Help locating records
I need help locating records or any information on a few relatives from Germany. I have ran across quite a bit of misinformation across various places - so any help is very much appreciated!
People & Information
•Herman J Retzlaff (LT6X-SKZ) - Location of birth (Have seen it listed as Geno, Germany - but I cannot find it's location), Parents are unknown. Marriage in 1895 (?) To Mathilda Augusta Radatz - location listed as Thumberg, but cannot find where it's located or any information regarding it being a place...
•Mathilda Augusta Radatz (LT6X-S7S) - Location of birth and parents are unknown
•Paul Henry Retzlaff (LKM3-978) - Birth Records (Berlin)
•Elsie Henrietta Retzlaff (L6M1-F6H) Location of birth unknown
•Arthur William Retzlaff (G36P-VF8) - Birth Records (Biesendorf)
The came to the USA in May 1902. Departed from Rotterdam and Arrived in New York.
Trying to keep it brief, but if you have any questions I'll answer what I know to the best of my ability 🙂
최고의 답변
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I had originally thought the family was likely Lutheran but felt unsure when I saw a son involved in the Catholic Church in the US. Religion is key in finding records in Germany, especially before 1875. As it turns out, the family was indeed originally Lutheran.
After a bit of digging, I found Herman Retzlaff's declaration to become a US citizen. There he stated that he was born in "Guno, Germany" on 8 April 1862 and that he last resided in "Besendahl-Hoff, Germany". Playing around with phonics, I found "Biesendahlshof" in Kreis Randow, Pommern, see https://www.meyersgaz.org/place/10169055 This farming estate belongs to Woltersdorf, which is part of the Evangelical parish of Hohenselchow in Pomerania. The parish registers for this parish are available online on the subscription website www.archion.de.
There, I found the birth/baptism entry for Arthur Wilhelm Friedrich Retzlaff, born 16 August 1901 to Hermann Retzlaff, laborer in Biesendahlshof, and his wife Mathilde Raddatz. He was baptized on 15 September 1901. Once you have registered on Archion and paid for your subscription [called a "pass"] you can see the record here http://www.archion.de/p/4f8d8d83d5/
The parish register appears to be divided up into different books or sections for the various villages under its jurisdiction. This book is labeled "Woltersdorf" on the first page
Book label: Norddeutschland: Landeskirchliches Archiv der Evang.-Luth. Kirche > Kirchenkreis Pommern > Hohenselchow > Taufen 1889-1910 image 23
The naturalization record is found on FamilySearch here https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-CS38-R9VC-5?i=347&cat=2549973 DGS 101731853 image # 348. If you can't access the image from home, try going to a family history center.
A good resource for finding out which records exist for places in Pomerania is found at https://www.pommerscher-greif.de/quellensuche.html.
Going South on the map associated with Besendahlshof on www.meyersgaz.org is a village called Cunow. In the gazetteer and on the Pomerania database website it is spelled Kunow. Woltersdorf is also listed as the associated Lutheran parish for this place.
Unfortunately, I only found the one child listed in that Woltersdorf book so far, but this does give you a definite starting point.
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Northwest of Biesendahlshof is Blumberg, which could be synonymous with "Thumberg". It had a Lutheran parish, but the records are not online. Your best bet may be to contact the regional civil registration office in Gartz, see https://www.pommerscher-greif.de/qdb_adressen.html?id=78 for contact information. It seems to hold the records of several civil registration offices in this area. You should definitely be able to get Arthur's civil birth record from there, but ask them about looking for the other children and especially the parents' marriage record.
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Thank you for all of your help with this!!
What would be my best chance at finding birth location for Mathilda or her parents and I'm assuming Herman's records with list his parents as well? Paul's obituary stated he was a native of Berlin which at that time would have been in Prussia from what I believe. Also, what did you mean by playing around with phonetics and how do you figure out words or places that are synonymous with each other? (Sorry I'm quite new at this)
It all seems so overwhelming utilizing all the different resources and keeping them straight even with the three-ring binder that I've started making
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As for how to identify a place name using phonics, it's a matter of playing with different letter combinations that make similar sounds and using wild cards effectively. The online gazetteer www.meyersgaz.org has a built-in phonetic search, and it also accepts multiple wild cards.
I first collected different place name variants associated with your family from the passenger list [nearly illegible], obituaries, draft registration cards, and that naturalization record. If I remember right, there were Betzendorf, Biesendorf, etc. . The naturalization record turned out to be closest to the actual spelling. Once I found Biesendahlshof, I searched the associated map for places that could look or sound like "Thumberg", i.e. Blumberg just a few miles West, or Geno/ Guno, remembering that many place names in this area end in "ow" with a silent "w". Step by step we search for more clues. It's real detective work, and your new notebook/ binder will come in handy!
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답변들
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What was their religion?
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I believe "Berlin" to be incorrect. Most likely it only made its way into print because people recognize it as a German city. Many people come from "near Berlin", even if they are actually from the other end of Germany. And from "near Berlin: to "Berlin" it's only a small step.
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That said, you need to begin with what you know. At least now you know that the family's last place of residence in Germany was Biesendahlshof, where the Evangelical church was Woltersdorf, an affiliate of Hohenselchow parish. As a laborer, Herman would not have had the money to travel very far once he had a family. Chances are that the other two children were born fairly close nearby and that his marriage also took place somewhere within maybe a 20-mile radius or less. But there are a lot of parishes within that area. And most of the respective church records are not readily available at this time. The border between the Prussian states Brandenburg and Pommern [English: Pomerania] is also very close. Biesendahlshof is on the Pomerania side of the border.
In Prussia, civil registration of births, marriages, and deaths began in October of 1874. this means that Arthur's birth was also recorded in the local civil registration office of Pinnow, whose records are now held in that district office in Garz mentioned in my post.
Going from known to unknown, you should now write to that archive and request "complete extracts or photocopies" of the birth records for the three children born there and the parents' marriage. You can mention that the parents may have been married in Blumfeld, civil registration office K/Casekow. Would they please check there as well? Be sure to ask how you can pay them for their services and the copies. If the other kids and the parents' marriage are not found in those records you at least know where they are not. that helps in the long run. The next steps depend on the outcome of this activity.
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