Edgefield, South Carolina was the best kept secret in American History. Well that was until a woman by the name of Donya Williams became interested in her personal family history. In the new book, Comes to The Light: Learning About the Entangled Families of Edgefield, South Carolina Donya reveals how she learned an entire county just may be related to each other and realizes that her interest in politics didn't just come from her uncles. Join Donya as she takes you on the journey of learning how to research your family by telling her stories of ups and downs. Follow along as she shares how Genealogy pulled her in and helped traces her family history from now all the way back to the American Revolution. Donya will share stories of family members who experienced slavery in every form, from breeders to free people of color, and persevere despite the many obstacles that was laid before them.And finally follow her as she looks in several old newspapers dating back to the 1880s to find her cousin John Yeldell on trial for murder. Is he found guilty? Comes to the light is a jaw dropping yet informational book about how African American families survived from the early slave days straight through the Jim Crow era.
About the Author: For more than 20 years Donya Williams has researched her Edgefield roots. She began to realize that writing, whether she wanted it to be or not, was a part of being a Genealogist/Family Historian. As she researched her family there came a time where sharing her findings was a must. She began to share her findings through a blog on WordPress that was followed by family members, other researchers and friends. Her blog went on for a year or two, telling the stories she found and introducing the descendants, ancestors and ancestral kin she had come to know over time, to other family members. As her knowledge of the Genealogical field grew so did her need to expose others to what she had learned. In between blog post she would submit and publish articles to the Old African American Edgefield District Genealogical Society newsletter "Homeplace" before the group disbanded. She was featured in Edgefield County's longest running newspaper The Edgefield Advertiser as a guest writer for Black History Month in 2012. Donya was interviewed by former boxing promoter and activist Rock Newman in 2013. It was on his radio show that she shared her first connections to American History. In 2015, she was a speaker for a two-day event at Two Rivers Charter school in Washington, DC. There she spoke and had a question and answer period on the topic of Frederick Douglas and the impact her family made on American History as well as share what they should look for when they researched their family. This helped children understand the role that we as a people played in the founding of the United States. This was one of her proudest moments, not just because it was her chance to have an influence on our future leaders, but she was invited to speak at a place where the then First Lady of the United States Michelle Obama frequented. In 2016 Donya was the coordinator for the first ever Calling All Branches Family Reunion. This reunion would bring together families from Edgefield, South Carolina that may not have been together for over 150 years. This reunion got the attention of two South Carolina papers. The Index Journal of Greenwood, South Carolina and the Post and Courier of Charleston, South Carolina interviewed Donya on the hows and whys this reunion needed to happen.