The Georgia Genealogical Society has published "Georgia Land Lottery Research," a guidebook on using Georgia's Land Lottery records, a system unique to this state.
The book covers the system used in distributing three fourths of the state's land from 1805 through 1832. While books listing the winners in each lottery previously have been published, this book provides a comprehensive tool for understanding the differences in the requirements for registration in each lottery. It also has maps showing the areas covered and where to find the original records at the Georgia Archives.
There are good charts for each lottery year clarifying who was eligible to register -- in some cases single women or a family of orphans. In some years military veterans got extra draws, and there were residency requirements as well.
The author, Paul K. Graham, has previously published two books on the 1805 lottery. The lottery system is a valuable one to follow when doing Georgia genealogy because this may be the only record you'll find of an ancestor, and by tracing the sale of a winning lot, if extant, you can find heirs or link family members.
Graham outlines strategies for using the lotteries in research. The book does not contain lists of registrants or winners.
This book is a must for anyone serious about doing Georgia research. It is available for $30 postpaid from the Georgia Genealogical Society, P.O. Box 550247, Atlanta, GA 30355. To order online using PayPal go to www.gagensociety.org.
Book covers South Carolina grants
Brent H. Holcomb has published a new volume in his ongoing series on South Carolina land records, "South Carolina's Royal Grants, Volume Six: Grant Books 38-41, 1670-1785."
He includes brief abstracts of the grants (most of which are from the very early period up to 1740), listing them in the order they appear in the original books located at the South Carolina Archives in Columbia.
This is a valuable source for anyone doing South Carolina research, as it is fully indexed, enabling you to find other information within the grants -- such as adjoining land owners -- not found in a normal list of grantees.
The book is available for $45 plus $4.50 mailing from Brent H. Holcomb, P.O. Box 21766, Columbia, SC 29221. Also check www.scmar.com for the earlier volumes.
Lecture to cover Prescott Project
The June 9 Georgia Archives Lunch and Learn Lecture will feature Timothy Ericson of the University of Wisconsin speaking on the Prescott Project, in which a previously unknown antebellum African-American community in Wisconsin was recently discovered. It's free; bring your own lunch. www.georgiaarchives.org, 678-364-3700.
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