Emmitt

"I would throw a pass in Emmitt's direction and then go over to him and ask him if he could have caught it or not in game conditions," the Hall of Fame quarterback said.

Veterans committee lifted Thomas to shrine he never expected to see 2008

Emmitt had added another generation with the bonus of a distinctive surname to pursue.

Megan Smolenyak: Emmitt Smith: Who Do You Think You Are? Megan Smolenyak 2011

Contemplating the whole of his journey, Emmitt proclaimed that he had found what he was looking for and concluded, History is not his-story anymore.

Megan Smolenyak: Emmitt Smith: Who Do You Think You Are? Megan Smolenyak 2011

"When I saw that book that said 'colored' on it," Emmitt reflected, "I really felt the power of segre­gation and how our people felt isolated and separate from America."

Megan Smolenyak: Emmitt Smith: Who Do You Think You Are? Megan Smolenyak 2011

Emmitt had now confirmed his family tree back to Mariah, his fourth great-grandmother, born around 1815 in Virginia.

Megan Smolenyak: Emmitt Smith: Who Do You Think You Are? Megan Smolenyak 2011

Before long Percilla realized that the gentle Emmitt was the love of her life and the two eloped in 1938.

Boing Boing 2009

Emmitt was a man with calloused skin who spent performance intermissions submerged in vats of ice water because he could not sweat.

Boing Boing 2009

A devoted family man and devout Christian, Emmitt lives in Texas with his wife, Pat, and their four children.

Megan Smolenyak: Emmitt Smith: Who Do You Think You Are? Megan Smolenyak 2011

Emmitt was quite literally ‘thick skinned’ and he had a ‘hard shell to crack’ but beneath he was a compassionate, gentle, charming and passionate man.

Boing Boing 2009

His search was off to a fast start and Emmitt knew just where to go next -- Burnt Corn.

Megan Smolenyak: Emmitt Smith: Who Do You Think You Are? Megan Smolenyak 2011