A German Sojourn

Week 52: #52 Ancestors – Future

By Eilene Lyon

My grandiose future plan regarding genealogy (we’re talking years from now) is an extended stay in Germany, perhaps six months. Many branches of my family hail from the Germanic regions of Europe. The Putterer also has a large German contingent in his tree.

You can see from this map how many ancestral families are concentrated in this region. The yellow points are for The Putterer; mine are purple. The map is interactive.

This seems like a good opportunity to get a feel for the geography involved, and to learn a little about each region. Most of these states acquired their present configuration after World War II.

Starting at the top…

Schleswig-Holstein

Family:

Wulff – Lübeck

Lübeck, at the mouth of the Trave River, was the de facto capital of the Hanseatic League, a medieval commercial and defensive confederation of merchant guilds and market towns in central and northern Europe. The league encompassed portions of seven modern-era countries. Its city center is Germany’s most extensive UNESCO World Heritage Site. Though culturally German for the most part, the state was in dispute with Denmark in the 19^th century.

Mecklenburg-Vorpormmern (Western Pomerania)

Families:

Gaszow – Friedrichshagen

Mund, Groth – Gressow

This northern German state hugs the Baltic Sea, where there are many resort areas. My ancestors came from the northwestern section of the state, near Grevesmühlen, part of the Hamburg metropolitan region. Schwerin is the state capital. Interesting fact: Manuela Schwesig (b. 1974), serving as Minister-President since 2017, is the first female head of state.

Lower Saxony

Families:

Hohnholt, Struss, Bruhn – Oldenburg region

Schroeder – Hanover

Rockefeller – Schaumburg region

These ancestors of The Putterer came from northwestern Germany, bordering the North Sea. The capital is Hanover. Lower Saxony is Germany’s second largest state, larger than Denmark or The Netherlands. Though surrounded by Lower Saxony, Bremen is actually a separate state. Saxons have been in the region since the 7^th century. Hanover was founded in medieval times. Interesting fact: The 300,000-year-old and nearly complete remains of a female straight-tusked elephant were revealed by researchers in May 2020.

Saxony-Anhalt

Families:

Nordt – Beyendorf

Sandring – Osterweddingen

My ancestors Mathias Nordt and Dorothea Sandring married in Osterweddingen and their daughter, Mary Frederica, my great-great grandmother, was born in nearby Beyendorf. Both are part of the Magdeburg metro region (the capital). Saxony-Anhalt has the highest concentration of UNESCO World Heritage sites in Germany. This state was formerly part of East Germany (German Democratic Republic).

North Rhine-Westphalia

Families:

Tils and Wiskirchen – Rheinbach

North Rhine-Westphalia is Germany’s most-populous state with 17.9 million citizens. It’s capital is Düsseldorf, and the largest city is Köln (Cologne). Rheinbach, where my ancestors hail from, features an ancient Roman aqueduct in the city center. In the early 17th century, Rheinbach achieved notoriety because of its witch-hunts. Franz Buirmann, appointed by the Archbishop of Cologne, burned 150 people out of 300 households. Yikes!

Hesse

Family:

Delle – Mainz-Kastel

In 2014 we had a chance to explore Mainz-Kastel, part of the Hesse state capital Wiesbaden. It is culturally (and physically, by bridge) connected to Mainz, capital of Rheinland-Palitinate, on the opposite side of the Rhine River. Much of Mainz-Kastel was rebuilt after WWII (frankly, probably far less attractive than what was there before). Americans think of Hessians in the context of hired British auxiliaries in the Revolutionary War. Interesting fact: The synthetic element hassium, number 108 on the periodic table, was named after the state of Hesse in 1997, following a proposal of 1992.

Rheinland-Palatinate

Families:

Appel – Bosenbach

Leibengut (Livengood) – Oberalben

We visited this state (known as Rheinland-Pfalz in German) in 2014 when we took a bike tour from Merzig (in Saarland state) to Koblenz, along the Saar and Moselle Rivers to the Rhine. This is a prime wine region in Germany. Along the route, we stopped in Trier, founded by Celts in the 4^th century BCE, then conquered by the Romans. It is considered Germany’s oldest city. Palatine was the source of early emigration to America from Germany, many following the invitation of William Penn to settle in Pennsylvania. An emigrant’s museum is located in Oberalban, where my Livengood ancestors originated.

Bavaria

Familes:

Bauer (Bower) – Beikheim

Rockefeller – Fahr

Appel – Schmölz

Bavaria is Germany’s largest state by area, but its least densely populated. Several of The Putterer’s ancestors came from this region, two in the far north part of the state, and one in the far south, close to Austria. The state capital is Munich (München in German), a city we visited in 2011. Munich’s Oktoberfest is the largest beer festival in the world. Unlike the previously described states, Bavaria is largely Catholic. Interesting fact: The geographic center of the European Union is located in the northwestern corner of Bavaria.

Baden-Württemberg

Families:

Springer – Heidelsheim

Wagner – Nöttingen

Scheible – Lomersheim

Dockenwadel – Zazenhausen

Hepler – Stuttgart

I have quite a few ancestors from this German state. What is now Baden-Württemberg was formerly the historical territories of Baden, Prussian Hohenzollern, and Württemberg. Baden-Württemberg became a state of West Germany in April 1952 by the merger of Württemberg-Baden, South Baden, and Württemberg-Hohenzollern. This region is particularly known for its manufacturing companies, including Porsch, Daimler and Bosch. We visited this and the following regions in 2014. In Baden-Württemberg we took a train to Heidelsheim, ancestral home of my Springer line. It is now a bedroom community of Bruchsal. In odd-numbered years they have a Renaissance festival which I’d love to attend.

Alsace, France

Family:

Arbogast – Rittershoffen

The Alsace region of France has German and French cultural heritage and has a complex history. Essentially part of France since the signing of the Treaty of Westphalia in 1648, pockets of German control remained for over a century. The French Revolution effectively ended the feudal era. The only place we visited here was the city of Strasbourg, which is the official seat of the European Parliament. Boat tours are a great way to see the city.

Bern, Switzerland

Family:

Baumgartner – Bremgarten bei Bern

I really must do a blog about our trip to Switzerland one of these days. What an incredibly beautiful place. I would not say that Bern was the highlight, though it is a lovely city. Perhaps cloudy weather dimmed it somewhat in our eyes. My Baumgartner ancestors were actually from an area just outside the city proper, on the north side of the Aare River. The Bern region joined the Swiss Confederacy, becoming one of eight cantons, in 1353. I confess to having a fond regard for Bernese Mountain dogs, though at $3,000 for one, I’ve decided to pass. Besides, our next dog is going to be smaller than Sterling, not larger!

Feature image: Bavarian view from Neuschwanstein Castle (E. Lyon 2011)

Sources:

Google Maps

Wikipedia