The information in the Sailors Database is derived from enlistment records and the quarterly muster rolls of Navy vessels. Approximately half of the sailors entered the service at the Navy's established points of enlistment. For these men and women, enlistment records serve as the primary sources of information. The Howard University research team used muster rolls to fill in missing data or to correct apparent misinformation recorded at the time of enlistment. Information about the remainder of the enlistees was derived directly from these muster rolls. When research uncovered inconsistencies in the data (such as conflicting reports of an individual's age at the time of enlistment) the most frequently recorded response was used.

The work of the team from Howard University makes previously inaccessible information available to people interested in the Civil War. Descendants of Civil War sailors will find biographical details regarding age, place of birth, and occupation that may help supplement or clarify details from such other sources of genealogical information as birth, death, and census records. Moreover, information about any individual sailor's enlistment and service is necessary for determining the presence or absence of their pension records at the National Archives.

People with more general interest in African American history or the African diaspora will likewise find the list of names informative. Searching by city or state of nativity, for instance, provides a fascinating profile of the individuals from those places who served. Particularly noteworthy is the fact that more than 5,000 of the men were born in the two slave states bordering Chesapeake Bay, Maryland and Virginia, the former of which remained in the Union and the latter of which joined the Confederacy. No other two states north or south of the Mason and Dixon Line came close to accounting for such large numbers of men.

Finally, people interested in the history of the United States Navy will be able to search the names of vessels for the list of black men who served on board at various times during the Civil War. One such search reveals that three black men were aboard the U.S.S. Monitor when she sank in December 1862. Another indicates that forty-four black sailors were on board the U.S.S. Hartford at the Battle of Mobile Bay in August 1864, when Admiral David Farragut uttered the immortal words "Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead."

In a few hard facts uncovered by a simple search, the beginnings of full and compelling stories are revealed.

For additional information, contact Joseph P. Reidy at:

Department of History
Howard University
2400 Sixth St. NW
Washington, DC 20059

E-mail: jreidy@Howard.edu