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The Best Episodes of Finding Your Roots Season 2

Every episode of Finding Your Roots Season 2 ranked from best to worst. Discover the Best Episodes of Finding Your Roots Season 2!

Binge this in 10h 0m•Peaking at 7.9/10

Noted Harvard scholar Henry Louis Gates, Jr. has been helping people discover long-lost relatives hidden for generations within the branches of their family trees. Professor Gates utilizes a team of genealogists to reconstruct

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Episode Rankings

  1. #1 Fan Favorite
    Finding Your Roots Season 2 Episode 1 - In Search of our Fathers
    7.7/10(46 votes)

    #1 - In Search of our Fathers

    S2:E1

    Three famous guests — Stephen King, Gloria Reuben and Courtney B. Vance — know almost nothing about their fathers’ histories.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  2. Finding Your Roots Season 2 Episode 2 - Born Champions
    7.5/10(39 votes)

    #2 - Born Champions

    S2:E2

    Billie Jean King, Derek Jeter and Rebecca Lobo learn about their family histories. King discovers that her grandmother was an orphan; Derek Jeter investigates his ancestors' lives as slaves; and Lobo finds out that an ancestor was forced to flee Spain because of his democratic ideals.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  3. Finding Your Roots Season 2 Episode 3 - Our American Storytellers
    7.5/10(44 votes)

    #3 - Our American Storytellers

    S2:E3

    Ken Burns learns that his Southern ancestors include Confederate soldiers and a slave owner; Anderson Cooper learns that an ancestor on his father's side was killed by one of his slaves; and Anna Deavere Smith learns about her great-grandfather, who was a free black man and former conductor on the Underground Railroad.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  4. Finding Your Roots Season 2 Episode 4 - Roots of Freedom
    7.1/10(39 votes)

    #4 - Roots of Freedom

    S2:E4

    Actor Ben Affleck discovers his mother's past as a Freedom Rider in 1964, NAACP President Ben Jealous learns how far his great-grandfather would go to keep his family whole, and actress Khandi Alexander learns about her grandfather's death. This episode is not available from pbs because actor Ben Affleck had persuaded Gates to omit information about his slave-owning ancestors. In the investigation, PBS said that producers violated network standards by letting Mr. Affleck have “improper influence” and “by failing to inform PBS or WNET of Mr. Affleck’s efforts to affect program content.”

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  5. Finding Your Roots Season 2 Episode 5 - The Melting Pot
    7.5/10(36 votes)

    #5 - The Melting Pot

    S2:E5

    Chef Tom Colicchio learns the hardships his family endured in Northern Italy; chef Ming Tsai traces his roots back 2,000 years; chef Aarón Sánchez learns his Mexican roots include Spaniards, Africans and Native Americans.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  6. Finding Your Roots Season 2 Episode 6 - We Come From People
    7.9/10(39 votes)

    #6 - We Come From People

    S2:E6

    Nas learns about his slave ancestors; Angela Bassett discovers that her family history includes an emancipation story; and Valerie Jarrett, a senior adviser to President Obama, learns about the free people of color in her family's past

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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    The 20 BEST Episodes of Finding Your Roots

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  7. Finding Your Roots Season 2 Episode 7 - Our People, Our Traditions
    7.7/10(29 votes)

    #7 - Our People, Our Traditions

    S2:E7

    Tony Kushner learns how the Holocaust impacted his ancestors; Carole King delves into the origins of her family name; and Alan Dershowitz discovers that an Hassidic synagogue started by his great-grandfather played a secret role in World War II.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  8. Finding Your Roots Season 2 Episode 8 - The British Invasion
    7.6/10(38 votes)

    #8 - The British Invasion

    S2:E8

    Deepak Chopra, Sally Field and Sting’s ancestry demonstrates the extraordinary influence of the British Empire during the 18th and early 19th century.

    Director:Hazel Gurland-Pooler
    Writer:Unknown

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  9. Finding Your Roots Season 2 Episode 9 - Ancient Roots
    7.8/10(39 votes)

    #9 - Ancient Roots

    S2:E9

    Tina Fey, George Stephanopoulos and David Sedaris, three quintessential voices in American life, descend from ancestors that were part of the wave of Greek immigrants that flooded America’s shores in the early decades of the 20th century.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  10. Finding Your Roots Season 2 Episode 10 - Decoding Our Past Through DNA
    7.6/10(42 votes)

    #10 - Decoding Our Past Through DNA

    S2:E10

    Secrets encoded in their genomes challenge these guests’ ideas about their families’ histories and their identities today. This episode features Jessica Alba, Anderson Cooper, Valerie Jarrett, Governor Deval Patrick and more.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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Season 2 Ratings Summary

"In Search of our Fathers" is the best rated episode of "Finding Your Roots" season 2. It scored 7.7/10 based on 46 votes. Directed by Unknown and written by Unknown, it aired on 9/23/2014. This episode is rated 0.2 points higher than the second-best, "Born Champions".