Description
Stop Searching Randomly. Build a Research Plan.
Genealogy can quickly become overwhelming.
You may have dozens of names, saved records, online family-tree hints, conflicting dates, family stories, and unanswered questions—but no clear idea what to investigate next.
This service is designed to turn that material into a focused research strategy.
I will review the information you already have, identify the most important unanswered questions, evaluate weaknesses or contradictions, and create a prioritized plan showing where your research should go next.
Instead of spending hours searching whatever appears first, you will have a roadmap.
This is especially useful when:
- you have inherited someone else’s genealogy research
- your online family tree has become difficult to evaluate
- you do not know which ancestor to research next
- several possible records or research directions exist
- you suspect a relationship is poorly documented
- you have reached a difficult point but are not yet ready for a full brick-wall investigation
- you want to continue your own research but need professional direction
- you want to know whether a larger paid research project is worthwhile
What You Will Receive
Your completed plan will normally include:
Research Objective
A clear statement of what the research should attempt to establish.
What Is Already Known
A concise assessment of the information and records you supplied.
Evidence Gaps
Important facts, relationships, dates, or events that currently lack adequate support.
Contradictions or Weak Points
Conflicting dates, names, locations, relationships, undocumented claims, or questionable assumptions that should be resolved.
Priority Research Questions
The questions most likely to move the family history forward.
Recommended Sources
Specific types of records, databases, repositories, archives, newspapers, directories, probate files, church records, military records, land records, or other sources worth investigating.
Research Order
What should be investigated first, second, and later so that time is not wasted pursuing lower-value leads prematurely.
Search Strategies
Useful variations in names, spellings, dates, locations, relatives, occupations, or other identifiers where appropriate.
Decision Points
For larger packages, guidance on what to investigate next depending on whether a future search confirms or contradicts a hypothesis.
Important: This Is a Research Plan, Not a Full Research Project
The purpose of this service is to determine what should be researched and why.
Limited checking of accessible sources may be performed when necessary to evaluate the existing evidence or determine whether a proposed research path is realistic.
However, this service does not include extensive record searching or full investigation of the questions identified in the plan.
If you want me to perform the actual genealogy research after the plan is complete, the appropriate next step may be:
- Historical Genealogy Record Search
- Single Ancestor Genealogy Research
- Obituary & Newspaper Family Research
- Family Line Research
- Genealogy Brick-Wall Investigation
- another custom research project
What I Need From You
Please provide as much relevant material as possible, including:
- The ancestor, family branch, or genealogy problem you want help planning.
- Your main unanswered question or goal.
- Existing family-tree information.
- Known names, dates, relationships, and locations.
- Records you already possess.
- Screenshots or links to relevant tree entries.
- Previous research notes.
- Sources you have already searched.
- Conflicting information you have encountered.
- Family stories or theories you are considering.
- Any specific research direction you are thinking about pursuing.
The more clearly I can see what has already been done, the more useful the plan can be.
What This Service Does Not Include
This product does not include:
- extensive new genealogy research
- guaranteed discovery of additional ancestors
- building an entire family tree
- unlimited review of large research collections
- DNA analysis or genetic genealogy
- unknown biological-parent identification
- adoption investigations
- legal heirship conclusions
- citizenship-by-descent application preparation
- tribal-enrollment determinations
- lineage-society certification
- professional foreign-language translation
- physical archive or courthouse visits
- paid record retrieval
- legal opinions
- guaranteed resolution of a genealogy problem
Why a Research Plan Can Save Time
A common genealogy mistake is repeatedly searching broad databases without first defining exactly what needs to be established.
A useful research plan asks:
- What fact are we actually trying to prove?
- What evidence already exists?
- What evidence is missing?
- Which records are most likely to answer the question?
- Which jurisdiction created those records?
- What other relatives could provide indirect evidence?
- Which searches have already failed?
- What should happen if the expected record does not exist?
The goal is to make future research more deliberate and productive.
What Happens After You Order
- I will contact you by email. I will request your existing family-tree information, records, screenshots, research notes, known facts, unresolved questions, previous searches, and the objective you most want the plan to address.
- You provide the research you already have. The purpose is to understand what has already been established before recommending what should happen next.
- I evaluate the existing evidence and research problem. I identify important gaps, contradictions, promising sources, priority questions, and the order in which future research should proceed.
- You receive your research plan electronically. The finished plan provides a prioritized roadmap showing what to investigate, why those searches matter, and how future findings may affect the next step.
This service creates the research strategy. It does not automatically begin the larger research projects identified in the plan.
Revisions
One clarification/revision is included.
A revision covers correction, clarification, organization, or reasonable adjustment of the research plan within the original objective.
It does not include reviewing a new family branch, evaluating substantial new evidence, or developing a separate research strategy.
Research Focus
My strongest genealogy experience is with United States family-history research, with particular familiarity with western Pennsylvania families, records, communities, and migration patterns.
Refunds & Cancellations
Because this is a customized research or consulting service, cancellation and refund eligibility depends in part on whether substantive work has begun. Please review our Refund & Cancellation Policy before placing your order.
Research background: Approximately 17 years of family-history research experience, primarily personal extended-family and friends’ research before the recent expansion into paid client work.
If you would rather have Dear June perform the research identified in your plan, the appropriate next service may be Single Ancestor Research, Family Line Research, or Brick-Wall Investigation depending on the question.
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