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German immigrants to Birmingham

Alan Hargreaves

New Member
I have been trying, for some years, to find out where my wife’s ancestor, William Deitz or his forebears, came from before they lived in Birmingham. I can trace records back to 1803 when William, Deitz, a tailor, married Hannah Massey at Rochford in Worcestershire. They lived in Birmingham and were associated with the New Jerusalem church where a number of their children were registered. He died in Birmingham on 13 Nov 1839, aged 81. I cannot find any immigration record in that name. His grandson, Joseph, emigrated to Australia in 1853 and there is a court report that his second wife, trying to show the family were not German nationals during WW1, stated that his GG Grandfather had escaped Germany after being accused of sedition. I am a member of the Anglo German Family Historical Society but have found no leads there. Does anybody have any ideas where to look next?
 
Welcome to the Forum, Alan.

I hope that our knowledgeable and helpful family history experts will come up with some ideas.

Chris
 
Deitz, is a really old surname, it originates from Hungary, it became German, from the time of the Austro/Hungarian Empire but it could also be Swiss, or Austrian, finding out the home town or state of origin will be quite a difficulty I feel, if you google "Wikapedia", you find a whole list of famous people, with this surname. and some of the history. Paul
 
Alan,

There's a few here on Family Search that might just about fit:-
https://www.familysearch.org/search...rom=1760&birth_year_to=1803&count=20&offset=0
but proving any one of them, when there are almost no immigration records, is going to be very difficult, if not impossible.

I tried for a similar case in Graz, Austria, a few years back, got a nice acknowledgement from their Town Hall, and was told that they were short staffed, but never heard any more. Whilst many records do survive in Germany, despite the destruction of WW2, they tend to be localised and not kept in a central place. I don't envy you this task.

Maurice :cool:
 
Maurice and Paul. Thanks for your comments. I notice that a lot of the surnames originated in Rhein. One of the possibilities I looked at was whether he came to uk with the Palatines, but no luck there either. Many Palatines were brought to Birmingham with the intention of moving them on to America and the records of names are still available. Not mine though. If, as Joseph’s second wife said, he was escaping from Germany, he could well not have any official record of his arrival in UK.
 
Alan,

One surname site says that the name originates in Hessen. However, given that it is so early, possibly pre-1800, I doubt if you will find immigration records here. The more modern ones are at the National Archives, and while indexed, they have not been digitized and you have to pay for copies. I did one for a UK chap who emigrated to the USA and then in 1930 decided he wanted to become a British citizen again. The were about 40 pages in all, but you can opt for just the first 10 pages for a flat rate fee, which I did. Most of the info I wanted was on the first two pages and the rest legalese! So worth sticking his surname into the National Archives search engine on the offchance.

Maurice :cool:
 
Alan,

Hanover is what I have managed to find over the years. But nothing specific. There were four siblings who went to NSW, Joseph, William, Mary Regina, and Sarah Jane.
William worked for the NSW railways. Roger Woodward the pianist is a descendant of Mary Regina. You may already know that Joseph was rewarded along with Tom Saunders by the NSW Government for starting the gold rush at Gulgong. I went to Canadian Lead near Gulgong a few years ago to have a look.
Also of interest is Ellen another sister of Joseph. She married Edward O'Connor Terry actor and their son Herbert married Vesta Victoria (Lawrence).
 

Attachments

  • Birmingham Directory 1835 Page 45.pdf
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Hi Alan Hargreaves
Re. Deitz Family. Census 1851 gives William Deitz B1809 Birmingham. Occupation Carpenter.
Sarah Deitz B1813 Handsworth,Staffordshire.
Joseph Deitz B1851 Birmingham,Warwickshire.
In Census 1861 there is also Alice Deitz Smerthwick,Staffs
Sarah Deitz Worcestershire,Staffs.
Residence in Cen1851 is Oldbury Road,Harborne.
On Familysearch I found a William and Catherine Deitz together with a Christina (Dau) B1866 Boston.
William is also listed as applying for Naturalisation as an American
Williams Occupation Teamster in 1857 as a immigrant who entered USA 13-1-1855. Born in Bavaria.
Living in Madison,Illinois. But applying for registration in Cleveland,Ohio,USA

Good luck in your search

Les
 
Maurice and Paul. Thanks for your comments. I notice that a lot of the surnames originated in Rhein. One of the possibilities I looked at was whether he came to uk with the Palatines, but no luck there either. Many Palatines were brought to Birmingham with the intention of moving them on to America and the records of names are still available. Not mine though. If, as Joseph’s second wife said, he was escaping from Germany, he could well not have any official record of his arrival in UK.
Hi Alan. Please would you tell me where the records of the Palatines are to be found (if they still are). Many thanks, Beorc.
 
Ancestry have
Wilhelmus Deitz
[Wilhelm Deitz]
but as I don't have the International version, I can't read the record. He came from Trier. my advice is to try German spelling of Wilhelm and see if Trier have records locally. As you know lots of Palatine people went to America, especially Pennsylvania via UK. Good luck!
 
Hi Alan. Please would you tell me where the records of the Palatines are to be found (if they still are). Many thanks, Beorc.

Ancestry have
Wilhelmus Deitz
[Wilhelm Deitz]
but as I don't have the International version, I can't read the record. He came from Trier. my advice is to try German spelling of Wilhelm and see if Trier have records locally. As you know lots of Palatine people went to America, especially Pennsylvania via UK. Good luck!
Thank you very much, Stokkie! I shall check out Ancestry this week!
 
Thank you very much, Stokkie! I shall check out Ancestry this week!
You are welcome! The full version is expensive, but there is a free trial. Your search may take years, I'm afraid. A German professional genealogist may well help you, but this depends on the budget you have. Uwe Porten is one such, but I just found him with an internet search, so I cannot vouch for him.
 
Last edited:
You are welcome! The full version is expensive, but there is a free trial. Your search may take years, I'm afraid. A German professional genealogist may well help you, but this depends on the budget you have. Uwe Porten is one such, but I just found him with an internet search, so I cannot vouch for him.
I will defo try Ancestry - I can imagine how it could take years, though. I didn't even think of professional German genealogists. For now, I must content myself with Ancestry, as I'm on a budget. Thank you, Stokkie!
 
I will defo try Ancestry - I can imagine how it could take years, though. I didn't even think of professional German genealogists. For now, I must content myself with Ancestry, as I'm on a budget. Thank you, Stokkie!
Yes, that's sensible. Take notes of all the false leads, because if you ever want to engage a professional they can follow your paper trail.
 
Ancestry have
Wilhelmus Deitz
[Wilhelm Deitz]
but as I don't have the International version, I can't read the record. He came from Trier. my advice is to try German spelling of Wilhelm and see if Trier have records locally. As you know lots of Palatine people went to America, especially Pennsylvania via UK. Good luck!
Pennsylvania is a good suggestion, if you look in the US include Wisconsin, New York State & Ohio. Many German Amish settled there.
 
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