Twila M. Barnes

Although best known for her genealogy blog, Thoughts from Polly’s Granddaughter, and her widely-covered research on the false Cherokee heritage claims of U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren, Twila Barnes’ writing and research have also been featured in the Cherokee Phoenix, Indian Country Today, Los Angeles Times, Boston Herald, High Country News, and multiple television and radio shows, and her consultancy work has ranged from television programming (Finding Your Roots on PBS) to children’s literature (Mary and the Trail of Tears by Andrea L. Rogers) to academic works (Lynn Riggs: The Indigenous Plays, edited by James H. Cox and Alexander Pettit). She has also been a court-certified expert witness on Cherokee genealogy and a research consultant for the Cherokee Nation History and Preservation Office.

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Barnes, who earned her bachelor’s degree at the University of Central Missouri, is a citizen of the Cherokee Nation and a descendant of the United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians. She currently lives in southern Missouri with her family and three dogs.