Heritage & History
Rooted in love. United forever. One family, many branches, one root — preserved here for everyone who carries the family name and its legacy forward.
Our Origins
As far as the documented family tree goes back, the Ross line begins with Isham Ross (b. 1834) and Mary Cutrer (b. 1837). Their children carried the name forward — Rhoda, Eli, Jepheth, William, Edward, Dewitt, Dock C., Murray M., Adolphus, and an elder America Ross (1879–1945) among them.
The family's other founding line is the Sibley branch: Jerry Sibley (b. 1827) and Sophia Williams (b. 1836), whose daughter Rosa Sibley (b. 1867) married into the Ross family and connected the two lines for good.
The Next Generation
William Ross (b. 1864), son of Isham and Mary, married Rosa Sibley (b. 1867), daughter of Jerry and Sophia. Their children were Monroe, Isam, Sophia, Lear, Emma, Burgoyne, Emilene, Otto L., Leon — and America Ross (1896–1929), the woman this branch of the site is built around.
A note on names: there are two different America Rosses in the family's history — an elder America Ross (1879–1945), a child of Isham and Mary, and America Ross (1896–1929), William and Rosa's daughter, who married into the Dickerson family below. Wherever the name repeats on this site, we'll show birth and death years to keep them straight.
Her Life
America Ross (1896–1929) married Royal L. M. Dickerson (b. 1895). Together they raised five children who carried the family into the generations gathering for reunions today: Prentiss Dixon, Cornelia Dickerson, Leamon Dawson Sr., Adolphus Dickerson, and Isaac Dickerson. You can trace each of them, their spouses, and their place in the family on the Family Tree.
The Family Grows
America and Royal's five children married into the Taylor, Dawson, Allen, and Groves families, and their descendants carry surnames including Dawson, Hall, Mitchell, Strachan, Ringo, Byrd, Johnson, Gosserand, Gross, Howard, and Beltazor, among others. If your branch isn't reflected yet, add it on the Family Tree or share what you know on the Memory Wall.
Family Tradition & Ongoing Research
Older family accounts also preserve a tradition involving Celia Varnado Ross, Isiam Varnado, and Jesse Ross, with Jesse said to have raised children whose names — Willie, Murray, Adolphus, Eli, America, Dock, Monroe, Isam, and others — overlap strongly with Isham and Mary's children above. Whether these are the same family remembered two different ways, or two distinct stories, isn't settled. We're not presenting either version as the final word — if you know this history, your memory is exactly what this page needs. Share it on the Memory Wall.
Preserving the Legacy
Browse every branch of the family, going back as far as records and memory take us, and add relatives who are missing.
Stories, and audio from family elders, recorded in their own words.
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