Forty plus years ago, I began this journey into the past. The impetus for this book came from a series of the questions asked at the very first family reunion. In June 1974, St. Louis, Missouri was the site of the first Jackson-Riley reunion. Attendees of the reunion introduced and greeted each other and then the questions about relationships began. How are we related? Who was your grandfather? When did your family leave Mississippi? Upon leaving the reunion, I thought about the questions I heard and wondered could I sort through and answer the questions posed? Maybe an engaging conversation or two via the phone or the U.S. Mail (of course this was before email). A minor discovery, what was the possibility of finding information
