Had a great credit history, 750+ across all three CRAs, until I took a job in Canada in 2005 and slowly closed most of my US cards and paid off my US auto loan...last US account closed in 2011. Stayed in Canada until 2013, then took a job in Malta until late 2017, when I finally returned to the US. At this point I was a super thin file, nothing but old addresses and employers on my reports. Ghost.
Started with a Capital One Quicksilver One for $500 in July 2017 (still bucketed!) and a few months later got a Cap 1 Platinum with $1000 (which went to $5k on my 1 year aniversary, and until today my highest limit). Got a $30k auto loan through Chrysler Capital in August of 2018, then due to issues with the vehicle and some lemon-law help from FCA I traded it late December 2018 for another (more expensive) unit that I leased (tier 2 despite mid-600 score thanks to FCA intervention) via Chrysler Capital ($30k cap cost). That same month, I had to make an ER visit for chest pains (turns out it was just soft tissue chest inflamation, not heart!) and ended up having some stuff slip through the insurance cracks, which would catch up with me later.
By April 2019 I was looking pretty good, with a solid 686eq/685tu/688ex and trending upward. Had a Discover with $2000 SL, Amex Cash Magnet with $1500 SL, Best Buy/Citi store card with $3K sl, Amazon/Sync store card with $1k SL, Dell card with $2k SL.
Started my NFCU checking and savings in April 2019, but didn't app for a CC right way, wanted to pay down a recent Best Buy laptop purchase to get my util under 10%. Well, in May I had four medical collections show up that I was unaware of, total of $2k, and my score dropped 60 points or more across the board, but I didn't see them hit until I had applied for a NFCU Cash Rewards . Good news, they approved me, bad news, it was only a $500 SL. Applied for a CLI after 90/3, got it increased to $1500.
Well, after a non-fun process of dealing with insurance, the collections were taken care of and removed mid-September, scores shot back up to 680 range and with a 4% util, and my NFCU Fico 9 moved up to 674 yesterday (from 618) so this morning I applied for a More Rewards Amex with NFCU, and after TU pull (688 Fico 8 as of this morning), I was instantly approved with a $15k SL @16.99%.
Also got a $4k limit on Best Buy with a SP, $3k limit from Amazon/Sync with SP, and a $4500 (3x CLI) on my Amex Cash Magnet. It's been a good morning!
Time to go tend the garden now. Next time I poke my head out, it should be green, and 24 months older so I can start the Chase chase. 
Another data point, TU Vantage 4.0 seems to be very inquiry sensitive, went from a 719 to a 710 with just yesterday's NFCU inquiry, or I passed a threshold by having 12 total on my TU report (half of those from my automobile shopping in 2018). My TU VS 3.0 only dropped 2 points from the inquiry, and so far my TU FICO 8 is holding steady.
Congrats on the rebound and all the new money