Jon ... did you get my response, too, addressed to the GER-VOLGA mail list on Feb 3? (pasted in directly below)? BTW, I'm a little confused now about which messages are directed to whom. I believe you and Myron were/are actually intending to post to the GER-VOLGA list ... but when you simply hit "reply", your emails are coming only to me personally @ geniejen45243@yahoo.com. If you want to post replies to the list, you need to be certain that you put GER-VOLGA-L@rootsweb.com into the address line. Jennifer David >>From: Jennifer L David [mailto:geniejen45243@yahoo.com] Sent: Saturday, February 03, 2007 11:44 AM To: Mail-list GER-VOLGA post (GER-VOLGA-L@rootsweb.com) Subject: To Jon RE Saratov births Jon . I'm wondering if your people may have actually been born in one of the Volga villages in the Saratov *province* rather than in the city of Saratov itself? I have found that U.S. census records often state "Saratov" as a birthplace, when in fact, a village within Saratov province was the actual birth location and the residence of the child's parents and extended family. (Probably "Saratov" was deemed to be a more recognizable locale term for census purposes versus a village name.) Did you discover the "Saratov" birth information via US census? Some other document? Can you tell us the family surname, please? Sometimes one is able to tie a surname to a particular village, or at least narrow the field among the Volga villages. There exist compiled lists of surnames found within particular villages. For instance, my husband's DAVID ancestors all lived in the village of Dietel in the province of Sarotov, and the DAVID surname appears among a list of many other surnames of the families who lived in Dietel. I wonder if you are aware of AHSGR (American Historical Society of the Germans from Russia) and its record archives in Lincoln, Nebraska? Hoping this village idea may be of some help to you. Best regards, Jennifer David Cincinnati << -----Original Message----- From: Jon [mailto:tripleHH@bigpond.com] Sent: Tuesday, February 06, 2007 6:35 PM To: geniejen45243@yahoo.com Subject: Fw: [GER-VOLGA] FW: To Jon RE Saratov births >>This is the information I received from various sources.<< Replying to Jon, Careful now. Some people were born in Saratov city and others in Saratov provinces (villages thereof). Best scenario is that you know her precise date of birth and it is indeed the city of Saratov...that is straightforward. Worst scenario is that you are not sure of her date, which means more research time needed, therefore the price will rise with every hour searched. Lost cause. If she was a born in a Saratov (province) village, you don't know which one....there are 100s, and no on in his right mind would commission an archive to search from 100s of church books. Would take years and cost a small fortune. One quick option for you is to request the Russian Embassy in your country to obtain these certificates for you - they obviously also charge for this service. Best of luck. Vera ----- Original Message ----- From: "Jennifer L David" <geniejen45243@yahoo.com> To: <GER-VOLGA-L@rootsweb.com> Sent: Wednesday, February 07, 2007 10:09 AM Subject: [GER-VOLGA] FW: To Jon RE Saratov births > Forwarding Myron's message to the list .> > > From: MFritz8716@aol.com [mailto:MFritz8716@aol.com] > Sent: Tuesday, February 06, 2007 5:17 PM > To: geniejen45243@yahoo.com > Subject: Re: [GER-VOLGA] To Jon RE Saratov births> > > Jon,> > Did you ever receive a response to your email message below? My father > was > born in Saratov in 1905 and I would like to obtain more information about > him. >> Thanks.> > Myron >