SPECIALTY

Native American Research

Explore the Stories of Your Indigenous Ancestors with Professional Genealogists

Our experienced researchers help individuals trace their Native American ancestry across centuries of oral tradition, colonial disruption, and cultural resilience. Whether you're reconnecting with tribal roots, locating ancestors on historical rolls, or exploring long-silenced family stories, we offer careful, respectful, and evidence-based support.

Native Americans in Traditional Clothing

A Legacy of Sovereignty and Survival

Native American genealogy is shaped by the enduring history of tribal nations—many of which existed for millennia before European contact. Each has unique traditions, migration paths, and recordkeeping legacies. Genealogical research is not only about names; it’s about understanding identity, continuity, and survival.

A Nation of Nations

Today, there are 574 federally recognized tribes in the United States, each with its own government, culture, and historical trajectory. Additionally, many other tribes are state-recognized or historically documented despite not holding federal status. Understanding which tribal community your ancestors may have belonged to is central to accurate genealogy. We help navigate this complexity using geography, surnames, census clues, and traditional documentation.

Key Historical Periods That Shape Research

  • Pre-Colonial and Early Contact
    • Indigenous communities maintained oral genealogies, clan systems, and ceremonial lineages. Early records by missionaries, fur traders, and explorers may provide rare glimpses of family lines.
  • 17th–19th Centuries: Displacement and Policy
    • Acts like the Indian Removal Act (1830) led to the forced migration of tribes, such as the Trail of Tears. These removals often separate ancestral homelands from modern tribal jurisdictions.
  • Federal Roll and Census Records
    • In response to U.S. allotment and citizenship programs, the government created official tribal rolls including:
      • Dawes Rolls for the Five Tribes (Cherokee, Creek, Choctaw, Chickasaw, Seminole)
      • Baker Roll, Guion Miller Roll, and others for Eastern tribes
      • Indian Census Rolls (1885–1940) tracking tribal citizens annually
      • Allotment records, land patents, and BIA files documenting federal land distributions
  • Boarding Schools and Urban Relocation
    • Policies aimed at cultural assimilation disrupted family structures and record continuity. Boarding school registries and relocation program files often preserve names, relationships, and travel records.
Native American Basket Weaving

What We Help You Discover

We guide clients through:

  • Identifying likely tribal affiliations using place, surname, and historic data
  • Locating ancestors on historical tribal rolls
  • Examining records from boarding schools, missions, or federal agencies
  • Reconstructing lineage across censuses, land records, and oral history
  • Documenting Native American participation in World War I and World War II

Every project is tailored to the family’s goals and grounded in historical integrity.

Where We Research

We consult a wide array of sources, including:

  • National Archives (NARA) and Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) records
  • Dawes Enrollment Jackets, Baker Roll, and other official tribal rolls
  • Indian Census Rolls (1885–1940) and U.S. Federal Census records
  • Church, boarding school, and mission archives
  • Court and land records from county courthouses across historic tribal lands
  • University special collections focused on Indigenous studies

When needed, we conduct on-site research in state and local archives, where key materials have not been digitized.

Stories from Our Clients

"We grew up hearing that my grandfather was Choctaw, but we had no paper trail. Trace  found him on the Dawes Roll, with land allotment records and census entries going back to the 1800s."
Marissa G., Fort Smith, AR
"My father was taken from his family and sent to boarding school in Montana. The researchers recovered school records, letters, and helped us reconnect with relatives we’d never met."
Daniel S., Spokane, WA

Begin Your Journey

There is no single path to understanding Indigenous ancestry. Whether you’re starting from family stories, fragmented documents, or oral tradition, we are here to help you discover your ancestors’ names, places, and paths.

Contact Us to begin your Native American genealogy project today!

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I know which tribe my family belonged to?

We examine historical geography, surnames, census clues, and local history to help suggest tribal affiliations. Confirming this often involves connecting your lineage to individuals on known tribal rolls.

What if my ancestors weren’t on a federal tribal roll?

Not all Native ancestors were documented on federal tribal rolls. We may also find evidence in court records, school rosters, census data, or church registers that supports Indigenous heritage.

Do you only work with federally recognized tribes? No. We support research across all tribal communities—federally recognized, state-recognized, or historically documented.

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