Black and White Southern Families in Southern Plantation Records with Ari Wilkins, Featured Speaker
The Antebellum Southern Plantation Records can offer multifaceted views into many white and African American Southern families. This resource documents families’ personal and business correspondence, conditions of plantation life (including the elusive names of slaves and descriptions of slave relationships), and much more. Learn about the genealogical value of the Southern Antebellum Plantation Records – how they are organized, how to search the collection, and apply it towards your genealogical research. The case studies will highlight the personal documents of a white Southern family and the indirect documentation of an African American family.
Ari Wilkins is a genealogist, lecturer and instructor who has been actively researching family history for over twenty-five years. Ms. Wilkins is a graduate of Louisiana State University. She speaks on a variety of genealogical subjects and specializes in African American research.
Ms. Wilkins has worked at a library with one of the largest and most renowned genealogical collections in the country for over a decade. She handles one-of-a-kind material, special collections, and had the opportunity to archive and digitize 18th and 19th century family Bible collections.
As a researcher, Ari has a concentration on African American and Southern research. She has had the opportunity to work on some significant projects. As a budding genealogist, Ms. Wilkins worked with the esteemed author Dr. James Rose on his final publication, Generations: The WPA Ex-Slave Narrative Database. One of the projects she is most proud of was creating a working database and timeline of more than four hundred people enslaved in Louisiana that were documented from one slaveholding family.
As a lecturer, Ms. Wilkins has spoken nationally at the National Genealogical Society, the Institute of Genealogical and Historical Research, the Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy, the Genealogical Research Institute of Pittsburgh, RootsTech, and a multitude of state and local societies. She has also led the African American course for the Texas Institute of Genealogical Research for the past three years.
Ms. Wilkins has made a variety of media appearances. She has been a guest on Good Morning Texas and Maryland Public TV’s, Direct Connection. She was also on Baltimore Public Radio’s, Future City and has been featured on many podcasts.
Ari is active in the genealogical community. Previously, she served as a board member of the Dallas Genealogical Society and the Texas State Genealogical Society. She has been active with the National Genealogical Society and served on numerous committees. In 2023, Ari was awarded the Lloyd Bockstruck Distinguished Service Award by the Dallas Genealogical Society for her outstanding contributions to the genealogical community on a national level. Ms. Wilkins is also a fellow of the Texas State Genealogical Society.
Every year the Archives of Michigan and the Michigan Genealogical Council host a seminar to promote family history awareness and teach genealogy research skills. The event is generously supported by the Abrams Foundation in loving memory of Barbara J. Brown. We are delighted to be hosting Ari Wilkins, who will be joining us onsite in Lansing and via Zoom.
Featured Speaker – Ari Wilkins
Ari Wilkins is a genealogist who has been actively researching family history for over twenty-five years.
Black and White Southern Families in Southern Plantation Records will be a hybrid presentation on Saturday, May 11, 2024, from 1:30 – 2:30 pm. Recordings of seminar sessions will be available to registrants for 30 days following the event.
For complete details and to register.
We look forward to seeing everyone – onsite or online – in May this year!
Michigan Genealogical Council Blog 