The Residents Edition: Hardcover House History

For homes built before 1950. Who lived behind your front door? We find out. The Residents Edition includes everything in The Land Story, plus the people who called your house home: traced through the census, city directories, deed records and old newspapers, and the fire-insurance maps that drew your house when it was young.

Everything in The Land Story, plus

• Who lived here, through 1950: the households at your address, census by census, wherever the records name it. That means names, ages, birthplaces, occupations and who shared the house.
• Who owned it next, 1950 to 1980: later owners' names from deed records, so your house's story carries on past the last public census.
• City directories and newspaper mentions that fill in the years between records. After 1950 we only use clippings about neutral events, such as weddings, births and awards.
• A Sanborn fire-insurance map of your block wherever one survives. These maps drew every building to scale, showing whether it was wood or brick and how many stories it had.
• The first time your house appears on a map, which often narrows down when it was really built.

Also in every book

• Your lot circled on historic U.S. Geological Survey maps, plus a then-and-now map spread
• The land's history era by era, old newspaper clippings and a full sources page
• A blank "Our Chapter" page for your own family

The details

• Hardcover, 8.5 × 8.5 in, 24+ full-color pages (Residents Editions usually run longer)
• For homes built before 1950. Built later? The Land Story is the book for your home.
• Researched from primary public records, with every fact checked by a person before printing
• Ships in 14–21 days from your order, then typically 3–7 business days for U.S. delivery. If we're running late, we'll email you a new ship date and you can cancel for a full refund.

How it works

1. Tell us the address and the approximate year it was built (a guess is fine).
2. We research the original records. Census, deeds, directories, maps and newspapers. A person checks every fact.
3. Your hardcover arrives at your door, or at the door of the person you're giving it to.

Questions

Will you name the people who lived in my house?
Yes, up to 1980, and never the people who own it now. Through 1950 we name the households the census recorded at your address. (The 1950 census is the newest one open to the public; the 1960 census opens in 2032.) After that, the story continues with later owners, named only from deed records, up to 1980. For anyone after 1950 we only use newspaper clippings about neutral events such as weddings, births and awards, and we never include crime, divorce or foreclosure.

What if the records for my house are thin?
We check the records for your address before anything is printed. If we can't make a book we're proud of, we'll tell you and refund you in full.

I'm not sure when my house was built.
Give us your best guess. Finding out is part of the research. If it turns out to be newer than 1950, we'll tell you before printing and offer to switch you to The Land Story with the $80 difference refunded, or give you a full refund.

Can I send it as a gift?
Yes. Use the recipient's address for shipping and add a gift note at checkout.

Our promise. If your book arrives damaged or we got a fact wrong, tell us within 30 days of delivery and we'll reprint it free.