Some of the records in possession of the 1860 Heritage Centre.
The 1860 Heritage Centre has embarked on a journey to assist members of the South African Indian community to trace their indentured roots.
This is for those who had elders who lived in KwaZulu-Natal (then known as Natal) from 1860 to 1911.
Selvan Naidoo, director of the 1860 Heritage Centre, said from colonialism through to apartheid, people of indentured ancestry living in South Africa were not able to trace their roots.
“Since the late 1990s, these descendants have been fortunate to have their ancestral records digitally available through the pioneering academic work of Professor Joy Brain and Professor Surendra Bhana.
“The 1860 Heritage Centre has now embarked on a journey of assisting descendants in searching for their roots that are listed in the 384 ship lists archived at the Archives Repository in Pietermaritzburg,” said Naidoo.
He said 152 184 Indian Indentured workers came to South Africa between 1860 and 1911. “Passenger number 1, listed as Davaram, who arrived on board the SS Truro in 1860, was the first passenger; the last passenger Mr PN Murugasam, no. 152 184, came on board the Umlazi in 1911. This indentured number sometimes called the colonial number, is used to trace one’s ancestral roots,” said Naidoo.
He said the main purpose of this journey was to primarily assist those wishing to find their ancestral roots only.
Those who want to use this ship’s number to apply for Overseas Citizenship Of India must visit https://ociservices.gov.in/
“Please also be aware that we are doing this voluntarily, allocating the Wednesday of each week to assist in this regard. We do not guarantee that we will be able to find everyone’s roots given the complexities of the search. We will work according to our availability and during office hours,” said Mr Naidoo.
He also has a Google document available for those requiring assistance to fill in their details.
For more information email 1860heritage@gmail.com