Book Description

In the early 1900s, Allen Lewis Hoskins and his siblings left Leslie County, Kentucky, and moved to Mingo County, West Virginia. After Al met and married Lucy Patterson from Franklin County, Virginia, he never could have known that more than a hundred years later, members of his extended family would quietly wonder, "Where do we really come from? And how did we get to where we live today?" Rebecca Hoskins Goodwin relies on DNA, extensive research, photographs, and other personal documents to share the fascinating story of her family in the context of Appalachian history, as they progressed from immigrant to settler to farmer and from mining to law enforcement to politics. As Goodwin sets her family's lives against the backdrop of their times, it soon becomes evident that despite hardship, violence, and war, generations of the Hoskins family have relied on the strong ties of kinship to push on toward the frontier and, ultimately, the American Dream. Did You Tell Them Who You Are? offers a compelling look back into the Hoskins' family history in an effort to answer questions for not only today's generation, but also generations to come. "If you are a student of Appalachian history, you will be intrigued by how historical events affected one family. ... If you are looking for a pleasant read that will entertain and inform you, I recommend Did You Tell Them Who You Are?" -Sue Sergi, president and CEO, the Clay Center for the Arts and Sciences, Charleston, West Virginia