Angela Walton-Raji

Angela Y. Walton-Raji,  Author, Genealogist, Historian  

AngelaW859@aol.com

Oklahoma Freedmen Genealogical Research 1991-Present.

Specialized in Freedmen from the Five Nations of Oklahoma (Five Civilized Tribes) Cherokee, Choctaw, Chickasaw, Creek and Seminole Nations.  

Civil War of the Trans-Mississippi West. Research pertaining to the U.S. Colored Troops (USCTs) of Arkansas, Louisiana, Kansas, and the Indian Home Guards of Kansas and Indian Territory. Have documented over 100 soldiers and the histories of the regiments, and succeeded in marking the graves of USCTs of NW Arkansas.  

General Genealogical Research 1975 - 1990

Interviewed elders, made traditional recordings and documentation of family research data of parents and elders primarily from Arkansas and Tennessee.  

Genealogy Forum America On-Line 1994-2003

Genealogy Forum Specialist in African American and Native American weekly chats or Special Interest groups. Served as manager, trainer and moderator of a team of 7 hosts.  

African American Genealogy

Prodigy- Genealogical Contributor 1992-1993

Became a special contributor on Prodigy assisting the genealogical bulletin board community.  

African-Native Circle Serve as host for the only African-Native American historical and genealogical online chat.

AfriGeneas. African Ancestored Genealogy Website Co-founder of this first and groundbreaking website for African American researchers, which grew from an online BBS system, to a series of weekly chats on AOL, to its own identity now at AfriGeneas.com   Serve as host for weekly ongoing chat on African American genealogy and the only chat pertaining to African-Native Genealogy and history in the country.

Also  currently serve as moderator of the AfriGeneas African-Native American Message board. (www.afrigeneas.com/forum)

Specialization in Black Indian Records

Tribal records:        

Have developed special skill with records pertaining to the Freedmen of the Five Tribes, including, Dawes Records, Kern Clifton Rolls, Wallace Rolls, Dunn Rolls.  

Indian Military Records:

Developed expertise working with the records of Black and Indians soldiers of the Indian Home Guards, and US Colored Troops.  

Transcription:

Have compiled unique study of districts within the Choctaw Nation, prior to Oklahoma Statehood.  

Cemetery Preservation  

Distinctions and Awards

National Endowment for the Humanities: My History is America’s History 2000 Was selected to be a part of an initiative sponsored by the NEH and the White House Millenium Council. The unique research into the history and documentation of the Walton family in documented among the Freedmen of the Five Civilized Tribes was one of 8 families documented in this project. The story was also featured in Parade Magazine in November 1999 to launch the initiative.  

Eating from the Same Pot, an African-Native American Cultural Symposium, Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire April 2000

Was invited as a guest speaker of the first cultural symposium at Dartmouth College on the history and culture of African and Native American peoples.  Workshop at this symposium was the only selected workshop on research methods for documenting African and Native American family history.  

“Black Indians an American Story” by Rich Heape Films 2000

Was the only genealogist interviewed by the award winning video documentary producers Steve Heave and Chip Richie.  

Workshops and Institutes     

National Institute of Genealogical Research 1995

An intensive week long institute focusing on lesser known records at the National Archives in Washington, DC  

Federation of Genealogical Societies

National Genealogical Society

Afr. American Historical and Genealogical Society

 Have attended a number of genealogical workshops throughout the 1990s through 2005.

Publications  

Black Indian Genealogy Research. African Ancestors Among the Five Civilized Tribes

Heritage Books, Bowie, Maryland, 1993          

The Choctaw Freedmen. The Story of Oak Hill Academy. (Wrote introduction to this reprint of the 1914 text by Robert Flickinger.  

Frontier Freedman’s Journal. An African American Genealogy Journal of the South, Indian Territory and the West. Angela Walton Raji, publisher Catonsville Maryland 1992-1997  

Freedom’s Spirit. An African American Genealogy Journal of Arkansas Angela Walton-Raji, publisher, Catonsville Maryland, 2003-present  

Black Chronicle of Northwest Arkansas. A Black Genealogy journal of NW Arkansas history. Walton & Holleman, publishers, Van Buren, Arkansas, 2004-present         

Voices of Indian Territory, a scholarly journal presenting stories and voices of the Freedmen of Indian Territory. 2005-present  

On Air/On Camera Experience      

Have been a guest on a number of radio talk shows and television programs.