Questions families often ask
Don't see yours here? Send me a note and I'll answer it directly.
What do I need to get started?
Just what you already know. Names, rough dates and hometowns for your parents and grandparents are usually enough. Old photographs, letters, obituaries and family Bibles help a great deal, and you'll be able to share them after you sign.
How far back can you go?
It depends on where your family lived and which records survived. French-Canadian and Acadian families can often be traced to the 1600s. Other lines stop sooner. During our consultation I'll tell you what's likely, and I'll never pad a book with guesses.
What if the records prove a family story wrong?
I'll share what the evidence shows, gently and with the documents to support it. Many stories turn out to have a true core with details that shifted over time, and those make some of the best chapters.
How do you handle information about living relatives?
Your book is private to your family. I'll ask how you'd like living people handled, and by default I list only names and relationships for living relatives, without birth dates or other personal details.
Can I order extra copies for family members?
Yes. Extra hardcover copies start at $65 each when ordered with your book, and you can order more later as well.
Do you need to travel to the places my family lived?
Rarely. Most parish, civil, census and immigration records are now digitized. If a key record exists only in a local archive, I'll arrange a request or a local record retriever and include that cost in your quote before any work begins.
What does the Interactive Family Archive include?
It's a private website version of your book. Family members can search names, click through the family tree, view photographs and open the source records behind each person.