Tracing a Heritage

Does your family have Native American blood but you are unsure to prove it?? You have heard the stories for years. Stories like the ones I have heard of uncle Jack being able to cut a fly in half as it flew around or the food that your great grandmother would prepare. Story upon story like these are favorites of mine as they belong to my family. Perhaps you have stories like this as well but like me you are not sure how to go about to prove your relation

Why would an individual want to verify Native American (American Indian or Alaska Native) heritage??

• a way to learn more about your ancestry
• trace back to someone who may have been enrolled member of tribe. 

Genetic testing can not prove that one is a Native American descent. With no genetic markers set aside unique to Native American but it can be compared to genetic makeup against that of another individual or database It may be able to use genetic testing to reinforce or disprove the fact of Native American descendent or not.

Trace ancestry through parents, grandparents, or other relatives to locate a directly related ancestor who is or was a member of a Native American tribe. Look for family records, old possessions, records such as birth, death and marriage as well as scrapbooks including pictures, newspaper clippings, letters and diaries.

It may seem odd to look online for past documents and records but the are becoming freely available on the internet. Place your ancestors name into a search engine to do a quick look. Social networking sites can help connect you with distant relatives and people who may be related to you.

Local, federal, and tribal records are all great resources

The story goes that my Great Grandmother was a Full Blooded Black Cherokee. By the time my grand-dad and his brother reached the small town of Whitehall their mother had been kidnapped by white men. The brothers settle down and lived there as farmers til their deaths. In the years between he was married and had a family. My dad was Bob Stewart's son I have little to go on besides the stories but the stories are more than nothing.

Do you have a similar story

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