Looking for my biological grandmother

Janet2991

I'm very new to this and a very late starter (age 78) so any and all help would be greatly appreciated. My mother was adopted as a newborn in Michigan in 1923. From what I am reading it's difficult to get most Michigan adoption records. When she was pregnant with me an attorney found her adoption record but all she wanted to know was if there were any genetic diseases in the family. She did say something about Boston in her records but that is all I know. Now I would like to find out about my biological grandmother. All I know about my mother is that her adoptive name was Helen Jean Robb, her listed birthdate is May 27, 1923 and her adoptive parents are Oliver Rutherford Robb and Marguerite Robb (born Burk or Burke) and they lived in Detroit. Is there any hope?

RobertWessel

@Janet2991

Gaining access to adoption records is not easy but it is sometimes possible. If you have not already done so, read the article on the FamilySearch research Wiki regarding Michigan adoption records (see link below). You should also consider having a DNA test done and posted on one of the genealogy sites that will search for relative matches. My father was adopted and I was able to locate a cousin through a DNA match on Ancestry.com.

https://www.familysearch.org/en/wiki/Michigan_Adoption_Research#:~:text=Select%20%22Michigan%22%20in%20the%20drop-down%20menu.%20Then%20check,petition%20the%20court%20to%20open%20sealed%20adoption%20records.

JeffreyBryant1

I highly recommend doing DNA testing. It is great for identifying unknown family lines back several generations. AncestryDNA has the largest database, and is especially large for the United States. Once you get your results you can also move the raw data to several other DNA sites for free.