Great-grandparents were Navajo, best place to start research?

Question

I only have the name of their daughter, my grandmother.I was told she once lived on a reservation with them in arizona or new mexico when she was young but then they moved to northern california.

Answer 1

www.historyplace.com might work??

Answer 2

If you don't know the agency she lived in on the reservation, it will be difficult to find any information about her. You can try calling the Navajo Office of Vital Records(NOVR) at

[phone]/6387

That's the phone number for the general office. You can try giving them her name to see if they can look up her census number and Certificiate of Indian Blood(CIB). Unfortunately, people with the same name were quite common at that time so they would probably have several matches. Without knowing your great-grandparents name, it will probably be impossible to get any records on your grandmother.

If you are trying to get a Census Number and CIB, you will definitely need your grandmother's CIB. Your parent will also need to get one, otherwise you won't be able to get one yourself.

If you are doing research on Navajo culture, then start with the University of Arizona's book store. They offer several books on Navajo culture which you may be able to check out from your local library.

http://www.uapress.arizona.edu/catalogs/catalog_detail.php?c=4

You can also check out the Museum of Northern Arizona which has an extensive collection of Navajo sandpaintings. You can access their website at

http://www.musnaz.org/

Answer 3

I had several Navajo friends, when I lived in New Mexico. There is a Navajo reservation just outside of Albuquerque. That's the only place I know of right off the top of my head.