September 19 Ken and Gloria Temple are now on their way home after their 17-day trip in Germany. The trip was a dream come true for Ken, a lifelong family historian who wanted to combine a sightseeing trip with visits to four key ancestral areas, including meeting some cousins. When he went to his local […]
Author Archives: jim
Looking Over Ancestral Village of Wartenfels
September 14 from a visit on September 13 Ken Temple of New York looks over his ancestral village of Wartenfels, Bavaria, Germany. His Tempel ancestors left here in 1866. A local historian, Reinhard Bauerfeind, met with us spent nearly four hours explaining the history of the village and the reasons behind the emigrants’ decision to […]
The Reminders of the Division of Berlin
September 14 from a visit on September 10 There are reminders of the division of Berlin everywhere. We walked the trail of the old wall recently, passing the new American Embassy, the spiffed up Brandenburg Gate and the rebuilt Reichstag. All along this route there is a double line of bricks marking the path of […]
The Bremerhaven German Emigration Museum
September 14 – from a visit here on September 9 We visited the Bremerhaven German Emigration Museum recently as part of Ken and Gloria Temple’s 17-day exploration of ancestral villages and towns and sightseeing around Germany. The museum was opened in 2002 and since then, has improved its presentation dramatically with a fascinating look into […]
Prosit from Eissen, Germany
September 8 We visited Rottkamp cousins in Eissen, Nordrhein-Westfalen, Germany today. After waiting six years to take this trip, Gloria Temple met three cousins and their wives at a family reunion on September 8th including homemade cake and rolls, a visit to two ancestral churches and at the end, a farmer’s fest including organic beer. […]
A Visit to Soultz-sous-Forêts, Alsace, France
September 8 – from a visit on September 6 Gloria Temple’s ancestors named Bayer came from the small town of Soultz-sous-Forêts, now located in the Alsace of France. When Gloria’s ancestors lived here, this was part of the German Empire.
Postcard from the Black Forest of Germany
September 5 Near Simonswald, Germany
A Busy Day in the Black Forest
September 5 Genealogy enthusiast Ken Temple has researched his German ancestors back several centuries. One of his lines comes from ‘Baden,’ and he knows they lived in the ‘Weinland,’ but that is as far as his knowledge extends. Further research is possible but not really convenient. And so today, just to get the feel for […]