Derek In addition to searching the paper records your contact might also like to consider adding a DNA record to the mix. A Y-DNA test for males can sometimes provide clues to the biological surname of the father. A Y-DNA test would need to be ordered from Famly Tree DNA as they are the only company that have a Y-DNA matching database. There is a dedicated adoptee project at FTDNA: https://www.familytreedna.com/groups/adopted/about/background They claim to have a success rate of about 30-40% for Y-DNA tests though the success rate is likely to be much lower for anyone who is not American. An autosomal DNA test can give matches with genetic cousins on all the different family lines and people can and do find matches with close family members in the databases (half-siblings, siblings and sometimes even parents). The autosomal databases are huge and have reached critical mass for Americans. There are adoption success stories as a result of DNA testing occuring on a daily basis in America and particularly for people who have Colonial American ancestry as they tend to be very inter-related. Also the restrictive adoption laws in many US states, whereby adoptees are denied access to their original birth certificates, means that DNA testing is often their only option. We have not yet reached critical mass in the UK but there is still the potential for success. There was a case quite recently of a foundling who was reunited with her father as a result of taking the Family Finder test at FTDNA: http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/real-life-stories/dustbin-baby-michelle-rooney- tracks-3691421 There are now three companies that offer autosomal DNA cousin-finding tests in the UK: 23andMe, AncestryDNA and Family Tree DNA. If this is a strategy that is of interest it's best to be in all three databases. The most cost-effective strategy is to test separately with 23andMe and AncestryDNA. The AncestryDNA results can then be transferred to FTDNA through the autosomal DNA transfer programme: https://www.familytreedna.com/learn/autosomal-dna-transfers/ Autosomal DNA tests can only also be used to confirm suspected relationships, and will provide a definitive answer for very close relationships up to about the second cousin level. There are links to further resources on the use of DNA for adoption here: http://www.isogg.org/wiki/DNA_testing_for_adoptees Best wishes Debbie Kennett