Chapter Info 

The purposes of this organization are:   

To encourage scholarly studies in local and family history;

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To encourage individuals who desire to share genealogical and historical expertise to enhance the heritage of African Americans;

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To host workshops and seminars, that present informative speakers on history, genealogy, and cultural aspects of our heritage;

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and to support and carry out the objectives and policies of the national society. 

Chapter Events 

KAAHGS meets on the first Monday of each month.  Meetings are virtual,  but some local events held in cities across the state are in person.

August 2024 - Professional genealogist and member, Kathleen Brandt shares her Kansas family history.
October 2024 - Highlight National Conference topics.
November 2024 - Focus on the Topeka Library's Identity Quest Conference with speaker Kenneth B Morris Jr. 
December 2024 - Members meet and get to know other members and plan 2025.
January 2025 - Oak Hill Cemetery of Lawrence, Kansas Black history Project with member Jeanne Klein.
February 2025 - Living Legacies: Topeka's 1954 Alumni
March 2025 - Historic Lincoln Hills: Black-owned Resort with member Jeanette Patterson.

 

Chapter History  

We share historic information about the Black history of various cities and towns in Kansas as well as tips and tricks on how to do African American genealogy. 

On October 22, 2010, the Kansas Chapter of AAHGS officially formed by registering with the Kansas Secretary of State. KAAHGS was formed with its first two members, Sherri Camp and Ramona Brice, who had been members of AAHGS for quite a while. Much work was done putting together the charter, including the bylaws and signing the charter members, which were:

The acting president was Sherri Camp and Ramona Brice was the secretary/treasurer. Our charter was accepted by AAHGS National and we became an official AAHGS Chapter September 24, 2011. Charles Howard was the president who signed our charter along with Lucious Bowser and Nathania Branch Miles, chapter co-chairs. Sherri Camp and Ramona Brice then became the official president and secretary/treasurer and have held those positions ever since.

Our objective is to collect information about Kansas African American history and families.   We collect names of our members’ ancestors from Kansas. We also have a website for KAAHGS for members to access Chapter information; we work within local communities to teach family history to youth and adults. We ask our members to submit their family surnames and stories from Kansas to our Chapter towards our county history project.  That will help us in the process of writing the history for the counties where our ancestors came from.

Our current members come from all over the United States, but most are in Kansas. Members in Kansas are from Topeka, Lawrence, Wichita, and Kansas City. Members from outside the state are from Brooklyn, New York; Cambridge, Massachusetts; Sacramento, California; Austin, Texas; and Denver, Colorado.

In 2023, our Chapter's Honorary Life Member, Dr. Henry Louis Gates Jr. was nominated and received the James Dent Walker Award by our president, Sherri Camp.