I like what your're trying to do. What State are you looking for land records in? Here's a website that tells you a lot of things on how to get started doing land record research.
http://freepages.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~mdtmgug/education/la...Assuming your ancestors owned land, you WILL be able to find exactly where it is today- maybe not in the same form but it WILL be there.