Welcome to the Slaves Had A Name Project (SHAN)
The Slaves Had A Name Project is dedicated to helping researchers uncover the history of slavery as it relates to their family members, specifically those with roots in what is now Bullock County, Alabama. Bullock County was originally formed from portions of five surrounding counties: Pike, Barbour, Macon, Montgomery, and Henry. To successfully trace your ancestors’ history, it is essential to expand your research to include these neighboring counties.
This project has been designed with that exact goal in mind—providing researchers with the resources and guidance needed to explore these key regions and uncover their family’s legacy.
Tracing Your Heritage
As I embarked on the journey to uncover my own heritage, I quickly realized the complexity of the task at hand. Tracing one’s ancestry through the era of slavery requires navigating a web of incomplete and often inconsistent records. Names were frequently misspelled, the individuals you expect to find in documents might be missing, and in many cases, the records were simply inaccurate or improperly documented.
Despite these challenges, this project has been a labor of love—one that I hope will benefit others who seek to learn more about their ancestors. Through diligent research, I have uncovered valuable information about many of the slaveholders connected to my 30 great-grandparents. I pray that this work will serve as a meaningful resource for those striving to piece together their family’s history.
About Me
I wasn’t born in Alabama; I was born in Rochester, New York, in the mid-1960s. The only connection I had to Bullock and Macon counties came from the oral stories passed down by my grandmother, my eldest aunt, and other family members who were born there. One day, I asked my grandmother how many brothers and sisters she had. Her response surprised me: “Well, they say (1) Poppa had 26 kids. (2) He was a pastor, and (3) he bought seven marriage licenses, but only married six times!”
I had only known of two or three marriages, so I was intrigued and began asking more questions. At that time, the internet was still in its early stages, and the only information I could find about Henry Anderson led me to a name—Hans Christian—but no substantial records or documents to help track six marriages or 26 children. So, I devised my own system of research, starting with a lot of questions.
Now, over 35 years later, I am proud to say I have discovered the names of all my grandparents, several great-grandparents, and even some of my great-great-great-great-grandparents. I’ve also found all of my grandmother’s siblings, all of her father’s marriage licenses, and even identified the names of the slaveholders for at least four of my ancestral lines.
Many people researching their ancestry struggle to uncover the ties to slavery in their family’s past. My hope for this project is to help others find the breakthroughs they need to trace their own heritage and uncover their ancestral history.
Published Work
After over 35 years of dedicated research, I reached a significant milestone in 2019 when I finally published my findings on my grandmother’s family lineage. The books, titled We Are Family, document the ancestry of her father (Anderson) and her mother (Cope/McGrady). These works explore the intricate connections and histories of families such as Anderson, Whigham, Carter, Miles, Pickett, Cope, Youngblood, Alford, Townsend, Cox, Jackson, Calhoun, Cooper, Stewart, Washington, VanHoose, Fitzpatrick, Glasco, Rayborn/Raybon, Thornton, and Ellington.
We Are Family, Cope(s), McGrady, Rhodes, 
Mason, Prather, Hall, Smith, Bird/Byrd, Drake, Calver, Baker, Jackson, Pugh, Gamble, Wright, Martin, Pickett, Cargyle, Thornton, Hunt, VanHoose, Harmon, Rogers, Anderson, Henry, Wright, Davis, Fitzpatrick, Warren, Feagin and Swanson.
After completing 90% of my second book, I realized more research was needed before I could proceed. This realization led to the start of this project. I can’t finalize the second book until I uncover the parents of my great-great-grandparents on my mother’s side—the Lloyd/Loyd and Fitzpatrick families. To achieve this, I will begin compiling information from Macon County, Alabama, in September to complete the third book in the series, titled We Are Family – Stinson, Lloyd/Loyd, Fitzpatrick, Hooks, Hooten, and Wood(s).
In 2019, I also published several other books in honor of my grandmother and the wisdom she shared with me over the years. These publications are my way of preserving and passing on the invaluable knowledge she entrusted to me.
During the COVID-19 pandemic (2019–2021), I transformed the book We Are Family – Anderson/Whigham into a documentary. This film, which highlights the rich history of these families, went on to receive awards from film festivals in 2022. Both the books and the documentary are available on Amazon.com.
MY TRAVELS TO BULLOCK, ALABAMA 1989
