Get Help > GSBC Genealogy Consultants, Lookups, and Queries

The GSBC Genealogy Consultants program offers research assistance, lookup services, and options to consult with subject-matter experts—helping you get the most out of the GSBC’s and Bolger Heritage Center’s collections to further your research.

If you are interested in volunteering to assist at the library, please contact us via the form on our Contact Us page.

GSBC Genealogy Consultants—Complimentary Research Assistance

The GSBC offers complimentary on-site consultation with our Genealogy Consultants at the Bolger Heritage Center at the Ridgewood Public Library and online.

Whether you are just starting your family tree or are an experienced researcher, our Genealogy Consultants can guide you in the use of the Genealogy and Local History Reference collections at the Bolger Heritage Center, provide advice for online research, and help you break through your brick-walls.

To make an appointment, first review the Genealogy Consultants’ area of expertise and email gsbc.queries@gmail.com to reserve your consultation window. If you need assistance with a specific area not listed, contact us and we will match you as best we can with an expert in that area.

Lucille Bertram

Schedule
By appointment

Research Specialties
– Ancestry.com (Library Edition)
– FamilySearch.org
– Census
– Newspapers
– New York City / New Jersey / Bergen County

Fred J. Voss

Research Schedule
By appointment

Specialties
– Deciding which DNA Test(s) to Take
– Reviewing DNA Results

Maria “Ree” Pratt Hopper

Schedule
By appointment

Research Specialties
– Bergen and Passaic (NJ) Counties; Rockland (NY) Counties
– Early Dutch Families
– Advanced Research

Afina Broekman

Schedule
By appointment

Research Specialties
– Ancestry.com (Library Edition)
– Internet Research
– Advanced Research
– Netherlands

Peggy Norris

Schedule
By appointment

Research Specialties
– Ancestry.com (Library Edition)
– Bergen County Genealogy and History
– Advanced Research

Joe Suplicki

Schedule
By appointment

Research Specialties
– Advanced Research
– Local History
– Bergen County

Steve Gabai

Research Schedule
By appointment

Specialties
– 
internet Research
– New York City Research
– Brick Walls
– Finding Unknown Relatives

GSBC Lookup Services—Put Local Collections to Work for You!

Lookup queries span the collections of the GSBC and Ridgewood Public Library and can include: vital records, church records, yearbooks, social books, obituaries, collection newspapers, local histories, biographies, family files, pamphlets, maps, postcards, published genealogies, lineage indexes, journals, among others.

GSBC Members receive four complimentary Lookups per membership year—an invaluable service if you can’t make it to the research room or need additional help finding what you need. (Non-members, please see the Fee Schedule, below.)

To submit a request, please review the “How to Submit a Query” section below and email or mail us the Research Request form.

All fees (where applicable) directly support the mission of the GSBC and health of our collections, thank you!

Quick Lookups

Quick Lookups are research for any record where the date and record type are known (e.g., Hackensack Republican newspaper, Obituaries, notice for John H. George, d. 29 Mar 1879). Please see the Library section of this website to start search our indexes and start your Quick Lookup query.

Quick Lookup Fees

  • GSBC Members—Members enjoy four complimentary Quick or In-Depth Lookups per Membership Year (31 October–1 November, please consider joining GSBC today). After the four complimentary lookups, $5 per Quick Lookup.
  • Non-Members—$5 per Quick Lookup.

To get started, download the Lookup Query Form below.

In-Depth Lookups and Hourly Research

In-Depth Lookups are when the date and/or publication and/or collection are not known.

An Hourly Fee may apply to the lookup (one hour minimum). Of note, our Genealogy Consultants know our record collections very well, and may be able to find more than what you were expecting than with the Quick Lookup service—searching across multiple resources. You can use any extra time to look up records on additional individuals.

In-Depth Lookups and Hourly Research Fees

  • GSBC Members—Members enjoy four complimentary Quick or In-Depth Lookups per Membership Year (31 October–1 November, please consider joining GSBC today). After the four complimentary lookups, $15 per In-Depth Lookup.
  • Non-Members—$15 per In-Depth Lookup.
  • If an In-Depth Lookup is not found or complications arise, an Hourly Research Fee (one hour minimum) may apply to the lookup. Please contact us with your Research Request Form to discuss—all estimated fees will be reviewed before billing.

To get started, download the Lookup Query Form below.

How to Submit a Lookup Query—GSBC Research Request Form

Lookup requests can be submitted by using the form below or by reviewing the instructions below and emailing the particulars to gsbc.queries@gmail.com.

Query submission guidelines:

  • We can only conduct obituary lookups if you have an approximate date (within a month). Please see the list of Local Newspapers available at the library for the newspapers we have available.
  • We have a growing name index of some local historic newspapers. Please see our Newspaper Index overview page for more information about this growing resource.
  • We have some indexes to other local papers for the years 1967–1980, and 1974–1987, but we might not have the original paper.
  • We only have access to the city directories of Ridgewood and surrounding towns: Midland Park, Glen Rock, Fair Lawn, and Ho-Ho-Kus, 1926-1973.
  • For vital records questions, please check our Vital Records listing to see what we have available, or contact the New Jersey State Archives.

Tips for submitting a query:

  • Be brief and concise, but give as much clearly written information as possible to help identify an individual (dates, places, relatives, etc.) The more information you give, the more likely someone will be able to connect with your ancestor.
  • To avoid confusion, limit queries to one or two requests about the same individual or family. If you need information about more than one individual or family, write separate additional queries.
  • Use common, clear abbreviations. If you're not sure of an abbreviation, use the complete word or term to avoid misunderstanding.
  • Use CAPITAL letters for Surnames only.
  • Include surnames and other important information in the subject line.

Research Request Form and Payments

Submit queries with appropriate payment (if applicable):

  • Check should be made payable to the GSBC and mailed, with the form, to the address below.
  • If paying by credit card using the form, mail to the address below.
  • If paying by credit card online, mail or email the form with online payment noted.

Genealogical Society of Bergen County
Attn: Queries

P.O. Box 432
Midland Park, NJ 07432

Please provide an email and phone number so we may contact you in case of questions.

Queries received without payment may not be accepted.

Expert Researcher Referrals

Expert Research Services are hourly or project services referred to a GSBC subject-matter expert and/or an independent researcher. Services include consulting and research in advanced areas such as DNA and genetic genealogy, immigration and ethic-specific research, missing people, and more.

Please see the listing of GSBC Genealogy Consultants’ areas of expertise, above, and email gsbc.queries@gmail.com for more information, including the particular research areas and/or needs.

Note that this is a referral service. Schedule, availability, and fees is at our experts’ discretion, will be handled privately, and will not be billed through the GSBC.