A VISIT TO HELFERSKIRCHEN

I learned originally about Helferskirchen on Find A Grave.com.  According to Find a Grave.com, the Assumption of Mary Church "was built in 930-959 as a fortress church".  "The present church was built in 1769" and "is considered one of the most beautiful baroque churches in Westerwald".

My husband and I drove into town and headed towards the Catholic Church -- Katholische Maria Himmelfahrt.  I was disappointed to find that the doors of the church were locked but that didn't stop me from exploring the church grounds and taking some photos.  Then to get a better feel of the area, we walked east of the church and saw some cows grazing in a pasture.  Walking a bit further in that direction, we discovered a darling little prayer chapel, hidden by some large trees.

Of course, we went in the chapel to see what was inside.  I wonder if I can find out the history of this little chapel.

I was amazed at how beautiful the area surrounding Helferskirchen is.  Okay, you know I need to show you one more photo!

KATHOLISCHE MARIA HIMMELFAHRT

In my last post, I talked about how half of the interments in the Katholische Friedhof Wirges cemetery in Wirges, Germany are either my ancestors or spouses of my ancestors.  I wondered how many I would find in the nearby (about 4 miles) cemetery called Katholische Maria Himmelfahrt in Helferskirchen, Germany.

Well, I did not have the same luck as I did with the cemetery in Wirges.  According to FindaGrave.com, 580 interments are listed for the cemetery in Helferskirchen.  I found 40 ancestors in that 580 listing and 19 spouses.  Of note, I did find, my 6th great grandparents Anna Catharina Zirfas and Mathias Bast.  I also found Anna Catharina's parents (my 7th great grandparents) Elizabeth Zirfas and Valentin Zirfas.  There were also a few Hobers listed there.

The church shown in the photo is the Assumption of Mary Catholic Church.  The cemetery is located next to the church.  I am thinking that this will be another stop on my genealogy trip down the Rhine River.  Hopefully I will be able to locate my 6th and 7th great grandparents' graves as well as take a tour of what is commonly referred to as one of the most beautiful baroque churches in this region.