Tracing Your Red River European Heritage

Genealogists who have mostly European family backgrounds often encounter a
double-edged sword. Though European Americans, being the ethnically preferred
'whites,' have usually left some paper trace, researchers also learn quickly that
documentation depended on socio-economic status. Those with ancestors who
weren't rich can run across lots of dead ends.

Culture
One of the most interesting things to learn from genealogy, however, does not rely on
statistical information, but on cultural belonging. White Americans often lament that
they do not have a distinctive cultural identity of their own. But if you know your family's
geographical background you can often discern what old European countries you can
feel kinship with.

America is a very strict, class-based society (one of the many cultural traditions
handed down by the English), and some Europeans were 'valued' more than others.
Hence, Americanization came  easier to certain groups than others. Then again, some
cultural groups purposely isolated themselves. Thus, ancestry becomes much easier
to trace for those with ties to German, Italian, or Czech communities

In the Red River Valley, however, most white settlers didn't come from overseas - they
were Americans seeking opportunity Out West. Hence, one of the biggest clues as to
cultural ancestry is the state from which the family arrived.

Upper South
Those who discover family from Tennessee or Kentucky - two of the biggest suppliers
of 'whites' to the Red River Valley - were mostly from Scots-Irish-Welsh stock. These
families came to America in search of better economic opportunities and were
comprised of yeoman farmers. The first Americans to settle the Red River Valley, most
of these early families did not own slaves and generally did not favor secession, though
they did fight in the Confederate Army.

Plantation South
While lower South pioneers had settled quite early in East Texas, most of these
families were slave-holders and carried on Southern plantation culture in cities like
Marshall, Tyler, and Jefferson. Their ancestry is a varied lot - though heavily English,
many are Creole (a blending of English, French, and African) or French. Often, French
family names were 'anglicanized,' thus making some names look English when the
background is actually French.

Lower South
Poor families from the Lower South - Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and Georgia -
made up the majority of settlers to the Red River Valley after the Civil War. These poor
whites were either yeomen or sharecroppers, escaping the harsh and often violent
conditions of Reconstruction. My own family is from this line - they trudged along the
lower South for generations, trying to make a living out of sharecropping before
coming to Texas to own a piece of land. These families are often of
Scots-Irish-Welsh-English, French, or mixed ancestry. Mixed race families (a horrible
term for sure, as race is a social, not biological, construct) could be comprised of
Native Americans marrying whites, which, after the Indian Removal Act of the 1830s,
made Native Americans 'white.' Or, the families could be the result of white slave
owners' sleeping with slave women.

What About the Spanish?
Because the Spanish never settled along the Red River Valley, not many families in this
area can trace their ancestry to the Spanish or Mexicans. However, the face of the
Valley is changing, and in the near future many families will be able to claim some Latin
heritage.
How to Discover European
Family Origin

The first place to look when trying to
figure out your family's cultural origin
is to check port logs. Like Ellis Island in
Manhattan, Southern ports also kept
records of those immigrating to
America. Galveston and New Orleans
were the two main ports that
processed new arrivals.

None of the passenger lists are free.
Here are links to the lists:

New Orleans
http://www.ancestry.com/search
/db.aspx?dbid=7484&o_xid=002
8727949&o_lid=0028727949&o_x
t=39601402

Galveston
http://content.ancestry.com/iexe
c/?htx=List&dbid=8722&ti=0

You can also visit the libraries in the
respective cities and search at your
leisure for free!
Researching
European
Ancestry