Helpful German Research Web Sites
This handout describes twenty-two Web sites that provide information and resources for
German research. It demonstrates that the Internet can be helpful in every phase of the
investigation.
I. YOU’RE NOT ALONE – LEARNING AND SHARING
#
1
WEB SITE
https://familysearch.org/ask/
DESCRIPTION
The “ask” section of Familysearch.org includes the
Research Wiki, courses, and other research helps.
The Research Wiki is an open encyclopedia for
genealogical research. Find information and contribute your
knowledge. (Sign-in is required for contributions)
 This is a work in progress!
 Type research topic in “search” box. The Wiki is
arranged geographically; topics follow FHLC model
 Blue- has content; red- empty
 Anyone can edit information; there is a manual of
style and a user group.
 Many pages contain links to other helpful Web sites
Research courses include various online classes about
German research and reading German script.
2
https://familysearch.org/
Search for ancestors by name on the main page. Search
features available across the website include:
 search on any field
 can use wildcards
 exact search
 surname not required
The “Family Tree” feature contains millions of patronsubmitted lineage-linked genealogies. Users can add
photos, stories, and sources along with genealogical
information.
The blog contains hundreds of interesting and helpful
tidbits.
3
www.translate.google.com
German “training wheels”
Although electronic translation is far from perfect, it does a
reasonably good job translating tabs and other simple text.
To use, go to “google.translate” first, choose the “from” and
“to” languages, then type or paste in the Web site or text.
The Web site will come up in the desired language.
NOTE: DO NOT USE electronic translation programs to
translate correspondence you wish to send to someone,
such as a record request.
II. FINDING THE GERMAN PLACE OF ORIGIN
#
4
WEB SITE
www.ancestry.com






DESCRIPTION
Use census records to document the immigrant’s life
in the U.S
Use all other record types and searches to learn
more
Use user-submitted information with special
caution – it may be right on, or way off
The immigration collection includes passenger lists
for major ports, U.S. passport applications,
naturalization indexes, and lists of emigrants from
various parts of Germany
Also the Hamburg passenger lists and indexes
[images] [currently indexed on Ancestry 1877-1914]
Some 18th Century sources, including “Rupp’s” and
“Strassburger-Hinke,” and Frelinghuysen’s “The
Early Germans of New Jersey.”
To locate German emigration databases
 Go to Card Catalog
 Under “record type,” click on “Immigration &
Naturalization Records”
 On the bottom of the next screen is “refine your
search…”
 Enter “German” in the “keyword” field. This will give
you the best list of resources to browse
5
http://www.germanroots.com/
ei.html
Emigration & Immigration Records & Links
including Ship Passenger Lists and Naturalization Records
This website is an Internet portal. It takes you to other
Websites. There are several sections for U.S. and Canada
and European records. Most of the links are to free
Websites.
 Two immigration sections: 1820 to 1940s and Pre1820 Immigration
 Links to lists for specific ports [i.e. Ellis Island]
 Links to naturalization information, mostly about
laws and other reference material
 Links to sites with ship information and pictures
 Links to passenger lists and information about
various European ports


6
http://www.roots-ingermany.de/
Under “Online German Emigration Records and
Indexes” you find links to emigrant lists, arranged by
modern German state. Some are in German; some
are in English.
Available information varies by state
German Internet portal for emigration to America
Includes links to passenger lists and emigrant lists arranged
by modern German state.
 Click on “German resources”
 The bullet “all of Germany” leads to various
passenger list collections.
 For regional lists of emigrants choose the modern
German state. Be aware that some modern German
states include parts of several historical areas.
 Available resources vary by state
III. IDENTIFYING PLACES AND JURISDICTIONS
#
7
WEB SITE
https://wiki.familysearch.org/en/
Germany
http://search.ancestry.com/searc
h/db.aspx?dbid=1074
https://www.familysearch.org/lea
rn/wiki/en/Step-bystep_guide:_Using_Meyers_Gaz
etteer_Online
8
9
https://familysearch.org/learn/wik
i/en/German_Research_on_the_
Internet_-_an_Overview_complete_handout
http://wikide.genealogy.net/Portal:DigiBib
DESCRIPTION
Meyer’s Gazetteer of the German Empire is available
online at FamilySearch.org [browse by volume, letter, and
page numbers] and Ancestry.com [fully indexed]
Access:
 To access the FamilySearch version, click on the
link found under “research tools” on the Germany
home page in the FamilySearch Wiki.
 To access the Ancestry.com database, click on
“Search,” go down to “Card Catalog,” enter
“Meyers” in the “Title” field, choose “Meyers
Gazetteer of the German Empire”
Instructions for using Meyer’s are found on
www.familysearch.org.
This handout contains links to various regional gazetteers
and parish register inventories, arranged alphabetically by
state/region.
The DigiBib, part of www.compgen.de, also known as
www.genealogy.net, makes digital images of important
genealogical literature, including family histories,
gazetteers, and other reference works, available online.
Each month new projects are added in various categories,
including parish register inventories, local and regional
history, heraldry, and many other topics.
These are volunteer projects open for participation. In each
category, the small word “mehr” (more) is the link to the
complete list of available material. Projects are at various
stages of completion. Examples shown include a gazetteer
of Hessen, a 1901 church book inventory for the Kingdom
of Saxony, and a published genealogy of French Huguenot
families who had settled in Berlin.
In its finished stage, a transcribed copy of each page in
modern type is found on the left side of each page, while it
is possible to link to a copy of the original page on the right
and enlarge it. The project uses DjVu picture files, which
require a special viewer that can be downloaded from
LizardTech. For more information, see the article “Using the
DigiBib (Digital Library) on www.genealogy.net” on
https://wiki.familysearch.org, found under “Germanydigital resources.”
Categories listed on the DigiBib home page include












Genealogische Literatur- genealogical literature
Tagebűcher und Handschriften – journals and
manuscripts
Heraldik -heraldry
Raritäten - rarities
Adressbűcher, Staatskalender etc. – address
books, state calendars etc.
Militärisches – military resources
Pfarr-und Kirchenbuchverzeichnisse – parish- and
parish register inventories
Historische Karten – historical maps
Ortslexika, Topografien, Statistiken etc. –
gazetteers, topographical and statistical material,
etc.
Chroniken - histories
Sonstige Nachschlagewerke, Vermischtes – other
reference works, miscellaneous
Andere digitale Bibliotheken- other digital libraries
Each section on the portal page mentions either
representative or the most recently acquired titles. Click on
"mehr..." to access the complete list of books available in
this category. Among the latest DigiBib projects is an
original court record book for Dorn-Assenheim, Kreis
Friedberg, Hessen, from the 17th century.
10
http://www.library.wisc.edu/et
ext/ravenstein/home.html
The Ravenstein Atlas of the German Empire is detailed
down to the parish level. All the maps can be downloaded
in sections. The accompanying gazetteer, also
downloaded, helps locate places on the maps.
The home page includes detailed user instructions for
downloading the gazetteer [index] and maps, plus some
explanations about the atlas and its application in
genealogical research.
Adobe Reader, which can be downloaded free of charge,
is required to open and view these files.
IV. GETTING INTO RESEARCH
#
11
WEB SITE
http://www.kirchenbuchportal.
de/inhalt.htm
DESCRIPTION
This newly established church book portal will be a
repository for digital church records held by church
archives of various denominations. To begin with, several
participating archives have posted PDFs of parish register
inventories of their areas. This information is also available
in a database format. Longer-range goals include posting
digital copies of the church books themselves. Since this
requires substantial investments in expensive technology,
there will be a charge for using the records.
http://www.kirchenbuchportal.
de/visit.htm
The list of participating archives includes blue fiche icons
for inventories posted in PDF format.
http://www.kirchenbuchportal.
findbuch.net
The database includes details of the church record
holdings for the following archives
 Evangelisch-Lutherische Kirche in
Norddeutschland
 Bistum Speyer
 Bistum Augsburg
 Ev. Kirche von Westfalen
 Ev.-Luth. Kirche in Thüringen (EKM)
 Ev.-Luth. Landeskirche Hannovers
 Bistum Hildesheim
 Ev. Landeskirche in Baden
 Ev. Kirche von Kurhessen-Waldeck
 Ev.-Luth. Kirche Mecklenburgs
 Mennonitischer Geschichtsverein e.V.
 Ev. Kirche der Pfalz
 Ev. Kirche A.B. in Rumänien
The inventories are usually organized by church district
first, and then by parishes. For each parish, all volumes
are described with number, contents, and time period
covered.
12
http://matricula-online.eu/
This website is a portal intended to allow free public
access to interdenominational church records from
Western Europe. Currently included are:
 Catholic parish registers of the Diocese of St.
Pölten, the Archdiocese of Vienna, and the State
Archive of Upper Austria
 Numerous parishes in Passau Diocese, Bavaria,
Germany
 Evangelical records of parishes in the
Gelnhausen, Hessen-Nassau, Germany area
 Evangelical records of sixteen parishes in the
Rhineland region, Germany
Most of these records have not been filmed by the Family
History Department.
The church record inventories that used to be found on
this site have been moved to
http://www.kirchenbuchportal.findbuch.net
13
www.genealogy.net/genealogy
(English front page)
The foremost German genealogy Web site, this is a portal to
various resources.
www.Genealogy.net or
www.compgen.de
http://www.archivschule.de/DE/s

The GenWiki includes numerous articles on locating
and using records and links to many informative Web
sites.

The DigiBib included images of various historical
publications of interest to the family historian

The site includes about 230 fully searchable town
genealogies, and a bibliography of printed OFBs
(Ortsfamilienbuecher)

The reference collection includes pages on measures,
archaic terms, historic occupations etc.

Several databases are designed to share research
results (FOKO, GedBas)

Other collections include address books, family
announcements in newspapers [mostly 1990 and
later], and funeral cards.

An online gazetteer [work in progress]
14
ervice/archive-iminternet/archive-in-deutschland/
Links to Archive Websites by archive type:





Archive portals for each modern state
State archives – alphabetical list
Community archives – alphabetical list
Church Archives – separate lists for Lutheran and
Catholic archives
Four other types of archives
Important: Only archives that have an Internet presence
are included in this listing!
http://www.hadis.hessen.de/
Online inventories are marked with a hyperlinked “B’
[=Bestandsverzeichnis- inventory]
Example: Hessen
“HADIS” Hessisches Archiv- und Dokumentationssystem”
Quick search: enter search term in the line on the bottom
left. The results will include all record groups that include
the search terms. When looking for emigrants, search the
record group “Auswanderernachweise.” Hits are grouped
in sets of twenty and include source citations.
However, you can also search for local institutions,
community leaders, and many other things. We searched
for a mill described as “Dammmühle.” A search for that
term resulted in results for various record collections. The
mill in question was located in Wehen. And sure enough, a
set of records dealing with needed improvements
contained the information the patron needed. With the
“signature” [call number] he was able to send for a copy of
the file, which contained two pages with key information.
15
http://www.ancestry.com/
Some inventories are very detailed, listing names of
persons involved. Others are very general. Just the same,
it is helpful to know which types of record are available.
Examples of available records
 Mecklenburg-Schwerin 1819, 1867, 1890 Census
records indexes and images
Each census has a different format. The 1819 census
is most helpful because it includes birth date and birth
place of each person.

Mecklenburg Schwerin and Mecklenburg-Strelitz
church records 1876-1918, Indexes and images.

Lübeck City records, including censuses, citizensip
lists, births, marrieages, deaths

Bavaria World War I military service registrations –
first installment
Indexes are searchable on every field. Wild cards can
be used after three letters. Phonetic search and exact
search available. I obtain better results by using “exact
search” and varying the search parameters.
Common indexing errors include:
 Confusing “u” and “n,” occasionally also “e” [i.e.
town Erlangen also listed as Erlaugen]
 Mixing up straight consonants [i.e. Haewecker vs.
Haervecker]
 Misreading vowels [i.e. Reed vs. Rud(olph)]
V. READING AND UNDERSTANDING RECORDS
#
WEB SITE
DESCRIPTION
16 https://familysearch.org/learning Under “Germany,” users can access several classes about
German research and three classes on reading German
center/home.html
handwriting.
17 http://script.byu.edu
Learn how to read and write the German script. This site
also provides practice lessons.
18 https://familysearch.org/learn/wi
ki/en/Main_Page
Genealogical word lists for various languages are found
easily by using the “search” box.
19 http://www.antiquusmorbus.co
m/Index.htm
An alphabetized list of illnesses and causes of death
often found in church records
20 http://homepages.rootsweb.anc
estry.com/~george/oldgermanp
rofessions.html
A list of historic professions [German – English]
VI. LEARNING ABOUT GERMAN HISTORY
21
http://germanhistorydocs.ghidc.org/about.cfm
German history in documents and images, an online tutorial divided
by time periods. Each section includes:
 An historical overview
 Selected primary source documents
 Selected images originating from or relating to the period
 A selection of relevant maps.
22
http://www.zum.de/whkmla/his
tatlas/germany/haxgermany.ht
ml
Colored outline maps of various parts of the German Empire with
links to other Web sites explaining historical background.
CONCLUSION
The Internet is a treasure trove of information and resources. The Web sites discussed here are
only a small sample of what is literally at your fingertips. So- remember the advice on how to eat
an elephant, and start searching the Internet, one fascinating Web site at a time!
*The ICAPGENSM service mark, and the Accredited Genealogist® and AG® certification marks are the
sole properties of the International Commission for the Accreditation of Professional Genealogists.
Permission to use granted upon completion of a proctored competency examination. All rights reserved.
© AUG 2013 by Intellectual Reserve Inc. All rights reserved.