Our Diversity
 

Maryland today is enriched by a population that is made up of many races and religions. The Archives contains records that document the arrival of the ancestors of many of our residents today, from the slave ships of the 17th and 18th centuries, to the wave of immigrants from Europe in the 19th and 20th centuries, to the more recent arrivals from the Americas, the Middle East, and Asia. 

The Archives also has many records relating to the struggle of African Americans for freedom and equality, including  manumission records, census records, Civil War Colored Troops records, and many others. One example of the depth of our records is that they allowed Alex Haley to trace the arrival of his ancestor, Kunta Kinte, at the Annapolis City Dock on the Lord Ligonier in 1750?.