Family Divided is the first in a 3-book series taking a family through all the major events of the 19th century.

Book One begins with the immigration of a young Irishman from London to western North Carolina with nothing but a contract of indenture and belief in the possibility of a better life. JW Presley marries, works off his initial indenture, and builds a family. Three of his sons become involved in the American Civil War, two with the Confederacy, one with the Union. Unbeknownst to them, the brothers meet at four major battles. The Presley family experiences more than their share of fear and grief. When the war ends, the Union soldier cannot return home and with the help of his new wife sets out to build a new life of purpose. Initially he works for the Freedman's Bureau building schools for the children of the former slaves. If the reader continues into books 2 and three, they will learn how the Presley family is affected by the next forty years of American history.