Researching early families in Kentucky and Virginia can be particularly challenging. Every location has multiple people of the same name making even surviving records difficult to sort. There are few available birth and death records and other records may be difficult to locate or non-existent. Learn effective strategies for researching that difficult early Kentucky or Virginia family.

Kentucky and Virginia have some of the most complete tax lists in the United States. Their value in research often goes unrecognized by even the experienced researcher. Tax lists can be a primary tool for solving difficult research problems and are invaluable when used with other records. Learn how to access original records, to best organize them for study, and to interpret their meaning. The lecture will use case studies to show their use in tracking individuals across time, estimating birth dates and death dates, separating individuals of the same name, determining the identity of other family members, and using them as substitutes for deeds, court records, and estate records in burned counties.

Let’s discover what’s is available and where for this important Commonwealth. Record types, finding aids, locations, and examples will be discussed and presented.

Discover the step-by-step process of grants, entrys, surveys, processions and deeds for Virginia and the Commonwealth of Kentucky. Learn how and where to find these items to further your research, and how to find those missing pieces.

Learn about the historic trails and trailblazers that lead early settlers to and from Virginia, North Carolina, Kentucky, Tennessee and the West. Get specific clues to help you solve difficult research questions.

Learn about the records that transcend the development of Kentucky county, Virginia to the Commonwealth of Kentucky in 1792. Learn about the earliest counties, what to use and how to find the right records for your Kentucky ancestors.