IMPORTANT! Please note that individuals listed here are not necessarily Indian. They may be free blacks, mulattos, mestizos, or any other non-white citizens. This is just intended to be a potential starting point for your research.
Free People of Color – by County – 1790 Federal Census
A cross-reference using surnames, known names of Indian families, and historic Indian villages
In researching Indian ancestry, it’s important to note that for a variety of reasons in history (usually economic or socio-political), Indian people were often recorded as any race other than Indian. Sometimes “White,” other times “Black,” or “Negro,” and other times “Free Person of Color,” “Colored,” or “Mulatto.”
The entries below have been taken from transcriptions of the 1790 Federal Census for several eastern North Carolina counties. The notes in the right column correlate to the 1790 county/family names to the left. Known Indian villages are given with modern-day equivalent town names, as well as any surnames that appear as “Other Free” on the 1790 census that are surnames also found amongst known Indians in documents (deeds, court records, etc.).
Please keep in mind that just because someone is of a particular surname that has at some point been associated with a particular tribe DOES NOT NECESSARILY mean that the person was of that tribe. It is necessary to establish a “preponderance of evidence” before making the assumption that someone was of a particular Indian nation.
Families by County and Surname | Notes Relating to Known Indian Communities and/or Surnames |
Beaufort County | |
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Historical Indian Communties:
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Bertie County | |
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Historical Indian Communties:
Known Indian Surnames:
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Carteret County | |
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Chowan County (Edenton) | |
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Craven County | |
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Known Indian Surnames:
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Currituck County | |
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Historical Indian Communties:
Known Indian Surnames:
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Dobbs County | |
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Historical Indian Communties:
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Edgecombe County | |
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Historical Indian Communties:
Known Indian Surnames:
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Gates County | |
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Historical Indian Communties:
Known Indian Surnames:
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Halifax County | |
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Hertford County | |
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Known Indian Surnames:
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Hyde County | |
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Historical Indian Communties:
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Jones County | |
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Historical Indian Communties:
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Martin County | |
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Known Indian Surnames:
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Northampton County | |
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Known Indian Surnames:
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Onslow County | |
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Historical Indian Communties:
Known Indian Surnames:
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Known Indian Surnames:
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Perquimans County | |
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Pitt County | |
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Tyrrell County | |
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Known Indian Surnames:
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