The Search
A narrative documentary podcast built from records, letters, court files, and archives.
At the center of the story is one woman’s lifelong search to understand where she came from. As each discovery leads to another question, the search expands across generations, uncovering lives connected by adoption, mental illness, identity, ancestry, loss, reunion, and healing.
The story lives in the space between what the records say and what they can never fully explain.
Because sometimes all that remains is all that is known.
Why It Stands Apart
Most family-history podcasts rely primarily on interviews and memory.
All That is Known is built from records.
The narrative follows the documentary trail itself, allowing original records to drive discovery, tension, and revelation. Each episode is grounded in contemporaneous documents whenever possible, creating a rare blend of investigative genealogy, archival research, and serialized documentary storytelling.
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Status: Complete
A closed adoption, a missing history, and the first records that begin to explain what happened.
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Status: In Development
A new city, a new hospital, and an unexpected connection that reaches back into the past.
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Status: Planned
A young woman repeating familiar patterns, and a search that leads back to the mother she never knew.
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Status: Planned
A search for a father, a hidden family history, and a discovery that challenges everything believed to be true.
Behind the Story
Sources
Hundreds of pages of primary-source records
Court records
Catholic Charities case files
Hospital and medical records
Newspaper archives
Correspondence and personal letters
Family photographs and ephemera
Government and institutional documents
Military records
Geographic Scope
Oregon, Washington, Massachusetts, Ohio, Nevada, and additional locations uncovered along the way.
Historical Coverage
The series begins in the 1950’s, traces family histories back to the 1930’s, and follows the search through the 1970’s, 1980’s, and into present-day investigations, where long-hidden mysteries are solved while new questions remain unanswered.
Production
Created and produced by Tess L. Brown.
Music includes “Documentary” by Nikita Kondrashev.