Implementation
Family Research
The Family Research Group
The Family Research Group will work in parallel to project archeology; finding the names, stories and family legacies of those enslaved on the Codrington Estate both within Barbados and beyond. It will involve engaging with the SPG’s Archives across the Bodleian Library, Oxford, Lambeth Palace Library, London as well as a range of other archive repositories between the UK & Caribbean. It will work in parallel to discover potential living descendants of the enslaved to connect them to their ancestors, working closely with the project’s Descendant Advisory Forum from its establishment.
By appointing family researchers within Barbados and the UK, this work hopes to connect potential Codrington descendants to connect to their ancestors, also working to record their own family memories and stories within project history outputs.
To guide this work, the project team will work to implement the guidelines of of the ICCROM Toolkit for Engaging Descendant Communities in the Interpretation of Slavery at Museums and Historic Sites.
Impact & Vision
This work will connect to parallel work on community representation by ultimately supporting the formation of a Codrington descendants’ network across the globe, empowering descendants to examine and map out their own histories. Ultimately, the project team will oversee the establishment of Family Research Centre allowing visitors to locate and understand the lifeways of the descendent families of the freed enslaved of the estate in 1838, providing access to documents and other evidence to allow for reconnections and reconciliation between and amongst families.
Upcoming Activities
Autumn 2024: Family Research Database
Planning and development of family research database is underway. It will seek to publish the names of the original approx. 400 enslaved brought to the estates as well as the approx. 400 persons emancipated in 1833, aiding potential descendants in uncovering their history via engagement with project family researchers.
Autumn 2024 – Spring 2025: Initial Family Research
Following the appointment of family research staff between both the UK and Barbados, the project executive group will commission a research period of 6 months to produce an initial report on family history, also working to connect with potential descendants globally, yet primarily between the UK, the Caribbean and the USA.
Autumn 2025 – Renewal & Reconciliation Research Symposium
Executive group plans to host an annual symposium at Codrington College to present initial findings and bring together the cutting-edge academics and thinkers working on issues relating to the project objectives, including those relating to archaeology and family research methods.
If you are curious about your own ancestry or interested in engaging with the project team in this work, please contact Chris Hill at codringtonreparations@uspg.org.uk.
