source genealogy

Evidence First.
Story Second.

Source Genealogy is a research practice devoted to solving difficult family history questions through careful evidence analysis, correlation across records, and documented reasoning.

The result is not just an answer, but a conclusion that holds under scrutiny.

Accredited Genealogist® • North Central United States
MaryAnn Jones, Accredited Genealogist
about your researcher

MaryAnn Jones, AG®

I'm an Accredited Genealogist® with a deep passion for uncovering accurate, well-documented family history. My work is built on the belief that every family deserves clear answers grounded in reliable evidence.

With a focus on the North Central United States, I specialize in solving complex problems involving land, probate, immigration, and conflicting records.
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If there's a courthouse down the road or a land record left unexplored, rest assured I'm going to take a closer look.
credentials & focus

Professional Research, Clearly Defined

Accredited Genealogist®
Credentialed through ICAPGen
North Central U.S. Research
Specialized regional expertiese
Land, Probate, & Complex Evidence
Records that clarify difficult questions
Evidence-Based Methodology
Conclusions built from analysis
Clear Written Findings
Citations, reasoning, and next steps

Clarity Comes
From Analysis

Most genealogical problems aren't solved by searching harder. They're solved by analyzing evidence, identifying conflicts,
and testing the strongest conclusions.

That's the work I do.
research principles

The Standard Behind
Every Conclusion

Complex family-history questions require more than record colletion. They require careful analysis, disciplined comparison, and conclusions that can stand up to scrutiny.
Evidence Based
Conclusions are built from records,
not assumptions.
Correlated Carefully
Findings tested across records, places, and time.
Conflict Aware
Disagreements examined before conclusions
are drawn.
Clearly Documented
Results explained with citations, reasoning, and next steps.
specialized regional knowledge

Regional Expertise
Applied With Precision

My accredited specialty region includes Minnesota, Iowa, Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota. Deep knowledge of these record environments helps me evaluate evidence in context, reconstruct families more accurately, and follow complex research problems across county and state lines.

Minnesota
Iowa
Nebraska
North Dakota
South Dakota
land | church | commuinity
Minnesota
Minnesota research often draws evidence from land, probate, church, and community records. Families arrived through layered migration streams and often moved between Minnesota, Iowa, Wisconsin, Nebraska, and the Dakotas.
Key Record Sets
Church Record Sets
Land Records
Newspaper Archives
Naturalization Records
minnesota at a glance
How This Expertiese Helps
  • Land-Based kinship
  • Reconstruct family groups
  • Separate same-name individuals
  • Trace immigrant origins
  • Correlate land, church, and probate evidence
Questions This
Helps Answer
Where did this Minnesota family come from?
Are these same-name individuals truly separate people?
Can land, probate, or church records prove the relationship?
Who belonged to the famiy's wider community network?
land | courthouse | Migration
Iowa
Iowa research is shaped by courthouse records, land ownership, probate files, and the movement of families through the Midwest. Many families settled in Iowa for a generation before continuing west, leaving evidence that can connect earlier origins to later destinations.
Key Record Sets
Probate Files
Deed Records
County Court Records
Local Histories
Iowa at a glance
How This Expertise Helps
  • Connect families acorss counties
  • Identify heirs and relationships
  • Track land ownership patterns
  • Reconstruct Midwest migration paths
What This Can Clarify
Was Iowa a stopping place or a long-term home?
Can probate or land records identify the family relationship?
Do courthouse records connect this family across counties?
Where did this family go next?
land | settlement | commuinity
Nebraska
Nebraska research often follows family through land-entry records, courthouse files, probate, and migration patterns across the Plains. Homestead-era settlement and westward movement can leave the kind of evidence that helps connect earlier origins to later destinations.
Key Record Sets
Federal Land-Entry Records
Probate Files
County Court Records
Naturalization Records
Nebraska at a glance
How This Expertise Helps
  • Reconstruct settlement patterns
  • Correlate land and courthouse evidence
  • Trace Plains migration routes
  • Identify family and community connections
What This Can Clarify
Did this family settle in Nebraska or move on?
Can land or probate records help identify the relationship?
Where did this family come from before Nebraska?
Who belonged to this family's local network?
land | community | immigration
North Dakota
North Dakota research often brings together federal land records, naturalization files, church registers, and immigrant community networks. Settlement patterns, county formation, and movement across the Plains can help connect families to earlier homes, neighboring kin, and wider migration routes.
Key Record Sets
Federal Land-Entry Records
Naturalization Records
Church Records
County Histories
at a glance
How This Expertise Helps
  • Trace immigrant settlement patterns
  • Correlate land, church, and naturalization evidence
  • Reconstruct family and community networks
  • Follow migration across the Plains and Upper Midwest
What This Can Clarify
Where did this family live before North Dakota?
Can land records connect this family to relatives or neighbors?
Do church or naturalization records point to immigrant origins?
Who belonged to the famiy's settlement network?
land | community | courthouse
South Dakota
South Dakota research often depends on territorial records, land claims, county formation, courthouse files, and migration across the Plains. Families may appear in scattered records as counties changed, communities formed, and land ownership created evidence that helps connect people, places, and relationships.
Key Record Sets
Land and Homestead Records
Naturalization Records
Newspaper Articles
Local Histories
at a glance
How This Expertise Helps
  • Land-Based Kinship
  • Church & Community Reconstruction
  • Same-Name Identification
  • Immigrant Origin Questions
  • Probate and Courthouse Records
What This Can Clarify
Did this family appear in early South Dakota records?
Can land or naturalization records help prove identity?
Were newspapers publishing in the area of interest?
Who belonged to this family's local settlement network?
Source Genealogy Logo Inverted

Independent genealogy practice built on evidence.
Copyright © 2026 Source Genealogy

Accredited Genealogist® | North Central U.S.
IA • MN • NE • ND • SD

Service area: United States (with immigrant linkage support: German • Czech • Scandinavian)

Research Services

Land-record kinship reconstruction
Brick-wall diagnostics
Evidence reconstruction

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