After my mom died and my dad now getting real old (84), i started looking at my roots.
The start was not so hard, since my maternal grandpa, having been in the Waffen SS, had to dig out his ancestors anyway. Starting with this official book of ancestry i could trace my ancestors back to the 1500s. Then a somewhat suspicious connection, which leads back to the 1200s.
On my dads side, i was able to trace back to the 1700s. Currently i am trying (with my cousin 2nd grade) to identify the house my family left, when they settled over from the former Soviet Union in 1962. With dads help and some old maps from Eastern Prussia (early 20th century), i am 90% sure we tracked the location down. It has been hard to follow down my purely paternal line, since my great-great grandad seems to be born out of wedlock.
Its been an interesting journey, but i am not obsessed with it. Just curious.
My DNA confirming what i already wrote: roughly 50% German (mom) and 50% Baltic (dad).
The start was not so hard, since my maternal grandpa, having been in the Waffen SS, had to dig out his ancestors anyway. Starting with this official book of ancestry i could trace my ancestors back to the 1500s. Then a somewhat suspicious connection, which leads back to the 1200s.
On my dads side, i was able to trace back to the 1700s. Currently i am trying (with my cousin 2nd grade) to identify the house my family left, when they settled over from the former Soviet Union in 1962. With dads help and some old maps from Eastern Prussia (early 20th century), i am 90% sure we tracked the location down. It has been hard to follow down my purely paternal line, since my great-great grandad seems to be born out of wedlock.
Its been an interesting journey, but i am not obsessed with it. Just curious.
My DNA confirming what i already wrote: roughly 50% German (mom) and 50% Baltic (dad).
Cetero censeo religionem delendam esse
