I Returned 9 Years Later… and the Tombstones Were Disappearing

Big changes are coming to Genealogy TV. In this video, I hit the road in my new mobile genealogy office and travel to Randolph County, North Carolina to walk the land where my ancestors once lived, worshipped, and were buried. My goal was simple: see if I could locate some of the land connected to my family using old deeds, cemetery records, maps, and local history. One of the biggest lessons from this trip was realizing how quickly history can disappear. Some of the tombstones I photographed more than a decade ago are now nearly unreadable or slowly being buried beneath the soil. It was a powerful reminder that preserving and documenting family history matters. Along the way I: • Visit Back Creek Friends Meeting and Cemetery • Search for ancestors in historic Quaker cemeteries • Explore the Randolph Room at the Asheboro Public Library • Meet local historians and researchers • Study old maps, deeds, and family files • Learn more about the Henley, Davis, Hale, Winslow, Clark, and Pickett families • Compare old cemetery photos to present-day conditions • Attempt to locate ancestral land described only through metes and bounds deeds • Discover the location of the original Asheboro courthouse connected to my Henley family This trip reminded me that genealogy is not just about proving names and dates. It is about understanding the places our ancestors lived, worked, worshipped, and shaped. And sometimes the search itself becomes the story. If you enjoy genealogy research, cemetery exploration, local history, Quaker research, land records, and family history adventures, I hope you’ll come along for the journey. ❤️ JOIN the GENEALOGY TV ACADEMY https://genealogytv.org/academy/ 📝📝📝📝 HANDOUT OPTIONS 📝 1) Genealogy TV Academy members have access to all lessons and handouts back to 2022. https://genealogytv.org/academy/ 📝 2) Become a CHANNEL MEMBER at the INFO ACCESS level $9.99 per month. This gets you all the handouts.    / @genealogytv  . As a Channel Member, find the handouts by scrolling through the blog posts on the Community tab at    / @genealogytv   📝 3) All handouts can be PURCHASED INDIVIDUALLY ($5 and up) at https://genealogytv.org/handouts/. Here you will get a redirect and an email to download the handouts. 📝 4) Become a monthly PATRON at the HAPPY DANCE level ($15/Month) or more. You will get early release of the videos and the handouts are emailed to you, when they become available.   / genealogytv   ❤️ BECOME A GENEALOGY TV CHANNEL MEMBER and help support Genealogy TV - see perks!    / @genealogytv   ❤️ Patreon Membership – Handouts Emailed as they are produced.   / genealogytv  . ✅ Genealogy TV WEBSITE https://genealogytv.org/ ✅ GTV on FACEBOOK   / genealogytv   ✅ SIGN UP For GTV’s NEWSLETTER https://mailchi.mp/a0862c6473aa/genea... 👉 Subscribe to Genealogy TV (Free)    / @genealogytv   ** GTV Affiliate Partners ** 🛍️ Genealogy TV’s AMAZON STORE full of Connie’s favorites. https://www.amazon.com/shop/genealogytv I’m a professional genealogist who loves to teach with video. It's all about genealogy, family history, and DNA to research. Goal: Create the best free genealogy videos on YouTube, teach genealogy research skills to build your family tree and research records. 00:00 Intro 02:17 Finding people by place 04:49 Driving Down The Highway 06:27 Research Plan 07:23 Back Creek Friends Meeting & Cemetery 10:53 John Voncannon 14:36 Harlen B. Hale's Grave 16:12 Ancestry App 16:56 Reviewing Previous Images from 2017 18:30 New Union United Methodist Church Cemetery 18:59 Cemetery Spreadsheet 20:29 Marlboro Friends Cemetery 21:37 Farlow Monument 22:26 Ruth Farlow 24:45 Jesse Henley Tombstone 26:40 Asheboro - Randolph Co Library 27:25 Ross Holt - Library Director 27:50 Jesse Henley 28:05 Abraham Haskett 28:30 Jesse Henley's Land 28:52 Capt. William Clark - Rev War 29:08 Courthouse Square Map 29:43 Trading Path 30:38 Leaving the Library 31:42 Jesse Henley's 2 acres given for original courthouse 32:46 Final Thoughts 34:31 Brief Walkabout 34:44 Back at camp 34:56 Heading home Genealogy #GenealogyTV #FamilyHistory #vanlife Circus Waltz - Silent Film Light by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/... 🎵 Copyrighted music licensed from Lickd. https://lickd.co I Got a Name (Stereo Version) by Jim Croce, https://t.lickd.co/l/97PKOjZRPbe