How do I find out the address of where birth records are kept for someone born in Saarlouis?

AndrewMichel3

My father's family lived in Niedaltdorf, a small village in Saarland, when he was born in 1905. Can I find a record of his birth? He also worked in Mannheim before leaving for the UK in the 1930's. In his later life he received a pension from Germany. How would I find records of the pension?

Thank you for any help, I have hit a blank wall.

dontiknowyou

About finding his birth record: Generally, very small villages are not named in Catholic parish records. So a next step is to identify the parish. To help you get started, these pages on the FamilySearch Research Wiki have relevant information:

https://www.familysearch.org/wiki/en/Germany,_Rhineland,_Diocese_of_Trier,_Catholic_Church_Records_-_FamilySearch_Historical_Records

https://www.familysearch.org/wiki/en/Germany,_Rhineland,_Diocese_of_Trier,_Catholic_Church_Records,_Coverage_Table_-_FamilySearch_Historical_Records

Julia Szent-Györgyi

For Germany, the best starting place for answering "where are the records" is Meyer's Gazetteer, which has an excellent English interface and search function:

https://s.meyersgaz.org/

It indicates that Niedaltdorf had a Catholic church locally, and the civil registry office was in Oberesch.

FamilySearch has parish records from Niedaltdorf; the message indicates that non-LDS users like me need to be at an FHC or affiliate library to view them. (If you have an LDS account on FS, you may have broader access.)

FS also has civil registrations from Oberesch, but only up to 1875: https://www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/68041?availability=Family%20History%20Library

CDBurk

@AndrewMichel3

There are Community Groups that might help you as you expand your research for more contemporary ancestors. You may want to check out joining the Germany Research Group

https://community.familysearch.org/en/group/88-germany-genealogy-research

Many records, especially from other parts of the World, limit information that might be about individuals who may still be living. If you need to find records from Germany, it may be helpful to go to the following Wiki article which will help you locate online records from Germany.

https://www.familysearch.org/wiki/en/Germany_Online_Genealogy_Records

We wish you success with your research.

bathompson

Hello @AndrewMichel3,

We have moved your question to the Search section of the Community.

Thanks!

AndrewMichel3

Thank you for your prompt replies. Andrew

dontiknowyou

Was he Catholic or other? I think the area was predominantly Catholic, but if you have any reason to think he was not Catholic you will have to identify the correct religion or search them all.

About German pensions: I have encountered no pension records on FamilySearch. So contact the pension office directly? https://www.deutsche-rentenversicherung.de/DRV/EN/Home/home_node.html

AndrewMichel3

Thank you! My father was Jewish so I think that I will have to search the civil registry.

dontiknowyou

My father was Jewish so I think that I will have to search the civil registry.

For what it is worth, most of the Michel families I have worked in that part of Germany and adjacent France have been Catholic, at least officially.

Also, Niealtdorf is in a little bubble of Germany on the French side of the river Neid. That means you should also search for the family in France.