Do you know what's in your family history? If you go back farther than just the stories you heard from your grandparents you may find a few surprises. If you look into ancestors you may find they played roles in important historical events.

A journal has been passed down through my family that was kept by my great-great-great-grandmother. Her name was Eliza Gregson. Her husband was the blacksmith at Sutter's Fort. She wrote about him confirming that the yellow rocks they found were, indeed, gold.

She also wrote about the time a party of pioneers led by a man named Donner were caught in a blizzard in the mountain pass. She and all the women cooked food, laid out warm clothes and made up beds while the men of the fort went up to try and rescue them.

She had the first white baby in the area. She wrote about natives coming from miles around just to see the infant. They thought she was so beautiful they would pinch her, even when she was sleeping, to make her cry to see if she was real.

What's in your family history? Did you have an ancestor that fought in historical wars? Most people have royalty in their lineage. From whom are you descended?