This is a follow-up comment on the thread initiated by John Newbright and Joe Metz. It is clear that much activity takes place behind the scenes of this and other lists. I access the Alsace and Hesse lists as well. Much of this, I know from experience, is helpful to those beginning their investigations. Having only begun seriously investigating genealogy early last Fall, I find myself inundated with requests for data, translations and comments from those in similar situations. On the other hand, it would be helpful to have a stock answer as to where to being along the line suggested by Joe. This could be done by an individual. The Alsace list has one or two such individuals who tell folks about Family History centers, the Family Search site and basic genealogy resources. I am continually amazed by the patience of these people as I could not do it. For the rest of us, I think it is very hit or miss. Once you scratch the surface and dig into Parish records you are largely on your own. The function of the lists is to randomly provide clues to the names of individuals, usually residents of the village being investigated, who have devoted much of their life to cataloging the local records. Unfortunately, it does not happen often. Rob Hausman researching: HAUSMAN/HAUSMANN Kirchheimbolanden/Marnheim/Idstein www.familytreemaker.com/users/h/a/u/Robert-E-Hausman/index.html ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Robert E. Hausman Professor and Director of Graduate Studies Department of Biology Boston University 5 Cummington Street Boston, Massachusetts 02215 Phone: 617 353-2470 Fax: 617 353-6340