A researched, written family history as a gift for a parent or grandparent — what it costs, how long it takes, and how to order without spoiling the surprise.
The hard part about buying a gift for someone in their seventies or eighties is that they already own everything they want. A documented family history is one of the few remaining categories of gift that cannot be bought for oneself, because the work has to be done for you.
The occasions this suits
- A milestone birthday — the 70th, 75th, 80th, 90th.
- A significant anniversary — a 50th especially, where both families can be traced and the two lines shown meeting.
- Retirement, when someone finally has time to read it.
- A first grandchild — the arrival of a generation is a natural moment to document the ones before it.
- After a death in the family, when the impulse to write things down before more is lost is at its strongest. We handle these with care and no artificial deadline.
Start early — earlier than feels necessary
This is the single most common mistake. Research is not a print-on-demand product; a full project takes weeks, and the Heirloom package adds hardcover printing and shipping on top of that. If the gift is for a specific date, plan on a couple of months, and talk to us sooner rather than later if it's tighter than that.
If a date is genuinely close, the honest option is to give the project as the gift — a card announcing it, with the finished book arriving later. That works better than a rushed book.
Ordering without spoiling it
We can work entirely with what you know, and correspond only with you. The starting information you provide — a grandparent's name, a town, approximate dates — is usually enough. Where we'd normally ask the family a question, we'll ask you instead, and you can decide whether it's worth risking the surprise.
What the recipient actually opens
| Package | What it is | Flat price |
|---|---|---|
| Bring Your Own Tree | You already have the research. We format and produce it as a custom family-history book (PDF) plus an organized digital archive. | $495 |
| Keepsake | We do the research. Custom-written family history with full source citations, an interactive family site, the GEDCOM and document archive, and future-research notes — all digital. | $1,295 |
| The Heirloom | Everything in Keepsake, plus one hardcover print edition and the engraved keepsake USB. | $1,995 |
For a gift, the Heirloom is usually the one — a hardcover is something to hand across a table. Extra copies for siblings are $195 each.
Tell us the one ancestor you're stuck on. We'll say plainly whether the records exist — and if they don't, we'll say that too.
Start with a free call →Frequently asked questions
What is a good gift for someone who has everything?
A researched family history is one of the few gifts a person cannot buy for themselves, because the work has to be done for them. It suits milestone birthdays, 50th anniversaries, and retirements.
How long does it take to get a family history book made?
A full research project takes several weeks, and the Heirloom package adds hardcover printing and shipping. If the book is for a specific date, allow a couple of months and get in touch early.
Can I order a family history as a surprise?
Yes. We can work from the starting information you provide — a grandparent's name, a town, approximate dates — and correspond only with you, so the recipient never has to be involved.
What if the gift date is very soon?
Give the project rather than the finished book: a card announcing it, with the book arriving when the research is properly done. A rushed family history is worse than one that arrives a month late.