Wednesday, February 04, 2009

Tips for Finding Your German Immigrant Ancestor's Hometown in Germany

This article was updated on 24 March 2020.

Here are some suggestions where you might find the German place of origin (city, town, or village) for your immigrant ancestor who came to America from Germany. Knowing the name of the town can help you take your genealogy research back to Germany to look for German genealogy records.

Ship Passenger Records (arrivals)
Hamburg Passenger Departure Lists Other Sources - Death Certificates, Obituaries, Naturalization Records, Biographies, more...
Disclaimer: you may not find the place name in any of the records listed here. These are merely suggestions.

This outline was derived from the "Find your Immigrant Ancestor" section of the Basic Reasearch Guide for German Genealogy. It was created for the Germanic Genealogy Society of Colorado.

You can download a printable PDF version of this outline from: Genealogy Roots Blog Files: Finding Your German Ancestor's Hometown

Next Article in this Series: Tips for Finding German Genealogy Records for your German-American Ancestor

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

Great Info thsnk you!!!!

bgwiehle said...

Remember that Germans came to the New World from many places, not just the territory of today's Germany. Look for nationality as well as ethnicity. Even a German-sounding place name is no guarantee, as places could have many unofficial names. Passenger lists especially can contain extremely creative spelling. Check also for non-family traveling companions.

Anonymous said...

Good clues, but here's another:

German ancestors, that were Lutherans (Evangelical), in or from the Polish territory of Russia may be found by http://ezab.org.

Bob K.

Celia Lewis said...

Thanks for all this information in a handy format (just downloaded the PDF). My "Kuhn" ancestors hit PA around 1730 +/- 5 years, and I have yet to find a place in Germany other than one clue on a census saying "Wurtemberg" One day...

Unknown said...

I have a Great-Grandmother that I believe is of German heritage. Information obtained from her son's birth certificate indicate that she was Elizabeth Behm (unknown maiden name) and her husband was George Behm. She was born 11 July 1868 - Germany? Place of birth listed as Palone. She came to England 1897 as a cook. George was a domestic Valet. Not sure whether George came to England. I'm busy writing an informal book about my parents and would love to have further information about them. Any suggestion on how to go about it? Don't know Elizabeth's religion. Thanks, Braam Bosman

maryOAart said...

I am looking for more about a Prussian(or possibly Russian) grandfather, Friedrick C. Krann who supposedly immigrated in 1894 to OH. He was born approx. 1864 or 1865, Not found on Ellis Island. Never completed naturalization forms as he was killed in a job accident in 1906. Is on census as Fred Kran. About all I know. Are there any other resources or help to search.

Unknown said...

I'm searching for Thomas Deckert who emigrated to NY around 1887. So far I have found him on several documents including his marriage certificate. He lists his parents names as Lorenz and Barbara, i thought with his name and parents names I would be able to find a birth cert in germany but thus far am having no luck.