Mennello Museum of American Art

Personal DNA testing and genealogical research have exploded in popularity since the establishment of private DNA research companies like Ancestry and 23andMe. Everyone knows someone who now talks endlessly about fascinating new ancestors, remarkable nationalities, and surprising ethnicities. But what do we do with this new knowledge, and what does it mean? Perhaps what is even more important, how do we come to terms with and understand ancestors whose names, lives, histories have been erased? “Genealogy Stories,” describes one literature scholar’s personal journey through historical documents in search of lost ancestors. The presentation describes how those who were lost can still be located in historical documents that are accessed online. The names, places, and experiences of those people can be carefully crafted to tell the stories of those who were lost—but are now found.

Lynn Casmier-Paz was awarded a Ph.D. from the University of Pittsburgh and came to UCF in 1997. She is an Associate Professor in the Department of English where she teaches early American and African American literature, literary theory, and autobiography studies. She has recently turned her attention to earlier work on her family’s genealogy, which her new research brings together with theories of narrative and storytelling.