Your family’s story is documented somewhere.
I can find it.
Relative Roots Genealogy is a private research practice based on Vancouver Island, working in archives across Canada, the United States, and the British Isles.
I am a professional genealogist based in British Columbia. I find the records, read them carefully, and explain — clearly — what they say about your family.
Most enquiries arrive in one of three forms: a brick wall that decades of family research has not moved, a citizenship or lineage application that requires documented proof, or a wish to leave behind a properly researched family history for the next generation. I take a small number of these projects at a time, so each one is given proper attention.
About the researcher →Five ways of looking back.
Each project starts with a free conversation. From there, the work is shaped to match the question — whether that is one missing generation or a complete citizenship file.
Four steps, plainly stated.
There are no mystery boxes. Every engagement follows the same structure, so you always know where your research is and what is coming next.
Consultation
A free 30-minute call. We talk through what you already know, what you would like to find, and whether a research project is the right fit.
Research Plan
A written plan — the specific records to be checked, the archives that hold them, and a realistic sense of what they can and cannot tell us.
Investigation
The careful work itself. Records are located, transcribed, and evaluated. Conflicting evidence is resolved against the Genealogical Proof Standard.
Documented Findings
A written report, pedigree charts, family group sheets, and digital copies of every source — yours to keep, build on, and pass down.
See what clients receive →Three archives, one continent apart.
Most projects draw from records in more than one country. These are the regions where I work directly with the source repositories.
Canada
Library and Archives Canada, provincial vital statistics, Hudson’s Bay Company records, parish registers across Québec, Ontario and the Prairies. A particular working knowledge of Métis records.
United States
Federal and state census records, vital records, immigration and naturalisation files, military pensions, and church and county records. Useful for lineage society applications, including DAR and SAR.
United Kingdom & Ireland
Civil registration, census returns, parish registers from 1538 onward, emigration records, and the Irish Catholic registers digitised through the National Library of Ireland.
Research that holds up.
The genealogical standard that matters is not how many names are in the tree — it is whether each one can be defended with documented evidence.
“The work I do is investigative, not clerical. I am not assembling a database of names — I am building a case, source by source, that answers a specific question about your family.”
Client testimonials will be added here as written permission is received.
What clients say about working with me
A free 30-minute conversation is the right place to start.
Tell me what you are trying to find. I will tell you, plainly, whether I can help and what it would take.
Book a Free ConsultationResearch Insights
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