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?