Searching for last name.
I am researching my greatgrandfather. His first name is Theodore. He changed his last name shortly after coming to the united states. Those who knew the name have all passed and would not tell as they were told by Theodore not to tell. He was born in 1854 in Prussia, possibly Hanover. I don't know his Parents first names either. Possibly Bernhard and Mary. Trying to find his last name has been a challenge since searching relies on a last name. Any suggestions would be greatly appriciated.
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@DaleParker3 Since you posted this in the Genetic Group, I'm assuming you are thinking of the possibilities of finding your great grandfather through DNA. That would be one avenue to try. If you have taken a DNA test have you found any matches that can't be ruled out through connection to your other ancestral lines?
I would not give up on finding him through genealogical research also. Did he travel to this country alone or did other family members also emigrate? Could there be friends or neighbors who settled with him who may have come from the same place? You might examine witnesses on legal or church records or land records for people who purchased land adjoining his on the same day. If you want to provide more details of where he settled, occupation, etc. we might possibly come up with other suggestions.
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I have submitted DNA a couple years ago. I have had many matches. I have tried contacting many. Some don't respond. Some matches have trees in Ancestry but no names match. Not sure how to research that.
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He was a farmer who settled in Nebraska, USA. West Point in Cuming county.
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@DaleParker3 Sorry it's taken me a while to respond but I took some time to think it through. If you know of no other family or friends who immigrated with Theodor, you would need to find a record created before he changed his surname. One would be a passenger list. Another might be if he declared his intent to become a citizen before going to Nebraska. To find either of these you would need to milk your sources for clues.
In looking at your Theodor Parker in Family Tree (LHN9-QX7), the attached 1900 and 1910 censuses both say he immigrated in 1871 and was naturalized. His obituary in West Point News, July 27, 1922, reports that he was born in Glandorf, Germany and first settled in Ohio before going to Nebraska:
(The entire article can be accessed at Newspapers.com for free at a FamilySearch Center or by connecting to the church wifi at an LDS chapel.)
But where in Ohio?? This article from the FamilySearch Research Wiki, entitled "Hanover Emigration" has information about where in Ohio the German immigrants settled. It caught my eye that some settled in the town of "Glandorf" in Putnam county. If you go to the Wiki page for Putnam County Ohio and click on "Glandorf" under "Populated Places", it takes you to information about the town, specifically that it was founded by people from Glandorf, Hanover, Germany. If I had to guess, I would look there first for Theodor.
Since we are looking for papers of Declaration of Intent, on the Putnam County wiki page scroll down to Ohio, County Naturalization Records, 1800-1977 at FamilySearch and search for "Theodor" (check mark after to make it exact) and birth place Hanover, birth year 1853. This record for Theodor Puke matches the immigration year of 1871 and also his age:
The Catholic church records for Glandorf, Germany can be accessed through the catalog at FamilySearch. Search for place name: German Empire, Prussia, Hanover, Iburg, Glandorf. I did not find Theodor, but the surname "Puke" is prevalent in the records of this village. This is further indirect evidence that this Theodor Puke is your guy. Now, you will need to try to disprove it.
In addition, I would look again at your DNA matches and see if any that you cannot identify can trace ancestral lines to Ohio.
I wish you luck and hope this is helpful. If you have more questions, don't hesitate to post them.
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I can't thank you enough for the info I received from you. It's the closest I've ever been to finding out the name. Ready to give up many times. The story goes he changed his name to Parker because a man he worked had the last name Parker.
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@DaleParker3 I can't let you go without sharing the tools you will need to research Theodor and his family in Germany. These are not just helpful, they are essential unless you are an experienced German researcher. I am not so I use these tools all the time to help others:
- Matricula Online This is a free website with Catholic church registers, mostly from Germany. The reason you will not find Theodor in the records on FamilySearch is that they start in 1853 and Theodor was actually born Dec 6th, 1852. His younger siblings can be found on FamilySearch, but Theodor's christening is only on Matricula. To find records on Matricula, from the home page click on "Fonds" from the Header bar. Then click on "Deutschland", then "Osnabrück, rk. Bistum", then "Glandorf St Johannis". From there, pick the register you want by date: Baptisms (Taufen), Marriages (Heiraten), and Burials (Beerdigugen). The images are not as clear as FamilySearch, but legible.
- Handwriting Helps This chart of old German letters and this conversion tool are especially helpful. Also try this AI tool.
- German Genealogical Word List
- Meyers Gazetteer This will help you immensely with jurisdictions. Also, clicking on "Ecclesiastical" gives you where all the churches are located. Clicking on "maps" lets you see surrounding villages.
- German Research Group Join this group and get help from experts!
The records on Matricula for Glandorf start in 1655. You have a gold mine of records to trace your ancestry back several generations. If it were me, I would find the marriage of Theodor's parents to know what year to start finding the children. Happy hunting!
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Since Theodor came from Germany, I recommend moving your DNA results to MyHeritage. MyHeritage is based in Israel and the database there will most likely give you more matches in Germany.
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I've asked a friend to do a lookup for Theodor Puke in Archion.
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Do you know what church he attended in the United States? Was he Catholic or Lutheran? There are no records in Archion for Glandorf.
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St. Johannis. Quite a bit was found by another community member. Do I have to be a member of MYheritage to transfer DNA? My greatgrandfather (Theodor Puke) had many siblings. I would love to find any relatives from that area or elsewhere.
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You can move your DNA results from Ancestry to MyHeritage for free. If you are a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints you can also have a free account at MyHeritage and Ancestry through familysearch.org/partneraccess.
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