Connie,

I will move this thread to the members only forum and I will reply there later today with the letter template attached. We will help you contact the archives and the church.

Regards,

Sergei

PS No need to start a new topic every time, just reply in the existing one

Connie,

The assistance we  provide to our members varies from case to case, but in most cases it will include what is known as *preliminary research* :

 

- establishing which records exist that have data on the people you are researching

-locating the archive where the vital records are stored and checking their availablity

-locating other records of importance such as scool, military and land registers

-explaining the procedure for obtaining copies of documents/vital or other records

-explaining the procedure  and documents involved in making requests for records that are regulated by privacy laws

- translating forms and letters

-assistance in posting queries on local forums and sending it out to possible descendants

-translating correspondence with the descendants of the same family to/from English

- forwarding information publicly available in local databases

- providing information on the historical documents, books and academic studies that have data on your ancestors, and  translating important parts into English.

- helping you with finding local guide and accomodation if you are planning to visit and do your own research here

 

For research of church vital records of the Serbian Orthodox Church

 

-contacting the Serbian Orthodox Church

-establishing the exact parish  and village of origin

-translating the correspondence with the priests and church authorities

- enabling you to research records available through LDS on your own by translating the printed columns, providing you with handwriting examples from original records of the names and surnames you are looking for in Old Church Slavonic cyrillic script.

 

 

The price of similar assistance offered by agencies and *expert* professional genealogists in the region  is way higher than our annual membership fee.  Here are  a couple of quotes:

 

***

Preliminary Research

Includes basic research of availability of data about your ancestry. The result of the research is the list of resources where data can be found or should be searched for.

The cost: one time fee of € 135 or $ 195
€ 0,69 or or $ 0,99 per kilometer
(if travel is necessary to complete the task)

***

The following are results of preliminary search one should expect to receive:

· An answer as to whether data is available in the National Archives , or in one of the regional offices of the National Archives. The answer will not come in a simple "yes" or "no" form, but will indicate exactly which time periods are available for Birth, Death and Wedding records for a specific village or town.

· An answer as to what books or data are available in the local sources, such as a local parish and local office of records.

· A list of persons presently residing in the place of origin or surrounding area , with the same last name as the surname researched. This is a useful list in trying to establish if there are any close or distant relatives.
 

Costs

Preliminary research in the amount of $100 is payable in advance.

 

***

 

The only limiting factor in how much we are able or willing to help any of our members is the fact that all of us here in SGS are only volunteers constricted by our own work and life schedules.

Re your own contact with the archives - after  establishing if any official record of  visit, hospital stay, death or burial exists in the archives for the period  and the person you are looking into and which archive or museum has them, I will help you translate any and all needed forms and correspondence, but you need to be patient - sometimes I receive official replies  a couple of months after I send out the query.

 

 

 

 

Upon request this topic has been moved to the members forum.