Freedmen's Savings Bank Registers

Although this might not seem like a post about lodges, it actually is.  The registers for the Freedmen's Savings & Trust Company are a great resource to use when trying to find out more about the officers of benevolent and fraternal lodges.  The Freedmen's Savings Bank was incorporated in March 1865 and branches of the bank were located throughout the South.  In Tennessee, there were branches in at least Memphis, Nashville and Columbia.  The Bank went bankrupt in 1874; however, the registers for the account holders of the bank still exist for some of the branches.  You can find these records on microfilm at the National Archives or at your state archives.  Also, some websites such as Heritage Quest have digitized the records and made them searchable by name.

What makes these records so fascinating is the level of detail they contain.  They often list the name of the ex-enslaved's master and mistress, where the account holder was born, who their parents were, and a physical description of the account holder.  The ones for lodges and other groups will list the names of the officers of the organization.

Ledger for Henry Burney, officer of the Benevolent Society
Nashville branch of the Freedmen's Savings Bank

As this ledger shows us, Henry Burney was the secretary of the Benevolent Society in Nashville in 1872.  He was born in Fredericksburg, Virginia and was about 34 years old.  He worked as a nursery hand and was married to Sarah.  The notation for his parents lists their names but states, "doesn't know whether he is living." The notation for his siblings reads, "don't where they are."  The ledgers bring home the impact slavery had on society, when people were separated from families and not able to locate them after the war.

Ledger for the Daughters of Zion No. 1 of Memphis
Memphis Branch of the Freedmen's Savings Bank

The ledger above for the Daughters of Zion No. 1 of Memphis is helpful in that it lists the officers of the group.  I then take these names and look for them in the census to learn occupations, where they lived, marital status, etc.

With the help of these ledgers from the Freedmen's Savings Bank, I hope to learn more about the people who were officials in lodges.