I am going to the Family History Center and see if I can order a film to see if I can find any birth records for siblings of my grandfather who was born in 1855 in Hamburg as far as I know. Will I have trouble reading the script on these old films. Can anyone give any guidelines for making it easier for one who knows no German? Dorothea

Dear Dorothea, You fortunately have thought about the fact that you 'might' find the script difficult to read, so you have won half the battle!  There is a great index on Cyndi's List http://www.cyndislist.com/germany.htm#Language   about German Research.  Way down the page there is a section on Language and Script helps. Study that, be patient, and DON'T get discouraged.  I did not read a word of German, the films were old and faded.  You can figure out the format, learn the words for birth, marriage, death, etc., recognize names, and then you can get the general idea.  Have a German Dictionary handy, and get one of the research guides and word lists from the Family History Center.  You'll do it! JUDITH