Diane Richard

PLEASE COMMUNICATE VIA EMAIL for the best experience! Provide a brief summary of needs.  Most emails are replied to within 48 hours M-F.

Want to keep current with my speaking engagements?  Check out my FB page, https://www.facebook.com/dianelr/, I try to post upcoming talks there.

Researching since 1987; professional since 2004. Experience with U.S. (coast-to-coast though with a southern focus), African American, UK, Finland, Canada, Galicia/Poland, late 19th - early 20^th century emigrants, and more research.

Specialty is geographically scattered families or families that stepped foot in North Carolina (whether a few years, a generation, or for decades). Based in Raleigh -- lexus of North Carolina and home to the State Archives of North Carolina (my "office away from home!"). Please check  www.mosaicrpm.com for current information about my research experience, lectures, publications, and qualifications.

Experienced with compiling evidence/proof for lineage applications whether First Families of North Carolina, Society of Cincinnati, Colonial Dames, DAR/SAR, and others.  In parallel will also fill out any appropriate paperwork including the application.

Provides services as Researcher, Author, and Speaker [webinar & in-person] -- on Southern, African American, Migration, Tips/Tricks/Techniques, and more!

Also, co-leader of Tar Heel Discoveries, www.tarheeldiscoveries.com -- Guided North Carolina genealogical research based on providing targeted, focused, research assistance leading you to new family discoveries!  Options are a week-long group program (mix of presentations and one-on-one research support) or individual one-on-one research assistance.

Board member of North Carolina Historical Records Online (NCHRO), http://nchistoricalrecords.org/ --  a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt non-profit organization dedicated to providing public access to high-quality images of original records and other related information useful to researching North Carolina history and genealogy.

Can help you with:

• records research and acquisition
• ancestral and lineage research
• heirs research
• digital photographs of documents
• digital photographs of cemeteries
• research in records of 18th-20th centuries
• ethnic research African-American, Native American 

1. North Carolina -- Unique access to the records of North Carolina by living in its capital, Raleigh! I can help you with any records available at the NC State Archives, the State Library of North Carolina, Olivia Raney Collection (Wake County), the Southern Historical Collection and the North Carolina Collection, Wilson Library, UNC-Chapel Hill, the Duke University Libraries - Special Collections and any local repositories within 1.5 hours of Raleigh.

2. Beyond NC -- Since so many Tar Heel ancestors only stepped foot in the state, or only stayed a few years before migrating across the state and then heading elsewhere, I have extensive experience researching the records of adjoining states (VA, SC, GA, TN) and any states where North Carolinians migrated, especially, between NC and the Mississippi River.

3. African American (enslaved, FPOC) -- In May 2019 authored Tracing Your Ancestors: AFRICAN AMERICAN RESEARCH: A PRACTICAL GUIDE, https://your-genealogy-history-store-usa.myshopify.com/collections/tracing-your-ancestors-series/products/african-american-research-8-50-for-pdf-9-95-for-print-edition -- some of what is included: Freedman’s Bank Records, Newspapers, Slave Narratives, Manumission, The Green Book, Free People of Color, Photographic Collections, Digital Library on Slavery, Fraternal Organizations, 1867 Voter Registrations, Education, Manuscripts, Mapping, Church Records, Funeral Programs and more! -- Extensive research experience into those formerly enslaved and their descendants, free persons of color, those designated mulatto,  and white plantation owners.

4. Lineage Applications and proof packets -- Extensive experience with filling out lineage applications and providing research services to ensure needed proof information has been obtained. Have done First Families of North Carolina, Jamestown, Society of Cincinnati, Colonial Dames, SAR/DAR, and more.  Knock on wood, if I feel an application meets the proof standards and membership requirements and is submitted; they have been accepted.  Recognize that sometimes finding a qualifying ancestor or being able to substantively/sufficiently document lineage is not always possible.