The Author's Journey
Wilton R. Stewart, PhD
My journey has been shaped by leadership, education, public service, and a lifelong desire to understand the people and events that formed our family’s history. After graduating from Pepperdine College, I earned advanced degrees from the University of San Diego and Capella University. I served twenty-seven years in the United States Navy, retiring with the rank of Captain, and later taught undergraduate and graduate courses in leadership, financial management, and human services.
Across each chapter of my life, I have remained committed to preserving the lessons of the past and sharing them with future generations. Whether commanding sailors at sea, teaching students in the classroom, serving my community, or examining historical records, I have sought to understand how individual lives contribute to a larger story. That belief ultimately guided me toward the work that became From Whence They Came.
My Journey as a Historian
My journey as a historian began in the mid-1970s with a simple question about my family’s origins. During a visit with my grand-aunt Bessie, an old trunk revealed fragile Bible records, family portraits, names, and birth dates preserved across generations. What I discovered that day awakened a curiosity that would continue for more than fifty years.
That curiosity led me into census schedules, land deeds, military files, court records, newspapers, church records, probate documents, and family collections. With each discovery, another question emerged and another forgotten life came into view. Over time, I learned that genealogy does more than identify names and dates: it restores people to history and reveals how their lives were shaped by the larger forces of their time.
Speaking & Workshops
Available for historical symposiums, genealogy workshops, and literary events. Let's discuss the power of ancestry.
Email: Info@FromWhenceTheyCame.Org
Why I Wrote This Book
I wrote From Whence They Came because collecting names, dates, and documents was no longer enough. I wanted future generations—including grandchildren, nieces, nephews, and cousins yet to be born—to know who their ancestors were, what they endured, what they accomplished, and how their separate journeys ultimately became one family legacy.
This book also responds to a deeper responsibility: to preserve African American history in the voices of the families who lived it. The stories recovered from family conversations, aging photographs, fragile documents, and public archives deserve to be remembered and shared. What began as personal curiosity became an act of remembrance—a commitment to honor those who came before us and ensure that their voices are never lost to time.