All Missions
Every mission in the Operation Granny Files series. Each is a complete genealogy lesson published on Substack.
Mission 16: Staking Your Claim - Land Records 201
Decode land patents, deeds, and property transfers.
Mission 15: The Reading of the Will - Probate Records 201
Wills, estate inventories, and what the dead left behind.
Mission 14: Reporting for Duty - Military Records 201
Service records, pensions, and draft registration cards.
Mission 13: Behind Enemy Lines - Immigration Records 201
Passenger lists, naturalization, and border crossings.
Mission 12: Church Records - Baptisms, Burials & Beyond 201
Navigate parish registers and denominational archives.
Mission 11: The Double Helix Detour - DNA Testing 201
Your genes as evidence - testing, matching, interpreting.
Mission 10: Blueprint for Your Own History Project 101
Turn scattered research into a plan you can actually follow.
Mission 9: The Neighbor Effect - Cluster Research 101
Your ancestors didn't live in a vacuum - find them through their neighbors.
Mission 8: Extra! Extra! - Newspapers That Bring Ancestors to Life 101
Historical newspapers as genealogy goldmines.
Mission 7: Born, Wed, Dead - Vital Records 101
Birth, marriage, and death records - the pillars of family history.
Mission 6: Count Me In - Census Records 101
The backbone of American genealogy - decoding federal and state census records.
Mission 5: File Before You Forget 101
Organizing your research so it stays useful - naming, filing, and citing.
Mission 4: Branch Mapper - Initiate 101
Build your first pedigree chart and map the branches you'll explore.
Mission 3: The Biscuit Tin Dossier 101
Mining family documents, photos, and heirlooms for clues.
Mission 2: Operation Tea & Tattle 101
Interviewing living relatives - the most underrated research method.
Mission 1: Identity Confirmed 101
Where every genealogy journey begins.