This event is co-sponsored by Mass Genealogical Council (MGC) and the JGSGB

In late 2014, Nicka Sewel-Smith uncovered one of the biggest finds of her genealogical career. She discovered ancestors that were enslaved by brothers Israel Elliot Trask, James Lawrence Trask, Augustus Trask, and/or William Porter Trask along with their niece Charlotte Pynchon Davis Ventress, nephew Augustus Trask Welch, and James Alexander Ventress. In the 1850s, this Trask family ran a cotton empire in Mississippi and Louisiana, which was valued at more than $4 million at the time. Yet, they remained residents of Massachusetts where slavery had been abolished in 1783!

Join us to learn how Nicka Sewell-Smith used DNA shared by more than 300 people descended from formerly enslaved ancestors and traditional family history research to unearth this discovery and how a multitude of documents detailing their lives have created a family history project documenting more than 5,400 people.

Nicka Sewell-Smith is a professional photographer, speaker, host, consultant, and documentarian with more than 20 years of experience as a genealogist. She has extensive experience in African-ancestored and reverse genealogy. She is an expert in genealogical research in the Northeastern Louisiana area and researching enslaved communities.

This presentation is free, but registration is required!

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