Skip to content

Services

What Linea Ancestry does

One focused service: I find and procure the US records that establish your ancestor’s naturalization status, the fact every jure sanguinis claim is built on.

What I do

  • Search historical US records: FamilySearch, NARA indexes, census records, draft-registration cards, and ship manifests
  • Order certified copies of naturalization records from the holding court or archive
  • Prove non-naturalization when no record exists: no-record letters, certified census extracts, USCIS index searches
  • Deliver an organized document packet with a plain-English cover memo
  • Keep you informed at every phase of the work

What I don’t do

  • Provide legal advice of any kind
  • Interpret what a record means for your citizenship eligibility
  • Represent you before any government agency
  • Handle any work on the Italian side of your application
  • Make promises about what records will or won’t be found

The process

The four-phase research process

From the day your intake arrives to the day your packet is delivered, the work moves through four phases. You’ll always know which one you’re in.

  1. Phase I

    Intake

    You share what you know.

    You complete a short intake questionnaire with your ancestor’s details (names and spelling variants, where and roughly when they settled), plus any documents already in hand. I review it and follow up with questions before any searching begins.

  2. Phase II

    Desk Research

    I search the record.

    I work through FamilySearch, NARA indexes, census records, draft-registration cards, and ship manifests to locate naturalization evidence, or to document, rigorously, that none exists. This phase typically takes one to four weeks.

  3. Phase III

    Certified Record Procurement

    I procure the certified copies.

    Once I know where the records live, I order certified copies from NARA, state courts, or county clerks, and I handle the proof-of-non-naturalization process when no record is found. Procurement runs on the issuing agencies’ timelines, which I track and report.

  4. Phase IV

    Deliver Packet

    You receive an organized packet.

    A clearly ordered document packet with a cover memo: what was searched, what was found, and the source of every record, ready to hand directly to your Italian immigration attorney.

What to expect

Timelines, honestly stated

Desk research is quick. Procurement runs on the government’s clock, not mine, so I set expectations early rather than late.

Desk research
1–4 weeks from signed agreement and completed intake
Certified copy from NARA
Several weeks to a few months set by the issuing archive
USCIS genealogy request
12–13 months or more USCIS backlog, outside my control

Pricing

Clear, flat, and agreed in advance

Standard research

$500

flat rate · standard single-ancestor case

Covers the full four-phase process: intake review, desk research, procurement coordination, and your delivered packet with cover memo.

Additional research

$90/hr

For work beyond standard scope: pre-1906 county-court searches, multiple candidate ancestors, unusually tangled records. Always discussed and agreed before any time is billed.

Government fees

At cost

USCIS filings, NARA requests, and county or state record fees are billed separately at cost, with receipts.

Two-client cases, for example cousins who share the same ancestor, may be quoted differently. Ask, and I’ll scope it for you.

Start your research