1800 — 1870

Tracing Forced Migration
into Texas

An interactive visualization of approximately 48,000 enslaved people forcibly migrated from U.S. states into Texas between 1800 and 1870, reconstructed from the Freedmen's voter registration records of 1867–1869.

~0

Individual Records

0

Counties

0

Origin States

1800–1870

Time Span

Explore the Data

Interactive Map
Visualize migration flows from origin states to Texas counties with animated arcs, historical county boundaries, and a timeline slider spanning 1800–1870.
Name Search
Search for individuals by name with fuzzy matching that handles historical spelling variants. Filter by county, origin state, or year of arrival.
The Dataset
42 counties with voter registration data including names, origin states, arrival years, and residence durations that reveal the “gap problem” of unknown interim locations.

Understanding the Data

The voter registration records contain nuances that require careful interpretation. These questions address the most important methodological considerations.

Texas Freedmen Project

Visualizing the forced migration of enslaved people into Texas, reconstructed from voter registration records of 1867–1869.

About the Data

Data sourced from the Freedmen's voter registration records (1867–1869), covering approximately 48,000 individuals across 42 county sheets.

Texas Freedmen Project