Detailed information on 15,000+ African-American emigrants to Liberia
can be found at the website: www.liberianrepatriates.com. While access
to the site is free of charge, news users are required to register.
The database includes information on birth year (where available),
town/country of origin, state of origin (including “Indian
Territories”), denominational affiliation, family relations among
emigrants, destination in Liberia, ships on which they travelled, and
year of emigration.
The many features of the site can be best experienced by searching for
“Hilary Teage” or “John Brown Russwurm,” for example. Their pages
include genealogical links and maps showing locations where they
lived, as well as other information and images. Over time, similarly
detailed information will be added for as many persons in the database
as possible.
Given its interactive features, www.liberianrepatriates.com offers
intriguing possibilities as a teaching tool. If incorporated into
historical methods seminars or state history courses, it would enable
students to examine national (and even global) trends at a local
level. In so doing, it would help help them concretize the life
choices faced by historical actors within the constrains of their
place and time. History faculty interested in incorporating the site
into courses should address inquiries to cpburrowes@mac.com.
ACRAH 