Town of Hilton Head Island issued the following announcement on February 11.
As part of their Family Research Project, the Town of Hilton Head Island and the Heritage Library will host two workshops on heirs’ property this month.
The free workshops will be held on Tuesday, February 15, from 5 pm to 7 pm at Queen Chapel AME Church, 114 Beach City Road and on Saturday, February 19, from 10 am to 12 pm at the Coastal Discovery Museum, 70 Honey Horn Drive.
Heirs' property is land that has been passed down from the original deed holder to future generations without benefit of a formal will or probate. Although the family members know the land is theirs, their claim has not been established by the county, thus leaving the family without a title. This land is restricted from development and vulnerable to exploitation, no matter who lives there or who pays the taxes.
The workshops are among recommendations that the Town's Office of Historic Neighborhoods and its Gullah Geechee Culture and Land Preservation Task Force are implementing to help Gullah Geechee families protect land and culture.
Sheryse DuBose, PhD, the Historic Neighborhoods Preservation Administrator for the Town of Hilton Head Island, and Linda Piekut, the Family Research Project Coordinator, will present the workshops. Workshop topics include understanding heirs' property, using the Family Research Project to help obtain clear titles to property and working through the probate process.
For more information, contact Sheryse DuBose at SheryseD@hiltonheadislandsc.gov or 843-341-4683.
Original source can be found here.