Ann Blomquist, a retired math teacher in Jefferson County, addressed the Union County Historical Society meeting on October 19. Blomquist is the volunteer director of First Families of Tennessee. Her office is located at the East Tennessee Museum in Knoxville. She related that First Families of Tennessee began in 1993 in preparation for the 1996 Tennessee Bicentennial Celebration for the purpose of documenting pioneer ancestors and information on their families. In 2000, a book entitled First Families of Tennessee was published that not only documented the pioneers, but also contained a list of 12,400 certificate grantees. The book is available for research at the Union County Museum.

She also related the process for documenting that a person is a descendent of a first family. The basic requirement is the ancestor had to have resided in the geographic area that became Tennessee before 1796, the year of statehood. Complete the application available from the East Tennessee Historical Society (ETHS) by emailing eths@eastTNhistory.org, by downloading an application at https://www.easttnhistory.org/research/genealogy/firstfamilies. Only primary documents can serve as evidence, but a person may submit documentation of a current first family descendent if there is a common ancestor. Online family trees from Ancestry or other user-submitted information is not acceptable. However, primary documents such as birth certificates, death certificates, census reports, etc. that may be attached to the family tree may be submitted.

The ETHS will be adding four more certificates in 2026:1870 Families of Tennessee, Century Families of Tennessee, World War I Families of Tennessee, and War of 1812 Families of Tennessee. Civil War Families of Tennessee is another certificate already available. Documents may apply to multiple certificate applications. These are just a few of the 180 lineage certificates available for application today. Blomquist stated that having a certificate is a way to honor ancestors and document their important existence. There are fees to certify the application.

The Union County Museum has a wealth of primary sources to trace a family lineage. Stop by on Sunday (1-5 p.m.), Monday or Tuesday (both 10 a.m.-4 p.m.) and explore the museum located on Maynardville Highway across from Pete’s Place.