The German Corner: #1

Cranberry Prairie

David A. Hoying

      Welcome to a new feature of the Newsletter known as Die Deutsche Ecke or "The German Corner". In this feature it is our hope to address various aspects of the German heritage of Mercer County, especially as they relate to the study of genealogy. Mercer County has a rich and varied German heritage, going back already to 1832, because of the numerous immigrants who settled here from Oldenburg, Hannover, Westphalia, Mecklenburg, Baden, Bavaria, Alsatia, and the other German states. We will be happy to entertain any questions that you may wish to address concerning your German heritage or ancestry, as well as any topics that you may wish us to address.
      In this past century the study of our German heritage has been a rather neglected topic. This was due in particular to our patriotic fervor during the world conflicts of World War I and World War II in which Germany was our menacing aggressor. Times have changed and it is now acceptable to once again take on the study of our German heritage without it being a betrayal of our American patriotism. Because of this new climate, there has been some discussion on the possibility of establishing some type of German heritage organization or forum for west-central Ohio, especially thr Mercer, Auglaize, Shelby, and other surrounding counties. The group could be composed of representatives from the various genealogical and historical organizations of these counties and other interested individuals. The group would seek the preservation of our German heritage and do so by supporting workshops and events offered for the study of German heritage by the various member organizations, and perhaps even sponsoring some of their own. It is possible that this local group could become affiliated with the German-American Citizens League of Greater Cincinnati, and thus have access to wider publicity for the events and greater support for them. Are you interested?
      For the past several years I have been working on a project about the emigrants from Oldenburg who settled in west-central Ohio. I know that some of you are waiting for this to come out, but it seems that I am not able to complete it quickly as I am trying to make it as all-encompassing as possible. Along with the names of some 1900 Oldenburg emigrants, I would also like to provide the history and culture of these emigrants, along with extracts from land records, ship records, naturalization records, and other data concerning these emigrants. It is a rather ambitious project, but I will complete it. I will be offering some of the findings of my research in this feature in future issues.
      In each issue there will be the following section called: From whence they came... This will be a continuing list of German villages and the families that came from these places who settled ia west-central Ohio. We will begin this listing with emigrant families who came from the Kingdom of Hannover, and that portion which had been the Prince-Bishopric of Osuabrack. Additions and corrections to this section will be appreciated.