does anyone know of a FREE search engine to help me find lost family and old friends?

Answer 1

From Bob Rankin, Tour Bus
Whenever people ask me this question, I tell them about my favorite name, phone and address search tool -- Infospace. At the InfoSpace home page, click on White Pages then you can key in the last name, first name, city and state to start your search for someone in the USA. Here's are some helpful tips to speed up your InfoSpace searching:
Don't enter a first name, or try using just a first initial. The person may be listed under a nickname or a spouse's name.
If a very specific search fails, try leaving one or more of the fields blank.
If you're after someone outside the USA, Infospace also has listings for Canada, United Kingdom, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, Spain and a page with links to other phone directories around the world. Click on "World Directories" at the Infospace home page to get there

Answer 2

Try zabasearch.com