Hi Jean & all, Very interesting note. My own father (1898-1960) never talked of his family either, but I found early in my research that we are Irish and that his way of dealing with the prejudice shown against the Irish people of that time was simply to deny his Irish ancestry. My wife died nearly 5 years ago of cancer. I found out about 2 or 3 years ago that cancer runs in her mother's family. When I asked her mother about this, who's still alive at age 90, she acknowledged it and said "it's so embarrassing, what would people think". I'm afraid my response did not reflect a great deal of sensitivity. I don't think I'll ever understand the social standards our parents or grandparents grew up with. But, these two instances make me wonder if "talk to your oldest relatives", as recommended by most experts, should really be the first thing a person does when beginning work on their family's history. The Sarah or Julie J. FANNIN who married Alford T. BROWN mentioned in your note was the niece of my gr gr grandmother Rebecca Fannin. Most of us who have ancestors from eastern KY and sw VA have heard periodic family recollections indicating Indian, or now a days, Melungeon, ancestors. But I don't recall mention of this in the Fannin family. When you said "that her family was predominantly Melungeon and Lumbee Indian", were you referring to the Fannin family? Or were you referring to the Brown or Nichols family? -- Dave Dollard e-mail: dollard@cdmnet.com or dollard@primary.net Dollard Family Genealogy Page: http://www3.primary.net/~dollard/