Journey with the author as he discovers those whose stories have become his story, whose lives have become his heritage, including:
His earliest known immigrant ancestor, an eighth great-grandfather, who immigrated to Jamestown from England in 1616 at the age of 22.
A fifth great-grandfather who enlisted the colonial army in South Carolina as a private in 1775, was eventually commissioned and promoted to captain, and served until the end of the Revolutionary War. He received a land grant in Georgia for his service.
Third great-grandparents who had six sons who served in the Confederate Army, four of whom died in the war and one of whom was permanently disabled.
A seventh great-grandfather who was brought to America from the Netherlands by his step-father in 1662. He accidentally discharged his pistol at a New Year's Eve party in 1673, nearly blowing off a friend's leg.
An eighth great-grandmother who, along with two of her children, was captured and held by Indians for three months in 1663.
An eighth great-grandfather who was denied permission to set up a Huguenot colony in Virginia in 1621 and eventually immigrated to New Netherland in 1637. A physician and the official surgeon of New Amsterdam, he managed a tobacco plantation on what is now part of Central Park. He was named vice-director of the colony in 1656, administering all of the settlements along the Hudson Valley.
A sixth great-grandfather who, at the age of 66 voluntarily led a group of 20 soldiers to track down Indians who had raided a village. The group was ambushed. He was killed, scalped, and disembowled. A small town in New York was named in his honor.
An eighth great-grandmother who was banned from New Netherland for insulting the fire warden on her wedding day.
A seventh great-grandmother whose life was spared by Connecticut Governor John Winthrop after she was sentenced to die for committing blasphemy and adultery. Later, she was evicted from New York City for living there without a residency license.
A ninth great-grandfather and two eighth great-grandfathers who were French Protestant refugees and were founding patentees of New Paltz, NY. The homes of two of them are still standing there.
Several great-grandparents who partook of the first Communion at Kingston Reformed Dutch Church on 26 December 1660.
A seventh great-grandfather who brought a large marble tombstone with him from England.
A great-grandfather who enlisted in the West Virginia Cavalry during the Civil War and was captured by the Confederates and held at the infamous Andersonville Prison Camp. His diary recounts his release in Charleston, SC, and his subsequent service in what is now Wyoming.
A sixth great-grandmother who served as a Quaker minister for 40 years, during which she visited most of the American Quaker congregations.
