Dear Anna: The Billeter information in SwissGen's SSD may be accessed by going to: http://iseli.simplenet.com/ch-names/ and requesting the data on Rufer. By requesting the data, you also register your "interest" in the Rufer surname and will be listed as such on the far right side of the information webpage. OK, nevermind, I see that you have already registered (and 3x - guess you want to make certain the other researchers contact you ;-) ). I will take out all but one name and one e-mail address, which one do you prefer: rufer@xtra.co.nz or eufer@xtra.co.nz According to the data for Rufer in SSD, Billeter only researched the Rufer surname in the village of Jegenstorf, canton BE, all the way back to 1550. But the Rufer surname also held citizenship in the following villages (before 1800) according to the 1940 edition of Familiennamenbuch der Schweiz (Swiss Surnames) - (this data is found in SSD also): canton BE (Bern): Diessbach bei Büren, Lyss, Mattstetten, Münchenbuchsee, Urtenen, Zuzwil canton SO (Solothurn): Aetigkofen, Brügglen There was one more town in which the Rufers held citizenship during the 1800's: Allachwil in BL (Baselland) The other villages mentioned in the SSD info were for citizenship changes during the 1900's - probably of no use to you. So, by now, you are probably wondering why Billeter did research in Jegenstorf, but it is not mentioned in FNBS 1940. Well, to tell you the truth, Jegenstorf is not mentioned in FNBS 1989 edition either. So here are my guesses: 1) Jegenstorf is nearby some of the BE villages mentioned above - and the people actually were citizens of those villages, not Jegenstorf. 2) The Rufer line in Jegenstorf became extinct before the data was collected for FNBS 1940 or 1989. 3) ???? I have attached 2 gif files. Drag them into your webbrowser to view them, if you don't have a "photo-type" viewing program. The 1st one shows the location of Jegenstorf with respect to all of Switzerland. The 2nd is zoomed in so you can see the surrounding villages. Looks like Mattstetten, Münchenbuchsee, and Zuzwil are all nearby to each other. But back to your real question you need to answer. Where are YOUR Rufer ancestors from? You need more clues. Did the emigrating ancestor marry before or after leaving Switzerland? If before, what was the spouse's surname? Let's look for common villages between both surnames. best wishes, Dave Schmutz -----Original Message----- From: Joseph E. Wolfe [mailto:joeedwolfe@juno.com] Sent: Tuesday, January 18, 2000 6:58 AM To: rufer@xtra.co.nz Cc: dschmutz@es.com Subject: Re: [SWITZ] Billeter Records Anna - if is mentioned that Rufer is in Billeter then it should be a complete record of the Rufer line in a particular town. He extracted the records from the Church Books of the region and expecially with the females must be used with a certain amount of caution. BUT HE IS A GOOD GUIDELINE to a family. I use him all the time. So take the trip. It will be well worth your time. First of course check to see if the Rufer (s) listed in Billeter are on your line by checking with Switzerland Roots web to find the Billeter page. I do not have that number at the moment but am sending this message also to the Moderator Dave Schmutz and he will add it for you Hope this hellps...Joe Wolfe On Tue, 18 Jan 2000 21:21:23 +1300 "Anna Rufer" <rufer@xtra.co.nz> writes: Can someone please enlighten a newbie! If my surname is mentioned in the Billeter records (RUFER is) does that mean MY family will be there, or just selected ones with that surname? What sort of information might I expect to find? Someone has kindly told me which film number to order at the FHS, but with 2 little boys under 2, a 2 hour return trip to the nearest one is a logistical nightmare! I want to be sure it is worth the effort first! Thanks again - Anna - from Putaruru New Zealand ps. Apologies for sending my last query to the wrong list. I am blaming baby-induced sleep-deprivation!