Hi! I’m trying to trace my ancestry on my dad’s side. My dad always told me before he passed away that his mom was full blooded Native American.

Question

My father said he was Cherokee. His name was Robert Earl Bryan. His mother died when he was very young, he was born March 1951. He died December 2nd, 2011. He had a sister named Jacklyn and a sister named Margaret. His mom&rsquo;s name was Willie, his dad&rsquo;s name was Robert Earl Bryan, as well. His grandmother&rsquo;s name was Aaron. He had three brothers, Gary, William, and David. Can Someone please help me find any information they can find on my father and my father&rsquo;s descendants? I&rsquo;d appreciate it so much!!!

Textual Reference Branch, Archives II · Answer

Mary Monaco 
 
 Thank you for posting your question on History Hub! 
 
 We searched the National Archives Catalog and located a series titled Indian Census Rolls, 1885-1940 (M595) in the Records of the Bureau of Indian Affairs (Record Group 75). For more information about these records, to include a list of places where they are available online, see the National Archives page on Indian Census Rolls . If you have additional questions about these records, please email the National Archives in Washington, DC - Textual Reference (RR1R) at archives1reference@nara.gov . 
 
 We also located the Applications for Enrollment in the Five Civilized Tribes, 1898 - 1914 (also known as the Dawes Rolls) in the Records of the Bureau of Indian Affairs (Record Group 75). Most of these records have been digitized and are available using the Catalog. We suggest that you review the NARA web page for Dawes Rolls as an overview of how to research that resource. For more information about these records, please contact the National Archives at Fort Worth (RRFF) at ftworth.archives@nara.gov . 
 
 When embarking on Native American genealogy, please note that the records in the custody of NARA often only detail those living on the reservations or being administered by the Bureau of Indian Affairs. NARA does not have a list of everyone with Native American heritage; the U.S. government never maintained such a list. We only have historical records that federal agencies like the Bureau of Indian Affairs created to document enrolled members of federally recognized tribes. If an ancestor was Native American and left the reservation or did not have interaction with the United States Government as such, they will not be recorded in NARA&rsquo;s records and tracing their genealogy may be difficult. 
 
 If a person was not formally affiliated with a federally recognized tribe, then they might still appear in the decennial census as an "Indian," if they were recorded as such. See Native American Heritage: Federal Population Census for more information about Native Americans in the decennial census. The web page Search Census Records Online and Other Resources provides information about accessing decennial census records online. 
 
 In addition, we suggest that you review the NARA Native American Heritage webpage, the NARA Resources for Genealogists webpage, the History Hub Blog titled Suggestions and Advice for Family History Researchers , the FamilySearch Research wiki pages for Indigenous Peoples of the United States Genealogy and United States Genealogy , the Bureau of Indian Affairs page for Tracing American Indian and Alaska Native (AI/AN) Ancestry , the Department of the Interior page on Trace Indian Ancestry , and the Smithsonian page on Native American Genealogy . Also, the Library of Congress pages on We are trying to compile a family history , What free resources can I use for genealogy? , and Local History and Genealogy Reference Services may be useful. 
 
 We hope this assists you with your research! 
 
 Sincerely, 
 
 Textual Reference Archives II Branch (RR2RA) 
 23-43628-JA