BEALSVILLE, Fla. — Continuing with honoring Juneteenth, Spectrum Bay News 9 visited Bealsville, a town in Hillsborough County, to learn how it was founded by freed slaves.

Who can track their family’s history back to more than 200 years ago?

Henry McCloud and his brother, Sylvester, and sister, Cheryl, have been working on this timeline for 20 years. It dates back to 1820.

“It took a little bit of time because as you can see we taped it all together, it’s 35 to 40 feet,” he described the timeline.

That’s the year their great-great-grandmother, Mary Reddick, was born. She was one of the 12 slaves who were freed in 1865.

“The fact that I can go back in time and pinpoint exactly where I came from, I don’t have to guess or wonder where they came from. That’s what makes you feel stronger. You can touch it, feel it, see it,” he explained.

She had a son, Alfred Beal, who the town of Bealsville is named after. He is their great-great uncle. The building they are standing in, the old Grover School, is also in their family. It’s now a historical landmark where both Henry and Sylvester once went to school.

“Looking at these pictures, and they go back 100 years,” Henry remarked.

Pictures of his family’s history are something he has made his life’s mission to share with others.

“It shouldn’t just be one day to reflect. It should be something to think about every day … It’s not just my history; it’s about every person’s history,” he emphasized.

Everything in this old school building — the pictures, the items — are all from their family.

“We have cousins that have contributed stuff,” he mentioned.

While inside holds the pictures and memories, outside is where Henry says you can touch and see everything.

“The plan is to restore as much as you can. If you don’t restore your history, you are going to lose it because that’s all you got, brick-and-mortar. Brick-and-mortar memories will fade, but that isn’t going anywhere,” he stated.

There is even a one-room schoolhouse where his Aunt Ethel taught for more than 40 years.

“She taught just about everything. If she didn’t know it, she taught it. We are trying to restore it,” he explained.

This is on the list of other structures on the property that will be restored to what it looked like in the 1930s.

“Her heart is in this building. That’s how it is,” he said, speaking about his aunt.

“It has the same distinct look as our family. Strong at the bottom, and the branches go everywhere,” he described.

He’s connecting the dots, one at a time, and bringing history in this town back to life.

The family received a grant to restore the old schoolhouse where their aunt once worked.