The study of genealogy and keeping genealogical records traces back to Biblical days. Matthew, the first book in the New Testament, begins by tracing the genealogy of Jesus back to Abraham. Matthew 1:1-3 reads "1 The book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham. 2 Abraham begat Isaac; and Isaac begat Jacob; and Jacob begat Judas and his brethren; 3 And Judas begat Phares and Zara of Thamar; and Phares begat Esrom; and Esrom begat Aram;" and so on down through the generations until in verses 16-17 we read "16 And Jacob begat Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ. 17 So all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen generations; and from David until the carrying away into Babylon are fourteen generations; and from the carrying away into Babylon unto Christ are fourteen generations." So, while the study of genealogy is certainly nothing new, I believe it is quite natural to want to know, understand, and preserve family ancestry.

Elizabeth & Lathan Roberts

Sally & Arthur Foster and Jessie Marie

My study began with the Roberts family of Eastern Tennessee. My interests quickly expanded to include the Foster family. These are the family lines of my father and mother, and they quickly led me to the Bonners and the Andersons. Then, I began to discover many names in my family line that I was not familiar with, such as Sharp, Horton, Baker, Fritts, Pickens, and on and on. My simple effort to document my family tree was fast becoming a compendium of many generations of families, all with ties to my parents two families, and now to me. It has proven to be one of the most fascinating things I have ever done. My only regret is not starting many years ago, not only because the things I have learned are so fascinating, but because the old African proverb at the top of the page is so true. When an ancestor dies, the vast knowledge of family history that they have goes with them.

My goal is to collect genealogical information pertaining to my ancestors and to their descendants. Therefore, this study will not only involve my family tree, but trees of many others that trace back to a common ancestor that we share. It is my desire to collect as much information as possible and preserve it in a common place for our families and our future generations.

My name is Len Roberts and I am the developer of this project and webmaster of this site. I welcome all contacts regarding this website, your inquires relating to family history, and especially any family information relating to this project that you might share with us.

Our site updated July 2009. In July of 2009, the second round of updates to our web site was completed. We now have even more history, stories, pictures, and family tree and family group information. Our site now covers 2,164 individuals from 770 families. The surnames on the list at the right are presented in the family tree and family group pages.

Our families: Chattanooga Tennessee area, Len and Carol Roberts, Signal Mountain; Leonard Roberts, Red Bank; Carol, Mike, Michael Forbis, Mark Gentry, Soddy Daisy; David, Stephanie, Michaela Roberts, Soddy Daisy; Stephen Roberts, Knoxville; Dan, Nikki, Lacy Roberts, Evans, Georgia; Michael Daniel, Colorado; Tracey, Adam, Steven Chaney, Chattanooga. Niota area: Charles, Myrtle, Debbie, Libby, Gregg, Roberts; Clifford, Virgie, Jerry, Roy Roberts; William (Bill), Nannie Roberts, Kenneth Lee; Elbert Lathan, Elizabeth Roberts; Edmond Marion, Elizabeth Roberts; Arthur Lewis, Sally Anderson Foster; Clifford, Carrie, Troy, Larry Foster; Sam, Nelma Anderson.

The purpose of this website, as stated above, is to gather as much of our family history as possible and present it in a manner that will preserve it as well as make it readily available to each and every member of our family. My hopes are that by making this information public we may be able to eventually make contact with distant relatives also researching family trees and sharing some of our same ancestry. Unfortunately, little is known about many of these other branches and research takes time, but I have been able to locate several family lines that trace back to our ancestors. That's always exciting. Identifying these unknown areas of our family tree will always remain a goal of this project.

Research will continue over time for the purpose of gathering additional information pertaining to our ancestors and to prepare new pages to further expand our presentation. At any given time I likely will have additional information pertaining to our genealogy that has not yet made it to the web pages. If you are researching an area and find something in our pages that may connect with you, please contact us. Contacts from anyone having information pertaining to names listed in these pages would also be greatly appreciated. Please view our wish list page for some of the areas where information is needed.

The genealogy section of our web site presently consists of charts and family tree diagrams, and photos and narratives pertaining to some generations. We have a time line presentation with selectable markers giving the viewer the ability to choose historical references or eliminate them entirely. Data is often presented in several formats to aid in viewing. Many screens have links to follow. Most charts have "arrow" icons to follow lineage, and the "tree" icon will take you to an associated family tree chart. Many names are "clickable" to access family group charts. You will find navigation is easy and there are indexes to every name so you can tour only the areas you want or the entire website. Please enjoy your visit.

Sources used in this presentation for research, data collection and compilation, and conversion are listed on our sources page.

As a reminder, our project has many areas I would like to further develop, and areas where genealogical information is missing. This being an ongoing challenge, any help with locating missing information or knowledge you might have to offer would be greatly appreciated. If you have ideas, suggestions, or information to share pertaining to any area of this project, please contact me. Thanks!

Please select from the menu items on the left side of the page to begin your journey through our genealogy site.