Robert - I'm not writing about the Barnstorff family ... I'm working on the WACHSMUTHs. During the US censuses (1850-1900) they say, variously, that they are from Hannover, Prussia and Braunschweig. They immigrated (1846) from Lieverhausen ... which I can't find in modern Germany ... but suspect is Lieberhausen. They settled in Ohio and a local researcher says that they were from Brogloh. Can you provide more historical information on the region ... when it was a part of Hannover, Prussia and Braunschweig? I guess I'm looking for the timings / dates of the border changes. Thank you, very much, for any help and ideas you can provide. Becky --- rct301@msn.com wrote: > This is a Message Board Post that is gatewayed to > this mailing list. > > Classification: Query > > Message Board URL: > > http://boards.ancestry.com/mbexec/msg/an/ZVC.2ACE/3965.1 > > Message Board Post: > > Renae, the Barnstorff family was from what was until > 1945 the very small state (until 1918, Duchy) of > Brunswick (in German: Braunschweig), the capital of > which was the city of Brunswick (Braunschweig), > where the Duke resided. Brunswick covered an area > somewhat smaller than that covered by the U.S. state > of Rhode Island. Here is a map of the pre-1945 > state of Brunswick (Braunschweig). You will note > that its territory was a bit scattered. If you add > all its pieces together, you have a total area > somewhat smaller than Rhode Island: > > http://www.gonschior.de/weimar/Braunschweig/uebersichtskarte.html > > > Following World War II and the break-up of the huge > state of Prussia, the Prussian province of Hanover, > the state of Oldenburg, and the two very small > states of Brunswick (Braunschweig) and > Schaumburg-Lippe combined to form today's state of > Lower Saxony (in German: Niedersachsen), with the > city of Hanover (in German: Hannover) as its > capital. > > Vital records are not and never have been kept at > either the national, state or provincial level in > Germany. In Germany, vital records are kept > strictly at the local level. So before you can > proceed, you are going to have to do additional > research in the U.S. and find out exactly which > city, town, or village in Brunswick the Barnstorff > family was from. > > German churches in the United States tended to keep > rather detailed records. So if you could obtain > copies of the CHURCH marriage records of those > Barnstorff children born in Germany, it is very > likely that those records will name the town in > Brunswick where they were born. (What, by the way, > was the Barnstorff family's religious denomination?) > > Robert > > > > ==== NIEDERSACHSEN Mailing List ==== > To contact the List Admin: > mailto:NIEDERSACHSEN-admin@rootsweb.com > > To unsubscribe send an email to: > NIEDERSACHSEN-L-request@rootsweb.com > (In Digest Mode change the "L" to a "D") with the > word unsubscribe > in the body of the message. > > ============================== > New! Family Tree Maker 2005. Build your tree and > search for your ancestors at the same time. Share > your tree with family and friends. Learn more: > http://landing.ancestry.com/familytreemaker/2005/tour.aspx?sourceid=14599&targetid=5429 > >