Family Ties to Legacy

Angela Y. Walton-Raji’s work in genealogy has made her widely accepted in the field.  Born in western Arkansas, Angela grew up on the Arkansas / Oklahoma border, in the city of Ft. Smith, Arkansas. She attended St. Louis University, where she obtained a degree in Romance Languages, and later earned a Master's Degree in Education from Antioch University. Being an avid genealogist, she has researched her family history since 1975. In 1991, she located her family records among those of the Choctaw Nation, confirming a relationship often spoken about from family oral history. With this discovery, came the sudden knowledge that her great grandparents were African slaves of Choctaw Indians, and that her Walton ancestors were among several thousand Africans who were enslaved by Native Americans, including those who migrated west on the Trail of Tears.