Elizabeth Boyd Henry Tennies' family history stretches back 1,000 years.

She's documented all of it in her recently released book called "1,000 Years of History -- The Boyds -- Scots-Irish Unsung Heroes."

"I'm very interested in history," Tennies said. "It was my major in college."

After graduating from Grove City College in 1960, Tennies brought her love of the past to the Pittsburgh region. She started out teaching history at Butler High School, then did a short stint at North Allegheny. From 1972 to 1977, she taught in the Shaler Area School District at Reserve Elementary School.

Tennies has been living in Baltimore for the last 10 years, where she has spent most of her free time researching her family's history. Her resources include the Library of Congress, Carnegie Library and libraries at Case Western Reserve and the University of Pittsburgh.

She already knew her family had a major influence in the area, but the research helped her dig up even more facts.

The Boyds came to Western Pennsylvania in 1772, and it was their goal to plan churches and schools throughout the region.

Besides those civic contributions, they also played a part in major Revolutionary War battles across the state. They made their mark at the Battle of Brandywine and the Paoli Massacre, as well as standing with the Round Head Regiment that accompanied George Washington at Valley Forge.

"They literally had a trail of blood across Pennsylvania when they left from Pittsburgh," she said.

But the family's personal history started way before that. It began about 1,000 years ago with two Norman brothers who went to Western Scotland around the time that William the Conqueror was in charge.

Because of their religion as Presbyterians, they were forced out of Scotland and spent the next 300 years in Northern Ireland.

"There was a great deal of religious persecution against all faiths at that time," she said. "The Presbyterians were forced out of Scotland. Then they were forced out of Ireland because of high rent and their religion."

Crossing the Atlantic during that time was horrific, she said. The boats traveled only 4 or 5 miles per day at best, and were routinely blown off course. Passengers suffered a variety of hardships like lack of hygiene, hunger, cold temperatures and ceilings that were no more than five feet high. The fastest they could get across was six weeks, she said.

While she doesn't know how many Boyds are still around, she knows that the family name is still going strong with some of her family members.

Tennies' book is out right now on Amazon.com and some Borders book stores. It was printed through Xulon Press, which is located in Florida.