What is your area of expertise**?**
I specialize in the 17th–19th century records of the extinct Virginia counties of Lower Norfolk (1637-1691), Norfolk (1691-1963), and Princess Anne (1691-1963s); and the existing cities of Chesapeake, Norfolk, Portsmouth, and Virginia Beach, Virginia.
What information can you find?
The information I find depends on what sources and records are available. Most south Hampton Roads court records survive from the colonial period to the present. These include probate records, land records, and vital records.
What do you need to begin work?
- State a specific research objective. Tell me as specifically as possible what you want me to do.
- Define the scope of the research. What are the limits within which you want me to work? This could be in terms of: how much you are willing to spend; how much time you want me to use; geographic areas; historical periods; specific people or families; etc.
- Establish a research format. I usually present research results in a fixed format narrative report. However, you may want a GEDCOM file, pedigree reports, family groups sheets, etc., in addition to or in place of a report.
- Provide copies of previous research. I need to evaluate any previous research that you have done, or that anyone has done for you, to avoid duplicating that work and charging you for it.
- Make arrangements for payment.
How do you conduct the research?
Based on information you provide and your stated research objective(s), I will: