Ancestry Question

My family has been in the American south for as long as they have been in America itself. I’m proud to be from the south and there are many things about the culture I was brought up in I’m proud of specifically the military tradition. That being said while most of my family branches were poor, others were the complete opposite especially in the 19th century. I was wondering if anyone had specific advice about how to research how many slaves someone had in the census or however you find that information out. I’m trying to find information that will tell both sides of my family’s history in the American south