I don't know how many of you get the free Ancestry newsletter, but they always have their new databases open to the public FREE for the first 10 days. I don't know how many days remain on this one, but I searched for "Cowan" and got 205 hits. I'll send a short sample of results in my next post. <http://www.ancestry.com/ancestry/search/3877.htm> Description: The Biography Database 1680-1830 is a massive collection of biographical records from the following sources: National, town, and trade directories of the UK and USA All known book subscription lists All birth, marriage, death, promotions, and bankruptcies from a number of regular journals including the Gentleman's Magazine from its inception in 1731 to 1870 All extant society membership lists from the period A number of miscellaneous additional biographical sources contributed by individual academics, who consulted for the project. The database makes available biographical sources that previously were too large and too dispersed for practical consultation. It also lets genealogists trace some individuals and families from birth, through marriage, work, reading interests, offices they held, children, and social groups to death. The entire data collection will be distributed in five installments, which together provide information on over 5 million individual names. Each installment lists roughly 1 million names. This database represents the first two installments. The entire project will be completed before 2001. Questions about the compilation of the database should be directed to Avero Publications at [email protected]