Manumitted Enslaved People in Puerto Rico
Most people do not realize that slavery still existed on the island of Puerto Rico well after the United States had freed those enslaved. In Puerto Rico, slavery ended in 1873 by the Spanish National Assembly. However, those enslaved were not exactly free, they had to work for an additional 3 years for those that…
Guanica Digitized Church Records 1885 – 1944
Guanica, which is west from Yauco on the island of Puerto Rico, was once part of Yauco until 1914. It was then that it established itself as its own municipality. If you have done research in PARES (see prior posts), then you may have come across records from the early 1500s when Guaynia was the…
Aguas Buenas Digitized Church Records 1845 – 1938
Prior to the municipality of Aguas Buenas being established in 1838 in Puerto Rico, it was once a part of Caguas and you should look at Caguas church records prior to this church being established. The municipality sits just northwest of Caguas. The reason I mention this is because new researchers think that the towns…
Adjuntas Digitized Church Records 1812 – 1952
The municipality of Adjuntas is north of Yauco and was established in 1815. The municipality exists off a mountainside. The area is known for its cooler temperatures and was once part of the Coamo. The church for this municipality when it was established is San Joaquin. Most of the baptism books have indexes either in…
Manumissions on Trinidad and Tobago, Barbados, and Jamaica
Manumissions is the act in which a slave owner frees their slaves. When Britain ended slavery, many slaves were manumitted and their masters were compensated for freeing them. Some were manumitted even prior to the end of slavery. While there are manumissions records available for Trinidad and Tobago, it will require that you make a…
Bahamas Chancery, Dower, and Court Records 1791 to 1917
Chancery records are actually extremely important in researching your ancestry. Whether your ancestors are European, African or African descent, or Native American. These types of records help you in figuring out if the ancestor you seek will be listed. The Bahamas Chancery, Dower, and Court Records 1791 to 1917 are worth a review. When it…