When we came to Ghana as family history missionaries, we were told there were no written records in Africa. We were led to believe that the only way people could find their ancestors was to talk to the old people in their village who had memorized the genealogy of their families.
When two researchers came from Church headquarters in August of last year to study family history in Africa, they asked us to arrange a visit to a village to collect oral history. We went with James Sunny Quaico who is in the bishopric of the Takoradi Ward, Takoradi Ghana Stake.
Brother Quaico had been to this village twice before — once as a child and once within the last couple of years for the funeral of his stepmother. At that time he talked with a great-uncle of his who had been educated as a Methodist minister. He got quite a bit of information then and promised he would come back. He said he hadn't known how that would happen, but he felt our offer to take someone to a village was an answer to his prayers. He took us to Princes Town on the coast between Takoradi and Ivory Coast.
We arrived at the home of his 86-year-old great-uncle, who began by saying, "I think we must have a prayer." He offered a powerful prayer, thanking God for sending these people from "across the sea" to learn about his people.
One of the researchers began to question the great-uncle about his lineage. After some time, he went into a back room and brought forth a handwritten book containing histories, names and lineages back to 1715. He had begun compiling this record in the early 1960s when his grandparents were still living and knew the names. There were also some photographs. We were amazed!
We expressed concern about the eventual deterioration of the precious record book and offered to make copies of it and return it to him along with a copy. He handed over the book, saying, "Take it with you then."
We were able to have the book copied and bound. When we returned the original to him, he gave us more records from the village. We sent a copy to the Family History Library in Salt Lake City. We are sure the Lord led us to this book to let us know there are written records in Africa. Names are now being collected from all of West Africa to be ready for the new temples planned in Ghana and Nigeria.
— Elder John M. Bevan and Sister Patricia C. Bevan, Family History missionaries, West Africa Area