The Bremerhaven German Emigration Museum

September 14 – from a visit here on September 9 We visited the Bremerhaven German Emigration Museum recently as part of Ken and Gloria Temple’s 17-day exploration of ancestral villages and towns and sightseeing around Germany. The museum was opened in 2002 and since then, has improved its presentation dramatically with a fascinating look into […]

Prosit from Eissen, Germany

September 8 We visited Rottkamp cousins in Eissen, Nordrhein-Westfalen, Germany today. After waiting six years to take this trip, Gloria Temple met three cousins and their wives at a family reunion on September 8th including homemade cake and rolls, a visit to two ancestral churches and at the end, a farmer’s fest including organic beer. […]

A Busy Day in the Black Forest

September 5 Genealogy enthusiast Ken Temple has researched his German ancestors back several centuries. One of his lines comes from ‘Baden,’ and he knows they lived in the ‘Weinland,’ but that is as far as his knowledge extends. Further research is possible but not really convenient. And so today, just to get the feel for […]

A Visit to Dettingen unter Teck, Germany

May 16 By Margie Weiler This is my 4th tour with James Derheim, who has taken me to many ancestral villages, both mine and my husband Bill’s, in many south and western areas of Germany and the Zurich area of Switzerland.  I always have had a wonderful time seeing for myself where these ancestors lived […]

Hasselbach and Allendorf Ancestral Discoveries

April 22 and 23 Dennis Jenkins from Grand Junction, Colorado wanted to find out more about his ancestral ties to the hamlet of Hasselbach near Weilburg, Hessen, Germany. Dennis takes the record for waiting the longest between first learning about European Focus Private Tours (1998) to actually stepping off the plane to begin his personal […]

Paris, Southwestern France and Barcelona Micro-Group Tour

PARIS, SOUTHWESTERN FRANCE & BARCELONA Dates TBD on interest and group This trip starts off with three nights in one of the world’s most enchanting cities, with a guide who knows how to make the most of your time here. We then move away from the city to explore the environs o southwestern France. Carcassonne […]

St. Gallus Church in Willmandingen, Germany

From a visit on September 16, 2012 The church of St. Gallus in Willmandingen dates back to at least 1220. That’s when scientists determined the paintings in the tiny chapel on the ground floor of the tower were created. Those paintings, depicting scenes from the life of Jesus, were whitewashed over in the 1500s soon […]

Visiting Relatives in Willmandingen

Events occurred on September 16, 2012 A trip revolving around family history depends on connections made. One of those connections was made with the pastor of the church in tiny Willmandingen, Germany. A letter sent to the pastor’s office by Beth Renney from Fresno, California reached across the miles and the years, resulting in a […]