Researchers often overlook the importance of court records, probate records, and land records as a source of family history information.
General Search Tips
If you don't get any matches with an exact search, try broadening your search by including less information.
Want to refine your "best matches" search? Try the Advanced Search options and fill out as much information as you can.
Use the Soundex search. Names are often misspelled in historical records. Soundex allows you to search for last names that "sound like" the one you're looking for. Try this even if you think the spelling is obvious. Remember, even Smith can be "misspelled" (e.g., Smithe, Smyth, Smythe).
Use a wildcard to view all words that begin with the same stem. You can use an asterisk for up to six characters. For example, a search for "fran*" will return matches such as Fran, Franny, Frank, Frannie, and Frankie. Use a question mark for a single character. For example, a search for "Hans?n" will return matches such as Hansen and Hanson.
