Mr. Lipprandt is exactly right - you must begin with yourself and prove everything - beginning with your own birth certificate. And hunting in German language newspapers is an excellent source, especially since that's what the emigrants read and where they would likely put their announcements, obits and weddings and anniversary and who came to tea. Yeah! Those are printed in German Gothic, but you can recognize names and dates. Also look for memberships in anything, lodges, Turnvereins, singing societies - endless list. City directories, professional directories. Most of what you see on familysearch.org and Ancestry is subject to error, so get at least two items of proof for each person and event. And names change, places change, the person writing documents may be in error and the error stands until it's unraveled. It is not unusual to have half a dozen spellings for a particular surname. Join a genealogical society in the area where your emigrants settled and badger them with questions and queries. Follow your intuition! So - enjoy! Maureen Schoenky ************************************** See what's free at http://www.aol.com.