Director of the Center for Family History, International African American Museum

Brian Sheffey

Brian Sheffey is the Director of the Center for Family History at the International African American History Museum in Charleston, South Carolina. He is also the founder of the popular African American Genealogy website Genealogy Adventures. He is the host of the popular African American genealogy, culture, and history television series Genealogy Adventures, which he presents with Donya Williams on e360tv.

His research areas have focused on the U.S. regions to the east of the Mississippi River, including the northern British American Colonies. He has a particular expertise in researching enslaved people and enslaved communities in the early British American colonial era.

In 2023, he was hired by the University of Virginia Foundation to research and find the descendants of the enslaved community held at William Garth’s Birdwood Plantation in Charlottesville, Virginia. He has also spent the past few years researching the ancestry of communities of enslaved people held by the Bull, Butler, Middleton, Brewerton, and Guerard families in South Carolina.

Brian is the author of two award-winning Amazon Top 10 selling genealogy books: "Practical Genealogy: 50 Simple Steps to Research Your Diverse Family History" and "Family Tree Workbook: 30+ Step-by-Step Worksheets to Build Your Family History."