The primary interest of the editors is those branches of the family having the spelling of Pearsall who came from England to America, the first being Thomas Pearsall, tobacco trader of Virginia, who removed there soon after 1630. Vol. 3 includes the autobiography of the editor, Clarence Eugene Pearsall.

This is a comprehensive, illustrated guide to tracing British ancestry, equally suitable for beginners and those who have already started the search for their roots. The book guides the researcher for their roots. The book guides the researcher through the substantial British archives with a detailed finding aids or indexes. the early chapters include advice on obtaining information from relatives, drawing on family trees and starting research in the records of births, marriages and deaths, or in census records; later chapters guide researchers to the records that are ore that are more difficult to find and use, such as legal and property records.