The research network
This work runs on local knowledge. The person who remembers where the old church stood matters as much as the radar.
Ways people help
You don’t need equipment or credentials to move an investigation forward. The most valuable contributions are usually these:
Local knowledge & family history
Stories, memories, and community knowledge that never made it into any archive — often the only surviving record of a site.
Records & maps
Old plats, deeds, church registries, funeral records, newspaper clippings, and prior genealogy work that narrow the search.
Property & community connections
Relationships with landowners, churches, cemetery boards, and communities that open lawful access to sites.
Visits & photography
Being nearby enough to visit a site, photograph current conditions, and report what the ground looks like today.
Research help
Archive digging, courthouse record pulls, newspaper searches, and genealogical legwork on active cases.
Spreading the word
Sharing published investigations and connecting us with people who know of sites that deserve attention.
Volunteer applications are coming
A formal researcher and volunteer program — with applications, open calls on active research questions, and shared resources — is planned as the platform grows. Until it opens, the best ways to contribute are to submit a tip or historical lead and note in your submission that you are willing to help.
A note on sensitive cases
Involvement in sensitive cases — where privacy restrictions, family concerns, or site protection are in play — is granted by manual approval only, never automatically. Protecting the people and places at the center of a case always comes before expanding the team around it.