family history researcher
professional genealogist
The most frequent service provided by way of a professional genealogist is researching one's family history. This often involves searching through multiple types of records including vital records (births, marriages, deaths), census data, immigration records, military records (enlistment papers), wills and probates (inheritance) records, newspaper articles or obituaries about ancestors, church or court documents (divorce decrees for example), property deeds and more. Additionally it involves interviewing living relatives to get details about the individual's ancestry that may not be within public records.
