Hi, Nancy Thanks for your note. I agree the Old German is tricky, but actually, I DID recognize the name on the film. It looked right to me. What I hope to do next is find this person after his christening. Parents? siblings? emigration? I first found the Deao name in 1850 in Illinois, but Eli Deao was born in 1824 in NY. His father was from Germany, and his mother from NY, but I can't find his immigration, their marriage, and don't know the New York county. So I thought I'd try to research in Germany, but hardly know where to begin. Is there a Hesse sight that might give me some direction? JOANNES DEAO - Christened - 17 FEB 1809 Dom Katholisch, Mainz, Rheinhessen, Hessen Thanks again for your interest. Kathleen Gordon Deao