Family History Books, Family Papers, and What to Do With Them.

Last verified May 2026 · Original research by Josh Eldred

What I Do — Four Pillars

1. Sourcing

Out-of-print, rare, and hard-to-find books connected to a family's history are often the missing link in someone's research. I hunt them down. Common requests:

• •Self-published family memoirs and lineage books
• •Regional and county histories
• •Immigrant memoirs and ethnic history volumes
• •Military unit histories and regimental rolls
• •Parish record reprints and abstracted vital records
• •Cultural and community histories tied to a specific place or era
• •The single out-of-print family memoir a researcher has been chasing for years

Sourcing isn't Albuquerque-only. I ship books anywhere in the country. Most clients I source for never set foot in New Mexico.

2. Handling

When boxes of paper come out of an estate cleanout, downsizing project, or family transition, the worst outcome is the dumpster. The second-worst is a junk hauler. I handle family papers the way they should be handled: carefully, slowly, and in the right order.

Material I routinely sort: family Bibles with handwritten genealogy pages, identified photographs, letter bundles, diaries, vital certificates, military records, immigration and naturalization papers, deeds and land documents, scrapbooks, signed and inscribed books, postcards with writing, funeral programs, and the dense binders of research a family genealogist may have spent decades compiling.

Handling can run on-site at my warehouse, by shipped material from anywhere in the U.S., or in conjunction with one of my estate cleanouts. I don't lock in a single workflow — I fit the workflow to the family.

3. Routing

Once material is sorted, the question becomes: where does each piece belong? Most things have a right home, and it's not always with the same person. my routing recommendations typically include:

• •Back to family. Items that should go to a specific descendant — a great-grandmother's Bible to the cousin doing genealogy, a uniform photo to the grandchild who shares the name.
• •To historical societies, university archives, or state records collections. Material with research value beyond the family — territorial-era documents, parish abstracts, community correspondence — placed where it can be preserved and used.
• •To careful collectors. Items with collector or research-market value, sold to people who will value them. Done discreetly, on the family's terms.
• •Recycled or returned. Truly disposable paper, returned drafts, duplicates, and material the family wants destroyed.

The family decides. I make recommendations, explain why, and execute the plan.

4. Identification

Before any of the above, families usually need to know what they actually have. I do family Bible identification, dating of photographs and inscribed books, attribution of letters and documents, and general assessment of estate genealogy material. The output is a written assessment: what an item appears to be, approximate age, condition notes, general market context, and a routing recommendation.

I speak to what I can tell from the material in front of us. I don't pretend to identify everything, and when something exceeds what I can reasonably assess I say so and refer it onward. Identification is research, not a guess — and it's a separate, paid service from any cleanout or sourcing work that follows.

Why New Mexico Is Different

New Mexico has a longer, deeper documentary record than almost anywhere in the United States. That changes what's likely to be hiding in a family's papers — and what shouldn't be thrown away without a careful look. A few of the regional threads I encounter regularly:

Hispanic Colonial & Spanish Land Grant Lineage

Families with deep roots in northern New Mexico often inherit Spanish-language documents, baptismal records, parish abstracts, dowry lists, wills, and land paperwork tied to community land grants (mercedes) and territorial-era property. Pre-1912 Spanish-language documents — and especially anything before 1846 — deserve a careful read before any decision is made.

Pueblo & Native American Family Histories

Family papers and photographs tied to a Pueblo or other tribal community deserve particular care. Tribal libraries, cultural offices, and Native-led archives are usually the right home for material like this — not a generic donation. I route accordingly and step back when a tribal cultural office is the right call.

Manhattan Project & Los Alamos Families

Project Y–era ephemera (1943–1946) — site passes, ID badges, technical reports, photographs, family correspondence sent to or from "PO Box 1663, Santa Fe" — has documented historical interest. Estates of Los Alamos and Sandia laboratory families regularly contain material that connects to a specific moment in twentieth-century history.

Sandia, Kirtland, and Military Families

Albuquerque has been a military town for generations. Discharge papers, unit photographs, deployment correspondence, regimental histories, medals with paperwork, and WWII V-mail show up regularly in local estates. Military unit history is also one of the most common sourcing requests I receive.

Route 66 & Railroad-Era Families

The Mother Road and the AT&SF brought generations of New Mexicans through Albuquerque, Gallup, Belen, Las Vegas, and points east. Family papers from these eras include business correspondence, photographs of vanished motels and roadhouses, employee records, and personal letters that document a region's working life.

Parish & Mission Records

Some families inherited or copied baptismal, marriage, and burial records from old missions and parish churches. Originals belong with the parish or Archdiocese, but family-held copies and abstracts are often the only surviving evidence of a particular line. I handle them carefully and route them appropriately.

How I charge — And Why

Pricing is plainspoken and built around five tracks. The reason is simple: families come to this service in very different situations, and one flat number wouldn't fit any of them honestly. Here's how each track works.

1. Free

Donation pickups across the Albuquerque metro for books, paper, and media are free. The 24/7 donation drop bin out front of the warehouse is free. And quick informal questions — "is this worth anything?" — are free. Send a photo and you'll get an honest yes/no/maybe gut check. If you're looking for a quick gut check, drop me a text — I'm happy to help. If you're looking for a real assessment of what you have, that's a paid service, described below.

2. Book Sourcing — Priced Per Book

For locating a rare family book, an out-of-print regional history, a unit history, or any specific title connected to family or place, sourcing is priced per book: the cost of the book, a sourcing fee, and shipping. Every quote goes out before any purchase is made, and payment is up front. I ship anywhere in the country.

3. Identification & Assessment — Flat Rate, Photos In, Written Report Out

Send photos and basic information about an item or small batch and I'll quote a flat rate for a written assessment. The assessment covers what the item appears to be, approximate age, condition notes, general market context, and a routing recommendation: keep, return to a specific relative, refer to an archive, sell, donate, or discard. Paid up front, delivered as a written report.

Assessment is a paid service, separate from execution. When a family asks "can you help with mom's stuff," the first deliverable is the assessment. The cleanout or project that follows is a separate engagement, priced from there. Working in this order means the family always knows what they have before they decide what to do with it.

4. Estate Cleanouts — Quoted Per Job

For cleanouts, I visit the property, walk through, and quote based on volume, complexity, and what's there. Heirloom Rescue — the careful pass through a loved one's papers and books, giving the family a chance to reclaim what they want — is included in the cleanout, not an upcharge. A minimum job size applies. Photos or a video walkthrough are required before quoting; I don't quote sight-unseen.

5. Family Archive Projects — Quoted Per Project

Larger engagements — a deceased relative's full genealogical research, decades of accumulated papers, a multi-generational book collection, or any situation that needs more than a one-day cleanout — are scoped as projects. Includes inventory, written assessment, routing recommendations, and execution of the agreed plan. Project minimum applies. Quoted after an initial conversation.

How to Get Started

Pick the path that fits your situation. None of them require a long form or a sales call.

If you're not in Albuquerque, that's not a barrier — sourcing is national, and assessment work is photo-based. For larger out-of-state projects, ship to the warehouse on Edith and I'll work from there.

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