Manumission Records of Slaves in Jamaica

One of the terms that many of us that descend from enslaved ancestors know is the word manumission.  Manumission is the term used when referencing the freedom of those that were enslaved. The term is used when individuals managed to attain their freedom, whether through the slaveholder freeing them or through the enslaved person purchasing their freedom or a family member doing it for them.

While many of us would like to find these records, it isn’t an easy task. It becomes harder for those of us who have ancestors that come from the Caribbean. Many records have been destroyed or lost due to fire, hurricanes, the humidity, and the insects that enjoy eating through the records.

Many times when books were found to be in poor condition, they would wind up being burned as trash. Preservation is not a priority when many faced struggles in feeding their families and maintaining homes.

While records are disappearing, many have taken on the mission of preserving these records, which helps many in the genealogy world discover records that were not previously available to them. Many of these preservation projects are taken on via grants through universities around the globe.

• Clarendon
• Hanover
• Kingston
• Manchester
• Port Royal
• Portland
• St. Andrew
• St. Ann
• St. Catherine
• St. David
• St. Dorothy
• St. Elizabeth
• St. George
• St. James
• St. Mary
• St. Thomas in the East
•  St. Thomas in the Vale
• Trelawny
• Vere
• Westmoreland

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