Confirming Enslaved Ancestors Utilizing DNA

With slave ancestral research, one is often faced with direct evidence vs. indirect evidence. Many forms of direct evidence that emphatically prove family relationships, birthplaces, and other happenings are often non-existent because slaves were merely considered "property". Some researchers have been very fortunate to find rare pieces of direct evidence, in the form of old family letters, diaries, ledgers, Bibles, etc., to positively identify enslaved ancestors. Many researchers often rely on a preponderance of indirect evidence to confirm enslaved ancestors. Collier will present cases where DNA was the direct piece of evidence that identified or confirmed an enslaved ancestor.