Genealogical Research in Baden-Württemberg
by Friedrich R. Wollmershäuser, 1992
For over 25 years our company has been specializing in
research in Baden and Wuerttemberg. Over that time we have developed a lot of
resources especially to help genealogists with emigration research to find towns
of origin in Germany. For emigration research we do not charge a fee unless we
can prove the town of origin. Other services include obtaining extracts of
records of birth, marriage, death, probate, court, land and property, etc., and
translation services. In describing some of the databases that we have created
it will give you information about resources available in this part of Germany
for genealogical research as well as showing some of the services we can offer.
Baden
Between 1709 and 1914, hundreds of thousands of
people left their home towns in Baden and emigrated overseas, most of them to
America. Today many of their descendants are searching for these places of
origin, in order to visit them and to trace their ancestry further back by using
German sources.
Before beginning research in Germany, one
must know the emigrant's exact place of origin. Only then can one use parish
registers and public administrational records as sources for further
genealogical research.
Whether you know the exact place of origin
of your ancestor or not, let our 25-years' professional genealogical experience
in the archives and parish offices of Baden help meet your genealogical needs!
Often American sources do not give the name
of the town in Baden where an emigrant came from (or just refer to Baden-Baden
which means the country of Baden rather than the city by this name).
Depending on the period of emigration we
primarily consult the following sources:
1709-1814 Published lists of emigrants; the
censuses of 1709, 1738, and 1765; summonses for missing persons in newspapers
(beginning in the late 1700s); church records of assumed places of origin; and
(if the surname is not too common) books and card files that indicate where a
certain surname occurred at a given time.
1815-1870 The censuses of 1811 and 1818;
the emigration permits in the Karlsruhe and Freiburg State Archives; the file of
participants in the revolution of 1849; church and vital records of assumed
places of origin; the Germanic Emigrants Register; and most important of all our
files of more than 100,000 entries on emigrants for the period 1815 to 1873
(regularly being added to).
1866-1911 The annual lists of emigrants
prepared for the Baden Bureau of Statistics (located in the Karlsruhe State
Archives); and the records quoted before.
Wuerttemberg
Between 1709 and 1914, more than a million people
left their home towns in Wuerttemberg and emigrated overseas, most of them to
America. Today many of their descendants are searching for these places of
origin, in order to visit them and to trace their ancestry further back by using
German sources.
Before beginning research in Germany, one
must know the emigrant's exact place of origin. Only then can one use parish
registers and public administrational records as sources for further
genealogical research.
Often American sources do not give the name
of the town in Wuerttemberg where an emigrant came from (or just refer to
Stuttgart which was the capitol of the former Kingdom of Wuerttemberg).
Depending on the period of emigration we
primarily consult the following sources:
1709-1814 Published lists of emigrants; the
censuses of 1734-1744; summonses for missing persons in newspapers (beginning in
the late 1700s); entries in annual administrational accounts (Amtsrechnungen)
and proceedings (Protokolle) of the district and central administration offices;
church records of assumed places of origin; probate records; the Germanic
Emigrants Register; and (if the surname is not too common) books and card files
that indicate where a certain surname occurred at a given time.
1815-1870 Published lists of emigrants
(such as the Wuerttemberg Emigration Index, the Glatzle collection);
emigration permits at the Ludwigsburg and Sigmaringen State Archives; the emigration records in the Stuttgart State Archives; emigration announcements in
local and statewide newspapers; military conscription records; church and vital
records of the assumed places of origin; and the Germanic Emigrants Register.
1870-1914 Same records as above except for
the newspaper entries; the emigration entries in the records of the province
governments (Kreisregierungen) in the Ludwigsburg State Archives (legal
emigrations only).
