Michael Dyer Kirk

Michael Dyer Kirk is a fifth great-grandson of Thomas and Sarah (Bonar) Kirk. For more than a decade, he has pestered relatives for family lore, sifted through archived records, and passed the spittoon for DNA samples to uncover the Kirks' ancestral origins. 

An avid family historian, Michael has honed his research skills at genealogy conferences and workshops hosted by the Institute for Genetic Genealogy, the National Genealogical Society, and RootsTech. 

A native of Colorado who grew up in the shadows of the Rocky Mountains, he now lives just seventy miles from where Thomas was born in Berkeley County, West Virginia. 

Michael administers a Facebook group for descendants of Thomas Kirk and writes a popular genealogy blog, Family Sleuther. He holds a master's degree from the Josef Korbel School of International Studies at the University of Denver.