What recovery costs
Support the Recovery
This archive is not built from a database subscription. It is built from certified copies, travel to county courthouses, and careful handling of originals that survive in family hands.
Where support goes
Four line items
Record retrieval
County clerks, state archives, and the National Archives charge per certified copy. Each one converts a family account into a citable record.
Digitization
Fragile originals held by family members are photographed at archival resolution and returned. Nothing leaves a family's hands permanently.
On-site research
Some Delta county records exist only on paper, in one building. Establishing what they contain requires travel and days in the room.
Conservation
Photographs and documents surviving in private hands are stabilized and housed before they degrade further.
Non-financial support
Other ways to help
Records matter more than money. If you hold a photograph, a deed, a funeral program, or a family account, the fastest way to advance this work is to contribute it for review. Institutions holding relevant collections are invited to make contact through the same channel.
All research is directed by Amberly R. Carter-Mills, founder and lead researcher.