Sam? Are you a member of PGSA? It seems to me the society has a database of names its members are researching. I don't know if that's what you had in mind. The best way to find out (aside from checking with a society) if someone else is researching your family is to post the names of the people you are researching along with some pertinent info. It wouldn't hurt to list some names in a post or after your name, as a signature. Not knowing exactly what you're looking for all I can suggest is that if you're in the Chicago area and your ancestors settled there, you might want to visit the area LDS Family History Centers. I bet many of them have films on "permanent" loan which means you wouldn't have to rent them; that is, if the center has the films you need. Debbie SamE797@aol.com wrote: > Debbie, > > It would be nice to attend, however when you have limited time and funds > it is impossible. It is hard when you don't have a lot of time to spend > looking up your family tree. Surely a lot of time and effort has been spent > finding families records. Those who have gone threw this process know what is > involved. If the Society could find a way of letting us newbies know who has > done extensive research on what areas it would ease the burden. Some newbie > could have family documents or information not found by the experts who have > gone before. Every one keep on looking and hope the conference goes well. > >