Genealogy Services
African American Research
African American Genealogy Research
Our African-American genealogy services are designed to meet the needs of anyone who hires us to trace their ancestry. African Americans share several research goals, including:
- Determine the truths in the family's traditional oral history.
- Trace ancestors back as far as possible in the time allowed for each project.
- If possible, identify who owned the ancestors and where they lived as slaves, and determine if any of the family's ancestors were free persons of color before 1865.
After tracing an African-American family back to 1865, our focus turns to identifying who owned them before the Emancipation. During slavery, public records were filed by an owner that could hold your ancestors' names. We search property, estate, and court records, as well as slave schedules, to prove the owner-slave relationship. Sometimes, public records are silent about that relationship, which limits the number of generations that a family can be traced. We may also ask you to take an inexpensive DNA test to help guide us when the paper trail runs cold, which can happen when public records in places where an ancestor lived have been lost or destroyed.
Get started by choosing the research package below that fits your goals and budget. We recommend ordering a Standard Research package for most African-American projects for ideal results.
North American Research
Need an Expert in North American Genealogy & Family History?
Our talented staff of professional genealogists can help you whether you need us to start from scratch or have hit a roadblock in your research. We have found thousands of elusive ancestors by methodically piecing together seemingly meaningless clues that led to adding generations to a well-documented family tree.
Each completed project is compiled into a printed booklet that includes a research report, research calendar, images or extracts of the relevant documents, printed pedigree charts, and family group records. We can also search for your family's immigrant story using naturalizations, passengers' manifests, and other records. We can search for and identify ancestors who served in the American Revolution or Civil War. Our researchers are also happy to help you trace your Native American lines so that you can connect with your indigenous heritage. Many people have family stories of American Indian ancestors, and we will work to document each generation.
We will reach out to you to define your research goals, gather additional facts about an ancestor, and ask you to share family stories or little-known facts that we will not find in public records.
We may also ask you to take an inexpensive DNA test to help guide us when the paper trail runs cold, which can happen when public records in places where an ancestor lived have been lost or destroyed.
Get started by choosing the research package below that fits your goals and budget.
European Research
Need an Expert to Trace Your European Ancestors?
Tracing European genealogy is like solving a great mystery. Finding the place of origin is often the first hurdle, and then learning where the records are and how to access them can sometimes be challenging. However, our genealogists are trained to conduct research for most European countries, including those in Eastern Europe.
We will reach out to you to define your research goals, gather additional facts about an ancestor, and ask you to share family stories or little-known facts that we will not find in public records.
Get started by choosing the research package below that fits your goals and budget.
Other Countries
Other Countries
If your ancestry doesn't fit one of our three main categories, any package may be chosen for your research needs. Please contact us first to discuss the country of origin so that we can ensure your needs can be met.
DNA
DNA Research Package
There are many cases in which traditional research can be combined with DNA research to solve a very difficult ancestral problem. DNA clustering and analysis takes time and an extra skill set, but may be valuable in clarifying your family lines. After your DNA is tested a written report is created which includes the analysis and explanatory charts of your DNA results. 20 hours of Research and Analysis
$2,500.00