Barbados GENEALOGY

The Barbados National Archives is a very useful source of information for persons conducting genealogical research and tracing their family tree. The Archives houses parish documents such as births, baptisms, marriages, deeds and wills. The collection also includes manuscripts, letters, reports, books, maps, charts and photographs. Some of these documents date back to the early settlement days of the 1600s.

At the core of the project is a database containing, first, the identity of all slave-owners in the British colonies at the time slavery ended and, second, all the estates in the British Caribbean colonies. As the two earlier phases of work unfolded, we amassed, analysed and incorporated information about the activities, affiliations and legacies of all the British slave-owners on the database, building this Encyclopedia of British Slave-Owners.

The Endangered Archives Programme (EAP) facilitates the digitisation of archives around the world that are in danger of destruction, neglect or physical deterioration. Thanks to generous funding from Arcadia, a charitable foundation that works to preserve cultural heritage and promote open access to knowledge, we have provided grants to almost 500 projects in over ninety countries worldwide, in more than a hundred languages and scripts.

The FamilySearch Research Wiki is a free, online genealogical guide created and maintained by FamilySearch, a non-profit organization. It contains links to genealogy databases, websites, other resources, research strategies, and genealogical guidance to assist in the search for your ancestors. Articles included are locality pages for countries around the world and topic pages that include pertinent genealogy record types explaining how to use the record, what it contains, and how to find it.

In 1807 The Abolition of Slave Trade Act came into force. The act made the trade in slaves from Africa to the British colonies illegal. To combat illicit transportation following this act many of the British Colonies began keeping registers of black slaves who had been so-called “lawfully enslaved”. In 1819 the Office for the Registry of Colonial Slaves was established in London and copies of the slave registers kept by the colonies were sent to this office. Registration generally occurred once every three years. The registers continue through to 1834 when slavery was officially abolished.

Created in 1890, the Records Section of the Registration Department maintains records (District Registers) relating to the births, deaths and marriages of Barbadians going back to the 19th century. Records for the years prior to the 20th century are archived, but 20th century records must be kept readily available to the Section so that staffers can verify information as required.

The Registration Department charges a fee to search their records.

British manumissions: manumissions for slaves from Trinidad, Barbados and Jamaica; correspondence with David Barclay; manumissions for David Barclay's slaves Indentures: Masters names, A - Perrot

ShipIndex.org simplifies vessel research. Whether you’re a genealogist, a maritime historian, a researcher, or just curious, we can help you learn more about the ships that interest you. We tell you which maritime resources, such as books, journals, magazines, newspapers, CD-ROMs, websites, and online databases mention the ships that interest you. We enhance these references by noting which ones include illustrations or crew and passenger lists, and where you can find or purchase the resource.Description goes here

The SlaveVoyages website is a collaborative digital initiative that compiles and makes publicly accessible records of the largest slave trades in history. Search these records to learn about the broad origins and forced relocations of more than 12 million African people who were sent across the Atlantic in slave ships, and hundreds of thousands more who were trafficked within the Americas. Explore where they were taken, the numerous rebellions that occurred, the horrific loss of life during the voyages, the identities and nationalities of the perpetrators, and much more.

The persons listed with the date 1722 Subscribed to the production of a map of Barbados by William MAYO whose surveys were conducted between 1717 & 1721 and which was published in 1722 and showed the position of 976 plantations with the name of the owner at the time of the survey. 611 copies of the map were subscribed to.

This list has been compiled by members of the Genealogical Computing Group of the NZ Society of Genealogists.

Ancestry message boards contain over 25 million posts on more than 198,000 boards.

Ancestry message boards contain over 25 million posts on more than 198,000 boards.

This database has been compiled from the returns of people who received compensation following the 1833 emancipation act which freed slaves in the British colonies in the Caribbean, Bermuda, Belize, Guyana, Mauritius and Cape Colony (South Africa).

The British Newspaper Archive is a partnership between the British Library and Findmypast to digitise the British Library's vast collection of newspapers.

Over a period of about 25 years Mrs. Mona A. WATSON, nee FARMER, of Surrey, England collected every mention of the CLARKE name in Barbados. The result was roughly 600 hand-written pages of information: lists of names from baptisms and marriages, family trees and the odd photograph and newspaper cuttings. The index of names (4,880) is now on a database in the Barbados Museum, Shilstone Library.

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.

The Barbados family history research page lists data collections relevant to Barbados.

Start your search here to find ancestors originating from Barbados and to research historical records pertaining to Barbados.

This website is dedicated to all Caribbean Family Historians. The data has been collected over the past twenty years by a group of enthusiastic volunteers based around the world, all sharing Caribbean interests. The vision of this website is to share Caribbean family histories as a non-profit and non-invasive site.

Our database contains recorded inscriptions of tombstones and monumental plaques found on sites in Antigua, Barbados and a few other smaller islands across the Caribbean.

Barbados: Most of the data is up to and including the year 1950 unless the grave is obviously connected to an earlier one.

This website is dedicated to all Caribbean Family Historians. The data has been collected over the past twenty years by a group of enthusiastic volunteers based around the world, all sharing Caribbean interests. The vision of this website is to share Caribbean family histories as a non-profit and non-invasive site.

Find the graves of ancestors, create virtual memorials or add photos, virtual flowers and a note to a loved one's memorial. Search or browse cemeteries and grave records for every-day and famous people from around the world.

We have successfully collected information about thousands of Jewish cemetery sites all over the world along with information on the location of the cemetery, and how to obtain more information. Each Jewish cemetery or burial site listed in the project by town or city, country, and geographic region is based on current locality designation. Some listings include links to other websites with additional information such as burial lists or a name to contact by email or snail-mail.

The Jewish cemetery is located next to the Nidhe Israel Synagogue 1654 and dates back to the same period. It was originally divided into four separate walled cemeteries, with an additional cemetery in Whites Alley on the block bounded by James and Swan Streets. The oldest tombstone is dated 1658. It currently has about 400 graves. The older grave ledgers are flat and made of marble or granite, as is customary in Separdic graveyards. There are also Ashkenazi graves from the more modern Jewish community of the 20th and 21st centuries, who still bury their members there.

Quakers began arriving in Barbados in the mid-1650’s. There were more than 1,000 Quakers in Barbados by 1680. It is noteworthy that prior to their large-scale migration to Pennsylvania, Barbados had more Quakers than any other English colony. A Quaker Burial Ground is demarcated on the 1806 survey plan of the Synagogue block area. Subsequently, an asphalt parking area was constructed over much of that burial ground. During site excavations in 2016, one Quaker tombstone was unearthed and preserved. It is located in proximity to the entrance of Shilstone Hall.

The Frank and Frances Carpenter Collection consists of photographs produced and gathered by Frank G. Carpenter (1855-1924) and his daughter Frances (1890-1972) to illustrate his writings on travel and world geography. Carpenter's works helped popularize cultural anthropology and geography in the early years of the twentieth century.

Trace your roots for FREE with our searchable database containing thousands of identified and mystery photos for genealogy enthusiasts looking for long-lost family. Anyone who finds a photo of a direct ancestor that is owned by the archive will receive the photo for free.

HaChayim HaYehudim Jewish Photo Library is an archive of images from the Jewish world. Jewish communities in the Caribbean featured include Aruba, Barbados, Cuba, Curaçao, Dominican Republic, Jamaica, Nevis, Puerto Rico, St. Croix, St. Eustatius, St. Thomas, and Trinidad.

Harry A. Franck (1881-1962) was a University of Michigan graduate (1903), avid traveler, and veteran of both world wars. He wrote thirty-three travel books describing Europe, South and Central America, China, Japan, and many other places. His most popular books include A Vagabond Journey Around the World (1910) and Zone Policeman 88 (1913). His books routinely featured photographs he took during his journeys: landscapes, street scenes, working people with the tools of their trade, portraits, and snapshots.

We are a team of dedicated film archivists who aim to help you produce the best archive content for your project.

Our collections are vast and varied - the sum of over fifty years of service to production and to film archiving. Our footage starts around 1895 and we cover the places and people of the 20th century comprehensively and globally. Our holdings are mostly documentary with the addition of behind the scenes Hollywood, Bollywood and a special collection of pioneer film makers. It is with great pride that our source material is still on celluloid for quality and that filmic texture. Our films are housed in purpose built film vaults and our staff expert in their field.

The Montgomery Collection of Caribbean Photographs is a singular collection of more than 3,500 historical images from 34 countries including Jamaica, Barbados and Trinidad. This visual record contains studio portraits, landscapes and tourist views and brings to life the changing economies, environments and communities that emerged post-emancipation. The Collection includes nearly every photographic format available during the years 1840 to 1940, including prints, postcards, daguerreotypes, lantern slides, albums, and stereographs.

M/S Maritime Museum of Denmark tells the story of Denmark as one of the world's leading maritime nations in an evocative and dramatic way.

You can visit the digital image archive here where more than 60.000 photos are digitalized (in Danish).

These images from the Colonial Office library photographic collection (CO 1069) and the Central Office of Information British Empire collection of photographs (INF 10) have been added to Flickr so that you can comment, tag and share them easily. The images are also being used to develop exciting national community outreach projects.

This digital compilation was developed in support of the NYPL website, "The African American Migration Experience," a sweeping 500-year historical narrative from the transatlantic slave trade to the Western migration, the colonization movement, the Great Migration, and the contemporary immigration of Caribbeans, Haitians, and sub-Saharan Africans.

The KITLV image collection holds photographs, prints and drawings that were acquired by The Royal Netherlands Institute of Southeast Asian and Caribbean Studies (KITLV). Housed at Leiden University Libraries since 2014, as part of the KITLV library collection.

The biggest part of the image collection consists of photographs. Around 1890 the KITLV started collecting photographs for the purpose of documenting the image of the Dutch East and West Indies in all their facets, such as landscapes, town views, architecture, and life under indigenous and Dutch rule and so forth.

Easy-to-use software that helps you fix your pics and documents fast! Free to try - no credit card required.

The David Rumsey Map Collection was started over 35 years ago and contains more than 200,000 maps. The collection focuses on rare 16th through 21st century maps of North and South America, as well as maps of the World, Asia, Africa, Europe, and Oceania. The collection includes atlases, globes, wall maps, school geographies, pocket maps, books of exploration, maritime charts, and a variety of cartographic materials including pocket, wall, children's, and manuscript maps. Items range in date from around 1550 to the present.

Our mission is to give old maps a new life in the online world via the Old Maps Online search catalog that allows visitors to explore and discover the beauty of historical maps depicting a past geographical place of their interest.

Attempting to promote the Carolina-Caribbean connection, a group called the Carolina Caribbean Association, led by Rhoda Green, successfully led the movement for the “twinning” ceremonies of Charleston and Speightstown in 1997.

Since the twinning in 1997, the Barbados & the Carolinas Legacy Foundation and the South Carolina National Heritage Corridor have partnered in mission to raise awareness of the historic connection that binds South Carolina and Barbados. Through special events, programs and tourism promotion we hope bring awareness to the historic connection and encourage exploration of places tied to this history.

Barbados House Montreal Association was founded in 1970. Our objectives surround organizing, promoting and encouraging the educational, economic, social and cultural activities of Barbadians living in Montreal. We are proud to be one of the oldest cultural organizations in Montréal.

Located in Barbados' UNESCO World Heritage Property, the Barbados Museum’s galleries are housed in 19th century military prison buildings and reveal the island’s rich history, culture and heritage. The Museum’s Shilstone Memorial Library maintains rare West Indian documents, photographs and hard-to-find books that enable research of all types including family history research.

The Barbados National Trust is a charitable, non-profit, non-governmental (NGO) body founded in 1961 to establish and preserve the natural and built heritage of Barbados and to awaken the public to a greater awareness of Barbados' historic and architectural riches. It is linked through aims, goals and structure to all the international National Trusts from England to Australia and it is believed the Barbados National Trust is the second oldest in the Caribbean.

The Synagogue Historic District is located within the heart of Bridgetown, the capital city of Barbados, which was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site with its Garrison in 2011. This Historic District covers an entire city block that features numerous heritage buildings that boast a rich history dating back to the mid-17th century.

The main concept of From Beijing to Bridgetown is to focus on the relationship between Barbados and China through community stories. While there are many secondary themes within the exhibition, the main highlight is focused on the background of looking at the workplace and the home, as these would be seen as the main areas of interaction between both communities. The intention is to recreate a space that can uniquely feel Chinese Caribbean then utilizing different symbols and items that would have represented home and work life for the Chinese communities in Barbados.

The Gullah Geechee Cultural Heritage Corridor is a National Heritage Area and it was established by the U.S. Congress to recognize the unique culture of the Gullah Geechee people who have traditionally resided in the coastal areas and the sea islands of North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia and Florida. Visit us to learn more about Gullah Geechee people and a unique, world culture.

Indo-Caribbean Cultural Centre (ICC) is a non-profit, independent, educational organization recognized by the Government of Trinidad and Tobago. ICC was established in 1999 with its axiom being “Celebrating unity in cultural diversity in the Caribbean.” It is dedicated to publishing two magazines every year – a Divali souvenir magazine, and an Indian Arrival Day commemorative magazine. ICC is primarily committed to the production of information about people, issues and events affecting Hindus and Indians in multi-ethnic Trinidad and the Caribbean.

Like many plantations in Barbados, Morgan Lewis inherited its name from its first owner – Morgan Lewis. The name first appears in Barbados’ historical record in 1674 and has been retained until the present. In 1721 Morgan Lewis is sold to the John Hannis who owns the plantation for a brief period until he sells it to the Gibbons family in 1736. Morgan Lewis plantation remained in the Gibbons family until the nineteenth century.

The Mikvah, or ritual bath for purifying the body, was developed by the original Sephardic Jews that built the Nidhe Israel Synagogue in 1654. The bath is located near the Synagogue and dates back to the same period. It was unearthed during an archeological investigation in 2008 that was searching for the original Rabbi’s House.

Thousands of artifacts were unearthed during the excavation, including pieces of Staffordshire slipware, a shoe buckle, old smoker’s pipes, and a jeweler’s stone mold. Many have been identified, categorized and some are on display in the Nidhe Israel Museum.

The Museum showcases interactive and multimedia displays that interprets the Jewish settlement and life on the island from a historic perspective. It was developed in 2008 in an existing historic building on site dating from around 1700. It consists of two storeys: the museum display on the lower level and the upper level housing an archaeological laboratory, audio-visual room, and small apartment. Many of the artifacts discovered during the 2008 excavation of the site are on display in the museum.

The West Indian history is kept alive in part by the Afro-Caribbean Museum. The Museum is housed in what was formerly the Christian Mission Church, which was built in El Marañón, Calidonia, by Barbadian workers in the year 1910.

It is a wooden structure that reflects a Caribbean style of architecture, and there is only one main exhibit space that contains historic photographs and domestic items that portray the history and living conditions of the West Indian immigrants who began migrating to Panama for the construction of the railroad in 1850 and later arrived in greater numbers for the construction of the Panama Canal in the first two decades of the twentieth century.

The Barbados Genealogy Group was developed and is managed by The Shilstone Memorial Library. This group is designed for like-minded individuals who are interested in Barbadian genealogy. The genealogy group provides advice on finding your forefathers, hosts bi-monthly meetings, occasional workshops, and provides a quarterly newsletter for their members.

The Barbados Jewish Community is a thriving inclusive Conservative congregation, worshipping in downtown Bridgetown, Barbados at the Historic Nidhe Israel Synagogue. We welcome members and visitors of all Jewish denominations and we encourage participation from all who seek a connection to Jewish life, our faith and to the Nation of Israel.

Genealogy.com is a source for family history buffs to find genealogical research originally posted in GenForum and our most popular genealogy articles. Start a search or browse below to start digging into your family's past!

According to La Autoridad del Canal de Panamá (Panama Canal Authority) almost 57,000 workers were employed during the construction of the Panama Canal. Of that figure, the overwhelming number was people of African descent. Some of the employees were black Americans from the United States (see “The Panama Canal: The African American Experience” by Patrice C. Brown in Prologue, Summer 1997). The majority of personnel, however, were Afro-Caribbeans from the Antilles islands commonly referred to as the West Indies. The largest number of those workers—roughly 20,000—was from Barbados. Included among those seeking jobs in the Canal Zone were many West Indian women, some of whom followed their husbands, while others journeyed to Panama often for the same reasons as men—jobs and better pay, freedom, or adventure.

This is the second in a series of blogs that relates to Panama Canal records. This blog focuses on death records and how the records can be used to perform genealogical or labor history research concerning living and working conditions in the Canal Zone. The records date from 1884–1999 and relate to accidents, injuries and deaths that occurred in the Canal Zone. The records can assist in documenting a variety of events such as whether a relative worked for the Panama Canal. Genealogical information can be obtained from the records relating to an individual’s name, age, marital status, and country of origin. In addition, illnesses and causes of injuries listed in the records can indicate the living and working conditions in the Canal Zone.

A meeting place for Bajan Family historians.

Inspired by the stories that my Grandmother told me about our ancestors in Trinidad, I started researching my family history in my youth. My research has resulted in me accumulating vast amounts of information not only on my immediate ancestors but also related families (something we refer to as “pumpkin vine family” in Trinidad). I have since found out that my ancestors were not only from Trinidad, but also Barbados and Guyana with other branches moving to Grenada, St Lucia, St Vincent, Suriname and Venezuela. I have realised that although our forebears may have lived on small islands, they were certainly not isolated and often maintained connections with relatives many miles away. Within the Caribbean region we have a shared history and this has encouraged me to utilise this connectivity to create this resource.

Caribbean Roots aims to showcase two historical research interests: family history (in particular study of the history of the surname Grannum) and Caribbean genealogy, history and heritage.

Welcome to CreoleLinks.com and Barbados genealogy, a template for researching Caribbean genealogy. You will find here tips for doing research in a slave society where names are not always what they see. It is a world of parallel families where siblings from different mothers carry the same first names and sometimes the legitimate branch becomes unrecognizable while the extraneous branch becomes prominent.

Genealogy of the Gittens and related families of Barbados 1640 to 1900.

August 15, 2014, marked the 100th Anniversary of the completion of the Panama Canal. So, it would seem like an appropriate time to continue my dialogue about the records in the National Archives that deal with the diverse nationalities that were responsible for the Panama Canal’s construction and maintenance. Last year, in the “Panama Canal Employees: Service Record Cards (Part 1) and (Part 2)” blogs, I discussed the limited amount of information on West Indian Workers found in the Service Record Cards (NAID 7226556) series, even though they were the largest group of people employed by the Panama Canal.

Family history of the Spanish and Portuguese Jewish diaspora.

Lowcountry Africana, sponsored by the Magnolia Plantation Foundation of Charleston, South Carolina, is a free website dedicated to African American genealogy and history in South Carolina, Georgia and Florida, home to the rich Gullah-Geechee cultural heritage.

In 2014, the Panama Canal will celebrate its 100th anniversary. There are many records in the custody of the National Archives that document the well known story of the creation and construction of this tremendous engineering feat. Also in our custody are records documenting the equally important but seldom highlighted story of individuals who worked to not only build the canal but who operated and maintained it.

The first blog on Service Record Cards, 1904-1920 (National Archives Identifier 7226556) revealed the contributions service women made to the Panama Canal. The following selected cards document the service of employees from other countries. Many European, Asian, West Indian, and East Indian immigrants toiled on the Isthmus of Panama to ensure that the Canal was built.

There has been increased interest in the employees of the Panama Canal since I posted several blogs in celebration of the 100th anniversary of the construction of the canal. Many researchers are interested in tracing their ancestors who might have worked on the canal. To assist these researchers, I will be offering several “how to blogs” on records in NARA’s custody that concern Panama Canal employees. The blogs will discuss such records as personnel, marriage, birth, and death, where they are located, and how to search and request information from these records.

The Ghylls migrated from Wales to the United States through the British West Indian Island of Barbados. No data on the families of Seymour or Seymour Fitgerald Ghyll (or Gill) could be found in the Barbados Archives. It's possible that family records were lost in a fire at my grandmother's church, St. Mathias, in Christ Church, Barbados. As a result, I'm seeking any information that may be available on the Ghylls from Wales. I'm also interested in learning more about African descendants from Wales or elsewhere in the United Kingdom.

This is a podcast about Caribbean History and a good resource for individuals researching their family history.

With the passion, dedication and love I have for Genealogy I created this page to show the world my research and the importance of genealogy!!!

This group is open to people interested in tracing our ancestors and our history from Barbados to Cuba.

During our family research, we have discovered that many of our families have made journeys for a better life to other nations in the Caribbean, Europe and other places. Cuba has been one such place that has not been totally explored.

Greetings fellow genealogy researchers! This group is for people who have taken a DNA test and have genealogical ties to the island of Barbados. We welcome anyone who is amenable to open collaboration for the best interest of everyone in the group. Our top priorities are finding the unheard voices of our ancestors, and discovering new relatives and family stories along the way.

A group of persons interested in tracing our ancestors. Often answers may come from persons sourcing a different line. We are a small island and there is a lot of shared history and ancestors. Please use this group to share and request information, post links and anything of family tree interest.

This group is for sharing resources and assisting with research relating to Caribbean ancestry and history.

Welcome to the Caribbean Research Community! This group was created to give people researching the region a place to ask questions, collaborate, and share research with one another.

A progressive podcast and platform dedicated to the Indo-Caribbean community and other descendants of Indian indentureship from around the world.

Genealogical Translations was established to provide amateur family researchers a place to have their genealogical documents translated. We are a global volunteer group whose members help other members by offering free translation of their genealogical documents such as vital records, postcards, obituaries, and more, in languages including – Dutch, French, German, Hebrew, Hungarian, Italian, Latin, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, and many others!

This group is for sharing photos of Barbados' built heritage, whether new, old or somehow relevant photos and other ephemera are welcome.

All in the hope of bringing an understanding of the risk of losing that very fabric of our identity that exists through every 'old house' from the humble chattel house, suburban villa or grand plantation great houses. They are an intrinsic part of the national identity and a treasure that must be passed on to the next generation of Barbadians. There is no stronger link to the past than the history that we can see, feel and touch.

Descendants of Barbadians and other West Indians who worked on the Panama Canal.

The renewed global call for reparations is about more than money. Amanda travels to Barbados, London and Paris to find out how the movement is making connections to the climate crisis.

Learn how to trace your Afro-Caribbean ancestors from the West Indies, including Barbados, Jamaica, and other places. Presented by Sharon Wilkins, President of the Afro-American Historical and Genealogical Society - New York.

This session introduces a 5-Step Research Methodology to guide family history study and research in the West Indies. Resources available in the U.S. and the U.K. are identified and civil registration and church records are illustrated through exploration of a family line. Emphasis is on the British West Indian experience.