The importance of heritage...

[HollyDolly]

So glad you learned alot about your family Jeremiah65. I haven't tried doing my mother's family.Her father Joseph Popp came to America in 1919-1920,right after World War 1.In fact he met his wife,Emma Balogh( also spelled Belogh),on the boat that was taking them to America from Hungary. I'm trying to do my dad's side,the Hilperts first. I know a few things about them from my dad.The family is a very old .Most of the family lives in Bavaria,but we have cousins who live in the Black Forest in Baden-Wurttenberg. The Hilperts in the Black Forest hold the position of hereditary foresters.How they got that position, and when or why,I don't know.

The family is entitled to use von in their name, but most of the relatives don't seem to,even though they can. They were my dad said according to german records,landholders,military men(Generaloberst Carl Hilpert-Commander of Army Group Courland), artisans( Andreas and Johannes Georg Hilpert-the toy soldier makers) and petty court officials. Two of my cousins Clement and his son Clemens Hilpert were both burgermeisters of Himmelstadt.When my dad went TDY to England and Germany back in 1958 -59, he went to Garmisch. According to parish records, one of his relatives in the 1690s had been a burgermeister and had also served as a steward to the Grand duke or Prince who was running the show at that time. Daddy's cousin told him that if he really wanted to know the family history,he should make a trip to Nuremburg,where the family historian,a lady,kept the family history book.Unfortunetly,he didn't have the time to go there.

I know a few things about his mother's side ,the Steldts,but not as much as the Hilperts.Some cousins of grandma the von Lilienschilds fought in the crusades,and go back in the records of the City of Riga to the 13th or 14th century.They belonged to an order of knights.Daddy didn't think it was the Teutonic Knights. Most likely,the Livonian Knights of the Sword.They later on amalgamated to the Teutonic Knights. The funny thing is,i have found that there is a company named van der Steldt in Holland, and they are a shipping company. I know Peter the Great invited the Dutch and German to come to Russia,as did Catherine the Great.It might be the Steldts are really of dutch origin,rather than german. My dad's grandmother,Anna Weichlein Hilpert i was told had relatives who lived in Kiev,so I assume that they may have come there when Catherine or Peter were recruiting germans.

Sometimes people don't get very far,because as you say, the desruction of records over the centuries due to fire,floods,wars,etc.

[The_Spartan]

My ancestors came to India from Syria.

I don't have any means of searching anything beyond the time they landed in India.

I am sorts of hoping if there are any genetic detective agencies who snooping around genetic records.