USING GOOGLE EARTH IN MY GENEALOGICAL RESEARCH

Last week, my daughter and I went to the movies to watch "Lion".  According to my Google-employed son who told me about the movie, it was about a guy using Google Earth to find his birth home and village and more specifically his family.  It was a very touching movie!

The movie got me thinking on how many times I have used Google Earth for my genealogy research.  Some of my more memorable searches include the following:

1. Locating parcels of land where my Great Grandmother Bridget Chambers spent her childhood in the townland of Letter, Islandeady, County Mayo, Ireland. [If I had used Google Earth while on the road in Ireland I might have been able to see the land with my own eyes]

2. Trying to match a house that I have in a 1960 photo (the childhood home of my Great Grandfather Bryan Sherlock in Demailestown, Meath, Ireland) to see if it still exists today.  [Sadly I had no luck with my search but considering how old that house would have been -- he lived there in the late 1800's -- it probably has been torn down and a newer house built.]

3. Locating the following churches -- Katholische Maria Himmelfahrt (Helferskirchen, Rheinland, Germany), Saint Boniface Church (Wirges, Rheinland, Germany) and St. Laurentius Church (Dernbach, Germany).  [This helped with my visit to see them in 2015]

4. Trying to see what the house my Grandmother Theresa Nebgen Sherlock grew up in Chicago, looks like today.

5. And of course, looking at my Google Earth photos of my childhood home in Southern California. 

WRAP UP OF VISIT TO MY GERMAN ANCESTRAL TOWNS

It was such a wonderful gift to be able to visit 4 of my German Ancestral villages while on my Rhine River cruise this past summer.  While it required extra effort on our part -- renting a car, getting to the car rental agency before it closed at 1pm and of course finding our way back to our ship -- it was well worth it!  I loved seeing the natural beauty of the areas surrounding Helferskirchen, Wirges, Staudt and Dernbach.  I was pleasantly surprised to find that these villages are growing larger and seem to be doing very well.  I wonder if I can find any photos of these villages from the 1700 and 1800's.

I enjoyed the peaceful moments while I sat in the churches where my ancestors attended Sunday Mass -- St. Boniface in Wirges, St. Laurentius in Dernbach and the cute little prayer chapel in Helferskirchen.

While my Grandma Theresa knew that her father Peter Joseph Nebgen was from Dernbach, Germany, I don't think she knew about her ancestors from Helferskirchen, Staudt and Wirges.  I wonder if she had known, would she and Grandpa Charlie stopped and visited these villages on their trip up the Rhine River in 1961?

DERNBACH -- THE HOMETOWN OF ANNA MARIA WITTAYER

My 2nd Great Grandmother Anna Maria Wittayer was born in Dernbach, Germany on 23 Oct 1841.   She married Baltazar Nebgen in Dernbach.  She also gave birth to her children -- Peter (1863), Nicholas (1865), Peter Clemens (1867), Emil (1876), Maria Rosina (1880) and Joseph Laurentius (1884) in Dernbach. Her son Peter Joseph (my Great Grandfather) was born in Eschelbach.  Anna Maria died in Dernbach on 6 Jan 1918.

Since Dernbach is just south of Wirges and southwest of Staudt, my husband and I decided to stop there on our way back to our river cruise ship.  We visited the St. Laurentius Catholic Church in Dernbach.  This church was built in 1863 which is probably where her children were baptized.

Behind the actual church building is another building, shown in the photo below.  I do love the large bell (in the above photo) that is located next to the church.

Dernbach was also the place of birth of Catherine Kasper, who was the founder of the Poor Handmaids of Jesus Christ order.  There is a statue and plaque in her honor in this church.

KATHOLISCHE FRIEDHOF WIRGES

So for the past week, I have been researching the names of the 212 people listed as being buried at the Katholische Friedhof Wirges cemetery in Wirges, Germany (according to Findagrave.com).  I have learned some new things both about the town of Wirges and about my ancestors who lived there.

Wirges is located in Westerwaldkreis in Rhineland-Palatinate area of Germany (western Central area of Germany -- not too far east of the Rhine River).  Its population is now about 5,000.  I have no idea how many people were living there when my ancestors were alive.  I need to find some history of Wirges.   To the southwest of Wirges, is the town of Dernbach (birthplace of my Nebgen family members), to the southeast is the town of Staudt (many of my Hober relatives lived there) and to the east is Bannberscheid and Moschheim (where Hober relatives also either moved or were born).  Actually it was rather exciting to find so many ancestors in such a small area.

Of the 212 names listed for this cemetery, I can prove some family relationship with at least 107 of them.  Now there are 28 additional people who have the name Hober but I can't quite fit them into my family tree yet.  What I find interesting is that these Hober's are more current (from the 1800's) vs. the Hober's I know that are related to me (who are from the 1600 and 1700's).  Usually I have the opposite problem -- can see the relationship of more current people but not so much those ancient ancestors.  I guess it is a good problem to have!

Wirges (and even more specifically this cemetery) is now on my "bucket list".  Supposedly the graves of my 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th and 8th great grandparents are located there.  How could I not want to go?  I could also visit the nearby town of Dernbach (home town of my Nebgen's) while I am there.

Well, back to my research ....

THOSE PLACES THURSDAY

      My 2nd great grandparents (Baltazar Nebgen and Anna Maria Wittayer) both lived their entire lives in the municipality of Dernbach in Germany.  Dernbach is located in Westerwaldkreis in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany or more simply put, it is in the western central part of Germany.  My great grandfather Peter Joseph Nebgen was born in Dernbach on 12 Dec 1869 and lived there until he immigrated to the US in 1888.

      The above photo is a picture of the old Dernbach homestead of Baltazar and Anna Maria.  It is rather exciting to see a photo of the house where my great grandfather grew up.  I wonder if this house is still standing.  I am thinking that I am putting "Dernbach" on my bucket list of places to visit.