*HI PAT & ALL: Thanks for posting that info on AIS---one little addition I'd make.... The AIS is (or should be) LOCATED AT EACH LOCAL FHC...it's not something you have to send away to SLC for. So it's readily available. Also, I have always had good luck looking at AIS 'SEARCH 7a' (it's the one that covers, I believe, the entire U.S. for th largest # of years....you dont need to look up a name on each and every 'search') "7a" has always been the one I go to. The way you would use it is, let's say, you have a WILLIS KEEN ancestor (which I do) in GA, in the mid 1800s. So you just go into the drawer or file that contains the AIS microfiche. (You can ask the volunteers at the FHC where to find the AIS). Then, you look thru them till you come to SEARCH 7a ... (they are in alphabetical order); then you take out the fiche that has "KEEN" on it, and look at it on the microfiche reader. Look under KEEN, and scroll down to first name of WILLIS. It will then very clearly indicate across the line, for every WILLIS KEEN listed on it, the STATE and many times the COUNTY (or township), and the YEAR of the 'event', and it will say WHAT THE EVENT is (either CENSUS or many times TAX List)...but if you find 2 or 3 WILLIS KEEN's in GA, then look for the COUNTY you believe yours was in. Then it gives you the YEAR and EVENT, so if you believe that one is yours, then you know WHEN AND WHERE he was listed as being there! I've looked up most of my southern lines for a certain time period (mid 1800s) and found virtually every one of them on there! So it does double in many cases as an "index" of who was where, when! (Not EVERYONE will appear on the AIS though....if I understand completely, they never did completely complete it, and are not planning to...but what they did do was a heck of a job and I highly recommend people taking a minute or two look at it if you're having trouble finding someone or just wanting a quick CENSUS/TAX index search!) Have fun! *TINA/CA* List Mgr. At 09:15 AM 9/24/99 -0700, you wrote: >I have found the A. I. S. ( Accelereated Indexing Systems) a good place to begin searching for ancestors. This search is available on microfiche in the LDS Family History Centers. This system is an index that lists names from U.S. censuses and other useful records from the years 1607-1906. The FHC can provide you with a Resource Guide to using the AIS. These indexes ( there are nine searches) will help to narrow down your search and locate where your ancestor lived. It is a valuable and much over-looked resource. Pat Vause >>==== GAWILKIN Mailing List ==== >*Don't forget to visit the WILKINSON CO. >*RESOURCE* Page: >http://resources.rootsweb.com/USA/GA/Wilkinson/ He who says 'it cannot be done' should not interrupt he who is doing it. - Chinese Proverb