Spotlight on Richard W. Price, AG®

Richard PriceMeet Richard W. Price, AG, accredited for research in the records of England.

Accreditation

Richard’s goal for accreditation came after working as a professional genealogist for a time, and realizing that a credential would allow him to join the ranks of other Accredited Genealogist® professionals he respected very much. After receiving his AG credential he continued on to earn an MA in Family and Community History from Brigham Young University, which he felt gave him more knowledge and credibility.

Challenging and Unique Aspects of English Genealogy

Early on, research in the records of England required onsite visits to English repositories to gain access to many of these records. Richard made about ten research trips to England, spending six to eight weeks at a time there. He visited countless archives and many churches. Richard learned to search Manorial records and other early records which were in Latin and old English hand, and often difficult to read.  He says that locating and gaining access to Manorial records used to be more difficult than it is now, and that some are even on microfilm at the Salt Lake Family History Library.

Advice to Others Pursuing Accreditation

For others who are pursing accreditation, Richard advises them to try to get employment with a genealogical firm or work with a professional genealogist while attending school, or during the summer or after graduation. This can help an aspiring professional learn to think analytically, write reports, and organize the research process.  He says, “Take as many genealogical classes as you can to gain adequate training. There are several schools in Utah, as well as on-line classes.  The BYU-Idaho online program is excellent.”

Goals

Richard’s goals as a genealogist are to base conclusions of family linkage on solid primary sources where possible, or analysis of secondary sources that give support to needed conclusions. He plans to continue finding clients by referral, advertising, marketing, internet exposure, and speaking at conferences and workshops or firesides, and loves finding new people who can use his services.

With a goal to keep clients happy by meeting their needs, Richard strives to always provide them with something new, whether that is identifying new ancestors, helping LDS clients with their unique goals, or finding new information not previously known in difficult research problems.

Current and Future Research Projects 

Richard has many research projects he is involved in. He lectures every year at conferences, giving new thought to new subjects. He is interested in ancestors and descendants of Rev. John Lothropp/Lathrop. He has plans to publish research results for several families.

Websites

Richard’s websites are www.pricegen.com  and Immigrant Servants database. They have indexed all immigrant servant records they could gain access to, mostly from the British Isles to North America.

Price & Associates, Inc.

Richard Price has an office in downtown Salt Lake City. His company, Price & Associates, Inc. hires many professional genealogists.  They prefer Accredited Genealogist researchers but also appreciate Certified Genealogists and others with degrees or many years’ experience.   They are always looking for good researchers to assist in solving ancestral dilemmas. They are seeking researchers who have good analytical skills, can determine correct ancestral lines through the use of original research, and are adept at genealogical report-writing.

Richard has been a full-time professional genealogist since 1976, and received his AG credential in 1979. His company does research in North and Central America and in most European and Asian countries, South Africa, etc. They send researchers to the British Isles and to Germany every year, and often have projects in  Italy, Lithuania, Croatia and other European countries.

 

The Application Process: Level 1 (Genealogical Research Experience)

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Are you curious about what it takes to receive the Accredited Genealogist® credential? The accreditation process involves three levels of testing of the applicant’s skills and knowledge. In this blog post we describe the first part of Level 1 requirements: “Genealogical Research Experience.”

Research and Education

An applicant must have a minimum of 1000 hours of combined genealogical research and genealogical education experience before submitting an application.

It is expected that of the required 1000 hours more than 500 hours of it will be genealogical research experience in the records of the chosen region.  There are many ways to acquire genealogical research experience; some of these include research in archives and libraries, historical and genealogical societies and online repository research.  These hours can also include time studying genealogical texts, attending genealogical courses, conferences or institutes.

ICAPGen recognizes that a person with a genealogy credential has demonstrated a high level of genealogical research ability. ICAPGen offers to genealogists with either a CG or an AG credential the opportunity to apply for a second credential with reduced (half the required hours) experience hours. If you are applying for a second credential you may reduce the required experience hours in half.

 It can be very beneficial to have genealogical education and training. But it is not required. Your genealogical education and training could include the following:
  • College level genealogical degrees, certificates or coursework.
  • Attendance at genealogical conferences and/or institutes.
  • Self directed personal genealogical study.

For education suggestions go to Educational Resources.

Broad Experience

An applicant is expected to have research experience in a variety of genealogical record types in their chosen region. It has been proven that an applicant with broad experience using a variety of record types does well on the written exams.  You must have experience with a variety different record types from your region’s Important Record Type List before applying for Level 1. Use  the link below to go to your chosen region’s Important Record Type List .

Resources, Record Types, & Strategies

Nationwide, State, or International Records

All accreditation regions: An applicant is expected to have at least 80 hours of research experience using nationwide genealogical records.

U.S. accreditation regions: An applicant is expected to have a minimum of 80 hours of research experience in each state in the chosen region.

International accreditation regions: An applicant is expected to have a minimum of 80 hours of research experience in five (5) or more state-type (province/shires etc.) divisions in the chosen region.

Some accreditation regions are exceptions as they do not have five or more distinct major jurisdictions such as states or provinces, or, the jurisdictions where most records are kept are at the town level. For these regions, it is recommended that the minimum 500-hour research requirement be spent in a variety of locations within that accreditation region, not just one or two areas. Accreditation regions that may fall into this category are as follows:

  • Caribbean Spanish
  • French Canada
  • Italy
  • Portugal and Azores
  • All South American regions

Use the links below to learn about resources available in your chosen region.

Testing Regions

A Variety of Repositories

It is expected that you will use at least 10 different repositories including Internet sites in your genealogical research. (Repositories include: archives, libraries, historical or genealogical societies, internet sites, courthouses, etc.)

Reading and Understanding Old Documents

 An accredited genealogist is required to read and understand a variety of old documents written in the primary language of their chosen region. Before submitting your application you should have spent 100 hours or more reading and using old documents in the primary language of the chosen region.

For help reading old documents go to Paleography Classes.

We welcome questions about the accreditation process–just email us at information@icapgen.org–or check out the ICAPGen website for a complete discussion of the application process.  We also have an informative PDF version of our Guide to Applying for an AG Credential.

A Premier Credential for Family Historians & Genealogists throughout the World!