Shanna Ward is a historian, archivist, and researcher whose life’s work centers on protecting African American history through documentation. By bridging genealogy, legal records, and lived experience, she brings forward narratives that have long been ignored or deliberately erased. Through The Bequest of John T. Ward, Ward presents original research that traces Black land ownership, family lineage, and legal standing, offering evidence of progress that was systematically undermined rather than absent.
In this interview, Ward discusses the urgency of preserving Black history, the consequences of erasure, and why documentation remains a critical tool for reclaiming ownership of both land and legacy.
What inspired you to dedicate your life’s work to preserving African American history, particularly through genealogy and documented records?
My work began long before I ever called myself a historian or genealogist. I grew up understanding that Black history is fragile, not because it lacks significance, but because it was never meant to be preserved. I watched as our stories were easily dismissed when they were not backed by paper. Deeds, wills, petitions, business records, and letters became my inheritance. Preserving African American history through documentation became both a responsibility and a form of protection because what is documented cannot be easily erased or rewritten.
Why is it so critical to preserve Black history using formal documentation, and what risks do we face when these records are ignored or lost?
Formal documentation is power. When Black history exists only as oral memory, it can be challenged, minimized, or outright denied. When records disappear, so do claims to land, citizenship, labor, and legacy. Ignoring these documents allows systems of inequality to continue unchallenged. The risk is not just historical amnesia. It is the loss of legal standing, generational wealth, and rightful ownership.
Through The Bequest of John T. Ward, what have you uncovered about Black land ownership and legal history that is often missing from mainstream narratives?
What I uncovered is that Black land ownership was not rare. It was targeted. Black Americans acquired land, built businesses, funded cemeteries, and participated in civic life far earlier than many narratives suggest. The real story is how legal loopholes, discriminatory enforcement, and silence were used to dismantle that progress. My work exposes not only what was built, but how it was systematically destabilized and why those losses still matter today.
How does genealogy serve as a bridge between past generations and today’s Black communities in ways that go beyond family trees?
Genealogy is not just lineage. It is context. It connects families to systems, movements, and decisions that shaped their present reality. When people see themselves not as isolated individuals but as descendants of builders, landowners, organizers, and visionaries, it changes how they move in the world. Genealogy restores continuity where history tried to create rupture.
In your research, how has historical erasure affected Black identity, generational wealth, and long-term legacy?
Historical erasure creates the illusion that disparities are accidental rather than engineered. It disconnects people from proof of prior ownership and achievement, making wealth loss appear natural instead of extracted. Over time, this erasure distorts identity, replacing pride with uncertainty and inheritance with gaps. My research shows that what was erased was not ability, but evidence.
What do you hope present-day Black communities take away from your work, especially when it comes to reclaiming history and ownership of their stories?
I want people to understand that reclaiming history is not symbolic. It is strategic. Knowing where you come from strengthens how you advocate, build, and protect what you have today. Our stories do not need permission to exist, but they do need documentation to endure. I hope that Black communities see history not as something behind them, but as an asset they can still claim.
Shanna Ward is an author, archivist, and family historian dedicated to preserving African American history through documented truth and generational research.
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