Orbis Environmental Consulting

Our Cultural Resource specialists can help you manage the risk of impacting important historic or archaeological places.

Some of our Favorite Websites for Historic Research

Recently, we posted about a personal connection that Archaeologist Alycia Giedd made with northwest Indiana history.

She discovered we were working near a small town where her ancestors used to live (Furnessville, Indiana). Alycia learned that a handful of her ancestors, including her 4x great grandparents, were buried in the cemetery associated with this town. Once she realized her connection with the town, she used her knowledge of uncovering the past to delve a little bit deeper in to her family’s history.

That social media post generated quite a bit of activity, so we decided to share with you some of the tools we use during our research and how you can use them to research your own family history. Because digging for the past doesn’t have to be done outside in the dirt, you can do it right from your fingertips on the computer.

We use several websites for historic research. Each have strengths and weaknesses, but there is no single “best” site. It all depends on your needs and interests. That said, many sites are very good – click on the link here for a PDF with more info on  just a few of our favorites.

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Tessa M. Aby-Kruger

Botanist

Tessa is a geologist, botanist and vegetation ecologist with over 10 years of experience managing and conducting projects, specializing in ecological and floristic inventories, rare plant surveys, and vegetation monitoring. She also performs wetland evaluations and is a guided hike leader.

Jeremy Sheets

Senior Wildlife Biologist, Vice President

Jeremy is a founding member of Orbis and directs its ecological and wildlife surveys, assessment and planning services, and brings over 20 years’ experience conducting various wildlife surveys with a focus on bat ecology and urban wildlife management.


Jeremy has managed wildlife projects for private firms and the public sector including for wind facilities, pipelines, roadways, military bases, and airports. Jeremy is proficient in wildlife management/control techniques, wildlife identification, threatened and endangered species, and surveying and analysis techniques for mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, fish, and insects. Jeremy is a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Qualified Airport Wildlife Biologists who develop Wildlife Hazard Assessments (WHA) and Wildlife Hazard Management Plans (WHMP) for airports. Jeremy is qualified to inspect erosion, sediment and stormwater plans, and their implementation. Furthermore, Jeremy is federally permitted to conduct endangered bat surveys in USFWS Regions 3, 4, 5, and 6 and includes acoustic surveys, mist-netting, and radio telemetry.

J Ryan Duddleson​

Senior Archaeologist, Principal

Ryan is a founding member of Orbis and directs its cultural resource management services, and brings over 20 years’ experience helping clients assess and minimize the risk of impacting places with cultural value.


Ryan works with public sector clients including federal, state, and municipal government, as well as private firms in energy, transportation, industrial, and development sectors. He also coordinates with agencies and consulting parties involved with the National Environmental Policy Act, Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act, and other related cultural resource laws and regulations. He performs archival research, analysis, and excavation. Ryan also has experience in artifact and archival curation. He has applied innovative techniques to traditional artifact analysis, such as examining organic residues from prehistoric pottery to determine prior contents. Ryan also has experience with human remains in archaeological settings. Ryan meets the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards and Guidelines for Archaeology and Historic Preservation, 48 FR. 44716 and is a Qualified Professional Archaeologist in Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin.