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| Holocaust, Rodoh Info |
You’ve been waiting for your DNA results. You know your family is German, Irish (Catholic
Irish at that). You were pretty sure
there was Mediterranean heritage and really, hmmm, you weren’t expecting any surprises. Well, maybe a few new
cousins.
Here are your DNA results:
Well, now you must find answers about your Jewish Ancestry.
7 Steps to Begin Your
Jewish Research
1) Create
a family tree. You will need this to properly
connect with your Jewish cousin matches. And don’t expect the name to sound
Jewish. Until 5 minutes ago, you didn’t
even know you were Jewish. Our a3Genealogy
client was overcome with laughter when he realized that both Uncle Harry
Morris was Jewish and Aunt Mollie Bell – she was Jewish too!
2) Pull
as many death records as possible.
Especially on the lines that match with Jewish cousins. The key is cemetery names, informants, and
information as to where the body went after death. Be sure to visit the Jewish
Gen Online Worldwide Burial Registry
Uncle Harry was buried at the Golden Hill Cemetery, in Colorado according to his death certificate. Let’s research that cemetery:
Uncle Harry was buried at the Golden Hill Cemetery, in Colorado according to his death certificate. Let’s research that cemetery:
Golden Hill Cemetery was established over 100 years ago on West Colfax
Avenue for the Jewish population. It is a historic location listed on the
National Register of Historic Places. - Goldenhillcemetery.com
3) Get an image of the tombstone and know the
endonyms. Well what do you say…Uncle Harry, who was born abt. 1890, has a Star of David right on his tombstone. Wonder
why the family never mentioned that? (Image from JewishGen Online Worldwide
Burial Registry.)
4) Pull
marriage records. You are now looking
for a Rabbi and Temple name. Remember we
are still just in the gathering phase of your research.
5) Analyze the census. Much information is in plain sight on the
census records. This is always an overlooked strategy for researchers, but the
town and neighborhood histories can offer a treasure trove of hints and
tips. One client’s family was rooted in
Bastrop Louisiana. Here’s a bit of its
history:
Bastrop had a small Jewish community that blossomed
around 1892. “By the turn of the
twentieth century, Jews in Bastrop had formed a congregation, erected a synagogue,
and operated some of the most successful businesses in Morehouse Parish.” “…between ten and twelve families still
resided in Bastrop after the end of the Second World War. They had all joined
B’nai Israel in Monroe, but they also organized an informal Sunday school and
held an occasional Friday night service either at their homes or in the Bastrop
courthouse. Charles Snyder and Ferdinand Wolff cared for the cemetery, now a
handsome and verdant two-acre property with approximately fifty burials. - http://www.isjl.org/louisiana-bastrop-encyclopedia.html.
7) Seek out online and local collections. In
tracing a Hungarian Jewish family from Ohio to Kansas City my research landed
me with the Western
Reserve Historical Society at the Cleveland Jewish Archive.
Other Resources
Not every Jewish DNA result will lead you to Eastern European Ashkenazi Jewish ancestry.
- Sephardic Jewish Research:
You may have just joined a large global community that has recently
uncovered that they too have Sephardic Jewish ancestry. Be sure to visit SephardicGen.com. Here
is a listing of a few Sephardic Surnames.
- A recent a3Genealogy
client was traced to the Basque region and matched in the
J2 Haplogroup TV with the Eastern Jews of Iran/Iraq (Mizrahim) and Turkey and Middle East. We have found that patience will be the key as additional DNA testing is needed in these areas.
Happy Hanukkah
From the a3Genealogy Staff and Research Team
a3genealogy@gmail.com
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