The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), in accordance with FAR Part 13, Simplified Acquisition Procedures, intends to issue a Request for Quotation (RFQ) to conduct specialized research in Horry, Marion, and Georgetown Counties in South Carolina. This research involves properly placing the early Proprietary and King's Grants for land in these areas. This area has a rich cultural and historical heritage that has gone relatively unnoticed mainly because of the difficulty in tracing the early land titles and inhabitants. Prior to the nineteenth century, records for this area were kept in Charleston and Georgetown Counties. The records for Georgetown District (1785 - 1862) were burned during the Civil War. Horry and Marion Counties were formed c. 1802 from Georgetown District; therefore, records for these counties from the period 1785 - 1802 are no longer available. The original grants and plats were kept in Charleston and most of these are still intact. Oftentimes, it is only through a detailed study of the early land grants and the early land grantees that the properties can be property placed. The very earliest grants are the most difficult to find because many of these were granted to the early Landgraves and Cassiques who often did not take the time to have the properties surveyed. They received so many grants and such a huge amount of land that they generally passed title to the properties, placing the responsibility on the subsequent land owner to have the properties surveyed and platted. The method of study starts with locating the original land grants filed in Charleston, with copies at the South Carolina Department of Archives and History in Columbia. These grants would preliminarily be laid out in map form. These grants must then be confirmed by a search of the title which involves a study of the following: (i) Charleston deeds - housed in Charleston, with copies at the South Carolina Department of Archives and History in Columbia; (ii) Memorials - housed in Charleston, with copies at the South Carolina Department of Archives and History in Columbia. Memorials were required by the British Crown for all land owners to ensure proper taxation; (iii) Quit Rents - housed in Charleston, with copies at the South Carolina Department of Archives and History in Columbia. When a tract of land was granted by the King, he charged a fee based on the amount of land granted; usually so many pence per hundred acres. There are four volumes of these existing which cover the years 1735 - 1742 and 1760 - 1774. When deeds were not recorded by a landowner and the descent of title to a tract of land was not mentioned in a Memorial, the Quit Rent books often show from whom the land was purchased and the date of purchase; (iv) Will Books - these four books have been abstracted and are in volume form. They are generally in most libraries. Transfer of land by will is one of the more common forms of land descent; (v) Individual genealogies - sometimes to follow the descent of a particular grant, it will be necessary to study an entire family. This information can be found in private collections, historical societies, and on the internet; (vi) Miscellaneous records - housed in Charleston, with copies at the South Carolina Department of Archives and History in Columbia. These records include the estates of the deceased grantees and their assignees among other records not included in land transfers; and, (vii) Georgetown, Marion, and Horry Counties deeds - these are housed at the various courthouses and in the case of Marion County, at the Marion County Historical Society. The FWS intends to award a Firm-fixed price contract as a result of this solicitation. The issue date of the RFQ will be on or about December 22, 2003, with a tentative closing date of February 5, 2004. The FWS is currently using Electronic Commerce to issue solicitations and resulting awards. You may view this RFQ a http://www.fedbizopps.gov. In order to submit a quote on-line, you must register at the Central Contractor Registration site, http://www.ccr.gov. After registration, you will be able to view posted solicitations, awards and submit quotations on-line. All prospective offerors with access to the Internet and E-mail can receive electronic notification of awards. Offerors responding to this solicitation must have a minimum of five years experience completing extensive research of court records, historical society records, and genealogy. A written summary of the contractor's experience in this area must be included with the RFQ and be verifiable Only written, facsimile or e-mail request for this solicitation package will be accepted. The facsimile number is
+1 (555) 000-0000. The North American Industry Classification Code (NAICS) Code 524127 is applicable to this solicitation. The size standard is $5.0 million. This solicitation is a 100% set-aside for small business (See Numbered Note 1).*****
