I first heard German researcher and author Astrid Adler (Tiefenort, Thuringia, Germany) speak to the Ventura County Genealogical Society in April of this year. Some six million Germans emigrated in the 19th c., and some were from her region…and not a few were from her town! Her extensive research into this local emigration and its causes led to an exhibition on the subject — for which she was honored by her state in 2012. Her talk covering the high points of her German-language book on the topic was informative, entertaining, and definitely well-received. Now she has published an English-language version for American readers.
Our Ancestors Were German: Emigration in the 19th Century from Grand Duchy Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach is an attractive volume that adequately covers this broad subject of emigration/immigration from a variety of perspectives. She plans to promote the book beginning with a first presentation in Ventura County on January 14th at 11 am at the Port Hueneme Historical Society Museum, on Market St. In May, a book tour will formally begin with stops in Southern California and in the Washington, DC area.
Orders for the book may be placed here. Full information about all of her books (including a forthcoming one) may be found on that page as well. A list of the towns from which the emigrants originated, as well as the states in which they located, may be found here.