I’ve always had an interest in ancestry and genealogy. This is probably due in part to my southern heritage. We Texans cherish our history. The toes of our boots point forward but our heels are firmly planted in our past. We spin stories on front porches over glasses of sweet tea, we guard family recipes like state secrets, and we display family heirlooms like museum pieces.
I grew up hearing stories that date all the way back to my family’s crossing from Ireland in the early 1800’s. In fact, one such story is where my brother got his name…
It was a red morning, the kind sailors dread seeing in open water but spin into rhymes when their feet are firmly planted on solid ground. Red raged to black as clouds rolled in, blotting out every last ray of light. The boat rocked, tossed by the waves like nothing more than a glass bottle a child sent to sea. Rain fell in blinding sheets and lightning struck the bow.
Passengers wailed, fleeing the deck. Crew members wrangled ropes, and the captain lashed himself to the wheel. In the midst of the thrashing of the wind and the crashing of the waves, a woman’s cry pierced the stormy air. An infant had been swallowed by the sea, lost to the depths or cradled by the webbed hands of the merrow.
Day passed to night and the sun rose once again into a clear sky. Silence washed over the sea, broken only by a soft coo. Swaddled inside a coil of rope, the young Joshua Phillip lay unharmed. Whether he watched the storm from that very spot or battled the sea itself to return, we’ll never know.
A couple of years ago, I decided to take a DNA test to find out more about my ancestry and see if I could trace my family tree back to my brother’s namesake (I did!). My results came as confirmation rather than surprise. Since then, I have been working on my family tree little by little and compiling family history and lore. During this process I have been slowly building my collection of ancestral folklore as well. You can check out my DNA results below.
Two communities were identified in connection with my DNA: Arkansas, Oklahoma & Texas settlers 1700-1975 and Early Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana & East Texas settlers 1700-1800. Again, this was more confirmation than surprise, but the early dates confirmed family stories before I was able to trace my tree back that far. So far, I can confirm that I am a sixth generation Texan, but I suspect it may be more.
One of my favorite parts of reading into my ancestral folklore is drawing connections to family lore and Texas folklore. Many Texan folk remedies and superstitions, especially from the east Texas region, can be traced back to Ireland and Scotland.
How did your family find their way to the place you call home?
Victoria Tatum 
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