Discovering a sample of your ancestor's handwriting

If you are interested in finding a sample of your ancestor's handwriting, it might just be at your fingertips. In her latest article, "Google Books: A Source for Ancestral Handwriting," Judy Rosella Edwards suggests a novel approach for finding personal inscriptions and signatures. In the past, it might have been necessary to inherit books with a family inscription, or you might have "happened" upon such a book in the local library. While such signatures themselves are not indexed (yet), you might find success with a little creative sluething.