Although still not as detailed as we would like, we would like to explore more fully the civil registry of Jacmel and other parts of Haiti before independence, digitized through ANOM's website. These records, which now record more of the formerly enslaved population, sometimes contain rich information pertinent to historical and genealogical research. For instance, many of the people who appear in the marriages recorded in these years, from say, 1795-1803, were Africans who were married. These Africans give a nation of origin or country of origin, too, sometimes using the same colonial categories of African nations or other places we have never heard of. For example, where was Manboula? Or Zumbo? These African place names and ethnonyms might more accurately reflect how these people saw themselves, since they were no longer slaves but free people. In addition, sometimes records of their marriages record the ages and names of children they had who were born illegitimate. These were undoubtedly, in some cases, children born to the parents when both were enslaved. Someone with a lot of time and eager to peruse these records might be able to find some of their ancestors listed in these notices.
The person above is an example from Jacmel, recorded in 1801. The man, Jean Baptiste Maturin, was a Hausa around 40 years old who married a Creole woman. This record seems to be in accordance with the known demographics of the Hausa population in Saint Domingue. Said to be overwhelmingly male, these Hausa captives who did marry or have children did so with Creoles and other African nations in the colony. Sadly, the record doesn't go into more detail about what particular part of the "Aoussa" country Jean Baptiste Maturin hailed from. But other Africans who appear in these records from those revolutionary years may give more data and information.
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