Germany Emigration and Immigration: Difference between revisions

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In order to research your ancestor in German records, you need to know the exact town of origin. Most of the time this information is found in U.S. sources. Thus it is very important to search all available records in the United States first.  

See also,[[United States Immigration Online Genealogy Records|U.S. Immigration Online Genealogy Records]] and [[United States Naturalization Online Genealogy Records|U.S. Naturalization Online Genealogy Records]].

*[http://www.germanyroots.com Germany Roots]

*[http://bit.ly/1GtsRTg Immigrant Ships Transcribers Guild (Outgoing passengers)]

*[http://search.ancestry.com/search/db.aspx?dbid=2356 Palestine, Illegal Immigration from German-Occupied Europe, 1938-1945 (USHMM)], ($), index

==History==

Most emigrants left Germany during the following periods:  

Records were created when individuals emigrated from Germany. Other records document their arrival in the destination country. This section discusses the following subjects:  

*[http://www.germanroots.com/emigration.html Online German Emigration Records, Lists and Indexes]

*Records of German emigrants in their destination countries

Once you have traced your family back to a German immigrant, you must find the city or town your ancestor came from if you wish to find earlier generations. The records you will need to continue your research, such as birth, marriage, and death records, are kept in local areas. Germany has no nationwide index to these records.  

Several sources may reveal where your ancestor came from. You may learn of your ancestor's place of origin by talking to older family members. Other relatives or a library may have documents that name the city or town, such as the following:  

*Passports

[[Tracing Immigrant Origins]] gives more suggestions for finding your ancestor's place of origin.

Significant numbers of German emigrants can be found on every continent and in many countries around the world. Millions of people left Germany in several waves of migration.

*[http://www.routes.de/research.html Find Your Roots in Germany]

*[http://www.stevemorse.org/ One-Step Webpages by Stephen P. Morse]

===Passenger Departure Lists===  

DENMARK, KØBENHAVN, KØBENHAVN EMIGRATION AND IMMIGRATION

Passports became important in Germany during the 19th century as a control measure. Before that a passport was a form of recommendation. A letter given to the traveler made his passage within and outside of German territories easier, depending on the influence the issuer had. Passports were both status symbol for uninterrupted travel and legal documentation for members belonging to fringe groups. Mandatory passports were required only in times of crises, when there were epidemics and political or military conflicts. Such documents were restricted to time and space.  

GERMANY, WÜRTTEMBERG, STUTTGART - EMIGRATION AND IMMIGRATION

Germans had to apply for permission to emigrate from most areas. The Family History Library has these application records for several states and cities, including Baden, Rheinland, the Pfalz, and Zwickau. For example, the library has microfilmed the emigration application records of Württemberg. They list the emigrant's birthplace, residence, assets, and indebtedness. Most Württemberg records consist of applications and accompanying documents that were collected by district offices. These records begin in the mid-1700s, with most from the 1800s. Most districts also have handwritten indexes for the mid-1800s. Six published volumes of indexes are available, which so far cover 35 of the 64 districts:  

For Bayern there is a periodical entitled Blätter des Bayrischen Landesvereines für Familienkunde. The call number is 943.3 B2b. The volumes which deal with emigration are V. 1, page 19 and 48, V. 2, page 103, V. 3, pages 9, 39, 73, 87, 102 V. 6-7, V. 9 pages 157, 417.  

Dozens of card indexes exist for German emigrants. For example, the Family History Library has microfilmed card indexes for emigrants from Hessen. The indexes are divided into five sections for various time periods or areas of Hessen, each in alphabetical order. Other card indexes at the library include the following:  

*To Russia 1750-1943

[https://familysearch.org/wiki/en/Germany,_Bremen_Name_Card_Index_to_Passenger_Lists_%28FamilySearch_Historical_Records%29 Germany, Bremen Name Card Index to Passenger Lists (FamilySearch Historical Records)]  

Many Germans either lived in Elsaß-Lothringen(Alsace-Lorraine) or passed through it to emigrate. The following sources help identify many of them.  

See also: [http://wiki-en.genealogy.net/Lorraine#Emigration_Records Lorraine Emigration Records]

Lists of emigrants are often published. These usually focus on the emigrants from one town, principality, or state. An example is listed below:  

Links to various Lists of German emigrants, passenger lists, etc. are found at:  

Dozens of other published emigrant lists are listed in the Place Search of the FamilySearch Catalog under the town, state, or province from which the emigrants came. A partial bibliography of German emigration sources is in Smith's ''Encyclopedia of German-American Genealogical Research'', pages 207 to 232.  

Here are some published emigration [http://www.rambow.de/auswandererlisten.html lists online].

Several other records were usually created as emigrants left Germany.  

[http://www.stevemorse.org/ One Step Webpages by Stephen Morse] Links to free and $ online passenger lists

The Family History Library has emigration records or indexes for almost every German state and various German districts or cities. These are listed in the catalog under the particular state, province, or town in Germany where the records were made. Check the Place Search of the catalog under:  

GERMANY, [STATE], [TOWN] EMIGRATION AND IMMIGRATION

Early German immigrants to the United States (1683-1820) settled mainly in Pennsylvania. Those in the second wave of migration (1820-1871) often settled in Ohio, Wisconsin, Indiana, Missouri, and Texas. During the third wave (1871-1914), many German immigrants settled in New York City, Chicago, St. Louis, or other large cities.  

More information - including maps showing the areas of heaviest German population is found [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/German_Americans here]. The top six states for German population are: Illinois, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Iowa and Minnesota.

Starting in 1722, the Austro-Hungarian monarchs encouraged Germans to settle their lands, especially along the devastated border with the Turks. Colonies developed in what later became Hungary, Romania, and Yugoslavia. Initially, twice as many Germans moved to this area as went to America. More references and research tools for locating Germans who emigrated to Southeast Europe are found on-line at:  

Brandt, Bruce. ''Where to look for hard-to-find German-speaking ancestors in Eastern Europe: index to 19,720 surnames in 13 books, with historical background on each''. Second Edition. Baltimore, Maryland, USA: Clearfield County, 1993. (FHL book 943 H22b.) This contains surnames only.

In 1763 Catherine the Great of Russia offered free land, no taxes for thirty years, freedom of religion, and other incentives to encourage Germans to settle her vast, sparsely populated domain. Dozens of German colonies were established and grew until World War I. Many Russian Germans moved to the United States, Canada, or South America beginning in 1874. For a more detailed discussion of this topic see the [[Germans from Russia|Germans from Russia]] Wiki page. The following is the single most valuable source for researching German families from Russia:  

Many online sources for Germans from Russia are found in the Odessa Digital Library:  

The German Protestant church [EvangelischeKirche] of Russia was organized into consistories headquartered in St. Petersburg. The Family History Library has microfilmed the 276 volumes of the consistories' church record civil transcripts in the Russian State Historical Archives. These records are from German settlements in Ingermanland (surrounding St. Petersburg), near the Black Sea, and in Bessarabia for the years 1833 to 1900. They are in the Place Search of the FamilySearch Catalog under:  

In addition, several organizations, such as the [http://www.ahsgr.org/ American Historical Society of Germans from Russia] and the [http://www.grhs.org/ Germans from Russia Heritage Society], will help genealogists.

German settlement in Canada can be divided into three primary regions: the east (Atlantic provinces), the central area (Ontario and Québec), and the west (the Prairie provinces and British Columbia). The eastern and central areas were settled mostly by citizens of the German states of central Europe and by people of German heritage who had first migrated to the British colonies or to the United States. The west was largely settled by ethnic German farmers from eastern and southern Europe and from Russia.  

*[http://www.genealogienetz.de/reg/WELT/canada.html Germans in Canada] - contains general information, Genealogical Societies, genealogical and historical records, gazetteers and maps, archives and libraries and other internet resources.<br>

Similar immigration records and indexes are available at the library for most nations and states where Germans settled. They are listed under the new nation or state in the Place Search of the FamilySearch Catalog under:  

==Other Wiki Articles==

[[Category:Germany Emigration and Immigration]]

*[[Germans from Russia|Germans from Russia]]

*[[Germany Emigration and Immigration|'''Germany Emigration and Immigration''']].

*[[Hamburg Passenger Lists|Hamburg Passenger Lists]]

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*[[Germany, Hessen, Darmstadt City Records - FamilySearch Historical Records|Germany, Hessen, Darmstadt City Records - FamilySearch Historical Records]]