Hello all - Dr. Bill, I hope you don't mind my note. I just couldn't resist after I saw all the posts this evening. This is a gentle, friendly note to urge everyone to be a bit more detailed in your surname posts for the Roll Call. A plain list of surnames doesn't do much to help us identify your research interests. Particularly if you have any Smiths, Johnsons or Browns. <g> At the least, be sure to include names, dates and places. At the most, a couple of sentences about each family/couple/individual of interest. As an example, here are a few of my own research interests (from a couple of years ago, when I actually had time to do my own research): FREDERICK, 1816 Virginia > 1950 Exira, Audubon County, Iowa JOHNSON, 1845 Halland, Sweden KNOX, 1834 McConnelsville, Morgan County, Ohio NASH, 1873 Brainerd, Minnesota SVENSON, 1847 Balkryde, Sweden > 1921 Iowa Everybody ready to give it another try? Practice your surname roll call query writing here, then use what you learn when you post on other mailing lists online. Successful surfing, Cyndi P.S. Here are a few how-to links for writing queries: 6 Steps to Writing a Successful Genealogy Query http://www.firstct.com/fv/query.html Internet Genealogy Lesson 2: Creating Effective Queries http://www.genealogy.com/201/lesson2/course2_01.html Lineages' First Steps - Write Successful Genealogy Queries http://www.lineages.com/FirstSteps/WriteQueries.asp Writing Better Queries From St. Clair County Michigan USGenWeb http://www.rootsweb.com/~mistclai/sample-queries.html Genealogical Email Mailing List Hints and Tips http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Acres/2544/html/email.htm Mailing Lists Are Fun! From "Along Those Lines..." by George Morgan http://www.ancestry.com/columns/george/03-13-98.htm