Mapping the Freedmen's Bureau
Locating
Freedmen's Bureau Field Office
Each field office is represented by a pin that links you to the relevant National Archives microfilm numbers and, if available, digitized records through FamilySearch.org.
Along with mapping Freedmen’s Bureau Field Offices, Angela Walton-Raji, and Toni Carrier have also documented Freedmen’s Bureau Hospitals, Freedman’s Savings Bank Branches, and USCT Battle Sites.
This site is devoted to pointing out the many places that affected the newly freed survivors of slavery. The sites where Freedman’s Bureau offices were located are marked for you. In addition other institutions that served former slaves, are marked – the branches of the Freedman’s Savings Bank, Freedmen Schools, contraband camps, and even the location of battle sites where men who were in the US Colored Troops fought.
What records can I find using the Mapping Site?
Use the Freedmen's Mapping site for detailed locations and records of Freedmen’s Bureau
Freedmen’s Bureau Field Offices and Contraband Camps
Freedmen's Bureau was designed to aid freed slaves (freedmen) and poor whites in the South during the Reconstruction era following the Civil War. Contraband Camps - These camps provided immediate shelter and protection for escaped slaves, who were often fleeing harsh conditions and seeking safety with Union forces.
Freedmen’s Bureau Hospitals
A vital component of the Bureau’s work, addressing the dire health needs of newly emancipated people and establishing a foundation for public health.
Freedman’s Savings Bank Branches
The bank was created by an act of Congress and aimed to help freed slaves and their descendants manage their finances and save money in a safe and secure manner.
United States Colored Troops (USCT) Battle Sites
These sites mark the locations of battles and skirmishes where USCT units played critical roles. The bravery and performance of USCT soldiers in these battles were crucial in changing public perception and advancing the cause of African American rights.
Mapping the Freedmen's Bureau Additional Facts
Mapping the Freedman’s Bureau is devoted to helping researchers put their ancestors back on the historical landscape where they lived. During those critical years after the Civil War, many once enslaved people found themselves in a dangerous situation. Many had freed themselves and taken refuge after making their way “to the Union Line.” But once they arrived at the line, their fate was uncertain. Within months many found themselves living in contraband camps. They had been declared “contrabands” by Gen. Benjamin Butler in 1861, when three men (Shepard Mallory, Frank Baker, and James Townsend) were the first to take refuge at the Union encampment at Ft. Monroe, Virginia.
The most critical function was to serve the newly freed people, as a new world opened for them. In those first critical years after freedom came, a new reality unfolded for the entire southern population, and people from every aspect of life needed assistance.
But the Bureau however, served all who needed intervention. The “Freedmen” were Black, the “Refugees” were white and the “Abandoned Lands” once owned by the landowners were eventually re-settled, after oaths of allegiance from former secessionists were taken. For assistance with negotiating wages, and insuring that former enslaved people would be paid and no longer exploited for their labor.