Discover online records for German-speaking ancestors from Brandenburg, East Prussia, Pomerania, Posen, Silesia, and West Prussia. Despite some record loss for these geographic areas, hundreds of years of church and civil records can be found in archives in Poland, Germany, and the US, using the search strategies in this presentation.
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Syllabus
My great grandfather used to become angry when someone called him a German, He was a PRUSSIAN! from Gollub, Westpreussen, thank you very much! Still, on some census records, he’s recorded as German.
His wife, though, she’s another story. She’s recorded born in German, in Austria, in Hungary, in Bohemia, and in Poland, Her native language is recorded as both German and Magyar. Her last name, Nemecek, means German in Czech. Three active genealogists in the family haven’t been able to find her, even having done DNA I’d love to see a webinar on how to track someone like this down.
could you please tell me.. what is the name of the statue shown at the start of your presentation? where is located at?
Leanne, the image above is the Neptune Statue in Gdansk, Poland.
Is the syllabus available for viewing the webinar after the live stream?
Donna, the syllabus is available both before and after the live broadcast. The syllabus is a member benefit so members should log in first and then click the syllabus button just below the video. Non-members can use the coupon code above to become members.
Thanks for offering so many alternatives to simply entering an ancestor’s name into the first box that pops up on some of these websites. Guilty as charged! I will definitely change my behavior!
So glad it helped you, Barbara. It is tempting to head straight to what librarians call a “blast search.” But targeted usually wins the day. Good luck in your research and thanks for attending.
Wonderful introduction to Prussian history and research! I know my Great Grandparents were born in Prussia and need to figure out where. They immigrated to America in the mid 1800s.
Perhaps it’s time for a Finding Your Prussian Immigrant Ancestor? Lots of ideas ahead of that one but let me or the nice folks at Legacy FamilyTree know you’re interested.
Excellent list of resources on Prussia to follow up with. Can hardly wait to get started. Thx for explaining the complexities of a place is flux by government invasions, war, and maybe employment opportunities I would like to know more about Prussian armies in time periods.
Other than the Erfurt billeting Ancestry collection posted in the chat, you might start with https://www.bundesarchiv.de/EN/Navigation/Use/Using-specific-types/Military-Records/military-records-en.html. My guess is most Prussian military records are going to be in Germany, but it is a guess. Good luck!
missed the first half but loved the second half and will DEFINITELY be watching the first half as soon as the webinar is available again to view. Gave me ideas and the motivation to start next on my great-great-grandfather from Poland-Prussia-Lithuania ???
Lots of motivation from me, Amy, with the hope you will end up on an ancestral trip to Poland/Lithuania. My trip to Poland was one of wonder. Poles are so open and friendly to English-only speakers like me. Some of my trip reports are here: https://www.sassyjanegenealogy.com/category/prussian-genealogy/
Nancy is an excellent presenter with topical handouts which should help anyone looking for Prussian ancestors.