Whether a complete novice or an experienced researcher there is always more to learn about your family history.

The simple facts of birth, marriage and death can be complemented with the "meat" of family history - how our ancestors arrived, worked, lived, and died; what they owned, who their neighbours were, what they read in the local paper, and all the other details that turn names on a chart into real people.

You will receive a gift voucher that the recipient can redeem for the number of research hours selected. Research will be performed on NSW records only unless negotiated beforehand.

If the recipient already has done some research then that must be examined first to avoid redoing it. Examination of previous research materials will be deducted from the total hours. Let a professional have a go at it!

Minimum 3 hours research, including analysis of previous materials. Postage and photocopies are extra and can't be determined until research is completed but may be deducted from the total if requested.

If your ancestors owned property in New South Wales in the 1800s you can get a more detailed picture of their geographic movements and financial position over time.

The ownership of land has long been an indicator of wealth and status, and even of eligibility to vote until the mid-1800s. Land records show where the land was, what it was used for, who owned it before and who it passed to.

Records of land in NSW are held in the NSW Department of Lands in Sydney (previously the NSW Land Titles Office), although some have been moved to State Records NSW. Land research at the NSW Lands Department and State Records NSW is complex and time-consuming but well worth the effort.

The minimum research period is three (3) hours. Initial research will include a search of all relevant indexes at the Lands Department and a report of what was found with recommendations for further research.

The indent may later have been annotated with information such as Ticket of Leave and Pardon numbers, or whether the convict left the Colony.

In the early years of transportation only name, ship, and length of sentence were shown. In later years progressively more information was added so that, by the 1830s, information such as native place, occupation, crime, date and place of trial, year of birth, height, complexion, colour of hair and eyes, and distinguishing features such as scars and birth marks were included.

A photocopy of the page on which the convict appears in the indent for the ship of arrival will be supplied. The first page of the indent giving the name and Master of the ship will also be included.

Price is reduced if the reference number is supplied.

When the 7-, 10- or 14-year sentence of a convict had expired he or she was eligible to apply for a Certificate of Freedom, a document that proved he had served his sentence and was now was free and eligible to travel wherever he liked.

The certificate itself was given to the convict, and the stub was retained by the office of the Principal Superintendant of Convicts (or, later, the Convict Branch of the Police Department).

A photocopy of the certificate of freedom stub will be supplied.

Price is reduced if the reference number is supplied.

Since convicts with a life sentence were not eligible for a Certificate of Freedom they could instead be granted a Conditional or Absolute Pardon if their behaviour deserved it.

The condition for a Conditional Pardon was that the convict "not return to the country from which he had been transported", whereas an Absolute Pardon did not have this restriction. Imperial and Colonial Pardons were also occasionally granted.

A photocopy of the official copy of the pardon will be supplied.

Price is reduced if the reference number is supplied.

After a convict had been in the Colony for a few years he/she could apply for a ticket of leave. This enabled him to work for himself rather than for the government or an assigned employer as long as he stayed within the prescribed district.

The ticket of leave contained details such as crime, sentence and physical characteristics and had to be shown on demand. The stub is the duplicate that remained with the authorities and was often updated if the ticket was rescinded. Rare before 1810.

A photocopy of the ticket of leave stub for your convict will be supplied.

Price is reduced if the reference number is supplied.

The Colonial Secretary's Correspondence includes correspondence to, from, and about many people in the Colony - convicts, soldiers, immigrants and others - on any number of topics.

These indexes can lead to documents, usually handwritten, concerning a huge variety of topics - permission to marry, requests to bring family over, lists of convicts to be moved or assigned, requests for ticket of leaves and pardons, reports of stolen property; the list is almost endless.

Price is per document found on the SRNSW online index. References must be given or the first document found on the index will be supplied.

Electoral rolls began in NSW in 1843 with a considerable property entitlement, which was reduced in 1851 and again in 1856. A residential entitlement was introduced in 1858. In 1893 these entitlements were abolished, which meant that practically all men could vote.

Women were granted voting rights in 1902, the year in which Commonwealth voting was introduced following Federation. Non-British subjects were not allowed to vote until the 1940s and aborigines until 1949.

Electoral rolls and slowly being digitised by third-party suppliers. A digital image of the page in the electoral roll book will be supplied if it is available, or a photocopy if it is not.

I will search in the electoral rolls over a 10-year range for the name and place you nominate. Electoral rolls were not published every year so the closest alternative will be supplied if necessary.

Please state the name of the person, the area you expect the person to be living in, and the 10-year period you would like searched.

Price is reduced if a specific electoral division is supplied.

An inventory of all assets of the deceased was compiled by the Stamp Duties Office for the purposes of calculating the death duty payable on the estate.

The file can contain wills; inventories of property, farm equipment or business, household furniture, and clothing; property valuations; statements from relatives, valuers and agents; birth, death and marriage certificates; and other documents - depending on the circumstances of the deceased.

I will search the indexes at State Records NSW, retrieve the file and make copies of all documents found.

Price is reduced if SRNSW reference supplied.

Copies up to 20 pages are included. If there are more pages than this extra will be charged before copies are posted.

Probate is the process of deciding who is authorised to administer a will on behalf of the deceased. In the absence of a will letters of administration are issued for the same purpose.

A probate packet is all of the documents submitted to the Supreme Court to enable this decision to be made, and can include the original last will and testament and any codicils; asset inventories; affidavits of death, witnesses, and the executor, and sometimes the death certificate and death notices from the local newspaper. Not everyone who died has a probate file, but they are worth searching out as the file can be an unparalleled source of information about the financial affairs of the deceased.

I will search the probate indexes at State Records NSW, retrieve the probate packet and get copies made.

Price is reduced if you can supply the SRNSW series and reference number.

Copies will be supplied up to 20 pages; if the packet has more pages you will be notified of the extra charge before the copies are posted.

If there no probate file for your ancestor then a partial refund will be given.