O du lieber Augustin
This simple song is said to date back to 1679 in Vienna, Austria - Marx Augustin was a cheery, popular balladeer and bag-piper of the time
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Pamela Israel
- Apr 18, 2019
- 2 min
Postcard Clues 100 Years On - Clues to Olof !
It's amazing how curious you can get about people in no way related to you. I've written before about Olof Harrison, a Swede who mov
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Pamela Israel
- Apr 5, 2019
- 2 min
German Wedding Invitation Details
Our family has a photo of the framed wedding invitation of my 2nd great aunt and uncle. It's a charmingly simple one. When I first came
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Stefan Israel
- Mar 14, 2019
- 4 min
We're from Germany but Where?
When you’re tracing an ancestor to Central Europe from a century or more ago, you need to find out which state they were from. Here are some
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Christine Israel
- Mar 8, 2019
- 5 min
The Scandalous Pauline: Discovering a Fascinating Woman
One of the early things my father told me when I asked him about his family was that my great-grandmother, Pauline Volkmann, had left her hu
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Pamela Israel
- Mar 1, 2019
- 2 min
Postcard Pals - Old Swedish Cards in Translation
A series of correspondence to and from the same people opens up a whole new understanding about them. Old Swedish postcards from greater
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Stefan Israel
- Feb 20, 2019
- 4 min
Glimpses of the Catastrophe of 1914/1918
In reaction to the horrific killing burning across Europe, in 1916, Danish composer Carl Nielsen wrote the Inextinguishable, meaning the 
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Pamela Israel
- Feb 11, 2019
- 2 min
From Genf to Geneva and other Translations
When learning about ancestors who immigrated to the US decades or centuries ago, you get a double challenge. Not only is there the translati
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Stefan Israel
- Jan 31, 2019
- 3 min
Ack! Pronouncing German ei vs. ie
English can be all over the map in how you’re supposed to pronounce any given set of letters: you polish the Polish silverware, you wait for
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Pamela Israel
- Jan 23, 2019
- 1 min
Christmas Letter in February?
We thought it would be fun to conclude our week celebrating
the magic of handwriting with a light-hearted Christmas note that arrived one F
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Pamela Israel
- Jan 22, 2019
- 1 min
Joyous German Visit Home: 1925
Eliese Trede, my mother's grandmother, immigrated in 1908, leaving her loving parents on a journey across the Atlantic. This is her 1925
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Pamela Israel
- Jan 21, 2019
- 2 min
Beloved Son, Hurry! 1843 Letter
This is an 1843 letter from my 3rd great grandfather, to his son telling him to hurry home from the army before his mother dies. We have a l
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Pamela Israel
- Jan 20, 2019
- 1 min
Why Write Notes on Photos?
I remember being flummoxed by my mom's handwriting. What could it possibly mean? How glad I am that I learned cursive and can now read h
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Pamela Israel
- Jan 19, 2019
- 2 min
Surviving Manassas: Civil War Diary
Civil War 1862 Diary: Looking at just the week of August 26 highlights his experiences: rebels attacking, burning railroad bridges, fighting
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Pamela Israel
- Jan 18, 2019
- 1 min
Handwritten Letters & a Postcard
Day 2 to highlight the Art of Handwriting and your Family through January 23rd, National Handwriting Day. Share a favorite family hand-writt
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Pamela Israel
- Jan 17, 2019
- 1 min
Celebrate Handwriting!
Post your family handwritten letters to celebrate National Handwriting Day.
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Pamela Israel
- Jan 9, 2019
- 2 min
The Journey & the Journeyman Book
An apprentice butcher's training in 19th century "Germany" included journeying and learning from one expert to another and sta
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Pamela Israel
- Dec 27, 2018
- 2 min
What's Fairfield, IA got over NYC?
See the 1922 comparison of small-town Fairfield, IA versus New York City - it's entertaining what doing genealogy research can uncover t
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Stefan Israel
- Nov 12, 2018
- 4 min
Why burg, why berg?
Berg vs. Burg
These two words show up abundantly in family and place names across the Germanic languages (German, Swedish, Dutch, Englis
12,032 views2 comments
Pamela Israel
- Oct 23, 2018
- 2 min
German in the Cemetery
If you happen to be in an area where many Germans immigrated in the late 19th or early 20th century and you wander into an older cemetery, y
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