A view of the site of the Catoctin Furnace, an iron forge where enslaved people of African descent once worked, in Cunningham Falls State Park in Maryland, U.S., in this undated photograph. The site now also is providing unique insight into African American history thanks to research involving DNA obtained from the remains of 27 individuals buried in a cemetery for enslaved people at Catoctin Furnace. For African American and United States history, revealing these stories and family legacies is important to understanding and acknowledging who we are, where we came from and how we are connected to each other today," Bruwelheide added. Enslaved people of African descent were forced to work in agricultural, industrial and domestic settings in parts of the United States. In a first-of-its-kind analysis, the researchers examined historical DNA alongside genetic testing company 23andMe's personal ancestry database to identify 41,799 Americans related to the 27 individuals, including 2,975 close relatives.

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Persons: Aneta, Camp David, Kari Bruwelheide, Bruwelheide, Éadaoin Harney, Andy Kill, enslavers, Kathryn Barca, Barca, Will Dunham, Rosalba O'Brien Organizations: REUTERS, U.S, Smithsonian Institution, Democratic, Smithsonian's National, of, United, Workers, Catoctin, Smithsonian, Thomson Locations: Cunningham Falls, Park, Maryland, U.S, Handout, REUTERS WASHINGTON, Camp, Catoctin, West, Central Africa's, Senegal, Gambia, Angola, Democratic Republic of Congo, Africa, Americas, Washington, United States, Civil