From German Girls Genealogy (Teresa Steinkamp McMillin & Debra A. Hoffman):

When researching in a specific area in Germany, it is important to connect with local researchers. They often have unique tools they use when deciphering old records from their area. As American researchers, we might not be aware of them.

 

We were recently visiting the area of Ellenfeld, Bärnau in the district Tirschenreuth in Bavaria. It is a small town just on the border of the Czech Republic. Our friend has ancestry here. She arranged for us to meet a researcher who helped her in the past. 

 

This researcher was very kind and invited us into her home. We were talking all about the area and its history. She mentioned a book by someone named Riepl. Our ears perked up because this was new information to us. It was a dictionary of historical terms specific to Bavaria and Austria. 

 

When researching older documents, you inevitably find archaic words not in a modern German dictionary. We are accustomed to using resources such as German-English Genealogical Dictionary by Ernest Thode or Grimm’s Wörterbuch. There are other general ones. These are not specific to one region in Germany. They can contain region-specific words, but not an exhaustive list. Other tools become necessary. A regional dictionary has a much better chance of helping. 

 

We now own this book! Always on the hunt for these types of regional tools, our library is expanding. You can never have too many books!

Reinhard Riepl, Wörterbuch zur Familien- und Heimatsforschung in Bayern und Österreich (Oberbergkirchen, Germany: Druckerei Lanzinger, 2003).

 From German Girls Genealogy (Teresa Steinkamp McMillin & Debra A. Hoffman):

 

Never a Bad Meal

 

I (Debra) have now taken two research trips to Germany; the first trip in April of 2024 and the second trip in January 2025. I have never had a bad meal … not once!

 

That does not mean that I did not have to get used to the differences in cultural options for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. A typical breakfast in Germany consists of sliced meats, cheeses, vegetables, and fresh breads. That is not what I would typically eat in America. Basically, sandwich fixings. A typical breakfast for me is oatmeal. I found oatmeal offered at some hotels and restaurants, but it was not typical. I had to get used to the different offerings. The food was fresh and delicious, so it was not hard!

 

Lunches in Germany presented the typical offerings of soups, salads, sandwiches, or a hot entrée. Americans do not normally think of salads as German food; however, I would encourage travelers to order a salad. I had some incredible salads in Germany. They are abundant and delicious. Teresa is known for ordering salads on our research trips together.

 

In Germany, their dinner options are what we might expect to order in America. I was not expecting the wide variety of restaurants because I had my heart set on good typical German fare of wurst and sauerkraut or schnitzel. But you can find Greek, Indian, Italian, and Mexican restaurants and we happily tried them all!

 

Some other differences to keep in mind when eating out is that you will not receive your bill [rechnung] until you ask for it. Dining out is about good food and socializing, so they do not rush you. Also, tipping is different. There is not the traditional tipping structure in Germany that there is in America. You can certainly leave a tip, and we did, but it is not customary or expected like it is in America. 

 

Luckily, in between researching at repositories and dining out, we did a lot of walking, which helped to ensure I did not gain weight after enjoying all the wonderful meals on the trip! Guten Appetit!

 

 From German Girls Genealogy (Teresa Steinkamp McMillin & Debra A. Hoffman): 

In a prior post, I described the Catholic graveyard in Schweighausen. It is connected to St. Romanus Church. In 1132, a chapel was consecrated in Schweighausen to honor St. Romanus. The current building was erected in 1777. After a fire in 2006, it was renovated into the church we see today. 

 

We were able to go inside to look around. The baptismal font dates from 1275. Many of my ancestors were baptized at that font. It’s crazy to think it has seen generations of people whose names I will never know because the earliest baptism dates from 1646. The organ at this church, not nearly as old, was installed in the late 1700s.

 

It was late January, but the Christmas décor still stood. The nativity scene was a unique assembly of natural materials pulled from the Black Forest, of which Schweighausen is part. It primarily consisted of branches, stones, and moss. Our guide explained that he and two other men spent thirty hours building it. And they do it every year. The stones, many containing fossils, are reused, but the other elements are gathered fresh each year. The manger would stay intact until early February.

 

And speaking of fossils. The flooring in the church was made of natural stone pulled from the region. If you look carefully, you will find many examples of fossils quietly witnessing the history that continues to unfold in this church.

 

On a Street in Amberg

 From German Girls Genealogy (Teresa Steinkamp McMillin & Debra A. Hoffman):

One of the best things about visiting Germany is the many old architectural things you see that are so much older than anything you would find in the United States. One example is the “Amberger Draue” shown in the picture. The three heads date from 1458! This monument was located on the street of the hotel where we stayed, the Hotel Fronfeste located on Fronfestgasse in Amberg. We will devote a separate post to that unique hotel. 

The placard below the three heads, roughly translated, states that anyone who strokes the three heads of the citizens of Amberg will remain loyal to the people of Amberg for the rest of their lives and will come back at some point. We are looking forward to returning on a future trip!