African American Lives

- Season 1

(2006)

Episode Four presents fascinating discoveries about participants' lineages thanks to DNA analysis.

From the early 20th century to the end of the Civil War, a look at how African Americans defined their freedom after slavery. Dr. Gates learns that courthouse records of land acquisitions, documents from the Freedmen's Bureau and the 1870 census prove important resources for tracing the participants' lineage through Reconstruction.

Know what this is about? Be the first one to add a plot.

Dr. Gates visits scientists around the country using DNA analysis to trace ancestral roots. He and one participant make the last leg of the journey, back to Africa, visiting the West African port from which the participant's patrilineal ancestor was likely shipped into slavery, and meeting tribal elders whose DNA suggests are the participant's cousins.