Nineteenth-Century Emigration of “Old Lutherans” from Eastern Germany (Mainly Pomerania and Lower Silesia) to Australia, Canada, and the United States

Description

This collection of “Old Lutherans” from Eastern Germany was extracted not from original passenger lists but from a two-volume study written in German by Wilhelm Iwan in 1943. In this case, the impetus for much of the emigration was in reaction to the merger in 1817 of the Calvinist and Lutheran confessions in Prussia ordered by King Friedrich Wilhelm III. About 7,500 Lutherans are named, with the majority bound for the U.S., many with the specific destination of Texas. The immigrants are arranged chronologically and thereunder by their town/province of origin in Prussia. In most instances, we find the passenger’s name, age, occupation, and the maiden names of female passengers. The lists themselves are followed by an intriguing collection of notes concerning persons traveling without their spouses, surname and place name indexes, and other finding aids. Includes both a place name index and a surname index.