Welcome, P. Sinclair. Knowledge, like charity, begins
at home. Question your parents, your grandparents.
Try to find out from which area they came. How long
has the family been in New Jersey? Where did they
live before that? If you can, collect the names and
any known birth and death dates of forbears. You are
not by any means alone in being an African-American
Sinclair. In most cases, but not all, American
slavery was the origin for these. After the War
Between the States, many slaves took the names of
their former owners or of men they admired, hence so
many Washingtons, Jeffersons, Lincolns and the like.
Others were rightfully, though illegally, entitled to
their names, by virtue of a white owner/father and
slave mother. Still others spring from racially mixed
marriages. Niven reminds us that Bob Marley's mother
was a Sinclair.
I'm sure others on the List can better advise you as
to record searches, etc. I'm still a beginner. I've
found Ancestry.com and MyFamily.com to be very helpful
in my efforts.
Sorry for the length of this. Good luck in your
pursuit. Keep us posted.
Penny
--- onegirlplenty@chickmail.com wrote:
> hello all,
> and i hope there aren't too many people reading
> this or else i'll feel mighty shy. i'm a young
> sinclair out of new jersey who has been feeling the
> pull to learn about my family history for sometime
> now. i'm african-american and feel a little daunted
> by the extravagance of this database and forum. my
> question then is - where is does the link between
> 'white' sinclairs and 'black' sinclairs start
> (somewhere in american slavery?) and where do i
> begin to look!
>
> awed,
> p. sinclair
>
> Your message, which will be sent to everyone
> who has subscribed to the list sinclair@mids.org.
>
>
> [ This is the Sinclair family discussion list,
> sinclair@mids.org
> [ To get off or on the list, see
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>
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