German Roots: Lessons Learned

Part 2: Luck and a Friendly Official

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We arrived in Schlitz in the early evening when it was still light. There were several hotels to choose from and we chose a modest but tidy one located on the main street. The view from our room was an impressive vista of a hill covered with medieval structures and parked automobiles that seemed rather out of place. We definitely weren't in Kansas any more!

Finding Your German Ancestors:
A Beginner's Guide
by Kevan M. Hansen
See: German Genealogy Books.

It was too late to do anything but explore on foot what turned out to be a very scenic and interesting town. We had a very good dinner in the Italian restaurant recommended by the lady innkeeper at our hotel. I also asked her where the Rathaus was and briefly mentioned our Kaufmann search. She showed interest but told us (in German, of course) that she knew of no Kaufmanns still living in the Schlitz area. And in fact, although Kaufmann is a common German name, there were truly none in Schlitz. We would soon discover the likely explanation for that.

Most things in a town the size of Schlitz are within walking distance, and the next morning we walked up the hill past historical Fachwerkhäuser (half-timbered houses) and medieval stone walls to find the Rathaus. Since it closes daily at 12:30, we didn't have time to waste.

Inside the town hall we asked where the Standesamt was and walked the few steps down the hallway to reach the door of a room labeled “Standesamt: Herr Ziegler, Frau Klein.” (See photo.) As I opened the door, it suddenly occured to me how American I am. A German would have knocked first! But Herr Ziegler was a very amiable man who didn't seem to mind our intrusion and invited us to sit down in front of his desk.

In German, I told Herr Ziegler that we had come from America to find a birth certificate (Geburtsurkunde) for a Heinrich Kaufmann, my wife's grandfather, who had been born in Schlitz, probably in 1890. Although he had a computer sitting on his desk, Herr Ziegler, acting as if such a vague request was an everyday event, walked into another room and soon returned with a thick, well-worn record book in his hand. He sat down at his desk and began to turn the pages of the 1890 birth records, filled in so many years ago by hand in old German script.

The suspense was killing us. Would the name of Cheryl's grandfather actually appear in this ancient-looking book? Could we actually just walk in off the street, and in five minutes have written proof of Heinrich Kaufmann's arrival in the world and a precise date of birth? Soon Herr Ziegler reached the end of the book, and the answer now seemed to be "no."

But wait a minute. We knew that Heinrich had been 16 when he arrived in the U.S., but depending on the month of his birth, it was possible he had actually been born in either 1889 or 1891. Could Herr Ziegler look in those volumes as well? He graciously got up and returned with two more volumes of hand-written birth records. Once again we were holding our breath as the pages went by in the 1891 volume — without a trace of Heinrich Kaufmann. Without any Kaufmann at all.

Now it was 1889 or nothing. Once again the pages were turning under Herr Ziegler's hand. Record 1, 2, 3 and so on slowly went by. But at record number 40, Herr Ziegler hesitated and smiled. There it was! In a combination of Gothic (Fraktur) print and the beautiful old black ink handwriting that I still find difficult to read was the record of Heinrich Kaufmann's birth. Herr Ziegler kindly helped us read the entry made by an official named Zinsser on the 20th of July 1889: “Born to linen weaver Heinrich Kaufmann, of the Protestant religion, residing in Schlitz... and Katharina Elisabetha Kaufmann nee Eisenberg... a child of the masculine sex... at the residence of Heinrich Kaufmann... and given the first name Heinrich.” (See a photo of the original document in German.)

The emotion of the moment caught me by surprise. My wife was sobbing for joy and I found myself tearing up a little in reaction to our sudden success. Herr Ziegler himself was visibly happy for us and even agreed to pose for a photo holding the 1889 volume open to the Heinrich Kaufmann page he had found for us.

But that wasn't all he would find that day! We had earlier mentioned to Herr Ziegler that we were also looking for a death certificate for Heinrich's mother. According to the Kaufmann family story, it was her death that had forced Heinrich to go to America in 1906. Herr Ziegler said he would look into it, and asked us to return later, before they closed for the day. The damp weather that day wasn't ideal for exploring the town, but we eagerly set off to do just that. Despite the weather, our spirits were sunny after achieving our primary goal.

Upon our return, Herr Ziegler told us that he had found no Kaufmann death certificate for the period around 1906, but that he had found something equally important! Opening one of his thick books, he showed us the marriage certificate (Heiratsurkunde) for young Heinrich's parents, dated December 16, 1888. The marriage certificate provides the birth dates and full names of Heinrich's mother and father, Cheryl's greatgrandparents. (See a photo of the original document in German.)

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DOCS > Birth Certif. | Marriage Certif.