Tips

• Dress appropriately. You want to blend in with other professionals around you.
• Be organized. A briefcase works nicely. It is very distracting and time consuming to be shuffling through papers.
• Have plenty of materials that you may need, just in case that pen does not work.
• If you will want copies, take some cash along. Not all courthouses except checks. I recommend $1 bills. By using $1 bills, you will not have to wait for change and the clerks will not have to find it.
• Always document the location of each copy or information you find. You may need to locate it again later.
• Use the standard of writing genealogical information.
• Attempt to ask as few questions as possible. Be polite and patient. At times, you will need to find it yourself.
• Always keep in mind the court minutes. This will not provide you with all the information in the actual document, but it will help when the records are not available.
• Do not overlook information that is not an exact match, you may find where it belongs later.
• Remember that relationship terms can vary.
• In advance, learn the history of the courthouse. If it was burned, when and to what extent.
• Maintain a record of resources that have been checked.
• Be persistent or at times, come back later.
• Many forms are available to assist with transcriptions.
• Note different spellings that you locate.
• Attempt not to recopy the information once at home. The more you write the information, more errors can be made.
• Copy all names and dates.
• It is better to write extra information than not enough.