On Sunday, July 19, at 5 p.m., Historic Rock Fords America250 Lecture Series will welcome Karin Wulf as she presents Lineage: Genealogy and the Power of Connection in Early America. This lecture is based upon her book of the same name and explores how genealogy was a powerful force in 18th-century America, shaping society, law, and identity for all people, not just elites. The book argues that family records, created in diverse forms from documents to artifacts, were crucial for individuals and institutions to claim status, define freedom (especially in relation to slavery), and navigate legal and social structures, connecting personal emotion with political power. This presentation will be held in the Langmuir Education Room located on the first floor of the Rock Ford Barn. Please note that admission is for the lecture only and does not include the Snyder Gallery. Karin Wulf is the director and librarian of the John Carter Brown Library and professor of history at Brown University. A historian of early America focused on gender, family, and politics, she writes widely for both public and academic audiences about history, the worlds of research and scholarship, and libraries and archives. She serves on a variety of nonprofit boards, is involved in planning for the semiquincentennial in July 2026, and is a vice president of the American Historical Association. General admission tickets are $10 and may be purchased at www.HistoricRockFord.org/special-events. Historic Rock Ford, located at 881 Rock Ford Road, Lancaster, Pa., is comprised of the General Edward Hand Mansion and the John J. Snyder, Jr. Gallery. It is owned and operated by the Rock Ford Foundation, a private, not-for-profit corporation.