Fair warning, this is a shameless plug for a new enterprise I am instituting this year. Those interested in research help can now visit the Research for Hire link at the top of this page.

Over the last several years, I have had many requests for research assistance. While I thoroughly enjoy investigating these leads and assisting people to learn of their ancestors or people of interest, the simple fact of the matter is that they delay the book projects on which I’m working. While some queries can be dealt with in an hour or two, several last year spread into multiple weeks.

Like most amateur historians, I pursue writing and research in my spare time. And no history writer I know has enough time for research. This is simply a means of financing my research and justifying the expenditure of my limited research time on your project. Since my ‘business’ only generates a book every two to three years at the best of times, it will also prove to my accountant and the tax folks that all of those research costs actually do occasionally result in income.

The process is fully controlled by the patron, and proceeds at their pace and direction. There are no hidden fees, and what I discover is available to the patron as I turn it up – no “I found more information but it will cost you another $50 to see it.”