This chronicle follows the metamorphosis of a segment of early America and my family from the early 1700s to 2011. It winds around time and generations using only material in the family collection of history to weave the trail. My ancestors and I get to be the voices in this retelling of times, and at times, they (my people) may rue the day I became one of theirs, wishing I had kept my mouth shut and their lives, too. They wrote letters, books, and logs of all sorts of trivia and trials, victories and heart-wrenching defeats, the keeping of such, a reminder to any who might ponder whether or...