Another method that I sometimes use is a search engine, such as Google. I type in whatever I know and search. For example, using quotation marks keeps words together. A lot of census material is just out there without having to search proprietary databases. There's tons of information out there. http://www.censusfinder.com/ <http://www.censusfinder.com/>http://us-census.mooseroots.com/d/b/Geneva-Darling Also, I search just the books or scholarly articles to see what pops up. http://books.google.com/ http://scholar.google.com/ Here are two searches on my great-great grandfather. http://www.google.com/#hl=en&tbm=bks&q=%22j.+h.+darling%22+iowa http://www.google.com/#hl=en&tbm=bks&q=%22j.+h.+darling%22+%22south+dakota%22 This method help locate his father's birthplace in New York. His grandfather was recorded having settled a farm and someone passed that information on. I wrote about it on my blog. http://aaronjhill.wordpress.com/2016/08/24/birthplace-canadice-ontariocounty-newyork-ancestors-genealogy/ <https://aaronjhill.wordpress.com/2016/08/24/birthplace-canadice-ontariocounty-newyork-ancestors-genealogy/>Google is a good method of searching newspapers, too. Just discovered a family reunion held in 1931. http://aaronjhill.wordpress.com/2016/08/24/i-wonder-if-my-greatuncle-remembers-this-a-familyreunion-in-1931-he-was-15-at-the-time-now-101/ Tips on using Google. http://searchengineland.com/guide/how-to-use-google-to-search Aaron Hill Seattle