The Black Loyalist Heritage Society is working to establish a genealogical centre to catalog the complex genealogy of the Black Loyalists from the time of the Book of Negroes to the present day. The genealogical information on black families will be added to the base of Black Loyalist history that the society has already compiled.

Because one cannot begin to understand the history of a community without understanding the social patterns that existed, genealogy is a crucial element of history. Maintaining a Black Loyalist genealogical information base is a necessity for our mission of developing a complete understanding of the history of Black Loyalists from the 1770's until today.

Work has already began on the compilation of a comprehensive registry of Black Loyalist descendants. The Book of Negroes provides one of the best existing records of black families in the 18th century. By making a comprehensive record of their present day descendants, we can begin the challenging and rewarding process of tracing the family histories.

The directory has become a worldwide venture with members living in many different parts of the world. If you think you might be a Black Loyalist descendant (and many American and central Canadian blacks are in fact Black Loyalist descendants), we strongly encourage you to contact the society and become part of the Black Loyalist Registry..

The Black Loyalist Heritage Society staff members offer genealogical research services to the public. We specialize in black family histories. Most genealogists don't know how to deal with the complex and unique issues involved in tracing black families, such as a single family name being shared by several unrelated families.

The Society will offer workshops and act as a resource for black researchers who are beginning or continuing work on their family trees. We also offer education programs and exhibits focusing on Black Loyalist genealogies. These exhibits and education programs will be designed by a genealogical researcher and will be used to increase awareness of Black Loyalist history.

A family tree of the Farmer family developed by the Black Loyalist Registry.

Black Loyalist Heritage Society Web Site