A 5,300-year-old kinsman on my father’s line, and the accident that nearly ended him Every so often, a DNA match stops being a name or reference number on a screen and turns into a person. That just happened to me with a burial FTDNA’s “Ancient Connections” tool calls Sharakhalsun 6004 (sample SA6004) in the archaeological […]
The Wagon Driver of Sharakhalsun Read More »
Fritz and Dora Rathkamp came to Milwaukee in 1868. Dora was born Dorothee Hülsemann in 1838. She was born in Albringhausen, a 16km drive from Oeftinghausen, where the Rathkamp family lived. Albringhausen today is basically a suburb of Bassum, population 16,604 and is the home of Stiftskirche St. Mauritius und St. Viktor. This church was built
My Hülsemann Ancestors, and Their Brush With Napoleon Read More »
In the early to mid-2000s, I was really struggling with finding exactly where our Rathkamp ancestors came from, prior to their migration to Milwaukee. But I started seeing a pattern: I was using the German Genealogy site genealogy.net and noticing that, while I wasn’t finding MY Rathkamps, all of the Rathkamps I was finding were
Schmalförden Höfe, Familien, Fluren…early days Read More »
Overview Since my first DNA test in the mid-2000s, I’ve been fascinated by and driven to learn about how my paternal ancestors could have possibly made their way from the Altai Mountains in Siberia (origin point of the Q Haplogroup) to Menninghausen/ Oeftinghausen, Germany. If traveled by car today, this drive would take 73 hours.
Crunching the Numbers…and the Bones Read More »
In October, 2009 I wrote THIS POST about my Great Grandmother, Olive (Hassel) Rathkamp, my dad’s grandmother. Olive died in 1926, 16 years before my dad was born. Until last week she and her Swedish ancestors continued to be a complete mystery. I’ve accumulated some anecdotal evidence, but nothing concrete. Here’s what I suspected: That’s
The Swedes Come Out of the Weeds Read More »
My last post about Esther Rathkamp got me thinking about all the discrepancies and mysteries surrounding her parents William & Olive Rathkamp, my great grandparents. Genealogists are used to dealing with inconsistencies, usually attributed to misspellings of surnames. But Willy & Olive are off the charts. How and why did Olive move from Iron Mountain,
Willy & Olive, What’s Your Story? Read More »
It’s not an over-exaggeration to say that if ever there was an angel on this earth, it was my Grandma Emma. Emma Nathalia (Walz) Niesl was born to Fredrich and Sophia (Bischke) Walz on May 2, 1913. Both Fred and Sophie, along with their respective families, came to America, settling on the harsh plains of
Since moving to Ripon a few months ago, I’ve been looking for opportunities to volunteer my time. Sometimes opportunity can show up in the most unlikely of places. During the annual Dickens of a Christmas early in December, my family and I visited the Ripon Historical Society where I met its president, Bill Woolley. I
Ripon Historical Society Read More »
I’ve been ridiculously delinquent in writing about our last two days in Germany, but sometimes life throws a couple curve balls and you just have to react. Actually, I can handle the curve balls, it’s those inside pitches that tend to sting a little. I can’t speak for Korey, but I think Friday was the
Chasing Chickens in Oeftinghausen Read More »
My cousin Matt died this morning. His life was full of struggle and pain, but he fought to make the best of it. Matt was born about six months before me. I feel fortunate to have been Matt’s friend during our childhood. We were very close, having lived in the same house for a while
I met Friedhelm Wessels via email about three years ago while I was trying to locate my Rathkamp ancestors. I’m glad I did. At that time, I knew my ancestors came to Milwaukee in 1868 and I had a very rough idea of the location they may have been from in Germany, but that was
A Day With Herr Britannica Read More »
Wednesday afternoon we ventured over to the Museumdorf Cloppenburg to continue our history lesson. The museum simulates a 16th to 19th century Niedersachsen village. The buildings on display have been dismantled from various locations around Niedersachsen and have been meticulously restored and rebuilt on-site. I think both Korey and I got more out of this
Niedersachsen Social Studies Read More »