ORLANDO, Fla. — It can be fun finding out where we came from — a fun fact about our family — and even learning about what our ancestors accomplished. Alberta Lynn Gibbs started digging for discoveries about her relatives in her 20s.

At one point early on, she discovered her father worked for a Civil Rights icon.

What You Need To Know

Alberta Lynn Gibbs started digging for discoveries about her relatives in her 20s 

With known family roots in other parts of Florida, Gibbs realized she would have to travel to find some answers to her ancestry questions. About 15 years ago, she and her husband hit the road on genealogy vacations

The Afro-American Historical and Genealogical Society Central Florida chapter meets regularly and helps people in their genealogical journeys 

Other resources include public libraries, which typically offer free access to resources like ancestry.com, and several other groups in Central Florida also offer help with people’s genealogy searches

“He was one of Martin Luther King’s attorneys,” Gibbs said.

Gibbs has found a lot about her family by searching for information online. But some clues required more digging.

“This is the dirty word for genealogy — you just go through the dust. You just go through the binders, hoping you might find something,” said Gibbs, who is part of the Afro-American Historical and Genealogical Society Central Florida chapter.

President K.O. Mitchell helps others in their journeys of discovering their ancestry.

“We come and exchange ideas and exchange methodologies about how to get those things done — how do you get from point A to point B in terms of your research?” Mitchell said.

Black history can be especially challenging to uncover, Mitchell said.

“We were brought here in bondage, so a lot of our documentation was not available to us,” he said. “A lot of us were listed with no surnames, so there’s always a chance you’re going to hit the wall when you go back to the 1860s, 1870s. So, you have to start thinking outside the box.”

At Orange County West Oaks Branch Library’s genealogy center, Gibbs stumbled upon a collection of books that includes stories from slaves.

“Finding books like this are a goldmine, because it reveals stories about your ancestors that you may not know,” Gibbs said.

With known family roots in other parts of Florida, Gibbs said she realized she would have to travel to find some answers to her ancestry questions. About 15 years ago, she and her husband hit the road on genealogy vacations.

“So then we began to think, maybe we can just plan the rest of some vacations around that, so that’s how we started,” Gibbs said. “And we would contact members of the family that lived in the area and look up what was available.”

Her travels have included a trip to Marianna in Florida’s Panhandle, where she found a picture of her great-grandfather. She also found a lot of info in Florida’s state archives in Tallahassee. And in Jacksonville where she grew up, she found an article that revealed details about her father’s service in World War II.

“They shot him, he was injured, and he captured three German soldiers,” Gibbs said.

As much as she’s enjoyed discovering more about those who came before her, she said, ultimately, what’s she has discovered is for those who come next.

“What a great thing to have to pass along to the next generation,” Gibbs said.  “I have grandkids now.”

The Afro-American Historical and Genealogical Society Central Florida chapter meets regularly and helps people in their genealogical journeys. And public libraries typically offer free access to resources like ancestry.com. There are also several other groups in Central Florida that offer help in people’s genealogy searches.