Home Page

For now 30 years plus, Weynette Parks Haun has dedicated a lion's share of her life to transcribing and interpreting genealogical sources, especially those most tedious and difficult that were written in the earliest years of our colonies and nation. Those years spent have provided for the family researcher records that are  almost nowhere else available.

To match her accomplishments, one would be called upon to drive, as she did, thousands of miles to county after county, and there spend long, long days and nights over the dusty orders, entries, minutes, deeds, land and probate records of the distant past, many written with quills, some with ink long ago faded, and almost all in long-hand.

Her first publication appeared after a friend suggested that her work in translating the Bertie County "Court Minutes" at North Carolina Archives would be of great value to the tens of thousands of researchers whose families came to, left from, or passed through Bertie County. Before Weynette's fine works, those of us who had not the time, patience, and inclination to struggle through the maze of what appear to most as mysterious scribbling had simply done without. Thus it was that she set upon what became a life-long journey of transcribing the records of many Virginia and North Carolina counties with great accuracy.

Today, and for generations to come, there are literally thousands upon thousands of family history students and buffs who must remain most grateful for her now more than one hundred published works. For those long and massive efforts, she has been recognized and rewarded many times; as well she should, by all of us!

Her recognition has included awards and tributes from the North Carolina Genealogical Society, the National Genealogical Society, numerous other societies, and the "Martha Washington Gold Medal" from the National Society of Sons of the American Revolution (NSSAR), that award being the highest National tribute of NSSAR to a Lady for patriotism and contributions to the furtherance of American history. Then too, she is equally proud of a letter of appreciation from the Circuit Court Judge of ancient Surry County, Virginia for her fine work.

Weynette transcribes court records verbatim, all to the pleasure of those researchers who seek the utmost detail and accuracy in reporting the records of those who went before us, some now almost four centuries ago. Her abstracts of such as deeds, leases, quit-claims, land records and what we now call mortgages include all books and page numbers, dates, the parties and witnesses involved, the land descriptions and (or) locations and, most importantly, the dates and names that appeared in the probate proceedings that went of record. Each of her books includes a complete all-name index.

It is here that she will share some portion of those works done and to be done, and that you may learn further of her works, activities and plans.

Paul Drake

Useful Web Links: 

• Raymond Parker Fouts - A Genealogical History of some of the PARKERS of Nansemond County, Virginia and Chowan/Hertford/Gates Counties, NC 1604-2004: http://www.freewebs.com/rayfouts  

• Paul Drake - Genealogy "How-to" books: http://www.drakesbooks.com