Emigration via Hamburg

Due to the constantly growing offer of online accessible sources for German genealogical research, an important cornerstone of the actual research is more and more disregarded: the classical research in an archive. A good preparation facilitates the archive visit immensely and makes the search in the historical documents an experience that will never replace a research on the screen. Particularly if you intend to add “meat to the bones” and find more valuable information about your ancestors besides dates and places of birth, marriage and/or death. There are many individual records in German archives and it would be a shame never to look at these wonderful documents. A visit to a German archive can be rather intimidating. Besides language barriers, the archival structures are initially often difficult to understand. But help is near! This presentation will cover professional tips & tricks for research in a German Archive – from preparation over execution to follow-up, if applicable. If you are unfamiliar with a specific archive, it is already difficult as a German to make the most of an archival research visit. Particularly as archives do not offer to conduct complex research projects on your behalf, you have to be prepared to do it yourself.

Only since 1893, there is one time zone in Germany! However, in the sources relevant for genealogy there are also dates referring to the Julian and Gregorian calendars, as well as the French revolutionary calendar and the church calendar. Here the differences and conversion to today's dates are explained.

If the church records have been fully searched or if they have been lost, e.g. because of the wars, then there are many other ways to find the German ancestors and fill their life stories with life. While church books still remain the number one source for genealogical research in…

Im 19. und 20. Jahrhundert sind Millionen Menschen über die Häfen in Hamburg und Bremen in ferne Länder auf der anderen Seite des Atlantiks ausgewandert. Dieser Vortrag nennt neben einem geschichtlichen Abriss der deutschen Auswanderung auch die Gründe für diesen großen Schritt. Es werden entscheidende Aspekte der Auswanderung aufgezeigt...

Why is what happened in Augsburg on September 25, 1555 one of the most important historical events in German history and of utmost importance to researchers? And why do we need to know about the French emperor Napoleon? Why does it make such a big difference if a birth took place in 1874 or 1876? Find out in this presentation why knowing the most important events in German history can be helpful for your research.

Learn the 10 top tips and tricks for deciphering the old German script! With tips on how to easily recognize certain letters, how to tell tricky letters apart, abbreviations, spelling variations, names, and more, you'll be amazed at what you can do after only an hour of learning!

Many 19th- and early 20th-century German language newspapers were printed in a Fraktur font. And not only that, they were written in a foreign language! This combination of an archaic font and a foreign language creates two significant hurdles for the 21st century genealogist, perhaps with limited foreign language skills, to overcome. But don’t despair. Modern technology has provided solutions. Learn how to "crack the code" and discover where your favorite newspaper sites have hidden the Optical Character Recognition (OCR) text. Translation tools will quickly make those foreign words readable for even the most die-hard English-only speaker.

This class will briefly explain the different types of DNA (autosomal, Y-DNA and mtDNA) and provide helpful tips for analyzing your DNA matches to identify your strongest matches to help you go back to your immigrant ancestor. A few examples of using this approach will be shown through mini case studies.

Learn how to use Transkribus, ChatGPT and other AI tools to translate German church records, and other records, into English. Learn about cautions and practical uses.