Finding Former Eastern German Place Names

One of the great challenges in researching areas like the former German Eastern Provinces is that they are all gone- governments, people, Churches, libraries, Universities, and yes, in many cases, houses and villages as well.  In an effort to help me, and perhaps others, identify place names, I am creating this document with its eclectic cross reference materials.

Hopefully these documents, websites, etc. will prove useful to those of us who have difficulty in finding ‘our family’s’ former German places and locations.

Former Prussian Places & Locations
(Westpreußen u. mehr/ West Prussia & more)

Documents

Ravenstein’s Atlas des Deutschen Reichs

9000-Village-Names-in-Prussia

1.5 MB

Errata for document:

• Zeyersvorderkampen = Kępiny Małe
• Zeyersniederkampen = KÄ™piny Wielkie
• Zeyer = KÄ™piny

Web Sites

• GenWiki.de has many pages covering former German Lands.  The following are particularly relevant to my searches:

• Plauschwarren (Memelniederung) -PlauÅ¡variai Kaliningrad Russia
• Historical Territories
• Kingdom of Prussia
• Prussian Clarifications/ Definitions

• Kartenmeister
• Map Archive of Wojskowy Instytut Geograficzny 1919 – 1939
• Mapa topograficzna Messtischblatt
• SGGEE Villages & Maps
• West Prussian Mennonite Villages (G.Penner)
• Westpreußen
• German Administrative History -Deutsche Verwaltungsgeschichte von der Reichseinigung 1871 bis zur Wiedervereinigung 1990 von Dr. Michael Rademacher M.A. (R.I.P.)
• Historic Gazeteer (find places, locate place names)

Additional Free Prussian/ German Genealogy Tools, Help, and Tips are available on ManyRoads.

Should you have any additional pointers or corrections you’d like to contribute, please either leave a comment on this post or send me a note via our Contact form.