Dear Sailormate -- Do you know when your Mom and Dad were married, and where? If you get a copy of the marriage certificate (I'm guessing around 1940's, before or after the war?), it usually lists the parents names of the bride and groom. The US Census has been released for 1930, and if you can find the household with your Mom's parents, and verify she was in the household at around age 8, then you can just start going backwards in the census and marriage records for the counties they are located. If you already know how to do this, I apologize. I wasn't sure from your initial email if you were aware of these resources. Good luck in your search! J. Marcus