Roots Trails
Short reads on genealogy finds, helpful tips, and inspiring ancestor stories. Got a story to share? Tell us about your ancestor — we may feature it!
Simon Brown (1825–1883)
Posted on September 30, 2025
Boatman • Bartender • Carpenter — a Life Along the Lehigh He was not famous, but he was necessary. Simon Brown’s life unfolded where the Lehigh River bends and the towpath used to sing with the shuffle of mules. Born ab…
The Whistle in the Valley: The Life of Reuben Morris Grow, Railroad Conductor
Posted on September 16, 2025
In the anthracite hills of Carbon County, Pennsylvania, iron rails carved through forest and farmland, carrying coal, commerce, and hope. At the heart of this story is Reuben Morris Grow (1858–1914), a lifelong railroad…
“Three Names on One Roll”: Southey Ezekiel Nottingham and His Sons in the 10th U.S. Colored Infantry
Posted on August 22, 2025
In the 1860s, on Virginia’s Eastern Shore, the Nottingham name appears more than once on the same Union muster rolls. Southey Ezekiel Nottingham—born about 1815 near Capeville, Northampton County—was enslaved for much o…
Your Family History Is More Than a Chart—It’s a Story Worth Telling
Posted on August 20, 2025
Genealogy is often defined as the study of ancestral lines: names, dates, documents. Technically true—but wildly incomplete. Your family history is a living narrative about courage and chance, migrations and meetings, o…
The Farmer of Mahantango: The Life of David Kroh
Posted on August 2, 2025
On a cool September morning in 1782, in the rolling hills of Rockland Township, Berks County, Pennsylvania, a boy named David Kroh came into the world. He was born to parents who themselves were part of a sturdy German…