Genealogy Roadshow

our genealogists have searched the country for answers to hundreds of families' questions about their past.

(woman) I have a real-mystery that I have not been able to solve.

(woman #2) I'd love to be able to answer the question, "Oh, what are you?"

(man) I do wonder where my relatives have come from.

My name is Evelynn Johnson.

My name is Andrew Sentilles.

I'm Gail Lukasik.

My name's Ron Ramey.

My name is Charissa Joy Los.

(Evelynn) Most families have an interesting story to tell about their ancestors.

(announcer) The stories we have uncovered have been truly amazing.

Without your ancestor, Texas might not exist today.

This is very validating.

It's astonishing.

It's amazing.

I'm just blown away by all the details.

(announcer) We have connected them to famous people in history.

(man) Benjamin Franklin.

(woman) George Washington.

(man) Abraham Lincoln.

(woman) Laura Ingalls Wilder.

Wow.

(woman) How does that make you feel, Caroline?

Like, really excited.

(announcer) We have investigated many family mysteries.

(Ron) All families have secrets, and you just have no idea how deep those secrets go.

(man) My mother never knew her mother.

(Charissa) I was adopted at two-days-old.

I need to know where I come from.

You had an uncle.

Yeah.

I'll be darned.

Oh, my God.

(announcer) We have revealed scandals.

One of his sons was dragged out of the house and beaten by the KKK.

Wow.

My great-uncle's tombstone reads "He was murdered and robbed."

I'd like to know more about the people who murdered him.

(announcer) And, we have discovered the journey of our ancestors.

So, James, this is what makes you James.

(James) That is pretty cool, man.

I never-- I never smiled harder in my life.

Just mean a lot.

(announcer) And learned how we got here.

Your fourth great-grandfather actually helped to save the city of New Orleans.

No wonder you have such a connection to this city.

That's why I like it so much.

(laughter) Welcome to "Genealogy Roadshow."

Welcome to "Genealogy Roadshow."

Welcome to "Genealogy Roadshow."

(announcer) Welcome to "Genealogy Roadshow."

Today, we'rere looking back at some of our greatest stories.

Researching these claims are our expert team of genealogists.

My name's Kenyatta Berry.

My name is Joshua Taylor.

My name is Mary Tedesco.

(announcer) The journeys our ancestors have taken in our past are what makes us who we are today.

And sharing those journeys has been remarkable.

So, in doing our research, we were able to find that you are not necessarily related to one person on the Mayflower, but you're actually related to four... (chuckles) ...people on the Mayflower.

(Mary) The first person I really wanna talk about is your grandmother.

We were able to actually locate her birth record that was in 1870 in Ireland.

(Colleen gasps) (woman) Oh, wow.

Oh, wow.

There she is, and that lists her dad's name, Timothy Hanebury, and Mary Hanebury, your great-grandparents.

(ladies) Wow.

This is more than we've ever known.

It's so wonderful to hear that.

We do have the certificate of arrival for Julius.

And, if you look here.

(gasps) I know.

Oh, my God!

No way!

That's your great-grandfather.

Oh, my God.

(laughing) (announcer) St. Louis, Missouri brought us one love story that started on a journey from Italy to America.

Was it an arranged marriage?

Or love at first sight?

(Mary) Hey, Em, and welcome to "Genealogy Roadshow."

Thank you.

We're so pleased to have you here today.

I'm excited to be here!

So, tell us, what brings you to "Genealogy Roadshow?"

The legend goes that my great-grandmother as a young Italian woman was sent for by mail.

Okay.

And was a mail-order bride.

She came here to marry the cowboy from Wyoming.

Right.

So, let's talk about who this is.

This is your great-grandmother.

Isabella Rizzo.

Isabella Rizzo.

And, who is this?

Eugene Piro.

Eugene Piro.

My great-grandfather, yeah.

So, you came to us with the information that Isabella was from Sorbo San Besile, which is in the province of Catanzaro, Calabria.

Okay.

It's a small town.

So, let's take a look at her journey to America.

This is the passenger manifest from the S.S. Berlin that sailed from Naples to New York in 1912.

You can see "Reet-zo," or Rizzo, Carmina Isabella.

Hey, wow.

Okay, so, never forget page two of the passenger list.

'Cause look what we find on page two.

Her destination is her brother Giuseppe in Denver.

Yeah, that was one of my questions-- it's like, was she just, like, sent for out of the blue?

So, she had a brother that was already here.

She had a brother, Giuseppe, already in Denver.

Ahh.

And if we scroll back for a moment, you'll see that it designates that her brother paid for her passage...

Okay.

...to America.

Never forget page two.

(laughs) So, Giuseppe, her brother, came to America in 1906.

We went back and found the passenger manifest for his voyage to America aboard the S.S. Prinz Oscar.

And, he was traveling to see his uncle.

Did you know you had... No!

...somebody else?

There was another one here?

Geez!

An uncle named Salvatore Granato, already in Denver.

An uncle, and you knew nothing about her.

I had no idea.

I thought she just came here blindly on her own.

She had more than a brother here, she had a whole family here.

A whole family here, possibly more than in Sorbo San Basile.

Really?

So, we want to get as close to the source as possible Yeah.

when we're dealing with family stories.

And so, it's important to talk to family members as well.

And we did.

When I take into consideration all the data that we've gathered, this is the picture that emerges.

Isabella was supposed to marry somebody else in Denver.

So, that is true.

And this guy was gonna pay for her passage to America.

Right.

But, she shows up at the station, and who is there to pick her up?

Eugene Piro.

Really?

Yes.

Your great-grandfather, Eugene Piro.

So then, when she got to Giuseppe's home, she was informed that somebody else had paid her passage if she agreed to marry them.

So, what happened, was the guy probably gave Giuseppe the money, he paid for the passage.

Gotcha.

She came over.

Giuseppe was like, "I wanna introduce you to this guy."

And being the good Calabrian woman that she is, she goes, "I don't wanna marry him."

(laughs) Dang, she had her sights out!

Exactly.

And then, within a short amount of time, she married Eugene Piro.

The man who picked her up at the-- Shoot, watch out!

The man who picked her up, and she obviously fell in love, Yeah!

and they wanted to get married.

Now, my speculation is that "cowboy" was an Italian nickname of some kind, because Denver is the West.

Yeah.

So, "cowboy" just could have been her phrase for, like, the American over there.

Exactly.

Like, "Oh, those cowboys in Denver."

And, that's what we speculate the word "cowboy" may have made its way into the story.

So, you should be just so proud of your wonderful roots, cowboy or not cowboy.

Yeah!

So, thank you so much for coming on "Genealogy Roadshow."

Thank you, thank you so much!

It's been a pleasure.

Thank you, Mary.

(announcer) In Detroit, Michigan, Charissa Joy found out that her ancestors were part of a bigger African-American migration to the North.

Hi, Charissa, it's nice to meet you.

Nice to meet you.

You have some folks with you today.

Yeah.

Can you please introduce them to us?

Yes, I have my birth parents.

Okay.

Jessica and Tyrone.

Okay, nice to meet you.

And then, I have my parents, Scott and Wendy.

Nice to meet you guys.

Nice to meet you.

Let's try to fill in those missing pieces?

Okay?

Cool, I'm ready.

We're gonna focus on your dad's family.

When you're starting to do African-American research, you start with the census records, and you kinda work your way backwards.

So, in doing your research, we did find your dad's surname of Ingram, in 1880.

Wow.

This is what is known as a federal census.

Okay.

We did find your ancestor Andrew Ingram in Hancock County, Georgia.

And you can see his wife Mary and all of their children.

And so, we went back further and we said, "Let's go to 1860."

Okay.

And, unless you were a free African-American at that time, you were not enumerated by name on the census.

So, what I'm gonna bring up is what's known as an 1860 Slave Schedule.

What it actually lists are the ages, sex, and the race of slaves in the household of Thomas Dudley.

Okay.

We were able to find a gentleman, listed here, who is around the same age as Andrew.

Yep.

We believe that your ancestor, Andrew Ingram, was part of the plantation workers enslaved at Thomas' plantation in Hancock, Georgia.

Okay.

Okay?

Let's follow your family forward.

We do see them on the 1900 census.

And you see he's a farmer, but he's renting that farm.

And so, we know in 1900 that your Ingram family were staying pretty close together-- probably all working the farm together as well.

Okay.

So, I wanna talk a little bit about the Great Migration.

Are you familiar with that?

Okay, that's a point in history between about 1910 and 1920 when six million African-Americans left the South for better opportunities up North.

In Detroit, there were opportunities with the motor companies, right?

Yep.

This is Motor City.

Henry Ford paying the five dollars a day helped establish the African-American middle class.

Detroit's African-American population actually in 1910 was 5,000.

By 1920, it was 40,000.

Wow.

We're gonna take a look at John Ingram, who makes that journey.

In the 1930 census, we find John Ingram living in Detroit.

His son-- your great-grandfather-- Ike, or Isaac, was a laborer at an auto factory.

So, he was part of that Great Migration.

That was truly remarkable in having an impact on Detroit as well.

So, birth dad, how do you feel about uncovering this information about your family history?

Just very excited, it's a gap that we've been trying to fill for a number of years.

And I got cousins here that's in the audience that's really wanted to know this, so...

Okay.

We finally got this tree wrapped up, and we're really thankful for it.

Yeah, I can finish my tree, it was kind of, like, really side heavy on one side.

Right.

And then just like a little twig on the other side.

Right, right.

So, now, I can, like, finish it.

Manifest Destiny says "Go West, young man."

In our case, it's go Midwest.

Right.

So, our families came here for a better opportunity.

I'm so happy you came here today, and I really appreciate you allowing us to share your story.

Thank you for finding it.

Thank you.

(applause) (announcer) Murder, scandal, lies, and cover-ups are the perfect recipe for a blockbuster motion picture, or maybe your own genealogy.

San Francisco's Cecilia Chen came to the roadshow wanting to know about her possible connection to a notorious Chinese gangster.

When you uncover a story like the question that you asked... (laughs) ...it keeps you up at night.

This guy is a gangster.

As a gangster, you're going to hide from records.

In 1931, a San Francisco police officer wrote of a gangster, Big Jim Chin.

Big Jim returns to defy avengers.

Big Jim was thought to be the one who perpetrated the murder, and so, he fled.

After that, I will be completely honest with you.

The trail runs cold.

It's incredible.

(announcer) New Orleans, Louisiana brought us Graham McDougall, who wanted to find out the mystery that surrounded one key figure in his family's past.

Now, the colorful life of Charles Montaldo comes to an end in 1910.

We find this article in "The Daily Picayune" here in New Orleans.

"Soldier of fortune succumbs after long regarded dead."

So, it may have been a surprise to some members of the family if they had regarded him as dead for that many years.

Which I assume they would have.

(announcer) In Nashville, it was a massive cover-up and political scandal that brought Marguerita Page to the show.

(Marguerita) Growing up, I heard a story that we were somehow related to one of the governors of Tennessee.

So, it was sort of a mystery.

Mm-hmm?

Until we uncovered a document that-- I will tell you, I did a double take.

This is the document.

All right.

If I could pick a document to frame on my wall and look at, it would be this.

Oh, man!

All right.

So, the letter says, "I didn't know "until recently that Albert Roberts was Former Governor Austin Peay's son."

Oh, man, that is absolutely amazing.

(announcer) Was it an affair or something much worse that ended the life of this woman's great-great-grandfather?

(woman) My great-great-grandfather, Clinton Augustus Edson.

Did he have the affair, or was it a disgruntled worker?

Okay, to possibly dispute the affair situation, Mm-hmm?

Clinton, at the time of his death is 52.

Mm-hmm?

While the man who killed him, Charles Becker and his wife... are both 70.

Oh!

Older woman?

I don't know.

Maybe, I don't know.

I don't know.

Mrs. Robinson, right?

Maybe, it could be.

But, we do know that... Wow.

...part of the story that you heard around the disgruntled worker is actually correct.

Oh!

Your great-grandfather Clinton did not pay Charles Becker.

Charles stated that Clinton owed him $800.

Mm-hmm.

Which is a lot of money in the late 1870s.

Your great-grandfather continually promised to pay his debts, and he didn't.

Uh-oh.

Now, Becker files a lawsuit against Clinton, and he actually lost the lawsuit.

So, he takes matters into his own hands.

Mm-hmm?

He goes to see Clinton, your great-grandfather.

And, apparently, there's an altercation, and Charles Becker is knocked to the ground.

Oh!

Okay.

Okay?

So, he comes back a second time.

(sighs) And, when he comes back a second time, he brings a gun with him.

He finds him walking out of a saloon...

Okay.

...after he just purchased a cigar.

He catches him by surprise, but then is able to fire off one shot, which hits him in his left breast.

He starts fleeing.

Oh, wow, okay.

And he fires three more shots, all of them hitting your great-grandfather.

Clinton then runs into the local candy store, just two doors down, and he was pronounced dead.

Wow, wow.

So, after, he calmly handed over the gun... Mm-hmm?

...and confessed... Wow, okay.

...to the crime.

They did have a jury trial, and he is sentenced to San Quentin Prison.

San Quentin?

It was manslaughter and eight years.

Oh, okay.

Oh, wow.

Well, I just kinda get a kick out of it, how probably my grandfather threw in, "Oh, he had an affair," you know?

Probably just to spice it up.

Had to make it more salacious, yeah.

That was sorta, yeah, exactly.

Well, I'm just blown away by all the details, and that he didn't pay the guy for three years!

For three years.

Are we gonna owe this family $800?

Are they gonna come hunt us down?

At the end of this show, there are gonna be some people outside you need to talk to.

Get your checkbook.

So, we're done researching it.

Think so.

Thank you.

I'm so glad that you and your family came here today to "Genealogy Roadshow."

This is great, thank you.

(applause) (announcer) A century-year-old cold case is what brought down New Orleans native Patricia Parrish to the roadshow.

What our genealogists found out gave her the clue she's been desperate to find for decades.

My great-uncle's tombstone reads, "He was murdered and robbed."

Now, we actually have a photograph of that tombstone.

And, if I were walking through a cemetery, and I saw this, I would stop and do a double take.

I have searched diligently, and I'd like to know more about the people who murdered him.

Let's dive into our cold case.

Let's see if we can find more about this murder.

You know, newspapers are the number one source for things like this, because anything sensational that happens in an area, we absolutely want to head to the newspapers.

Right.

So, this is a newspaper published in Scott County, Mississippi, on January 3rd, 1906.

It tells us that the body was found by a Mr. James Sullivan.

Now, looking at a newspaper on January 17th, 1906, at this point, they have a suspect.

Oh, my goodness.

This man named Henry "Ran" Walk was attending a Christmas Eve wedding.

Your great-uncle Neal Sessions was also there.

They're seen together at the wedding and after.

At about 8: 00 P.M., people actually claim that they heard a notice of distress.

This man named Henry "Ran" Walk came home, and he's described in the article as being dirty, muddy, and intoxicated.

They actually believe he's the suspect because... he's fled the scene.

Oh, my goodness.

According to the newspapers, his younger brother helps him escape.

And, when we look at a map of the railroad system in the area, we can see here where they believe Ran Walk hopped the train.

The article said that they think that he boards an Alabama and Vicksburg train near either Rankin or Brandon, which is the next town from Forest.

Now, where did he go?

No one knows for sure.

But, let's recap what we do know.

We now have a suspect, Henry "Ran" Walk.

We know he has a younger brother.

And we know that they were all at a wedding on Christmas Eve, 1905.

So, it was probably a neighborhood wedding.

Yes.

Now, according to a lot of the newspapers, your great-uncle, Neal Sessions, was flashing around $100 which they suspect could have been the motive.

The murder occurs some time before 8: 00 P.M.

Ran Walk comes home, he's very disheveled.

And his younger brother helps him board a train, and he escapes.

Do you remember James Sullivan?

Yes, the man who found him, right.

He discovered the body.

Looking at this census, there's James Sullivan.

He's living right next to a Westerfield.

Yes.

So, we now know the wedding they were at, the person who discovered the body.

We have the victim, your great-uncle, and we have the murder suspect, all in that same area.

So, all of the characters of the play... That's right.

...are in place.

They're right there.

Now, on February 28th, 1906, we learn that the grand jury has indicted Ran Walk for the murder of Neal Sessions.

Now, remember earlier, Ran Walk hopped the train, but no one knew where he went.

But, according to the article, he has escaped to Texas, they believe-- they can't find him.

And, the one tantalizing clue, and sort of the final piece of the puzzle that we have, is the 1910 census of the Walk family.

Here, we see R.R.

Walk and Maud, the murder suspect's parents.

And there is that son, Willy.

That's the younger brother who helped Ran escape.

Looking over at the column, Maud now says... She has four children and only one surviving.

One surviving.

So, was that a story Maud just told to cover up, or was Ran dead by then?

That's the mystery.

Did she lie to the enumerator...

Right.

...to protect her son?

Right.

Because she knew that he was an indicted criminal?

And so, that's where we leave the cold case.

I know you came here today, you know, wanting to solve this.

Yes.

I think we got pretty close.

We did.

A lot of questions that my family had have been answered with these.

I appreciate it.

You're welcome.

(announcer) Some of our guests come to the show wanting to know if they are related to someone famous, or even infamous.

(Kenyatta) I'd like to let you know you're related to Sam Houston.

How cool is that?

And you are related to the current governor of Texas, Rick Perry.

Really?

Yes, I know you're surprised about that.

I'm stunned by that.

I heard that you dress up as Davy Crockett.

I sure do, I do reenactments twice a year.

(laughter) That's proof enough for me.

(laughter continues) There is a very high probability this is the right line, and you're related to Davy Crockett.

Excellent, that's what I was wanting to hear.

All right.

(laughing) Congratulations.

You are related!

Yes!

I knew it.

You are related to statesman Edward Everett.

(Joshua) You are, I'm very happy to say, Benjamin Franklin's first cousin, ten times removed.

Wow!

(audience laughing) How many of us can walk around saying "That's my first cousin.

"Ten times removed...

Right.

but that's my first cousin!"

Yeah!

(applause) (announcer) Monica Donley caught up to us in the Motor City wanting to know if she could be a descendant of famous explorer Ponce de Le_n.

He told me that we are related-- we, my family is related to Juan Ponce de Le_n, which was the first governor of Puerto Rico.

Mm-hmm.

And then, named Florida?

Right?

(man) Yeah, he came up with the name Florida.

So, I'm like, "Wow, I didn't know any of that."

I got really excited because I wanted to tell my family.

And he's, like, "No, no, no."

"Wait, because I made the connection on the internet, "but we cannot say that you are related, but it looks pretty close."

So, you came to the "Genealogy Roadshow" wanting to know the truth behind what the internet said.

Yes, mm-hmm.

Now, to trace this, sort of from a family history standpoint, this is where it gets a little difficult.

He was nobility in Spain, though access to those records is very difficult.

Those that have actually survived are in Spain's Ministry of Cultural Archives.

And, it's a long application process to actually obtain permission to view the records.

Uh-huh?

Then, you have to hope that they've survived, that the fragments that are there, you can read what's been written, and you can put the family together.

So, it's very difficult work.

Here's what we know.

So, we know that he had five children.

Mm-hmm?

It's a bit of a needle in a haystack-- three daughters and two sons.

Now, one of the sons was a cleric, so we don't believe there was any descendants off of that line.

Right, right.

He did have his eldest daughter who had a son born about 1529.

So, we know there's a grandson out there.

And, here's actually where it gets really interesting, and this is why I love doing Spanish genealogy.

Because, in Northern European and Western European genealogy-- Kevin, you probably know this-- you lose the maiden names everywhere.

Right, oh, tell me about it.

I mean, once-- once you get married, it's just gone.

Right.

And we spend hours and hours and years trying to track down what those names were.

Yeah.

So, it actually makes Spanish genealogy somewhat easier, because you-- they keep that name.

Mm-hmm.

So, in this case, we can look at some of the early descendants that we can trace of the famous explorer.

And you'll notice that some of them carry the surname, following that tradition.

Here's where the tree gets interesting, right?

We know the grandson was living in Puerto Rico.

Now, we were able to actually trace the family, which stayed in Puerto Rico for three generations.

Some of the family did make their way to a town called Puebla, Mexico.

And the interesting thing about that town is it actually was founded as a destination for Spanish settlers.

So, it makes a lot of sense that the descendants and the relatives...

Right.

...of the famous explorer Ponce de Le_n would find their way into that town.

We know that they were there.

And at some point, they take a trek to a town 1,300 miles away.

Chihuahua?

Ah, that's right!

And that's where you're from.

Yeah.

You have a long family tree there.

So, at this point, we know that we have known descendants of the famous explorer Ponce de Le_n...

Right.

...in the same town where you have family.

Yes!

So, now it comes to literally looking in your tree to see if we can find any connection.

Right.

So, let's look at your tree.

There you are, and we can go back one generation.

We keep going back, and back, and back.

Right.

And so, these families are all in that same area.

We get to a point where we hit the surname.

Oh, look at that!

(laughs) And we go back, and we go back, and there he is.

I can confirm, you are, in fact, the 15th great-granddaughter of the seeker of the Fountain of Youth.

Yay!

Yay, that's great!

(applause) (announcer) Evelynn Johnson of St. Louis, Missouri wanted to know if the apple fell far from her musical tree, when she asked whether she had a connection to a famous local jazz composer.

Hi, Evelynn.

Hello.

Who did you bring with you today?

I brought my uncle, Ralph Roberts.

Hi, Ralph.

And my mother, Lori Stavis.

Hi.

So, with your question about your great-grandfather, Daddy "Buggs" Roberts, as you guys called him.

Yes, yes.

You wanted to know if that was the same famous Buggs Roberts, arranger and composer.

Yes.

So, let's take a look and learn a little bit more about Buggs Roberts...

Okay.

...to see if we can make that connection.

Okay.

Like many musicians, you know, Buggs Roberts was drawn to St. Louis because it was a hot bed.

And we know he came here when he was around 22.

He first arrived in St. Louis in 1937.

And then, he landed a job as a composer and arranger for the Jeter-Pillars Orchestra.

Wow!

The band played all of the top spots...

Okay.

...in St. Louis.

Over the years, he also arranged songs for many world famous musicians, including Benny Goodman and Louis Jordan.

But, you didn't come here for a jazz lesson.

I know you came to find out if your Daddy Buggs is indeed the Buggs Roberts, arranger and composer.

Yes.

Now, when doing genealogy research, we tend to look for, obviously, someone's given birth name and surname.

But, as you know, with musicians, they use nicknames and pseudonyms.

Okay.

And so, when looking for Buggs Roberts, came up short.

(gasps) There was nothing with the name Buggs Roberts on it.

So, then, I thought, Buggs was famous in St. Louis as a musician.

Let's go to some newspapers.

Okay.

We were able to find an article that was published in January, 1951.

Now, this article gives us a name, and it's truly sort of the start of an obit for Buggs, if you take a look here.

And it says Leroy Buggs Roberts.

Oh, okay!

Ohh!

So, now we go from just Buggs Roberts to Leroy Buggs Roberts.

We searched for Leroy and names similar to Leroy with the last name Roberts.

We were able to find a death certificate... Ahh.

...for a LaVelle Roberts.

(chuckling) That's where your middle name comes from!

Yeah!

Where it comes from.

So, your middle name is LaVelle?

Yeah!

Okay!

But, don't get too excited.

We still don't have proof that they're the same person.

Okay.

Now, he was born on May 11th, 1915 in a little town called Anniston, Alabama.

Wow.

He was the seventh child born to Augustus and Viola Roberts.

Okay.

When he was about four years old, his family actually moved to Zanesville, Ohio.

Okay.

Oh, my goodness!

Okay, in 1934, while they're living in Zanesville, Ohio, Buggs joins his first band.

The Al Sears Band...

Okay.

...in Cincinnati.

Okay.

Okay, Al Sears.

Oh-oh!

Al Sears Band.

All right.

So, now that we have an idea of who he is, we've gone through some information about his family members, his childhood.

Yeah.

We need to see if we can answer that question for you.

Yes, yes.

Is this famous Buggs Roberts of St. Louis...

Yes.

...the same as your great-grandfather, Daddy Buggs Roberts.

So, let's look at the second part of that article we have.

Okay.

One of the big things it mentions is who his surviving family is.

Oh!

Tell me if you recognize a name.

Do you all see-- Delores, your great-grandmother.

Oh!

(laughing) And actually, all of these names are familiar to you as your ancestors.

Yes, yeah.

And, just to confirm what we've seen on the obituary, that Daddy Buggs Roberts...

Yes.

...is indeed the famous St. Louis arranger and composer...

I'm so excited.

...Buggs Roberts.

I'm just tingling all over.

Oh, well, thank you.

I'll let you have your moment.

(laughs) Oh, my goodness.

Take all of that in.

Okay, okay.

(sighs) All right, I'm ready.

Now, if you turn around, we were able to find an article with a photo of Buggs Roberts up there.

(gasps) It's kind of grainy.

But, if you can see it right there in the corner, that's him.

Right here.

Talking a little bit about his accomplishments and who he played with as well.

Oh, look at it.

Oh, wow!

That's amazing.

(laughing) It's just overwhelming to me, it really is.

This is the very first time I've ever seen a picture of him.

Oh, wow!

Yes.

Daddy Buggs died when I was just a year old.

(sighs) So, why are you so-- your mom is getting really emotional.

This is overwhelming, really.

This has been just wonderful for me.

It really has.

I'm so happy, I'm so happy.

Yes, I really appreciate it.

(announcer) Sometimes, uncovering your past can be painful.

But, it's the truths and the connections to history that bring our guests the most peace.

My father died when I was two years old.

Okay.

I don't know anything about my father.

We were able to find a document related to your father's death.

He was dragged off into the woods by the Nazis and beaten, and that he died because of the result of his injuries.

Yes.

So, we know, though, following your father's death, your mom never remarried.

No, she didn't.

It must have been a true love.

Mm-hmm.

We were able to find the death record of an infant.

Oh, no!

Oh, no.

Now... ...this baby unfortunately passes away just a few months before... She dies?

...she dies.

You'll never know what this means to me.

You'll never know.

This story of your ancestor's lynching received national attention.

Okay.

The "New York Herald" ran coverage of it for 28 consecutive days.

Wow.

It became a national story.

Okay.

Your family is part of history.

Really?

Something that was national that changed African-American history and American history.

Wow.

(announcer) In San Francisco, our genealogists tried to make the connections between a family heirloom and this man's Native American ancestor.

You brought something.

Yes, I have.

What is this?

This is a walking stick that I spent my entire life believing was Eliza Lindgren's.

Literally, the day she died, I asked my mom about it, and she told me it actually belonged to Josephine Beach, who I am under the impression is Eliza Lindgren's sister.

Okay, so we have a family heirloom in front of us.

Absolutely.

We're trying to figure out how close it might be connected.

Right.

So, Josephine Beach and Eliza Lindgren are both Native American.

Yes.

We know that Eliza Lindgren was the last medicine woman of the Cher-Ae.

Right.

Now, the Wiyot massacre, this is a horrible event.

In late February of 1860, the Wiyots were celebrating the sacred ceremony that lasted seven to ten days.

On one of the nights of this ceremony, the young men would leave and travel to get supplies for the next day.

After the men left, a group of whites came to the island.

They massacred what is estimated between 80 and 100 women, children, and the elders.

Josephine Beach was sailing in a canoe to attend the ceremony.

The fog was fairly bad, so she turned around with her son and went home.

Her family was not as fortunate.

At age 19, Josephine, we believe, lost almost every member of her family in that massacre.

And to have that story verified as actually happening is kind of-- it's upsetting.

Now, looking for a connection between Josephine Beach and Eliza.

We do have a picture of her.

We know they were from two different tribes.

It's not uncommon for tribes to intermarry at some point, for alliances, though we couldn't find a connection through an intermarriage.

In 1900, we find Eliza on the Indian census.

Okay.

She's at the very top, she's head of the household.

Her daughter Dora is there.

So, here's Eliza in 1900.

Let's go find Josephine in 1900.

Now, you notice she's not on the Indian census.

This is the general population schedule.

Oh, wow.

And, what's very interesting, is this column right here is the race column.

Now, everyone else on the page, and even in her household, all have the "W" for white.

Okay.

If you look very carefully-- and this is where the detective part of the job comes out-- this is where the magnifying glass comes out-- it looks like there is either an "I-N" or and "I-D" or something written underneath, and a "W" written on top, like someone altered the original enumeration, worrying that it might look funny to have someone who is Native American listed in a family where everyone else was listed as white.

Sometimes, records can be altered and changed to fit with the times.

We do know this is her in the 1900 census.

Okay.

Moving forward in time, Eliza's daughter, Dora, has married Fred Beach.

Okay.

Dora marries the son of Josephine Beach.

Oh!

Okay.

That's your ancestor's walking stick.

(sighs) Thank you.

Wow.

The fact that a survivor of the massacre like that actually is an ancestor of mine is profound.

We have these items we keep around our houses.

Yeah.

And we always say, "Oh, that's so-and-so, that's so-and-so."

But, this is your story.

And it's just the fact that, you know, the day my mom dies is when she tells me that this is actually Josephine's and not Eliza's.

Yeah, this is a absolute family heirloom.

It has no intrinsic value otherwise, but it means a great deal to me.

And I just-- it means more now.

It's kind of a profound thing.

It's haunting.

Thank you.

You're very welcome.

My mom would have loved this.

My mom would have adored this opportunity, and I just wish that she could have been here to partake in it.

Thank you for stopping by the "Genealogy Roadshow" today.

Appreciate it.

Thanks.

(applause) (announcer) Gail Mullen came to us wanting to know about how she received money from a mysterious woman.

What she found out was not only shocking, but truly life-changing.

Welcome to "Genealogy Roadshow."

It's wonderful to meet you.

Thank you so much for having me.

I understand you're here to unravel a bit of a family mystery.

I am.

Involving your grandmother.

Yes.

So, let's start with Anna Hubbell, your grandmother.

Okay.

This is a passenger list from Vienna in 1937 that records the arrival of your grandmother, who is married by now to your grandfather, Robert Kriwer.

Okay.

Now, at one point, your grandmother received money from a family that you were told that they had helped escape Europe during the Second World War.

Yes.

And that that money, your grandmother then gave to you to buy a car.

Now, who was this person who became... Yeah.

...close enough to your grandmother and your grandparents.

I'd love to thank them!

Well, I would like to introduce you to... ...Edith Kriwer.

This is the woman who left money in her will to your grandmother.

Oh my gosh.

Look at her eyes, they're beautiful.

Were they siblings?

Well, just because it's the same surname, it doesn't always mean that there's a relative.

Okay.

So, let's learn more about Edith, and then figure out their connection.

What we do know about Edith Kriwer is that she had a brother, Albrecht Kriwer.

Now, Edith and Albrecht both naturalize within a day of one another.

So, they became citizens of the U.S. very, sort of shortly after one another.

And it's from those documents that we can actually trace how they arrived in America.

Now, this is a ship manifest, this is March of 1940.

And here, we see the arrival of Albrecht Kriwer.

He's 36 years old, from Germany, and he is Hebrew.

And, at this period in time, the word "Hebrew" was used to mean Jewish.

He is noted that the last place that he lived is Vienna.

Now, a few months later, Edith Kriwer is listed on the passenger list.

She's 38 and a clerk, also Hebrew.

Though, notice here-- this is a very interesting moment in history-- it's written as Vienna, Austria, and then it's crossed out, and Germany is written on top.

Hmm.

That's because in 1938, Austria was annexed to Germany.

What an interesting moment in history Yeah!

to have captured within a document.

Wow, and there it is.

Now, the passenger list also can include a name of a relative they've left overseas.

And Edith is leaving behind a sister, Serafine Kriwer.

Mmm.

Now, take a moment and understand the context of which they left.

When Austria was annexed to Germany, within days, Adolf Eichmann, who was the Second Lieutenant in the SS, came to Austria, and he planned to solve what he called "the Jewish problem."

They were forcing the Jewish community from their homes and from their homelands at their own expense.

Now, Albrecht and Edith were helped by your grandparents... ...who likely helped to secure them documentation so they could enter the United States.

Mm-hmm.

The question is, what about the sister, Serafine?

We don't know why she didn't leave.

This is a 1942 travel report of a train transport.

And it gives us details that on October 5th, 1942, 549 Jewish citizens are transported from Vienna to an extermination camp just outside of Minsk.

We know that among those 549... was Serafine Kriwer.

(sobbing) I know, it's-- it's tough.

(sniffling, sighing) Do you wanna know more about the trip?

Yes.

Okay.

We know the trip took four days.

The train arrived the night of October 9th, 1942.

Upon arrival, Serafine was immediately executed.

(sniffling) Yeah.

So, one of the questions is, is your Kriwer family related to these Kriwer siblings?

Mm-hmm.

Or were they simply being good friends and good people, and helping out?

We looked into the Kriwer family to see what we could find about Edith, Albrecht, and Serafine.

Mmm.

The individuals your grandparents were helping were actually your grandfather's cousins.

Oh, my goodness.

Wow.

They were helping family.

Wow.

Sometimes, the things we uncover in our past are not pleasant.

They reflect a horrific moment in our history.

Does that help clear up some of the confusion?

It does, it does.

Thank you.

You're very welcome.

Thank you for stopping by today and sharing your story with us.

Thank you so much for having me.

My life is forever changed.

Thank you.

(announcer) Sometimes, the hardest part of growing up is dealing with family members we never knew.

Stories like these were brought to us from all over the nation.

Retired football legend and Austin, Texas native Earl Campbell came to the roadshow in hopes to find out more about the father he never knew.

Your father died when you were really very young, right?

Yes, I was fifth grade.

Your father fought in World War II.

Really?

Yes.

He was actually part of the Black Army Air Corps, and this unit participated in D-Day.

Your father was a hero on the battlefield.

If I could look my father in the eye, I would say a job well done.

(announcer) While in St. Louis, it was Julie Bryar's mother's side of her family that was shrouded in mystery.

(Joshua) Not only was your mother an orphan, but your biological grandmother was, too.

Okay.

Those were the children that your grandmother knew, that she played with, her friends, her schoolmates.

Are you serious?

(woman) Oh, my God!

(announcer) Tim Dasenbrock came to the roadshow in hopes of giving his ailing mother some closure on the family she never knew.

(Mary) This divorce record shows us that in about 1921, your mom, Barbara, took up with another man called Rufus Eldridge Musgrave.

That was-- that was my father.

She was stepping out on her husband with your father!

Yeah!

(laughing) That's all right with me.

Okay!

That's all right with me!

I wouldn't have been here otherwise.

(laughter) (announcer) A picture is said to be worth a thousand words.

But, it was two words that unraveled a mystery that has gone unsolved for dozens of years.

And those two words were "Uncle Fate."

(Kenyatta) The name Fate, it's kinda interesting.

I always wondered about that, because it definitely seems to me that that's not a name that somebody gives you.

That sounds like a name you would choose for yourself.

Yourself, right.

So, the first thing we did was go to the 1900 census.

You can see Edwin Kennedy right there.

Okay.

And if you go down to a gentleman named Lafayette Cox, who's African-American and listed as a servant in the household.

Okay.

So, Fate-- it's actually a very common nickname for Lafayette.

Really?

So, that led us to believe this is Lafayette Cox, who was a servant in a household with Granville.

Now, something else interesting about this.

We found that this picture, as sweet as it is, touches not only you, but it also touches another family.

I would like to actually introduce you to the second great-granddaughter of Lafayette Cox.

Really?

Yes.

(laughs) Birdy, please come out.

(applause) Oh, my goodness!

So, Birdy, this is the first time you're seeing a photo of your great-great-great grandfather, Lafayette Cox, is that correct?

It is.

Well, I have to say, I see some family resemblance.

How do you feel about the photo?

It's endearing, and I like that he's content.

And the little boy is very happy to be with him.

I wanna tell you guys a little bit more.

Lafayette actually served in the first Colored Heavy Artillery.

So, he was part of the United Stated Colored Troops in the Civil War.

There's actually an 1890 military census, where Lafayette is self-reporting where he served as a Private in 1864 and 1865.

And, Lafayette was actually a farmer in the 1870s.

One of the great things that Lafayette did that really excites me, is he was a property owner in 1891.

Now, 1891, let's think about this time period.

Here, we have a man who might have been a slave, who served in the U.S.

Colored Troops, and in 1891, he is owning property in Knoxville.

So, not only was he a farmer, but he was a land owner.

We took a look at the 1906 city directory.

This is the section for anyone with the last name Cox.

We can see that Lafayette works for E. M. Kennedy.

So, Edwin, I believe that's your namesake, correct?

Yeah, that's my great-grandfather.

Yeah.

So, here, we can see that connection, not only from that photo, but also from the directory.

One of the things I think is so important about this story, is that Edwin could have just said, "Oh, I already know enough about my family."

But, he wanted to understand this person and their impact.

And what you've given to Birdy is the connection to her history.

You've provided to her a photo of your second great-grandfather.

Mm-hmm, it's touching, and I'm grateful.

That makes me happy.

I'm grateful that, one, someone kept these pictures, and it meant that much.

And then, you chose to seek further.

So, it gave me new information, and more importantly, my daughter more information about who she is.

(Edwin) It's interesting just to start off with a picture, and then actually get some idea of who he was as a person.

And, it's clear he was a remarkable person.

And the fact that this has been able to give you something and your family something, um...

I'm so excited, I just can't put it into words.

I'm delighted, I really am.

(applause) (announcer) James Taylor and his family came to us in St. Louis knowing absolutely nothing about their family past.

With the help of DNA and some deep research, our genealogist made some unbelievable connections.

(Joshua) Taylor family, welcome to "Genealogy Roadshow."

Thank you.

Thank you.

It is such a pleasure to have you here.

Glad to be here.

I know you're here to learn a few things.

Mm-hmm.

I was so excited to meet you, and I was all over this story from the very, very beginning.

(laughter) So, in genealogy, as we're doing some of the research, we start with exactly what we know, which is what you passed onto us.

Mm-hmm.

And then, we work towards the unknown and try and fill in the mysteries.

So, let's start with Mom's side.

Okay.

We see you.

Uh-huh?

And we trace back to your parents.

And we'll look first on the Cato family.

Okay.

Now, we know you've done a little bit of work, and you'd found Charlie and Jesse Cato.

Mm-hmm.

We were able to actually go back a bit further using the census records in 1880.

Wow.

So, this is Toby and Anna Cato.

Now, James, this is your third great-grandparents.

You see, Toby is a farmer, and his wife, Anna, is keeping house, and they have a slew of children.

Oh, my goodness!

Now, living right above your third great-grandfather Toby Cato, is his father and mother, Abraham and Harriet Cato.

I'm discovering people that I've never heard of and that I've always wondered about.

I wish I could talk to them!

(laughter) So, Dad, let's look at your line a little.

All right.

Dass Whaley, your biological great-grandfather, is from Arkansas.

Uh-oh, Arkansas!

He married a woman named Chanch Leopold.

And we were able to trace the Leopold family back to William and back to Simon Leopold.

One thing to remember, because slaves were seen as property before the Civil War, they're not typically enumerated by name in census records.

This can be a real roadblock for many.

In this case, we can use DNA to get a view of your deep ancestry taking us back hundreds and thousands of years.

While there is that large gap before 1870, hopefully, we can fill in your story by looking at your DNA.

So, we deal a lot in genealogy with sort of the current generations.

Uh-huh?

We think 300 years is really, really good, if we can get back that far.

Yeah.

James, I know you're thinking "thousands of years back," and DNA actually helps us do that.

So, we have your DNA profile.

Aah!

All right.

You ready?

Yeah.

James, this is what makes you James.

Aw, man!

(Mom) Oh, my goodness.

Dang, I got Nigerian blood!

Aw, man!

Wow!

So, you are 89% African.

Ah!

86% from West Africa.

(Mom) Wow.

3% from South Central Africa.

Oh, my goodness.

And you're 8% European.

You said Mali, and Mali's there.

You know, speaking of Mali, I hear you're interested in the Mali Empire, right?

Well, that map actually places you... smack dab where the Mali Empire was.

Wow!

Your ancestors come from the Mali Empire.

That's awesome!

Well, I'll be danged.

(laughs) That's what he wanted!

I think that is pretty cool, man.

I never-- I never smiled harder in my life, but this is-- (laughter) This is cool, this is cool.

I'm just, like, so happy, like, my brain can just jump out of my head and say, "That's what I told you.

That's where I told you where you come from."

Thank you for letting me look at the Taylor family tree.

(Mom) It's been awesome.

So exciting.

Thank you, man.

It was amazing.

Yes, yes, yes.

Thank you so much.

We appreciate it very much.

You're welcome.

Thank you.

Thank you.

(announcer) We look forward to uncovering your family histories.

I'd like to know these people, I'd like to meet them.

They're part of my family.

(announcer) Solving your family mysteries.

Are you sure you want that to be your ancestor?

(laughs) I have to ask.

(announcer) And sharing with you how your family made the journey to this country.

I bet they would have been amazed.

To imagine our families would have kept getting brought back together again.

All the way around the world.

Right.

The two of you were obviously meant to be.

(announcer) Everyone has a story to tell.

The words of your third great-grandmother.

Oh, you're kidding me!

(announcer) What's yours?

Wow.

Wow!

(man) Wow.

(gasps) (announcer) Who knows what stories lie ahead on "Genealogy Roadshow."

To learn more about this program, please visit pbs.org/genealogyroadshow.

This episode of "Genealogy Roadshow" is available for download on iTunes.

Other episodes in this series are also available.