| General | History,
Arts, Customs | Organizations | Immigration
| German Dialects in North America | Wisconsin
| Genealogy, Heritage Societies, and Related Fields |
Disclaimer for External Links
These links have been selected by staff members of the Max Kade Institute for
German American Studies to provide additional information and resources that
may be of interest to our visitors. Please note that the MKI is not responsible
for the maintenance of these sites and has no control over their content. Any
questions about external sites should be referred to the Web administrators
of those sites.
Broken Links or URL Changes
Please report any broken links or URL changes to Kevin
Kurdylo.
Resources, Old German Script,
Links, Statistics, Archives
Resources
- German-American Historic Sites and Museums
- Links to sites in the U.S., Germany, and Canada. Created by the Max Kade German-American Center at Indiana University Purdue University Indianapolis
- GEOserv
- A german town locator
- The
German-Americans an Ethnic Experience by Willi Paul Adams
- Full-text online publication
- Heritage
maps : Where German Americans live: Map 1; Map
2:
- Percentage of state population and distribution per state
- Historical Maps of Central Europe (G. D. Reymann's Special-Karte, 1832-1870)
- Provided by Martin Johnson (PDF files)
- Historical Maps of Germany
- Provided by Thomas Hoeckmann
- International
bibliography of German-Americana
- Searchable bibliography created by the Max Kade German-American Center at Indiana University Purdue University Indianapolis
- Mapster: Mapy archiwalne Polski = Archival Maps for Poland
- Links to numerous high-quality scans for archival maps of Central and Eastern
Europe, including Austro-Hungarian and German maps up to 1945. The project
consists of three partner sites: Archiwalne
Mapy Pomorza Gdańskiego (Archive
Maps of Gdańsk Pomerania), Archiwum
Map Wojskowego Instytutu Geograficznego 1919 - 1939 (Map Archive of the
Military Institute of Geography, in English), and Archiwum
Map Zachodniej Polski (Map Archive of Western Poland).
- Max
Kade Institute Searchable Database on German-Americana
- Library resources of the Max Kade Institute, UW-Madison: Including 18th- early 20th-century imprints in the German language printed in the US; monographs,
articles, papers, pamphlets and book chapters relating to the experiences
or contributions of German-speaking immigrants and their descendants in America
and dealing significantly with political, cultural, and religious aspects
of the German-American experience. The database currently contains more than 8000 records,
many of them with abstracts
- Max Kade (Widkipedia entry)
- Brief biographical information on Max Kade and some information on the foundation began by he and his wife in 1944. Also links to research facilities, libraries, dormitories, meeting places, and German and German-American studies programs funded by the foundation.
- Spurensuche Midwest
- Spurensuche presents 20 topics that are important to the German-speaking communities in Chicago and the Midwest. The website is meant to be an interactive guide to further explorations of these topics, establish a dialogue between these communities, to illustrate the significant contributions of a 'sleeping giant.' Topics include: media, radio, tv, etc.; organizations and clubs; language schools; research topics; and teaching resources.
Old German Script
- Old
German Script/Alte deutsche Handschriften
- Includes samples of scripts, downloadable fonts, and bibliography of recommended
reading.
- Learn
Suetterlin
- Good explanations in English and lots of samples; includes tips and tricks for deciphering old scripts.
- Handwriting
Guide: German Gothic Resource Guide
- A PDF developed by the LDS Family History Library, showing common
Gothic letters, type, and handwriting used in German records. Also
list of
recommended
reading
- German
Script Alphabet Chart
- Includes samples of scripts, downloadable fonts, and bibliography of recommended
reading
-
- Download
Suetterlin Font
- Helpful in learning to read old German scripts
- Suetterlinstube
- Offers free transcription of texts written in old German handwriting into
modern Latin writing. Contributions based on value of service provided greatly
appreciated.
- The
German Script Tutorial
- An online resource for learning how to decipher documents written in old German script. It provides descriptions and actual examples of each German letter, with animations demonstrating how each letter is written. Tests assess users’ ability to read and write letters, words, and passages. User accounts allow users to save their test scores and keep track of which letters they need to practice. The tutorial also provides basic guidelines on how to find vital (i.e., genealogical) information in old German documents.
-
- Links
- Everywhere
You Look: Virtual Tour of German-American Sites in Chicago
- Sponsored by the Goethe Institut
- Everywhere
You Look: Virtual Tour of German-American Sites in San Francisco
- Sponsored by the Goethe Institut
- Everywhere
You Look: Virtual Tour of German-American Sites in Washington, DC
- Sponsored by the Goethe Institut
-
- Franklin
& Marshall Pennsylvania German Broadside Collection
- This digital collection contains examples of printed broadsides designed and distributed among
Germans across the Keystone State. Visitors can search the
collection by keyword, title, author, or subject.
Currently, there are over
215 broadsides in the collection, with more to be added. The
items traditional house blessings, announcements about upcoming
events, medical remedies, mystical texts, political tracts, business advertisements, and more.
- Franklin
& Marshall Pennsylvania German Fraktur Collection
- A component of the Unger-Bassler German-American Imprint Collection, this collection contains fine examples of printed and handcolored Taufscheins (birth and baptismal certificates), Vorshrifts (writing examples), Haus Segens (house blessings), Bucherzeichen (book plates), and drawings created by Pennsylvania Germans.
- German-Americana
- A very comprehensive list of links from Robert J. Shea (St. Louis, Missouri)
- German-American
Studies Links
- A list of links from the University of Cincinnati
- German-Americana
History & Heritage
- Links to resources in German-American history and heritage
- German Pittsburgh
- Tracing cultural history through GIS technology
- German
Traces NYC
- A joint project between the Goethe-Institut New York and Pratt Institute
School of Information and Library Science
- Germans
in Washington, DC
- Bibliography, links, and information on the German Orphan Asylum
- Hiwwe-wie-Driwwe
- Private Archive of Pennsylvania German Literature
-
-
Statistics
- German
ancestry. Statistics compared to total US population
- 1994 Statistics in reference to German ancestry groups and speakers in
the US, based on the 1994 Statistical Abstract of the United States Census
Statistics: Analyzed by the German Corner
- German
ancestry by order number (States) | in
relation to state population
- People
speaking German at home | related
to foreign speaking | to
state population
Archives
- German
Heritage Collections (Missouri)
- Personal papers, organizational records, and other materials related to
German immigration, and social life and customs, religious practices, family
experiences, and other aspects of life in German-American communities in Missouri
- IUPUI
University Library German-Americana Manuscript Collections
- Various records and papers of American Turners, Indianapolis Maennerchor,
etc.
- Indiana
Historical Society Library: Guide to Ethnic History Collections: Germans
- Manuscript collections of German settlers
- Archives of
the Mennonite Church
- Home page of Mennonite Church and list of manuscripts
- Wisconsin
Historical Society: Archive Division
- The Library Division contains approx. 3.4 million items relating to the
history of North America; resources and archives on various ethnic groups
in Wisconsin
- Wisconsin
Local History and Bibliography Articles
- Includes thousands of articles containing local history information from
Wisconsin newspapers
- German-American
Collections in the Milwaukee Urban Archives
- To research history of Milwaukee area, ethnic groups, families, German American
archives
- The
German-Americana Collection at the University of Cincinnati
- One of the nation's largest collections of books, pamphlets, documents,
journals, newspapers, and manuscripts pertaining to German-American history,
literature and culture, located in the Blegen Library in the Archives and
Rare Books Department of the University of Cincinnati
- Chronicling
America: Historic American Newspapers
- This site allows searching and viewing of newspaper pages from 1880-1922,
and includes information about American newspapers published between 1690-present.
At the time of this posting, the site includes German-language newspapers
from Bartgis's Marylandische Zeitung. (Friedrich-stadt [Frederick,
Md.]) 1785-1789 to Der Volksfreund = The people's friend. (Buffalo,
N.Y.) 1994-current
- Milwaukee County
Historical Society
- The Milwaukee County Historical Society was founded in 1935 to collect,
preserve and make available materials relating to the history of the Milwaukee,
once known as the "German Athens," and Milwaukee County.
-
Back to the top
Resources
Books
- The Book
of Germans in America - Das Buch der Deutschen in Amerika
- Selections from the 974-page book published in 1909 by the National
German-American Alliance ("The Bund"), with English translations..
- The
German-Americans an Ethnic Experience by Willi Paul Adams
- This book explores the meaning of German immigration and shows how completely
Americans of German descent have been integrated into the American mainstream
- First
Germans in Jamestown by Gary C. Grassl
- The first Germans to land in Jamestown, the first permanent English settlement
in Virginia, were glassmakers and carpenters
- German
Achievements in America by Rudolf Cronau (1916)
- Reprinted and edited by Don H. Tolzmann. [The book] "provides a concise
overview of German-American history to the time of the First World War."
- Schultze
und Müller in Amerika
- An Open Library virtual book with 50 illustrations by Wilhelm Scholz. this
work was originally published by A. Hoffmann & Co., Berlin, in 1868. [Das
Buch der Deutschen in Amerika (1909, p. 380) attributes this book
to Wilhelm Winckler.]
Exhibits
Gemütlichkeit, Schnitzelbank, and Kitsch: German-American Caricature in Vintage Postcards
The Archives & Rare Books Library of the University of Cincinnati has added an exhibit that explores the creation and perpetuation of German American ethnic stereotypes through cartoon images found on popular postcards in the 20th century. More than fifty cards illustrating a public view of a major ethnic group are included in the exhibit, which can be downloaded as PDF.
Shaping
the Circle: German-Americans in Indianapolis, 1840-1918
This Exhibit from the IUPUI University Library begins with a look at why
people left Germany and settled in Indianapolis. It then discusses the influence
of German-Americans on three areas of Indianapolis culture: music, architecture,
and athletics. Finally, it explores the cultural conflict that German-Americans
experienced and the steps they took to become acculturated
The German Hollywood Connection
From Leni Riefenstahl to Leo DiCaprio — info, photos and links related to the influence of Austria, Germany, and Switzerland on world cinema
Germans
in America
Exhibit of the Library of Congress; provides information about immigration
from the German-speaking world to the United States, and about the activities
of German immigrants in the United States from the 17th to the 20th centuries.
Chronology with links to many photos
Celebrating German Heritage in America Today
From the German Embassy in Washington, DC,
this InFocus takes a look at the colorful history of German immigration through the centuries, the contributions of some influential German immigrants, the vibrant US communities that continue to nurture their German-American heritage, and the stories of some Germans and German-Americans in Hollywood.
History
1848 Revolution
- The
German Forty-eighters in America: 150th anniversary assessment
- Essay by Don Heinrich Tolzmann: The German-American Forty-Eighters: 1848-1998
- The German
1848 revolution
- Online article from German Life [scroll down
to article by Robert A. Selig]
- Revolution
of 1848: Introduction | Index
| Refugees
in the Civil War
- Historical background in German, hosted by the Forschungsstelle Deutsche
Auswanderer in den USA
- Biographies
of Forty-eighters
- Biographies in German, hosted by the Forschungsstelle Deutsche Auswanderer
in den USA
- The
German 1848 Revolution
- Various links to further information. From 1998 SGAS Symposium
Education
- German-American Schoolbooks
- Schoolbooks for German immigrants for use in school and at home in North America. Compiled by Allen Viehmeyer
- Kindergarten
- Essay on the Kindergarten movement
German Americans in Specific Cities and States
- Archivaria: Buffalo, New York
- Susan Kriegbaum-Hanks has created a page that combines her study of the history of Buffalo, New York, with her interest in German language and literature. Includes
a translation of the history of Buffalo from a German perspective, a history of Germans in Buffalo and Erie County,
and scans and translations of many German-language newspapers and journals. Also includes an index of names.
- Franklin
& Marshall Pennsylvania German Broadside Collection
- This digital collection contains examples of printed broadsides designed and distributed among
Germans across the Keystone State. Visitors can search the
collection by keyword, title, author, or subject.
Currently, there are over
215 broadsides in the collection, with more to be added. The
items traditional house blessings, announcements about upcoming
events, medical remedies, mystical texts, political tracts, business advertisements, and more.
- Franklin
& Marshall Pennsylvania German Fraktur Collection
- A component of the Unger-Bassler German-American Imprint Collection, this collection contains fine examples of printed and handcolored taufscheins (birth and baptismal certificates), vorshrifts (writing examples), haus segens (house blessings), bucherzeichen (book plates), and drawings created by Pennsylvania Germans.
- From Far Away Russia: Russian-Germans in Kansas
- Virtual exhibit of the Kansas State Historical Society
-
- German Pittsburgh
- Tracing cultural history through GIS technology
-
- Germans
in Louisiana Pathfinder
- A guide to diverse materials available at the Williams Research Center of The Historic New Orleans Collection that concern the Germans of New Orleans. Sections include: Settlers, Organizations, German Views, Music and Socializing, Businesses, J. Hanno Deiler (New Orleans's preeminent German scholar), and Rural German Enclaves. Also includes links to
other Internet sites containing information on the German community in New Orleans and Louisiana.
- The Germans of Iowa and Their Achievements
- Information derived from Die Deutschen von Iowa und deren Errungenschaften, by Joseph Eiboeck (Des Moines, Iowa: Iowa Staats-Anzeiger, 1900). Includes brief biographical data for individuals mentioned in the volume, including places of birth in Germany; a listing of the oldest Germans in Iowa (aged 90 or older, from the 1895 census); and a listing of German officers in the Union Army (U.S. Civil War, 1861-1865).
- Indiana's and Kentucky's
German-Americans in the Civil War
- Based on a presentation made at a joint meeting of the Indiana Germanic Heritage Society, Kentuckiana Germanic Heritage Society, and the Indiana Chapter of the Palatines to America
-
- Kentucky's German-Americans
in the Civil War
- By Joseph R. Reinhart, author of A History of the 6th Kentucky Volunteer Infantry U.S.: The Boys Who Feared No Noise
-
- Peopling
St. Louis: The Immigration Experience
- History of St. Louis by the City of St. Louis; includes section on German migration
- Student Transcription Project
- Documents relating to the history of Lawrence and Douglas County, Kansas
- Stulz Brothers of Kansas City, Missouri: A German-American Business
- Wine and Liquor wholesalers and importers, operating from 1893 until 1918.
-
-
Other Topics
German-American
Biographies
Biographies of famous German Americans
German-American
Hall of Fame
The German-American Hall of Fame highlights the impact of German immigrants
to the United States and their progeny by providing biographical profiles of
some of the most remarkable Americans with German roots.
German-language
Literature in America, 1830-1930
MKI project to preserve and make accessible German-language literature
written in the United States
Haymarket
Photos
The Haymarket photo site has been put up by the Chicago Historical Society
Race
and Ethnicity: Slavery and the German Radical Tradition
Talk given by Hartmut Keil in Madison, Wisconsin
Other
links on German Americans and Slavery
From Robert Shea's German-Americana page
Bibliography
of the Cultural History of the Germans in Alberta
Includes searchable bibliography with keyword list, and map of Alberta with
list of place names occurring in the bibliography. Also a link to A
Profile of the German-speaking Communities in Alberta
TRACES
TRACES is a non-profit educational organization created to gather, preserve
and present stories of people from the Midwest and Germany or Austria who encountered
each other during World War II. Many of these stories have lain beneath the
dust left in the wake of a World War most never thought touched the American
Heartland. Includes information on traveling exhibits such as "Vanished:
German-American Civilian Internment, 1941-1948."
Athenaeum
Damenverein & Women's Auxiliary Records, 1876-2007
This women's organization was founded by the Socialer Turnverein (Social Athletic
Club) in 1876 as the Indianapolis Turn-Schwestern Verein. The records consist
of constitutions and by-laws, minutes, correspondence, financial records, committee
reports, membership lists and directories, event advertisements and photographs.
Art
- The
Diaries of Milwaukee Panorama Painter Friedrich Wilhelm Heine
- WUWM (Milwaukee Public Radio) interview with Tom Lidtke (Executive Director
of the Museum of Wisconsin Art) and Antje Petty (Assistant Director of the
Max Kade Institute for German American Studies at the University of Wisconsin-Madison)
on the history of panorama painting in Milwaukee. [Scroll down to "Circular
Art."]
- German
Immigrant Painters
- Biographies of painters. Edited version of the book "America through
the eyes of German Immigrant Painters" written by Anneliese Harding
- Adolf Cluss: An
International Exhibition Project
- Adolf Cluss, born 1825 in Heilbronn, emigrated to the United States in
1848 during the time of the failed revolution in the German states. Until
1858 he was a member of the Communist League with Karl Marx and Friedrich
Engels. In the years after the American Civil War, he became the most influential
architect in Washington, D.C., especially known for his model schools and
other public buildings.
- Publishers' Bindings
Online, 1815–1930: The Art of Books
- A digital collection of decorative bindings, along with a comprehensive
glossary and guide to book elements, PBO seeks to expand awareness of the
book as artifact and of the role decorative bindings play in providing a
window into the historical, cultural, and industrial period of 1815-1930.
Includes bindings from the Max
Kade Institute.
Customs
Amish Studies
An academic Web site developed by the Young Center for Anabaptist and Pietist Studies at Elizabethtown College (Pa.) to provide reliable information on Amish life and culture for scholars, students, and the general public.
The Amish in Northern Indiana
Essay by Samuel Yoder; also photos of Amish farms and of antique Amish
quilts
Stones
of Faith: Pennsylvania Germans & Their Gravestones
Examines a collection of Pennsylvania German gravestones erected from the 1740s to the late 1800s, showing how choices in gravestone imagery evolved from the early German settlement of Pennsylvania, through the Civil War time period and into the 1900s. Includes information on some of the people who erected the gravestones and a language and symbol guide.
Department of German (UW–Madison)
One of the oldest, largest, and most highly ranked in the United States, long recognized internationally for its historical breadth and intellectual depth in German literature, thought, and culture from the Middle Ages to the present, as well as in Germanic linguistics and Dutch language, literature and culture.
Center for German and European Studies (UW–Madison)
Promotes interdisciplinary research to provide information and new perspectives on Germany and Europe, including curriculum integration with all levels of educators from Kindergarten on.
German-American
Heritage Museum
An art and multimedia museum located in Washington, DC, providing permanent and temporary exhibits on German immigration and migration across the Unites States and on famous German Americans. The Resources page provides state-by-state links to informative Web sites about German immigrants, German organizations and landmarks, German-American business resources, government resources, student opportunities, and German-language radio programs.
German-American
Studies at the University of Cincinnati
Information on Cincinnati's German Heritage, certificate in German-American
Studies, other links
German-Canadian
Studies at the University of Winnipeg
Online newsletter and back issues, German-Canadian research and study
links, multimedia exhibits describing German-Canadian life, conferences,
activities, bibliography of German-Canadian books at the U-Win. library, research
HGAGCS: German-American and German-Canadian Studies
A moderated multi-disciplinary forum for discussion of topics relevant to German-speaking immigrants in North America from the 17th century to the present.
Disciplines involved include history, geography, ethnic and immigration studies, linguistics, literary and cultural studies. Topics may include the invention/transformation of ethnicity and national identities among German Americans and German Canadians, patterns of settlement, patterns of maintenance and change in language and culture, civic participation, methods of conceptualizing German identity in North America, etc. The list addresses an audience of primarily academics and graduate students.
Contributions are welcome in German or English.
IUPUI Max Kade
German-American Center
Index page linking to information about the Center, the Society, the International
bibliography, the yearbook, teaching resources, other links
Max Kade
Center for German-American Studies at the University of Kansas
Homepage, and also newsletter online
Max Kade Institute
for German-American Studies, UW-Madison
Research institution in the field: index page linking to various resources:
papers, publication list, library online resources, newsletter, various
research projects, exhibits
Society for German-American
Studies
Information on how to become a member
Waterloo [Canada]
Center for German Studies (WCGS)
Built by German settlers and immigrants, Kitchener-Waterloo is a significant German heritage centre in Canada and is home to the greatest density of German-Canadians in the country. WCGS provides an academic focus to the long tradition of German immigration to Waterloo County.
Back to the top
Resources & Links
- Amerikanetz:
Netzwerk westfälische Amerika-Auswanderung seit dem 19. Jahrhundert
- German-language network for tracing 19th-century emigrants from Westphalia
to America
- Auswandererbriefe
aus Nordamerika
- The free University of Berlin in co-operation with the research library
Gotha has collected more than 7,000 letters written by German emigrants from
North America. Finding aids provide the names of the letter writers, their
place of origin in Germany and place of residence in the U.S., dates, number
of pages, and information on whether the letters are transliterated.
- Auswanderung
nach Amerika
- Web site in German and English about German immigration to the United States
- BallinStadt
Hamburg
- Dedicated to the 5 million European emigrants who left their homeland between
1850 and 1939 via Hamburg's port in search of a better life across the Atlantic,
this unique historical center will feature a combination of genealogical research,
historical displays, and interactive, hands-on activities.
-
- Ellis Island
- Search immigrant records, view exhibits on the immigration experience
-
- Emigration
& Immigration Records & Links, including Passenger Links and Naturalization
Records
- Handy reference to resources
- Emigration
Port Hamburg
- Exhibit with background history on how Hamburg became an immigration port,
who were the immigrants conditions on board of the ships, what the immigrants
expected to find in America. Pictures and text now saved on the Wayback Machine
-- takes awhile to load.
- Find Your Roots
in Germany: Links for Researchers and Travellers
- Site provides access to numerous research tools, resources, and databases,
as well as to tourist information on Germany. Links to passenger manifests,
online databases, genealogy sites, and a variety of German regional databases.
- Forschungsstelle
Deutsche Auswanderer in den USA
- Research Center German Emigrants in the USA: Information related to the
center; passenger lists; letters; U.S. Census 1880, articles on the 48ers
- Germans
in America
- Library of Congress exhibit provides information about immigration from
the German-speaking world to the United States, and about the activities of
German immigrants in the United States from the 17th to the 20th centuries.
Chronology with links to many photos
- Good Bye Bayern,
Grüß Gott Amerika: Emigration from Bavaria to America since 1683
- Web site based on an exhibition held at the Haus der Bayerischen Geschichte,
June to November, 2004. The site, in German and English, includes information
on motives behind emigration, the journey, arrrival in America, biographical
sketches, images, and audiosamples.
- Immigration History Research
Center
- Archival and library collections of the University of Minnesota on various
ethnic groups
- Immigration
to the United States, 1789-1930
- A Web-based collection of selected historical materials from Harvard's libraries,
archives, and museums that documents voluntary immigration to the US from
the signing of the Constitution to the onset of the Great Depression. Subject
topics include acculturation, nativism, racism and prejudice, homesteading,
industrialization, and more.
- Swiss
Roots
- Organized by the Consulate General of Switzerland in New York and official
Swiss representatives in the U.S., in cooperation with numerous local Swiss
associations,and now part of the Swiss Center of North America, this Web site
serves as a gateway to allow the 1 million Americans of Swiss descent seeking
to trace their ancestral roots and those with Swiss affinity to discover and
communicate with people in Switzerland. The site also showcases the best in
Swiss innovation, culture, history, education, and business.
- Understanding
Your Ancestors
- Site’s goal is to help you understand the lives of immigrant ancestors,
particularly those who lived in the 1700 and 1800s in Western Europe. Sections
examine life in Western Europe, especially for the peasant class; the immigration
experience; and searching the records for ancestors.
-
Immigrant Experience
- "Ferner thue ich euch zu wissen..." Die Briefe des Bauern Johann Heinrich zur Oeveste aus Amerika
- Letters of a farmer to his family; in German
- German Settlement
in Colonial Pennsylvania: A Lesson Plan
- Developed by the Historical Society of Pennsylvania for middle to high school students
- Herewith I am giving you to know ...". The letters of the farmer John Henry zur Oeveste from Amerika 1834 - 1876
- Another site with information on this 1834 immigrant from Osnabrück to America
- Letters
from an Immigrant—America to Germany und zuruck . . .
- Bertha Starke Geerdts was born in Neu Schönfeld, Bunzlau, Schlesien, Germany, on 11 January 1871. Sometime before1885 and 1890, while still a teenager, she left her family and immigrated to Milwaukee, Wisconsin. This site has letters from Bertha to her mother as well as letters from Bertha's friends and siblings in and near her hometown and in Alt Oels, Silesia, Germany; Medford, Taylor County, Wisconsin; and Rockton, Wisconsin.
- Memoirs of the Nohl Family. Trip Diary of Friedrich Nohl
- Diary of the six weeks' crossing and the prosperous new beginning
- Report by the German Immigrant
- Narration by a German immigrant; from "Der Deutsche Pionier"
- Old manuscripts, verses
- From the Forschungsstelle Deutsche Auswanderer in den USA
- Archivaria: Buffalo, New York
- Susan Kriegbaum-Hanks has created a page that combines her study of the history of Buffalo, New York, with her interest in German language and literature. Includes
a translation of the history of Buffalo from a German perspective, a history of Germans in Buffalo and Erie County,
and scans and translations of many German-language newspapers and journals. Also includes an index of names.
- Der Deutsche Pionier
- Der Deutsche Pionier was, from
1869 to 1887, the publication of the Der Deutsche Pionier-Verein von
Cincinnati. It is generally considered an indispensable source for the
history of
Germans in the
United States, owing its quality and high reputation particularly to
Heinrich Armin Rattermann, who edited the journal from 1874
to 1885. This site, hosted by the Forschungsstelle Deutsche Auswanderer
in den USA (Oldenburg University), provides scanned images and thorough
indexes of all issues of this paper.
American Languages: German Dialects
Features
a number of short essays on various aspects of German-American linguistics, as well as sound clips from the following categories: Wisconsin German Dialects, Pennsylvania Dutch, and Texas German.
Linguistic Atlas of Kansas German Dialects
Seeks to collect, preserve and analyze German-American dialects spoken
in the state of Kansas and the Midwestern United States. The project makes
recordings of these dialects available via the World Wide Web and continues
to acquire new dialect samples.
Texas German Dialect
Project
Seeks to preserve a unique German dialect that has been spoken across central
Texas for more than 150 years. Dialect database allows users to listen to portions
of digitized audio interviews. Includes transcripts and translations.
Resources
Full-text articles
- Defining
Tensions. A Fresh Look at Germans in Wisconsin
- Proceedings of a conference held in Madison in October 1998. Full-text
papers online
- Some German Contributions
to Wisconsin Life
- Online article by Lester W. J. Seifert published in 1983 in the Yearbook
of German-American Studies
- Germans
in Wisconsin
- Excerpts and photographic documentation from the booklet by Richard H.
Zeitlin, published by the State Historical Society of Wisconsin Madison
in 1977
- Milwaukee
Women Yesterday
- Biography of Mathilde Anneke, 1817-1884, feminist, suffragette, journalist.
- Letters from Veronica Frank, German immigrant to Milwaukee in 1849 and
Anna Senn, Swiss immigrant to Milwaukee in 1887. Memoirs of Louise Wolfgram:
a German family's life in Milwaukee
- Aspects of German
Influences in Wisconsin Politics
- Talk given by Frank P. Zeidler in Madison, Wisconsin
- The
Wisconsin Mosaic (1848-1905)
- Exploration and photographic documentation of the historical, cultural
and social context within which the Frautschi letters were written in 19th
century Wisconsin; includes important historical events and other items
of interest related to Madison's and Wisconsin's history and culture. A
wealth of information under five main headings: Chronology, historical background,
activists, peoples' voices, information universe, information infrastructure
Searchable Databases
-
- German-Americana
Collection of the Max Kade Institute
- Library resources of the MKI, UW-Madison: Including early imprints in
the German language printed in the US and materials relating to the experiences
or contributions of German-speaking immigrants and their descendants in
America
Exhibits
- Gettelman
Brewing Company, Milwaukee
- Online exhibit
- Wisconsin's
Immigrant children
- Photo exhibit designed to capture the multinational character of children
who have come to Wisconsin in successive waves of immigration throughout
the state's history. It was especially created for the Sesquicentennial
through the cooperative efforts of the Max Kade Institute for German-American
Studies and the Madison Public Library
- The
Wisconsin Mosaic (1848-1905)
- Exploration and photographic documentation of the historical, cultural
and social context within which the Frautschi letters were written in 19th
century Wisconsin; includes important historical events and other items
of interest related to Madison's and Wisconsin's history and culture. A
wealth of information under five main headings: Chronology, historical background,
activists, peoples' voices, information universe, information infrastructure
Organizations
- Max Kade Institute for German-American
Studies, UW-Madison
- Research institution in the field: index page linking to various resources:
papers, publication list, library online resources, newsletter, various
research projects, exhibits
- State Historical
Society of Wisconsin
- The Library Division contains approx. 3.4 million items relating to the
history of North America; resources and archives on various ethnic groups
in Wisconsin
- Searchable
Directory of Wisconsin Historical Societies
- Search engine at the Wisconsin Historical Society
-
Wisconsin Historical and Genealogical Societies
- List of societies with Web sites
- German-American
Collections in the Milwaukee Urban Archives
- To research history of Milwaukee area, ethnic groups, families, German
American archives
- Watertown Historical
Society
- History of Watertown and photos of historical buildings
- History
of New Glarus, WI, America's Little Switzerland
- New Glarus is a Swiss historical village
- Museum of Wisconsin
Art
- Extensive collection of German-American art, especially of Carl Marr
- Goethe House, Milwaukee
- Purpose and services of the Goethe House in Milwaukee
- Centreville
Settlement, Inc.
- Organization dedicated to the preservation of the rural farming heritage
in in the Centerville Township area of Manitowoc County, Wisconsin. In the
1840's, many people from the Saxon state of Germany and others from surrounding
European areas settled in this area.
Related Fields
- Wisconsin French
Connections
- This webpage "is a virtual monument to honor the memory and continued
presence of French speaking people from many nations who, over the last
350 years, have helped make Wisconsin and the midwest United States what
they are today."
Back to the top
German Studies
- German Language
School Conference
- Association of schools dedicated to the teaching of German language and
culture on all proficiency levels and for all age groups
- Robert J. Shea's
German Resources
- Robert Shea's page. St. Louis, Mo
- The German Way
- Daily life and customs in German-speaking Europe
-
- Best
of the Web: Germany: Society
and Culture
- Links to information about Germany and German-related research, including
genealogy
- Internet Resources
for Germanists
- UW-Madison German Dept
- American Association of
Teachers of German
- Index page, with links to additional resources
- Saterfrisian
on-line course
- Saterland is a unique area in North-West Germany near the Dutch border.
Of all living continental languages, Saterfrisian is perhaps the nearest
relative to Old English.
This on-line course is the work of Pyt Kramer.
Ethnic Studies
- Balch
Institute for Ethnic Studies
- Now integrated into the Historical
Society of Pennsylvania, here one can find many collections of German-language
manuscripts, and other resources related to many ethnic groups
- Australian National
University Centre for Immigration and Multicultural Studies
- Information on the work of CIMS; provides links to information facilities
of value and/or significance to researchers in related fields
- Voice
of the Shuttle. Minority Studies Page
- Provides links on following topics: General resources; African-American;
Asian-American; Chicano, Latino, Hispanic; Immigrant/Refugee; Jewish; Native-American;
Pacific; Other (minority cultures in Europe, etc.)
- Ethnic organizations
and ethnic studies in Wisconsin
- Provides links to the various ethnic groups and ethnic studies in Wisconsin
and also some general links
-
European Immigration
- German-Language
Newspapers and Journals Published in London Since 1810
- From The British Library Newspaper Library
Genealogy
General Genealogy Resources
- Genealogy
resources
- Extensive list of links and resources, prepared by the University of Minnesota
Libraries: Article Databases and Indexes, Catalogs and Bibliographies, General
Reference Sources, Internet Resources, Primary Source Materials, Societies,
Agencies, and Organizations, Style Manuals and Writing Guides, and more
- Genealogy.com
- Leading resource for family history. You can search for family name, learn
about genealogy. Helpful websites and message boards
- Lingo24
- Provides a free online English-German
translation tool and German-English
translation tool. Also offers fee-based
translation services.
- Local
referral list for genealogical research, translation and transcription
(Madison, Wisconsin)
German Genealogy
- German
Genealogy Home Page
- Genealogy.net. This website provides information about German genealogical
societies, and LDS centers; sample letters in English and German for writing
to church and state archives; and a section "FAQ", Frequently
Asked Questions, with tips about avenues of research, writing to archives
in Germany and volunteer translation service
- Cyndi's list
of genealogical sites on the Internet: Germany
- Extensive list of links
- Hanacek's
listing of genealogical resources
- Available in both English and German, links to Internet resources and
databases for German genealogy; gives addresses for German military, church
and state archives
- FEEFHS Home Page
- This home page provides a "Genealogy ToolKit of WebTools" including
search engines, newsgroups, telephone and e-mail directories; a surname
database with immigrant information; a "Map Room" with over 50
maps of Central and Eastern Europe.
- Geogen—Distribution
of German Surnames
- Geogen stands for "geographical genealogy" which means location based
ancestor research. On this website you can create maps which show the distribution
of surnames in Germany. Significant concentrations can point to a local
root of the family or the family name.
- German
Names for Polish Towns and Cities
- A fairly comprehensive list of past German names for what are now Polish
villages, towns and cities. Many of these villages, towns and cities were
once in the German provinces of Western Pomerania (Pommern), Brandenburg,
Neumark, Posen, or Silesia, which were part of Prussia, Germany before becoming
Polish after the Second World War.
- Starke
Genealogy Index of German Nobility
- Links to German Royal and Nobility Genealogy Data; index to royal and
noble family lines
- German Roots: Resources
for German Genealogy on the Internet
- This site includes online German emigration databases, passenger lists
from 1820 to the 1940s and searchable death indexes, as well as a directory
to German genealogy on the web
- Hamburg:
Link to Your Roots
- Genealogical resources for the port of Hamburg, including emigration lists
spanning 1850-1934. Available in English or German
- Hamburg
Passenger Departure Lists, 1850-1934
- Links to online Hamburg indexes and digitized images, and sites with offline
research tips. Includes a guide to help read the German language passenger
lists.
- Posen
- The official Web site for the Posen-L mailing list
- Harburg
Project (near Nördlingen in Bavaria)
- Jewish genealogical research based on tax records, burial lists, personal
files, and other vital records portrays the lives of Jewish families that
once had lived in the historic County of Öttingen [Oettingen], Bavaria
from 1674 until 1936. Site includes family sheets, ancestral charts, Lebensbilder,
and cemetary maps and documentation of grave monuments in Harburg, Mönchsdeggingen,
Öttingen, Schopfloch, and Wallerstein. Also includes research of 19th-century
Jewish immigration from Southern Germany to North America, especially to
New York and New Orleans.
- Swiss
Roots
- Organized by the Consulate General of Switzerland in New York and official
Swiss representatives in the U.S., in cooperation with numerous local Swiss
associations,and now part of the Swiss Center of North America, this Web
site serves as a gateway to allow the 1 million Americans of Swiss descent
seeking to trace their ancestral roots and those with Swiss affinity to
discover and communicate with people in Switzerland. The site also showcases
the best in Swiss innovation, culture, history, education, and business.
Wisconsin Genealogy
- USGenWeb Page
- Includes Wisconsin county pages in map or table form; Wisconsin surname
page; archives; Wisconsin links
- Wisconsin
Genealogy Resources at the State Historical Society of Wisconsin
- Includes cemetery records, census information, family histories, immigration
information (Passenger Lists/Naturalization), newspapers, vital records
(birth, marriage, death), local histories, land records (maps/atlases, deeds),
military information, church records, court records (civil, criminal, divorce,
probate, state/county/local), and manuscripts (family, business, association
papers)
- Roster
of Wisconsin Volunteers, War of the Rebellion, 1861-1865
- Online digital book from the State Historical Library compiled in 1886
from original archival records
Heritage Societies
- American Historical Society
of Germans from Russia
- This website provides an on-line newsletter, publications, village census
information and research help for people interested in the history of Germans
from Russia
- Odessa-- A German Russian
Genealogical Library
- The library gives access to documents about Russian Germans both in Russia
and in the U.S.; and links to other sites related to German-Russian research.
- Germans from Russia Heritage
Society, GRHS
- Information about the Society
- German-Texan Heritage Society
- Information about the Society
- Indiana German Heritage
Society
- Information about the Society
- Bukovina Society
of the Americas
- Bukovina: From 1775 to 1918, the easternmost crown land of the Austrian
Empire; now divided between Romania and Ukraine. Information about history,
emigration, links
- Palatines to America
- This organization has an online Ancestor Register with immigration information,
an ever-growing library catalog; and a query index.
- Danube-Swabians
- Page with links to historical information, associations and societies,
genealogical and historical records, gazetteers and maps, bibliographies,
archives and libraries
- German-Bohemian
Heritage Society
- Information about the Society, newsletter, database, information and resources,
links to other resources
- Sudetenland
- Page intended to assist in the research of ancestors from the former Sudetenland
(German settlement area in Bohemia/Moravia/Austrian Silesia/Czechoslovakia/Czech
Republik)
- Czech
Republic Bohemia and Moravia Genealogical Research
- Various links and family histories
- Pomerania
- Links page to resources on Pomerania from German Genealogy Home Page
- Pomerania: (Pommern)
- Page from MKI by Alan Furchtenicht
- Pommersche Leute in aller Welt
- Page by Heinz Dieter Donicht
- Die
Pommerschen Leute
- German Pomeranian Newsletter
- Prussia
online
- Archive, FAQs, history, societies
- German
Genealogy: Regional Research
- Resources from German Genealogy Home Page: Genealogy.net. Comprehensive
site
Wisconsin Heritage Societies, Local Groups, etc.
- AHSGR:
SE Wisconsin Chapter
- Home page of the American Historical Society of Germans From Russia, Southeastern
Wisconsin Chapter
- German Interest
Group Wisconsin
- The purpose of the German Interest Group - Wisconsin (GIG) is to educate
and support its members with their German genealogical research. The GIG
sponsors monthly evening meetings with speakers and an annual workshop.
- Hessischer
Verein
- Home page of the Hessischer Verein in Germantown, WI
- Pommerscher
Verein Freistadt
- Home page of the Pommeranian Society of Freistadt
- The
Swiss Connection
- Newsletter focusing on Swiss genealogical research
- German Fest
- The official Web site of the annual German Fest in Milwaukee, WI
Return to MKI Home page