Great Website for Finding Your German Ancestral Village

With family surnames of Schrader (Schroeder), Schmidt, Haessig, Steffen, Schulte, Trenkamp and Bohnenkamp, I knew that eventually I would need to focus on learning more about German geography and jurisdictions.

Other than place names on census and church records, I had no clue where to begin! I was not sure if I was reading the name of a village, duchy, province or state.

This weekend, I discovered a fantastic resource for getting past this stumbling block. It is a website called Meyers Gazetteer, and can be found by clicking the highlighted link.

I played around with the site using various place names I have for my German ancestors.  However, to give you a brief tutorial, I will focus on one area in particular.

In census records, I discovered that my paternal 2x great-grandfather came from Wachendorf. I also know that the majority of the original congregation of Adams Lutheran Church of Ripley County, Indiana came from a Lutheran Church in Heiligenfelde, Germany.

So, I will start from there...

I start with typing Wachendorf in the search box on the home page.

Type in place name in the search box

My results show several places named Wachendorf in Germany. You can tell by my pushpin icon, I have chosen the first result as my most promising lead. Past research shows census records also listing Hannover and Prussia as his birthplace. Also, a past Google Maps search has shown me a Wachendorf near Syke and Heiligenfelde.

Use your past research to help narrow
down best result, if possible.

When I click on the top result, I am given quite a bit of information that should help me in my research. You will first note several key words in old-style writing that should have key words you might recognize.

Next, will be a current map showing the location of your village, etc. I will go into detail about the map in just a minute, but first I would like to point out the cornucopia of helpful information underneath the map.

Details on the village you have entered
should help you in your research.

After reading the volume, page number, and other abbreviations right below the map, I was able to look at the details following it for an explanation of what the abbreviations meant. For example, "Type D. u. LGem" means that Wachendorf is a Dorf und Landgemeinde (village and rural community).

The details also tell you where the civil registration office is, in addition to which government district, province, etc., in which the village belongs.

Add in extra "markers" to aid your research.

Now, back to the maps...I love the feature that allows you to toggle back and forth between a present-day Google map and a historical map.

 You can also add features that you would like to locate within your map. My ancestors went to a Lutheran church in Heiligenfelde, so I added Protestant churches.

It was wonderful seeing how close these were on the historical map! It really put it into perspective!

The same Google map in its historical context

If you are not sure of the exact church your ancestors attended, or even the denomination, click on the "Ecclesiastical" tab. The website will bring up a list of the churches or synagogues nearby, listed with the closest first.

Click on Ecclesiastical tab to discover
nearby places of worship

As you can see for my family, the church in Heiligenfelde was only 2 miles away. This goes along with the information I already have regarding the church.

With so many German ancestors in my family tree, I am sure to be using this website often. It is getting bookmarked in my favorites right now!!

What do you think? For those of you with a German background, try it and tell me what you think!

Facts, Assumptions, and Outright Guesses

We are all guilty of it, and we know it!

I mean it's just human nature, right?!

Whenever we start something new, we always start off with the easier steps first. And, genealogy is no different!

You have seen my many posts about the Hillmans and Moores of Moores Hill area so far, and that is because their history goes back to early statehood years here in Indiana. You have not seen any posts about their East Coast years, because I have hit a brick wall at the moment.

And that is when we all switch over to another line of the tree, isn't it? Or is that just me? LOL

So, on to the Schrader line...

With Schraders, Schmidts, Langes, Steffens, Haessigs, (etc. etc.) taking up a lot of room on my family tree, I have had to learn a lot of German history to even begin my research into these lines. And how does that history tie into the specific dates and places of my ancestors?

Schrader/Lange

Before I even begin looking at my German history notes, I have to remember that my paternal great-grandfather, Albert Cordt, changed the spelling from Schroeder to Schrader. And, it was his father, Cordt Albert, and mother, Margaretha (Lange) that came from Germany in the late 1850's (1857, I think).

Here is where I am getting a little stuck, as I am trying to knock one brick at a time out of this brick wall.

And here, is where I have a combination of the facts, assumptions, and outright guesses that I was referring to in my title.

According to my research into German history, I have discovered that in 1848-1849 there were uprisings and riots. However, I was not able to find where these took place in Germany. I only am curious because it leads to some questions that I cannot answer just yet.

• I will have to look closer at my notes, but this is only approximately 8 years before the Schraders bought their land outside of Batesville.
• When did they leave Germany?
• Where did they leave from in Germany?
• I know where the German church is that much of the congregation of Adam’s Lutheran Church originated. This would be Heiligenfelde, that you see on the map below.
• And since they have been a member of this church since arriving in Indiana, I would have to assume they are from same area. This assumption is based on several factors:



• On census records, they are listed as being from Hannover, Westphalia, and from Prussia.
• This is consistent with where the church is located.
• This is consistent with the location names for the area. Hannover is still a town.
• Researching German history, Westphalia and Prussia are names of this region during this time period.

And, this is all I have. Just a bunch of facts, assumptions, and outright guesses!!

If anyone reading this post happens to know much more about Germany (or this area
specifically), I would love some help!

Thanks so very much! Brick walls are so very much easier with a little help
along the way!!