From German Girls Genealogy (Teresa Steinkamp McMillin & Debra A. Hoffman): Last week, we talked about Debra’s ancestor, Wilhelm Heinrich Weber, who was born in Wahlen, Alfeld, Hessen in historic Germany. She found the name of his birthplace in his church funeral record. That record gave his birthplace as “Whalen, Kreis Alsfeld, Hess. Darmstadt.” To… Continue reading Deciphering Misspelled Place Names

The German town of origin is necessary for conducting research in Germany because Germany was not a unified country until 1871. For later immigrants to the United States, this information may be easier to find on passenger lists than for earlier immigrants. For those early immigrants, United States church records can be a great source… Continue reading The Value of US Church Records

From German Girls Genealogy (Teresa Steinkamp McMillin & Debra A. Hoffman): When a person was leaving historical areas that became Germany, they were often legally obligated to get permission. This differed by time and place. Usually, nineteenth century migrants were under some obligation to register. The requirements generally ensured people paid their debts and men… Continue reading German Emigration Records

From German Girls Genealogy (Teresa Steinkamp McMillin & Debra A. Hoffman): As we noted in the last post, conducting research in Germany requires knowing the German town of origin. Unfortunately, sometimes when you find the name of the town, there are more than one town with the same name! How do we narrow the choices… Continue reading How to Determine Which Town of Origin is the Right One?

From German Girls Genealogy (Teresa Steinkamp McMillin & Debra A. Hoffman): Conducting research in Germany, requires knowing the German town of origin. Unfortunately, for many researchers that is the missing piece of information. Sometimes finding that critical piece of information can be easy. Other times, the search continues. Debra found the town for her 4th… Continue reading Finding a German Town of Origin

From German Girls Genealogy (Teresa Steinkamp McMillin & Debra A. Hoffman): Teresa and I finished our presentations this week in “Course One – Methods and Sources in Practice” coordinated by Rebecca Whitman Koford, CG® and “Course Two – Intermediate Genealogy and Historical Studies” coordinated by Angela Packer McGhie, CG®. These courses are hosted by the… Continue reading IGHR Coming to a Close

From German Girls Genealogy (Teresa Steinkamp McMillin & Debra A. Hoffman): This week we are preparing for the sessions we will be teaching in “Course Two – Intermediate Genealogy and Historical Studies” hosted by the Institute of Genealogy and Historical Research (IGHR). Angela Packer McGhie, CG® is the coordinator for this week-long course. IGHR was… Continue reading IGHR Next Week

From German Girls Genealogy (Teresa Steinkamp McMillin & Debra A. Hoffman): This week we are putting the finishing touches on our syllabus materials for German Phase 1: Identify the German Hometown. This virtual course is set to run each Tuesday starting October 14 through November 11, 2025, and is offered through the Salt Lake Institute… Continue reading German Phase 1 Update

Recently in Columbus, Ohio, we had the opportunity to visit the local history and genealogy area at the Columbus Metropolitan Library. They have a lot of interesting collections that we could have spent months—probably years—exploring. In 2009, the large collection curated by the Palatines to America (PALAM) moved to this library. It contains many of… Continue reading Columbus (OH) Metropolitan Library