Dear Gary, Not to sound flippant, but you have the knowledge already...in your profession! Start by talking w/ all family members, wirte down the information, names, dates & places...go to the courthouse or search indexes at the historical library..looking for names and records (birth, marriages, divorces, death, probates, land records etc)...forget that these people are long dead..pretend they are alive and you need to find them for someone else. Follow the paper trail! Sherry Noeller, Beaumont, TX