Unknown Identity

Shanikka Stephanie Griffith August 2, 2012

I have 498 relatives on 23andMe, the majority are of European decent and I am 59% African, 34% European and & 7% Asia. I grew up knowing little about my Father’s side of the family, the story I did hear was that his Grandfather was dis-owned from his Welsh family, for marrying outside of his race (he married a Mullato, my Great Grandmother). I would also hear stories from my Maternal side about Native American blood, and being related to the Choctaw and Chickasaw Indians. This journey has opened my eyes to self and has been a wonderful revelation, I’ve discovered family I didnt know I had and have made some wonderful connections along the way. I would be interested to find out what happened to my Great Grandparents after 1920, they were a mixed race couple living in Illinois during that time, but I cant find them on a census after 1920.

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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).