Diane asked me in a private message whether the above colonies had records similar to those of Virginia. My experience in researching these states where I have had ancestors: Yes and NO Land records, censuses, and tax records are universal--except when they have been destroyed!!! An ambitious genealogist/author and sometime lecturer about North Carolina genealogy, and particularly land records, who is named Margaret M. Hofmann [note spelling] has reportedly stated it is her life's work to abstract and publish all the land grants of colonial North Carolina. I cannot speak for ALL of North Carolina, but she and A. B. Pruitt, who has abstracted and published many land surveys/warrants of early NC have pretty well covered colonial North Carolina, it seems to me. I do confess I have not studied ALL the areas of NC, but I have dipped into records of old Craven Co., NC (where New Bern is) over to the west in old Rowan Co. These two counties had many progeny counties. Let's say this: North Carolina has some diligent abstractors [or is that with an ers?] of all kinds. Weynette Parks Haun is another diligent abstractor of North Carolina records--of such items as Revolutionary Audited accounts [hard to read on microfilm, I can vouch for that], court records of many counties, etc. Georgia was not a very big colony in terms of land, until the American Indians *ceded* their land, mostly after the American Revolution. There are land lotteries records and tax digests to search for those colonial people, not to mention probates, etc. Georgia is a special case, and more and more records at the county level are being abstracted and published, thank goodness. Use the family History Library catalog (familysearch.org) to study PLACES. Look up Georgia, USA and then which counties you want to study. Be mindful that large counties nearly always divided. You may have to look at records of many counties. Research in South Carolina gives me one big headache. I will say little more. One of the excuses I heard a number of years ago at the Archives in Columbia: * Not only was Cornwallis here, but later Sherman came through [and destroyed the records].* You have to know some of your history to understand that statement. If you are researching South Carolina, try to get any booklets put out by the SC Archives. They are probably listed online. The names of the jurisdictions changed all the time, leading to a lot of confusion on the part of us genealogists. Let us say this: I found more about my South Carolinians when they moved to Mississippi Territory [which included some parts of Louisiana and Alabama] because of some of the wonderful records which that area maintained, including in Louisiana, notarial records and court records, etc. It is said that ALL the deeds in South Carolina were to have been recorded in Charleston until well after the American Revolution. My upcountry folks [Scottish and German] didn't bother it seems, and only after the county system was set up in South Carolina do some records appear--just before the death of my Revolutionary War ancestor in that colony!!!! To get a handle on what MIGHT be available in each PLACE, I use my online buddy--the Family History Library Catalog. It is on the lower right of the screen of this URL : _www.familysearch_ (http://www.familysearch) You can do a PLACE search [which will tell you when a county was formed and from what parent county], a title search, an author search, etc. If a film exists, ninety-nine times out of 100, you may be able to borrow that film from the FH Library in Salt Lake City through your nearby FHC. I don't know how many FHCs there are in your area, but there is also a link on their website to show you a list of over 3,500 centers around the world. One may be near your home. Be aware that your favorite library may well have some publication or film that Salt Lake City has not yet acquired, so always snoop, in whatever library you find yourself. University libraries have some amazing books and newspapers, but don't mention genealogy to most librarians!!!! And some community college libraries have amazing collections, particularly in the history and local history collections. Learn the cataloging system. Although some criticize the works of Dr. George K. Schweitzer of Knoxville, TN, who has compiled many guides to genealogical research to MANY states [at least east of the Mississippi River], I like his books to guide me in my research. Do a google.com search for Dr. George K. Schweitzer and note how many books he has published at a modest cost. I have worn out my first copy of his guide to Virginia research. If I am going to a state for which he has written a guide, I pack my copy of his guide in a Ziplock bag and put it in my suitcase. It is a quick reference to each important repository in the State, telling you what are the strengths, and giving in the back of the book, a breakdown for each county and what records exist. He tells you whether records have been destroyed. Best of luck to you. I hope you get to attend some seminars where there are some wonderful educational lectures--and listen to experienced genealogists around you. Listen to what experienced genealogists have to say--and study. One of my friends, who does genealogy in a number of countries, is difficult to deal with. Why? Because she always argues, *Yes, but.....* She would rather play games than listen. She always has a reason to argue with the person who is trying to give her guidance. If she knows it all, why does she ask us questions? E.W.Wallace

Thanks for the answer to my question - at least part of it. What I am looking for are road records like those in Virginia. These are amazing! So full of names, dates, places, and most of all 'neighbors'! These are court records - most, pre-Rev. court records in re: to the maintenance of the roads. Anyone whose property the road pass through was responsible for that portion of the road and 'shared' the maintenance with neighbors. These neighbors took one another to court is their portion of the roads was not kept up, and when a neighbor 'left', was ill, became elderly with no sons at home, the neighbors shared the care of that part of the road. One of the best ways to use these records is in the case of ancestors with rather 'common' names, such as, oh, Taylor, Brown, Moore, etc. and if you know there was a marriage with another family of less familiar name, then look for them! Usually, you will find reference to your own ancestors in adjacent pages - works for me! Another is! to consider the size of the counties then! They were HUGE! Another invaluable aid is the 3 Vol. Scotch and Irish in Augusta County, Va. Although most of the settlers in the this area were predominantly of Scotch and/or Irish background, they were not the only ones in the area, and again these are court records of a HUGE county! stretching, at one time from W. Penn. to N.E. N.C. One of the major migrant routes from N. to S. went right through the county, others merged or were bordered by Augusta County since county lines followed rivers and old Indian trails, which were the easiest way to traverse the mountainous regions. Oh, and don't think the book 'Virginians in the Revolution' just lists Virginian! My Georgia ancestors are in there too! Clark's Bn. of the 'Illinois' were mostly Georgians or men from the Anderson District of S.C. Our country pre-Rev. was not cut into thousands of little pieces like it is now - areas were very large, and covered 100's of sq. miles, so don't be put off by the title of a book of records - check it out! You might be surprised! Now I need the N.C. book of roads! Any ideas? I ALWAYS listen! Diane S. -- No virus found in this incoming message. Checked by AVG Free Edition. Version: 7.1.392 / Virus Database: 268.6.1/343 - Release Date: 5/18/2006