One of the most common challenges in Southern genealogy is tracing your ancestors to an earlier home. That census record reports a birthplace in South Carolina or Virginia, but where do we go from there? Before 1850, we often don’t even have that information, just a cluster of neighboring households—if we’re lucky. In this talk, you will learn some of the specific migration patterns that can help you cross back over the mountains, the Mississippi River, or the county line to the places where those ancestors took their first steps. We will look at the South, not as a group of states, but as a collection of regions and communities, each of which has a distinctive history, geography, and culture. By understanding your ancestors in their cultural and geographic context, you will be better able to trace them to the places that they first called home.

Evan Wilson is a professional genealogist based in Oakland, CA, who specializes in Southern research, genetic genealogy, land records, and American migration. A California resident since 2012, he has migrated a number of times himself: from Birmingham, AL, where he grew up, to St. Louis and New York City. His education includes a PhD in English and Medieval Studies from UC Berkeley and a Certificate in Genealogical Research from BU.

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