The thread running through this volume is the connection to Mrs. Blankenship's brother-in-law, Terry St. Clair. After introducing each family allied to the St. Clairs by means of a pedigree chart, the author develops the lines starting with the oldest known ancestor, who is frequently a 17th-century individual. Interweaving transcriptions of original sources within each pedigree narrative, she cites her sources throughout and embellishes the narrative where historical evidence permits. (Mrs. Blankenship utilizes this convention in each of the succeeding volumes.) The work commences with a comprehensive bibliography of sources and concludes with a full-name index to the contents.