What happens when you spend a year chasing family stories across all fifty states?

I'm Crista Cowan (known online as The Barefoot Genealogist), and for this special Season Two retrospective, I’m pulling back the studio curtain. I’m sitting down with my longtime friend, producer, and editor, Lisa Elzey, to look back on our epic cross-country journey—from a 150-year-old sourdough starter in Alaska to a gripping witch trial in Connecticut.

We’re swapping behind-the-scenes secrets, revealing which interviews left us in tears, and unpacking the moments that surprised us most.

Behind the Scenes of Season Two:

• The Milestones: Celebrating our 100th-episode milestone and the incredible community pitches that brought this season to life.
• The Discoveries: How a rediscovered ancestor tied to a Utah handcart rescue and a forgotten Oregon cemetery project taught us something new about courage and place.
• The Bloopers: The reality of eating legacy roadside cheese dip live on camera.

Whether you've followed along since Episode One or you're just joining us as we head into Season Three, this retrospective is a reminder that every family—including yours—is carrying treasures worth sharing.

Links & Resources Mentioned:

• Cookbook: To Die For: A Cookbook of Gravestone Recipes by Rosie Grant
• Explore More: Find A Grave Community Projects
• Support the Show: If you loved our trip from sea to shining sea, please leave a review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify and join the conversation in the YouTube comments!

〰️ 🌳 🧬 〰️

🎧 Ready to discover more stories that could transform your family connections? Subscribe to 'Stories That Live In Us' wherever you get your podcasts, and leave a review to help other families find their path to deeper connection through family history. Together, we're building a community of families committed to preserving and sharing the stories that matter most.

🖼️ Ready to get your family tree out of your computer and onto your wall? Visit FamilyChartmasters.com to create a family tree chart that will help your family share stories for generations.

♥ Want more family history tips and inspiration? Follow me @CristaCowan on Instagram where I share behind-the-scenes looks at my own family discoveries and practical ways to uncover yours!

How close did America come to losing its foundational words forever? In this episode of Stories That Live In Us, host Crista Cowan (The Barefoot Genealogist) takes us to Delaware—the First State—as our countdown to America’s 250th birthday reaches its finale.

Our guest is Anna Crowley Redding, an Emmy Award-winning investigative television reporter turned acclaimed children’s book author. Anna shares the thrilling, forgotten history behind her book, Rescuing the Declaration of Independence: How We Almost Lost the Words That Built America. Together, Crista and Anna unpack the incredible true story of Stephen Pleasanton, an ordinary State Department clerk who risked everything to save the Declaration of Independence, the U.S. Constitution, and thousands of historic documents from British torches during the War of 1812.

Beyond the history books, this episode dives deep into the personal. Anna opens up about her own profound trial of courage, balancing the grief of losing an infant nephew and a sudden breast cancer diagnosis at age 39, all while fighting to get her stories out into the world.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode:

• The Midnight Ride You Never Heard Of: How a low-level clerk outsmarted the Secretary of War to pack up three floors of irreplaceable parchment as British troops closed in on Washington, D.C. in 1814.
• The Power of Primary Sources: Why historical artifacts, old census records, and even 19th-century maps can spark an immediate, tangible curiosity in children.
• Grief and Resilience: How to find the fortitude to face a blank page (or a major life crisis) and keep moving forward.
• Family History Tips for Parents: Simple, actionable ways to share your genealogical discoveries with your kids without needing to be a professional writer.

"You can be a regular person... and yet, an opportunity can arrive in your lap to do something courageous, and you can come through in a way that makes a real difference." — Anna Crowley Redding

Hit subscribe to follow along as we journey through all 50 states to uncover the deep connections and stories that live in all of us!

Links & Resources:

• Learn more about Anna Crowley Redding: https://annacrowleyredding.com/
• Buy Rescuing the Declaration of Independence: https://amzn.to/4xTJfe5

〰️ 🌳 🧬 〰️

🎧 Ready to discover more stories that could transform your family connections? Subscribe to 'Stories That Live In Us' wherever you get your podcasts, and leave a review to help other families find their path to deeper connection through family history. Together, we're building a community of families committed to preserving and sharing the stories that matter most.

🖼️ Ready to get your family tree out of your computer and onto your wall? Visit FamilyChartmasters.com to create a family tree chart that will help your family share stories for generations.

♥ Want more family history tips and inspiration? Follow me @CristaCowan on Instagram where I share behind-the-scenes looks at my own family discoveries and practical ways to uncover yours!

What happens when a simple hint on your family tree uncovers a decades-old secret?

In this episode of Stories That Live In Us, host Crista Cowan (The Barefoot Genealogist) sits down with nurse, history lover, and content creator Jessica Rae to discuss a discovery that changed her life forever. While researching her maternal line, Jessica stumbled across a U.S. federal census record that listed her great-great-grandmother, Susan, not in a household, but as an "inmate" at Mayview State Hospital—a historic mental institution in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania.

What followed was a deep dive into an incredible story of immigration, extreme poverty, domestic abuse, heartbreaking loss, and a system that often silenced vulnerable women. Jessica shares how Susan immigrated alone from Slovakia at just 17, lost four babies to the hardships of early 20th-century Pittsburgh, and was ultimately committed to an institution for over 30 years—a fact hidden from her own grandchildren.

In this episode, you’ll discover:

• The Census Clue: How a routine search on Ancestry unspooled a massive family secret.
• Susan's Resilience: The harsh realities faced by immigrant women in the Pittsburgh steel mill era.
• The Stigma of Mental Health: How the 1930s medical and legal systems dealt with trauma, abuse, and poverty.
• Healing Generational Trauma: Why breaking the silence and sharing these difficult stories on social media breeds healing rather than shame.

"I come from thousands of years of women who have survived and overcome the odds that were against them... I have found myself in this work." — Jessica Rae

Whether you are hitting a brick wall in your own genealogy research or hesitant to wade into the "messy" branches of your family tree, Jessica’s journey will inspire you to reclaim your ancestors' truth with empathy and courage.

Links & Resources:

• Follow Jessica Rae on TikTok/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/its_jessica_rae/
• Learn more about Stories That Live In Us and celebrate America's 250th birthday with us: https://www.cristacowan.com/blog?tag=podcast

〰️ 🌳 🧬 〰️

🎧 Ready to discover more stories that could transform your family connections? Subscribe to 'Stories That Live In Us' wherever you get your podcasts, and leave a review to help other families find their path to deeper connection through family history. Together, we're building a community of families committed to preserving and sharing the stories that matter most.

🖼️ Ready to get your family tree out of your computer and onto your wall? Visit FamilyChartmasters.com to create a family tree chart that will help your family share stories for generations.

♥ Want more family history tips and inspiration? Follow me @CristaCowan on Instagram where I share behind-the-scenes looks at my own family discoveries and practical ways to uncover yours!