I have been trying unsuccessfully to find if the 2 niece of my 3greatgrandmother are from her brother or sister. In a letter to the Freedman Bureau in 1867, my 3greatgrandfather requested that his niece be returned to him as he was now able to care for her. Don't know if she was ever returned. Another niece was living with the family in 1880, I can only assume that maybe they were sisters. Both had the surname of Steptoe. I do know that my 3greatgrandfather was an only child and therefore belong to his wife Mary. The niece in question in 1867, Mary was bound out to Jack Steptoe. The other niece, Amanda lived with her aunt and uncle in 1880 and disappeared. I have found some abstracts (online) of Steptoe Wills and Deeds but can't seem to piece together my 3grgrandmother and the children that she had at the time. Any suggestions as to what to do next?