A “Grubb” Discovery

Carolyn Allen February 15, 2012

I’ve always been interested in family history, but I think the series “Roots” inspired me to get started with research. I started with my mother’s father’s family because little was known about them. The family name was “Grubb” and for two years I followed the wrong line. The family had always said they were English, but as I sorted out records they appeared to be German. How exciting to finally find they were immigrants from Switzerland who came to this country in 1743. They lived in Southwest Virginia for at least 100 years and mostly spoke German. Now when I read about the Cumberland Gap, I can relate it to my family. Knowing that my family were once immigrants who had to assimilate in this country influences how I feel about today’s immigrants.

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About the Series

The basic drive to discover who we are and where we come from is at the core of the new 10-part PBS series Finding Your Roots with Henry Louis Gates, Jr., the 12th series from Professor Gates, the Alphonse Fletcher University Professor at Harvard University and director of the W.E.B. Du Bois Institute for African and African American Research. Filmed on location across the United States, the series premieres nationally Sundays, March 25 – May 20 at 8 pm ET on PBS (check local listings).