My name is Shannise Jackson and I have been an educator, journalist, registar, researcher, artist, and author. All these experiences have helped to hone my skills as a storyteller. I am currently working on a series of creative endeavors that tell the story of my family's history. So far my research has led me back five generations to my maternal great great great grandfather, Jim Boyland who was born a slave in 1860 and his mother, July Boyland born in 1790. Census records document Jim Boyland's place of birth as being Fayette County, Tennessee and his mother, July Boyland's place of birth in North Carolina. The surnames that led be to Jim Boyland are my grandmother Annie Jackson, my great grandmother Ethel Lomax, her mother Freddie Bumpas, and her mother Francis Boyland, who was married to James "Jim" Boyland. Francis Boyland's maiden name was Coe and I recently discovered her parents, Isabella and Henry Coe. I have traced my maternal line back six generations.

My name is Shannise Jackson and I have been an educator, journalist, registar, researcher, artist, and author. All these experiences have helped to hone my skills as a storyteller. I am currently working on a series of creative endeavors that tell the story of my family's history. So far my research has led me back five generations to my maternal great great great grandfather, Jim Boyland who was born a slave in 1860 and his mother, July Boyland born in 1790. Census records document Jim Boyland's place of birth as being Fayette County, Tennessee and his mother, July Boyland's place of birth in North Carolina. The surnames that led be to Jim Boyland are my grandmother Annie Jackson, my great grandmother Ethel Lomax, her mother Freddie Bumpas, and her mother Francis Boyland, who was married to James "Jim" Boyland. Francis Boyland's maiden name was Coe and I recently discovered her parents, Isabella and Henry Coe. I have traced my maternal line back six generations.