Unfolding The Story Genealogy

03/23/2026

I am a Whitfield descendant, traced back to a castle in Northumberland, England in the 1300s. By 2000, my lineage had crossed an ocean, threaded through centuries of American history, and quietly came to rest in Texas. Some stories don't shout. They just endure. This is one of them.

Unfolding the Story Genealogy Whether it's exploring old photographs, writing family histories, or digging into genealogy records, every detail helps

03/22/2026

There will come a day
when someone searches for you.

What will they find?
What will be missing?

The work we do today
becomes the past others inherit.

Join the Kentucky Genealogical Society.
Help decide what survives.

Join now: https://kygs.org/register/?lid=4

03/17/2026

75 acres in the William Newman League, Gonzales County, Texas — where my great-grandparents Henry and Mary Ann Englert Sievers sowed their dreams, weathered their sorrows, and left something behind that no deed transfer could ever take away.
Some land holds more than crops. The land changed hands long ago. But the story it holds? That belongs to us.
If your family has roots in Gonzales County, I'd love to hear your story.

Unfolding the Story Genealogy Whether it's exploring old photographs, writing family histories, or digging into genealogy records, every detail helps

03/15/2026

Spent several days last week at the FamilySearch Library in Salt Lake City doing genealogy research, and it was a great experience. 📚

There’s something pretty amazing about being in a place where people from all over the world are working on family history. The staff and volunteers were incredibly helpful, and I was able to make some really good progress on a few family lines.

Of course there were the usual genealogy moments—trying to read old handwriting, chasing down records, and the excitement of finding something you weren’t expecting. 😄

Now comes the fun part: organizing all the notes and figuring out the next steps. Genealogy never really ends!

03/08/2026

Did you know that the GLO Archives is home to one of two surviving drafts of the Constitution of the Republic of Texas?

This document was critical to forming the basis of Texas’ new government, and we’re proud to steward this valuable piece of Texas history.

Learn more:
https://medium.com/save-texas-history/a-work-in-progress-the-first-draft-of-the-constitution-of-the-republic-of-texas-29432ecdeed2 #.7sfohkggt

03/07/2026

🌾 Honoring the Farmers Who Built America 🌾

The National Society Descendants of American Farmers (NSDOAF) celebrates the men and women whose hard work on the land helped build our nation.

NSDOAF’s mission stands on three pillars:
🚜 Honoring ancestral farmers who worked the land between 1776 and 1914
🎓 Supporting future farmers through educational scholarships
🌱 Recognizing today’s farmers with Certificates of Appreciation

I’m proud to share the limited edition certificate for my first approved ancestor, featuring the Celebrating America 250 insignia! As a Texas Ambassador and volunteer genealogist, I’m happy to answer any questions about joining or documenting your farming ancestors.

If you apply, please list me in the “referred by” section on your application!

👉 Learn more or apply at: www.nsdoaf.com

Farmers are the foundation of our nation. Tell your farmer’s story through membership.

03/06/2026

Who is a woman in your family history you’d like to learn more about?

March is Women’s History Month, and it’s the perfect time to turn our genealogical focus toward the women in our family trees. 🌿

So often in historical records, women appear only briefly—sometimes just as a first name beside a husband’s or father’s. But each of those names represents a life filled with stories, strength, sacrifice, and resilience. They were daughters, sisters, wives, mothers, workers, caretakers, and often the quiet anchors of their families.

This month I’m making a special effort to research the women who came before me—looking beyond census lines to discover their origins, their struggles, and the communities they helped build. Sometimes that means tracing maiden names, studying family networks, or reading between the lines of old records to better understand their lives.

If you’re working on your family history, I encourage you to take a closer look at the women in your tree this month. Their stories deserve to be found, remembered, and shared. 💜

03/02/2026

Some women live a lifetime. Minna Sievers Meyer, my adoptive great-grandmother, lived three.
Born in 1866, she crossed an ocean to Texas at eighteen. By sixty, she boarded a train to Chicago to begin again.
She survived. She persevered. Wherever she went, she made a home—and a legacy.
I’m telling her story because legacies aren’t inherited; they’re earned!!

Unfolding the Story Genealogy Whether it's exploring old photographs, writing family histories, or digging into genealogy records, every detail helps

02/23/2026

In 1847, a courthouse clerk in Marengo County, Alabama recorded the same bride twice on the same document — first as Jane McGaw, then as Miss Mary E. McGaw (my 3rd Great Grandmother).
Similar names, same county, one marriage record — and years of confusion. Until the evidence quietly stacked up against the confusion.
That single word — Miss — provided the first confirmation. Then the land spoke. The census whispered. And the truth slowly came into focus.
The answer was hiding in plain sight all along.

Unfolding the Story Genealogy Whether it's exploring old photographs, writing family histories, or digging into genealogy records, every detail helps

02/16/2026

My 3rd great-grandfather, William Jernigin, had the courage to chase opportunity when others might have clung to comfort. In 1872, when a new bridge rose over the South Sulphur River in Texas, it changed the rhythm of local trade—and he refused to be left behind. He packed up his entire mercantile store, moved it to the bridge site, and staked his future on a hunch that travelers and commerce would follow. That bold decision reshaped our family’s story. His vision, grit, and faith in progress still echo through the generations.

Unfolding the Story Genealogy Whether it's exploring old photographs, writing family histories, or digging into genealogy records, every detail helps

02/09/2026

I’m honored to share that my 4th great-grandfather, John Buckles Sr., has been recognized as a First Kentuckian in the Kentucky Spirits program sponsored by the Kentucky Genealogical Society.

This recognition celebrates early Kentuckians whose lives helped shape the Commonwealth, and it means a great deal to see John Buckles Sr.’s place in Kentucky’s early history acknowledged. Grateful for the work of the KGS in preserving and honoring these foundational stories—and proud to carry his legacy forward. 💙