The Olivia Raney library's focus is on Wake County. While it does have a little microfilm on some adjacent counties (and books from other states and other counties, the State Library has far more of this information plus some family information folders. The State Library and State Archives (in the same building) are reopened after the remodeling. Neither is open on Sunday (nor is Olivia Raney library) nor any night and are closed from 12-1 on Saturdays. Olivia Raney is open Monday and Thursday nights until 8 P.M. If you are coming to North Carolina to do research, it is beneficial to go the county courthouse in the county that you are interested in. The original deedbooks (much easier to read and much quicker to use than microfilm) are generally in the Register of Deeds office in the county. (The State Archives has microfilm of these records; Olivia Raney has microfilm for these records for Wake County). HOWEVER, THE DEEDBOOKS FOR WAKE COUNTY ARE AT THE STATE ARCHIVES. It may be difficult to get access to the Wake County deedbooks (I haven't checked since the remodeling) as they were kept off site in a building not available to the public). Even the Wake County Register of Deeds office has only microfilm of the earliest deedboks, and the microfilm at all available locations may be impossible to read. Additionally, in many counties there may be estate or willbooks retained in the county courthouse. These books were created when the original probate was done. For example, I have found estate records in these books (and one will) that are not in the wills or estate files at the Archives (this is probably because the loose documents were lost in the county before the files were transferred to the State Archives, but the documents had been already handcopied into the will or estate books.) Make sure that you check at the State Archives for any tax records for the county you are interested in. These records are done by year; a few are in the loose document form, and most have been copied into the tax volumes created when the handwritten lists were turned into the county court. You need to check both the loose lists and the volumes as there are sometimes different notations in each for the same year. These tax records sometimes can be used to identify fathers and sons, husbands and wives (if the husband dies before the wife) and who purchased land if no deed has been recorded. These records are my favorite source to look in. Also after 1841 check at the State Archives to see if your county kept its school records. If so, these can be used to identify children who were born and died between censuses and sometimes can be used to identify who the parents were of a particular child. Carla Tate