacco's recent article is about interviews, enslavement, testimony, and the communities involved in a 1945 interview by the historian Luis Diaz Soler with Leoncia Lassalle then 112 years old, and her 85-year old daughter, Juana Rodriguez Lasalle's experiences under bondage. Fernandez-Sacco offers a context for the account, traces their family history, considers the multiple contexts for this narrative, the limits on archives, and how historical knowledge is made as we do genealogy that engages slavery & life post-emancipation.

As we continue to celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month, this episode promises to enlighten you with a deep dive into the complexities of Cuba's domestic labor history, guided by the expert insights of our guest, Dr Anasa Hicks, Associate Professor of History at Florida State University.

We journey together through the significant shifts of the 20th century, examining the enduring ties of domestic service to the history of slavery, the gendered and class structures of domestic labor, and the changing perceptions of these roles in society. From the turbulent era of the 1933 Revolution to the radical activism era between 1938 and 1959, we delve into the intricate narratives that have shaped the future of domestic service in Cuba. Hear the story of Elvira Rodriguez, a domestic servant and activist whose story embodies the power of workers' activism in Cuba. This is more than just a history lesson; it's an exploration of the power of activism and the complexities of labor history in Cuba.

Have you ever wondered what Cuba was like before the 1959 Revolution? This fascinating episode promises to take you there. Celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month with us as we are joined by Dr. Takkara Brunson for a riveting exploration of the Republic of Cuba period (1902-1958) through the lens of Black Cuban women. We unravel their significant contributions to the independence movement despite the racialized and gendered dynamics that pervaded their society.

In this episode, Lisa and Gena Philibert-Ortega discuss the unique challenges faced by genealogy researchers when tracing female ancestors. They explore five common obstacles, including name changes, missing records, and the importance of understanding historical context. Gena provides practical strategies for overcoming these challenges, emphasizing the need for thorough research plans, creative searching techniques, and awareness of significant historical events that impact women’s records.

Join Strictly Facts as we share the captivating journey of education in the French Caribbean, focusing on Martinique's rich history throughout the 20th century. With the insightful PhD candidate Nora Eguienta by my side, we unravel the largely untold stories of women educators who profoundly shaped the educational and political landscape from 1920 to 1960. These women dominated teaching positions yet were conspicuously absent from leadership roles—a paradox that persisted until well into the late 1960s. Nora helps is to explore this intriguing dynamic, diving into historical narratives and the powerful activism led by figures like Paulette Nardal, challenging the biases that limited women's roles in education.

Dive into the extraordinary story of Lumina Sophie (1848-1879), a lesser-known yet powerful figure in Caribbean history, as we explore her inspiring journey during a time of revolutionary fervor. Born in a post-emancipation Martinique, Sophie defied traditional gender roles by leading a revolt for liberation while pregnant, embodying the spirit of resilience and unwavering courage. 

We sit with Gaiutra Bahadur, author of 'Coolie Woman: The Odyssey of Indenture' and discuss the lost history of indentured women.

There are stories we typically don't tell during Women's History Month, one of whihc is the narrative of Judith Phillip (1760-1848), an enslaver from Grenada whose family's dominion over Carriacou and Petit Martinique tells a story not just of land and wealth but race and colonial allegiances against the backdrop of the transatlantic slave trade. This episode discusses the intricacies of Caribbean history, weaving the personal story of a mixed-race family into the broader fabric of 18th-century Caribbean society.

Join Strictly Facts as we uncover how Judith's French baker father and her mother, an enslaved woman, rose to prominence to own plantations and amass a fortune. We'll explore the societal structures that allowed their family to thrive in an era of oppression and how their legacy challenges our understanding of Caribbean history and power at the time. In this final episode for Women's History Month, we share the tale of inheritance, power, and the complexity of free mixed-race individuals during a time when such narratives are rarely told. 

The Sons & Daughters of the United States Middle Passage (SDUSMP) is a lineage society for descendants of individuals enslaved in English colonial America and the United States of America from 1619-1865. It is dedicated to preserving the memory of freed and enslaved ancestors. This program will explain what is the SDUSMP, how to apply for membership in it, how to find enslaved ancestors, and why it is important to remember them.

In this video, Researching Female Ancestors of the Caribbean, Sharon Tomlin delves into ways we can research African-Caribbean female ancestry. Encouraging dialogue across the generations to understand the pioneers of the past and to discover the pioneers within their own family.

This presentation was part of RootsTech Connect 2021.

This paper draws on a Black feminist lens to read against the silencing violence of the slavery archives and reveal a dynamic (if sometimes controversial) and creolizing process of identity formation of free and enslaved Black women who, through resistance and/or accommodation, subverted the socio-political structures of colonial power and negotiated their place in the plantation economies of the Caribbean. Peggy incorporates archival and archaeological methods alongside intersectional theory to reveal an alternative narrative of Atlantic enslaved and free communities.

In this episode I speak with Dr Maria del Pilar Kaladeen about her journey through family history which is based on the article that she wrote "A Daughter's Journey from Indenture to Windrush". This journey of self discovery comes with many turns and viewpoints, and connection to self.

In this episode I will be speaking with Victoria Barnett-Woods who is an Assistant Teaching Professor at Loyola University Maryland in the Humanities Department. Where she specializes in literature of the long eighteenth century. Currently is the Associate Director for student programming & experimental learning at the Starr Centre Washington College.

In this episode I speak with Dr. Justine K Collins about the Barbados Slave Code 1660's. Dr Justine K Collins is a Legal Historian and a Postdoctoral Researcher & Lecturer at SOAS University of London, Faculty of Law.

This webinar is the second panel in the series of online discussions about the Anglican Church and Slavery entitled Truth Telling: Slavery and the Anglican Church, held in advance of the flagship international convening planned in 2025 to explore the historical involvement of the Anglican Church in the institution of slavery, the lasting implications of colonialism on the Church and actions to progress racial justice by the Church of England Racial Justice Unit (CoERJU).

This webinar. ‘Women, Slavery and the Church’ will consider specifically the role of women:

• as enslavers/beneficiaries of African enslavement and their links to the Anglican church,
• as resistors/rebels against slavery (including as church leaders)
• and how women, especially Black women, are viewed in the church today as a result of slavery.

This is a documentary that Erik Miles and Studio Five Film produced for Leah McCallister for her Mother Blanche Sasso on her 105th birthday. We had followed and filmed "Granny" for several years prior. Blanch and her Sister "Grace Sparks" are well known as the Betsy Ross's of the Virgin Islands. They sewed the first Virgin Islands flag.

In honor of Garifuna Heritage Month (March 11-April 12), join us for an afternoon with Garifuna Scholar and Miriam Jiménez Román Fellow Dr. Daisy E. Guzman Nunez, Luz F. Soliz Ramos and Catherine Ochun. Together, through performance, conversation, and food, they recreate the Garifuna interior as an intergenerational, matrilineal space that calls to the ancestors.

The bloody labor revolt of 1878, known as the Fireburn, is but one life-altering event that helped shape people’s lives, as well as the economy of the US Virgin Islands. It was a pivotal event in the history of the Virgin Islands, but what really happened? The Fireburn documentary explores the inhumane conditions that existed prior to the revolt and looks at the women who were called “Queens” due to their leadership.

www.fireburndocumentary.com