Known relatives serve as essential reference points in genetic genealogy. By comparing other DNA Matches with the relatives you have already identified, you can recognize groups of matches connected to particular branches of your family and better understand how unknown matches may be related to you. For example, if a known cousin on your mother’s side appears among the Shared DNA Matches you have with another person, that can provide an important clue that the new match is connected to the same side of your family.

By confirming known relationships and indicating which side of the family each match is on, you can organize your DNA Matches more effectively and put those valuable reference points to work in your research. Your annotations will be useful later on, when MyHeritage introduces new features such as inferring the paternal side for new matches and automatic chromosome painting. Confirming relationships will also help MyHeritage improve the accuracy of its relationship predictions in the future.

What’s new?

Until now, MyHeritage displayed a probable relationship for each DNA Match based on the amount of DNA you share, your age, and the age of your match. Now, with this new feature, you can replace that estimate with a relationship you already know to be correct, such as a first cousin or great-aunt, and indicate whether the match is related to you through your mother’s or your father’s side.

How to confirm a known relationship with a DNA Match

On your DNA Matches page, hover your mouse over the probable relationship and click the pencil icon, or click the relationship itself that appears with a dotted underline:

Confirming a relationship from the DNA Matches page (click to zoom)

A page will open that displays estimated relationships to this person and the probability of each one. Now comes the new feature: if you already know how you’re related, click “Select Relationship”.

Selecting a relationship from the relationship estimate pop-up (click to zoom)

You can also reach the relationship confirmation feature by clicking the pencil icon next to the estimated relationship in the Review DNA Match page:

Confirming a relationship from an individual DNA Match page (click to zoom)

Once you click “Select Relationship,” several options will appear. If known, select the side of the family this relative is on. Then, select the relationship among the options listed:

Selecting a known relationship (click to zoom)

Currently, it is not possible to select a relationship that is not among the options listed. This capability will be added in the future.

Once you have selected what you know about your relationship with this person, click “Save relationship.”

The relationship you selected will now appear on the DNA Match card, along with the side of the family you selected and a blue checkmark indicating that you confirmed this relationship.

A DNA Match with a confirmed relationship (click to zoom)

Confirmed relationships appear on the DNA Match card, on the Review DNA Match page, and when the relative appears as a Shared DNA Match while you review another match.

Cost and availability

Confirming relationships to DNA Matches is available to all MyHeritage DNA users, and is free.

Looking ahead

A confirmed relationship can provide useful context beyond a single DNA Match, and this is only the beginning.

In the future, we plan to show which side of your family other DNA Matches are likely connected to based on relationships you have confirmed, and allow you to link a DNA Match directly to the corresponding individual in your family tree, among other enhancements.

Summary

Known relatives are valuable reference points in genetic genealogy. Now you can identify them on MyHeritage by confirming how you are related and indicating which side of your family they belong to. This makes it easier to organize your DNA Matches and use established relationships to investigate new ones. It also paves the way to new enhancements that are coming up soon.

Visit your DNA Matches page to start confirming the relationships you already know. If you haven’t tested your DNA with MyHeritage yet, order a MyHeritage DNA kit to receive DNA matches and explore how you are related to them.

The post New: Confirm Known Relationships with DNA Matches on MyHeritage appeared first on MyHeritage Blog.

Create your book on MyStories now with a 15% discount

Choose a natural-sounding AI narrator to read your stories, or create a version of your own voice — or that of the loved one who wrote the book — from a short recording, and use it to narrate the entire book. There’s no need to spend hours recording every chapter yourself or hire a professional narrator and audio producer. In just a few minutes, MyStories can generate a polished audiobook you can listen to from beginning to end, download to enjoy anytime, and share with family and friends.

The audiobook complements the other ways MyStories brings your memories to life. Your printed book gives you a tangible keepsake to hold and pass down, while voice recordings let you preserve moments of the storyteller speaking in their own voice. Now, the audiobook gives family members another way to enjoy the complete collection, whether during a long drive, a quiet moment at home, or simply whenever they’d rather hear your stories than read them.

How AI narration works

Creating a complete audiobook traditionally means spending hours recording the book yourself or hiring a professional narrator, which can be costly. AI narration offers a much simpler alternative: it generates natural-sounding speech directly from the written text of your stories. Using advanced text-to-speech technology, your entire book can be transformed into an audiobook in just a few minutes.

For a narrator voice, the AI analyzes the text and generates spoken narration that reflects the rhythms and intonation of natural speech, using a voice you select.

Voice cloning takes this technology a step further. Instead of using an existing narrator voice, the AI creates a voice model based on a short recording. You simply read a provided passage aloud for around a minute, and the technology analyzes characteristics of your voice to create a model that can narrate the written text of the book.

How to create your audiobook

To turn your completed book into an audiobook, visit the MyStories dashboard and select “Create audiobook.”

Creating an audiobook on MyStories

Set a narration voice

First, choose a voice to narrate your audiobook. You can choose from among a variety of natural, expressive narrator voices, or clone a real voice.

Selecting a stock AI narrator for your MyStories audiobook (click to zoom)

When using a stock narrator’s voice, you can listen to a demo of each option. Once you’ve selected your favorite, click “Save & Continue.”

If you prefer a cloned voice, you’ll need to record a voice sample. Simply click or tap record and read the provided text aloud.

Cloning a voice for a MyStories audiobook (click to zoom)

Check the boxes to confirm that you have permission to clone this voice and will use it for the audiobook only, then click “Save & Continue.”

Choose the stories to include

Next, select the stories you want to include in your audiobook. Your selections can be different from the printed version of your book, so you can tailor the audiobook to include exactly what you want your listeners to hear. You can also choose whether to include your dedication.

Selecting the content of your MyStories audiobook (click to zoom)

Review your audiobook

Before generating the audiobook, review the final content and listen to a sample of your stories in the voice you selected to hear how the narration sounds.

Reviewing your MyStories audiobook (click to zoom)

Once everything looks and sounds right, check the box to confirm that the content is final, and continue to checkout to complete your purchase and generate the audiobook.

An average-length audiobook should be ready within just a few minutes.

Listening to and sharing your MyStories audiobook

Once your audiobook has been generated, you can access it anytime from your dashboard:

Accessing your audiobook on MyStories (click to zoom)

From there, you can listen to the full book or to individual chapters:

Your audiobook on MyStories (click to zoom)

You can also download the full book or individual chapters as MP3 files to listen to on your computer or mobile device, save for later, or send to family and friends.

Frequently asked questions about MyStories audiobooks

How long does it take to generate an audiobook?

An average-length audiobook should take no more than a few minutes to generate once you’ve completed the setup and purchase.

How much do I need to record to create a cloned voice?

You only need to make a short recording by reading the passage provided. A recording of around 60 seconds is recommended for the best results.

Can I make changes to my audiobook later?

Yes. If you want to use a different voice, change the stories included, or generate a new version after editing your book, you can create another audiobook for $39. Your previous version will remain available in your audiobook history. If you’re not satisfied with the quality of the audio for some reason, contact the MyStories support team and they’ll help you regenerate the book at no cost.

Your voice and privacy

If you choose to create a cloned voice, your voice sample is used only to create the narration for your MyStories audiobook. It is securely protected, never used to train a shared AI voice model, and deleted once your voice model has been created. You can also delete the cloned voice from your account at any time.

Cost

Creating an audiobook costs $39, whether you use a narrator voice or a cloned voice. You can add an audiobook when purchasing or renewing your MyStories subscription, or create one later from your book dashboard.

The $39 fee covers one version of your audiobook. If you later make changes to your book, choose a different voice, or want to change which stories are included, you can generate a new version for an additional $39.

Your stories, now in a whole new format

Your MyStories book preserves the memories, experiences, and moments you want to pass on. Now, those same stories can be heard as well as read.

Whether you choose a narrator you love or create an audiobook in a version of your own voice, you can give yourself and your family another meaningful way to enjoy your stories today and treasure them for years to come.

Get 15% off your MyStories book

The post New: Turn Your MyStories Book Into an Audiobook appeared first on MyHeritage Blog.

However, according to research by MyHeritage, this diversity is under threat. While common surnames such as Müller, Schmidt, and Weber are carried by large numbers of people, many rare German surnames are on the verge of extinction.

Müller has been Germany’s most common surname for years, with more than 256,000 bearers. Schmidt ranks second, with more than 190,000. When related variants with different spellings or pronunciations are included, the number exceeds 300,000. These variants include Schmitt, ranked 26th in Germany with approximately 40,000 bearers; Schmitz, ranked 29th with nearly 39,000; and Schmid, ranked 32nd with more than 35,000.

Illustration of a blacksmith at work from Eigentliche Beschreibung aller Stände auf Erden, published 1568 in Germany

At the other end of the scale, dozens of surnames are at risk of disappearing from Germany. Some are carried by just one or two people.

The MyHeritage Research team studied the origins and distribution of German surnames to identify some of the rarest names in the country, including related variants with different spellings or pronunciations. Here are 10 examples.

Wollseif

Recent data shows only one person in Germany with the surname Wollseif.

The variant Wollseiffen has 19 bearers, while the more common Wollseifen is still extremely rare, with fewer than 50.

The surname originated in medieval Germany and likely referred to people involved in the wool or soap-making trades. It combines the words for “wool” (Wolle) and “soap” (Seif).

Aalfeld

Only two people in Germany are documented with the surname Aalfeld. Related variants include Alfeldt (9 bearers) and Alfeld (17 bearers).

The surname comes from a place name, such as Alfeld in the Hildesheim district of Lower Saxony or Ahlefeld, part of Ahlefeld-Bistensee in the Rendsburg-Eckernförde district of Schleswig-Holstein.

Anonymous drawing of the Alfeld an der Leine train station circa 1900

Abatzidou

Only one person in Germany is documented with the surname Abatzidou.

Related variants include Abatzidis (8 bearers) and Abatzis (16 bearers).

The surname Abatzis dates back to the Byzantine era and comes from a Greek term meaning “servant” or “attendant.” It was historically associated with service to the nobility and skilled trades. The name spread to other parts of Europe and the Americas during the 19th and 20th centuries as Greek migrants sought better opportunities abroad.

Bachbaur

Only one person in Germany is currently documented with the surname Bachbaur. Its main variant, Bachbauer, has 23 bearers.

The surname originated in medieval Bavaria and described people who lived near streams. It combines the Middle High German words for “stream” (Bach) and “farmer” or “builder” (Baur). This reflects the importance of waterways to early settlements. The name has survived centuries of regional change, preserving its connections to farming and craftsmanship.

Haberts

Recent data shows only one person in Germany with the surname Haberts.

Related variants include Habbert (6 bearers), Habert (31 bearers), and Habbers (2 bearers).

The surname Habert can be traced to the ancient Germanic name Hadebert, which combines had (“battle”) and berht (“fame”). The name has medieval roots in what is now Germany and France, where bearers served in feudal administration and land management. Like many surnames, it likely also reflected a family’s identity or social standing within its community.

Ibertsberger

Only one person in Germany is documented with the surname Ibertsberger. Its variant, Ibetsberger, is almost as rare, with just 2 bearers.

The surname comes from the Alpine regions of southern Germany and Austria and likely referred to people from places such as Ibertsberg. The Middle High German suffix -berger means “mountain dweller,” suggesting that the name described families living near prominent geographical features. Over time, it also became associated with the region’s farming and craft traditions.

Zumbühl

Only 10 people in Germany are documented with the surname Zumbühl.

Related variants include Zumbiehl (3 bearers) and Zumbiel (23 bearers).

The surname originated in the Alpine regions of Central Europe and likely described people who lived near a particular landmark. It combines the Middle High German words zum (“to the”) and Bühl (“hill”), suggesting that it referred to families living near a hill. Over time, the name became associated with the region’s farming and pastoral traditions.

Wahnschap

Only 3 people in Germany are documented with the surname Wahnschap. Related variants include Wanschap (3 bearers), Wannschap (3 bearers), and Wahnschaap (21 bearers).

The surname originated in medieval Germany and likely referred to a family’s location or occupation. Different regional spellings developed over time, particularly during periods of migration in the 19th century.

Abbuhl

Only 11 people in Germany are currently documented with the surname Abbuhl.

The name originated in German-speaking Switzerland and likely comes from the biblical name Abel, meaning “breath” or “vapor.” Like many Swiss surnames, it also followed naming traditions associated with occupations, farming, and land ownership. Although variations of the name exist across German-speaking regions, it remains exceptionally rare today.

Abbetmeier

Recent records show only 9 people in Germany with the surname Abbetmeier. Its main variant, Abbetmeyer, has 12 bearers.

The surname originated in medieval German-speaking regions and likely referred to an occupation. It combines the name Abbet with meyer, a Middle High German term for “steward.” Surnames of this kind became hereditary between the 12th and 15th centuries and often reflected a family’s role in agricultural administration. They also indicated a family’s social and professional standing.

Below is a death record for Ms. Agathe Abbetmeyer from the German civil death register (Sterberegister) in Hückeswagen, North Rhine-Westphalia, dated April 14, 1925. The record was analyzed using MyHeritage’s Scribe AI tool:

Civil death register of a person with the rare surname Abbetmeyer, with a Scribe AI analysis and translation

Every surname carries a piece of history, and even the rarest names can reveal clues about the people and places they came from. While some German surnames may be disappearing, the stories behind them can still be preserved through historical records and family research.

Curious about the history of your own surname? Explore billions of historical records on MyHeritage to discover where your family name came from and trace the generations who carried it before you.

The post 10 German Surnames on the Verge of Extinction appeared first on MyHeritage Blog.

Explore the 28 new and updated historical record collections added this month

Collection	Description	Number of Records	Link to Search
Austria Newspapers from OldNews.com	An index of historical national, regional and local newspapers, periodicals and gazettes from Austria.	98,999 newspaper pages added for a total of 14,764,942 newspaper pages	Search collection now
Austria, Vienna Military Muster Rolls	An index of muster rolls of soldiers registered at Vienna, Austria.	1,906,550 records	Search collection now
Baltic Newspapers from OldNews.com	An index of historical national, regional and local newspapers, periodicals and gazettes from Baltic nations and territories of Latvia and Estonia.	89,561 newspaper pages added for a total of 3,749,398 newspaper pages	Search collection now
Belgium Newspapers from OldNews.com	An index of historical national, regional and local newspapers, periodicals and gazettes from Belgium.	259,210 newspaper pages added for a total of 1,321,061 newspaper pages	Search collection now
Belgium, Names & Stories in Newspapers from OldNews.com	An index of records of names, events, and stories, found in newspapers from Belgium, extracted using MyHeritage's AI and OCR technology.	16,815,100 records	Search collection now
Croatia Newspapers from OldNews.com	An index of historical national, regional and local newspapers, periodicals and gazettes from Croatia.	497,710 newspaper pages	Search collection now
Czechia Newspapers from OldNews.com	An index of historical national, regional and local newspapers, periodicals and gazettes from Czechia.	436,191 newspaper pages added for a total of 7,962,151 newspaper pages	Search collection now
1900 Czechia Census	An index of the 1900 Czechia census, taken on 31 December 1900, when modern Czechia was part of the Austria-Hungarian empire.	3,026,880 records	Search collection now
England, Norfolk Poor Law Union registers, 1796-1900	An index of poor law union records from Norfolk, England, between the years 1796 and 1900.	1,060,220 records	Search collection now
Germany Newspapers from OldNews.com	An index of historical national, regional and local newspapers, periodicals and gazettes from Germany.	2,062,979 newspaper pages added for a total of 28,384,396 newspaper pages	Search collection now
Germany, Hamburg Alien Registrations, 1868-1889	An index of alien registration records from Hamburg, Germany, between the years 1868 and 1889.	548,640 records	Search collection now
Greece, Northern Greek Voter Lists, 1914-1920	An index of voter lists from Northern Greece, between the years 1914 and 1920, naming the voter's father.	149,364 records	Search collection now
Italy Newspapers from OldNews.com	An index of historical national, regional and local newspapers, periodicals and gazettes from Italy.	96,107 newspaper pages added for a total of 9,904,042 newspaper pages	Search collection now
Netherlands, Names & Stories in Newspapers from OldNews.com	An index of records of names, events, and stories, found in newspapers from the Netherlands, extracted using MyHeritage's AI and OCR technology.	73,000,000 records added for a total of 740,575,518 records	Search collection now
Netherlands, Army Service Registers, 1807-1929	An index of army service records of individuals who served in the Netherlands Army, between the years 1807 and 1929.	1,632,890 records	Search collection now
New Zealand Newspapers from OldNews.com	An index of historical national, regional and local newspapers, periodicals and gazettes from New Zealand.	500,000 newspaper pages added for a total of 4,525,073 newspaper pages	Search collection now
Poland Newspapers from OldNews.com	An index of historical national, regional and local newspapers and periodicals from within the borders of modern Poland.	2,008,394 newspaper pages added for a total of 14,173,020 newspaper pages	Search collection now
Poland, Names & Stories in Newspapers from OldNews.com	An index of records of names, events, and stories, found in newspapers from Poland on OldNews.com, extracted using MyHeritage's AI technology.	223,191,210 records	Search collection now
Serbia Newspapers from OldNews.com	An index of historical national, regional and local newspapers, periodicals and gazettes from Serbia.	1,116 newspaper pages added for a total of 630,092 newspaper pages	Search collection now
Slovakia Newspapers from OldNews.com	An index of historical national, regional and local newspapers and periodicals from Slovakia.	505,774 newspaper pages added for a total of 1,203,835 newspaper pages	Search collection now
Slovenia Newspapers from OldNews.com	An index of historical national, regional and local newspapers, periodicals and gazettes from Slovenia.	1,425,780 newspaper pages	Search collection now
Spain, Names & Stories in Newspapers from OldNews.com	An index of records of names, events, and stories, found in newspapers from Spain, extracted using MyHeritage's AI and OCR technology.	7,427,370 records added for a total of 340,396,041 records	Search collection now
Switzerland Newspapers from OldNews.com	An index of historical national, regional and local newspapers and periodicals from Switzerland.	487,370 newspaper pages added for a total of 1,453,502 newspaper pages	Search collection now
United Kingdom, Names & Stories in Newspapers from OldNews.com	An index of records of names, events, and stories, found in newspapers from the United Kingdom on OldNews.com, extracted using MyHeritage's AI technology.	7,300,000 records added for a total of 864,473,467 records	Search collection now
Names & Stories in Newspapers from OldNews.com (California, Hawaii, Alaska, Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands)	An index of records of names, events, and stories, found in newspapers from California, Hawaii, Alaska, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands on OldNews.com, extracted using MyHeritage's AI technology.	100,000,000 records added for a total of 353,222,135 records	Search collection now
Illinois, Archdiocese of Chicago, Cemetery registers, 1864-1989	An index of Catholic cemetery burial registers from Cook and Lake County, Illinois, United States, from the year 1864 onward.	1,920,870 records	Search collection now
Washington, Marriage Index, 1969-2014	An index of marriage records from Washington, United States, from the year 1969 onwards, naming the groom, the bride, and the date and place of marriage.	3,981,060 records	Search collection now
United States Newspapers from OldNews.com	An index of historical national, regional and local newspapers, periodicals and gazettes from the United States.	27,483 newspaper pages added for a total of 120,727,325 newspaper pages	Search collection now

• Austria Newspapers from OldNews.com This collection of historical national, regional and local newspapers, periodicals and gazettes from Austria was created through the use of MyHeritage’s advanced optical character recognition (OCR) of articles primarily from the mid-1700s to mid-1900s. In addition to news of the day that may contain names of relatives, they contain a wide range of vital record substitutes such as birth, marriage, death notices and obituaries. Search Austria Newspapers from OldNews.com
• Austria, Vienna Military Muster Rolls This collection contains muster rolls of soldiers registered at Vienna, Austria. Records typically include the name of the soldier, date and place of birth, military roll number and draft number. Records also include information about the soldier’s relatives in the household. Additional details can be found on each record’s associated image. This collection is provided in partnership with the Vienna City Archives. Search Austria, Vienna Military Muster Rolls
• Baltic Newspapers from OldNews.com This collection of historical national, regional and local newspapers, periodicals and gazettes from Baltic nations and territories of Latvia and Estonia. It was created using MyHeritage’s advanced optical character recognition (OCR) of articles primarily focused from the mid 1800s to mid 1900s. These printed articles feature daily news that may include mentions of relatives, and offer a rich variety of vital record substitutes, such as birth, marriage, and death notices, along with obituaries. Search Baltic Newspapers from OldNews.com
• Belgium Newspapers from OldNews.com This collection of historical national, regional and local newspapers, periodicals and gazettes from Belgium was created using MyHeritage’s advanced optical character recognition (OCR) of articles primarily focused from the mid 1800s to mid 1900s. These printed articles feature daily news that may include mentions of relatives, and offer a rich variety of vital record substitutes, such as birth, marriage, and death notices, along with obituaries. Search Belgium Newspapers from OldNews.com
• Belgium, Names & Stories in Newspapers from OldNews.com This collection contains records of names, events, and stories, found in newspapers from Belgium. The records were extracted from the newspaper articles using advanced AI technology developed by MyHeritage. Records typically include the name of the individuals mentioned, the relationships between them, the newspaper name, the publication place and date, and a snippet of text from the article, along with the full OCR text. Records may include events such as birth and marriage announcements, obituaries, public achievements, and business events, and often add details such as residence, occupation, and associated locations or institutions. Every record includes a summary of the article generated automatically by AI. Search Belgium, Names & Stories in Newspapers from OldNews.com
• Croatia Newspapers from OldNews.com This collection of historical national, regional and local newspapers, periodicals and gazettes from Croatia was created using MyHeritage’s advanced optical character recognition (OCR) of articles primarily focused from the mid 1800s to mid 1900s. These printed articles feature daily news that may include mentions of relatives, and offer a rich variety of vital record substitutes, such as birth, marriage, and death notices, along with obituaries. Search Croatia Newspapers from OldNews.com
• Czechia Newspapers from OldNews.com This collection of historical national, regional and local newspapers, periodicals and gazettes from Czechia was created by MyHeritage’s advanced optical character recognition (OCR) of articles dating from 1756 onwards. In addition to news of the day that may contain names of relatives, they contain a wide range of vital record substitutes such as birth, marriage, death notices and obituaries. Search Czechia Newspapers from OldNews.com
• 1900 Czechia Census The 1900 Czechia census was taken on 31 December 1900, during the period when modern Czechia was part of Austria-Hungarian empire. Records typically include names, date and place of birth, relatives in the household and residence information. Additional details can be found on each record’s associated image. Search 1900 Czechia Census
• England, Norfolk Poor Law Union registers, 1796-1900 This collection contains poor law union records from Norfolk, England, between the years 1796 and 1900. Records in this collection span a variety of document types, including admission and discharge books, rate books, poor lists, relief lists, and registers of births, deaths, baptisms, and burials. Records typically include the name of the individual, their place of birth, the date and place of residence, including any previous residence, the Poor Law Union and parish to which they belonged, and the names of their parents and spouse. Search England, Norfolk Poor Law Union registers, 1796-1900
• Germany Newspapers from OldNews.com This collection of historical national, regional and local newspapers, periodicals and gazettes from Germany was created using MyHeritage’s advanced optical character recognition (OCR) of articles primarily focused from the mid 1700s to mid 1900s. These printed articles feature daily news that may include mentions of relatives, and offer a rich variety of vital record substitutes, such as birth, marriage, and death notices, along with obituaries. Search Germany Newspapers from OldNews.com
• Germany, Hamburg Alien Registrations, 1868-1889 This collection contains alien registration records from Hamburg, Germany, between the years 1868 and 1889. As a self-governing city-state, Hamburg required all non-citizens, including arrivals from other German states, to register with the authorities when they came to live or work in the city. Records typically include the name of the registrant, the date and place of birth, the date and place of registration. Many entries also include the occupation of the registrant. This collection is unique to MyHeritage. The records were extracted from the scanned cards using advanced AI technology developed by MyHeritage. Due to the use of artificial intelligence in extracting this information, some records may contain inaccuracies. Search Germany, Hamburg Alien Registrations, 1868-1889
• Greece, Northern Greek Voter Lists, 1914-1920 This collection contains voter lists from Northern Greece, between the years 1914 and 1920. Records typically include the name of the voter, their year of birth, the year and place of residence, the year and place of application, and the name of the father. Many entries also include the occupation of the voter. We recognize and thank Greg Kontos for his invaluable contributions to the publication of this collection. Search Greece, Northern Greek Voter Lists, 1914-1920
• Italy Newspapers from OldNews.com This collection of historical national, regional and local newspapers, periodicals and gazettes from Italy was created using MyHeritage’s advanced optical character recognition (OCR) of articles primarily focused from the mid 1800s to mid 1900s. These printed articles feature daily news that may include mentions of relatives, and offer a rich variety of vital record substitutes, such as birth, marriage, and death notices, along with obituaries. Search Italy Newspapers from OldNews.com
• Netherlands, Names & Stories in Newspapers from OldNews.com This collection contains records of names, events, and stories, found in newspapers from the Netherlands. The records were extracted from the newspaper articles using advanced AI technology developed by MyHeritage. Records typically include the name of the individuals mentioned, the relationships between them, the newspaper name, the publication place and date, and a snippet of text from the article, along with the full OCR text. Records may include events such as birth and marriage announcements, obituaries, public achievements, and business events, and often add details such as residence, occupation, and associated locations or institutions. Every record includes a summary of the article generated automatically by AI. Search Netherlands, Names & Stories in Newspapers from OldNews.com
• Netherlands, Army Service Registers, 1807-1929 This collection contains army service records of individuals who served in the Netherlands Army, between the years 1807 and 1929. Records typically include the name of the individual, the date and place of birth, the place of previous residence, the enlistment and discharge date, and the names of the parents. Some records may also include the date of death. Search Netherlands, Army Service Registers, 1807-1929
• New Zealand Newspapers from OldNews.com This collection of historical national, regional and local newspapers, periodicals and gazettes from New Zealand was created with MyHeritage’s advanced optical character recognition (OCR) of articles from the mid-1800s to 1944. In addition to news of the day that may contain names of relatives, they contain a wide range of vital record substitutes such as birth, marriage, death notices and obituaries. Search New Zealand Newspapers from OldNews.com
• Poland Newspapers from OldNews.com This collection of historical national, regional and local newspapers and periodicals from within the borders of modern Poland was created using MyHeritage’s advanced optical character recognition (OCR) of articles primarily focused from the late 1700s to mid-1900s. In addition to news of the day that may contain names of relatives, they contain a wide range of vital record substitutes such as birth, marriage, death notices and obituaries. Search Poland Newspapers from OldNews.com
• Poland, Names & Stories in Newspapers from OldNews.com This collection contains records of names, events, and stories, found in newspapers from Poland on OldNews.com. The records were extracted from the newspaper articles using advanced AI technology developed by MyHeritage. Records typically include the name of the individuals mentioned, the relationships between them, the newspaper name, the publication place and date, and a snippet of text from the article. Records may include events such as birth and marriage announcements, obituaries, public achievements, and business events, and often add details such as residence, occupation, and associated locations or institutions. Every record includes a summary of the article generated automatically by AI. Search Poland, Names & Stories in Newspapers from OldNews.com
• Serbia Newspapers from OldNews.com This collection of historical national, regional and local newspapers, periodicals and gazettes from Serbia was created using MyHeritage’s advanced optical character recognition (OCR) of articles primarily focused from the mid 1800s to mid 1900s. These printed articles feature daily news that may include mentions of relatives, and offer a rich variety of vital record substitutes, such as birth, marriage, and death notices, along with obituaries. Search Serbia Newspapers from OldNews.com
• Slovakia Newspapers from OldNews.com This collection comprises historical national, regional, and local newspapers and periodicals from Slovakia, created with MyHeritage’s advanced optical character recognition (OCR) technology. The articles primarily cover the period from the early 1800s to the mid-1900s. Alongside daily news that may mention relatives, these publications offer a wealth of vital record substitutes, including birth, marriage, and death notices, as well as obituaries. Search Slovakia Newspapers from OldNews.com
• Slovenia Newspapers from OldNews.com This collection of historical national, regional and local newspapers, periodicals and gazettes from Slovenia was created using MyHeritage’s advanced optical character recognition (OCR) of articles primarily focused from the mid 1800s to mid 1900s. These printed articles feature daily news that may include mentions of relatives, and offer a rich variety of vital record substitutes, such as birth, marriage, and death notices, along with obituaries. Search Slovenia Newspapers from OldNews.com
• Spain, Names & Stories in Newspapers from OldNews.com This collection contains records of names, events, and stories, found in newspapers from Spain. The records were extracted from the newspaper articles using advanced AI technology developed by MyHeritage. Records typically include the name of the individuals mentioned, the relationships between them, the newspaper name, the publication place and date, and a snippet of text from the article, along with the full OCR text. Records may include events such as birth and marriage announcements, obituaries, public achievements, and business events, and often add details such as residence, occupation, and associated locations or institutions. Every record includes a summary of the article generated automatically by AI. Search Spain, Names & Stories in Newspapers from OldNews.com
• Switzerland Newspapers from OldNews.com This collection of historical national, regional and local newspapers and periodicals from Switzerland was created using MyHeritage’s advanced optical character recognition (OCR) of articles primarily focused from the late 1700s to early-1900s. In addition to daily and weekly publications that often include names of relatives, they also contain a wide range of vital record substitutes such as birth, marriage, death notices and obituaries. Search Switzerland Newspapers from OldNews.com
• United Kingdom, Names & Stories in Newspapers from OldNews.com This collection contains records of names, events, and stories, found in newspapers from the United Kingdom on OldNews.com. The records were extracted from the newspaper articles using advanced AI technology developed by MyHeritage. Records typically include the name of the individuals mentioned, the relationships between them, the newspaper name, the publication place and date, and a snippet of text from the article. Records may include events such as birth and marriage announcements, obituaries, public achievements, and business events, and often add details such as residence, occupation, and associated locations or institutions. Every record includes a summary of the article generated automatically by AI. Search United Kingdom, Names & Stories in Newspapers from OldNews.com
• Names & Stories in Newspapers from OldNews.com (California, Hawaii, Alaska, Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands) This collection contains records of names, events, and stories, found in newspapers from California, Hawaii, Alaska, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands on OldNews.com. The records were extracted from the newspaper articles using advanced AI technology developed by MyHeritage. Records typically include the name of the individuals mentioned, the relationships between them, the newspaper name, the publication place and date, and a snippet of text from the article. Records may include events such as birth and marriage announcements, obituaries, public achievements, and business events, and often add details such as residence, occupation, and associated locations or institutions. Every record includes a summary of the article generated automatically by AI. Search Names & Stories in Newspapers from OldNews.com (California, Hawaii, Alaska, Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands)
• Illinois, Archdiocese of Chicago, Cemetery registers, 1864-1989 This collection contains Catholic cemetery burial registers from Cook and Lake County, Illinois, United States, from the year 1864 onward. Records typically include the name of the deceased, their birth year, the date of death, and the date and place of burial. Search Illinois, Archdiocese of Chicago, Cemetery registers, 1864-1989
• Washington, Marriage Index, 1969-2014 This collection contains marriage records from Washington, United States, from the year 1969 onwards. Records typically include the names of the groom and the bride, and the date and place of marriage. Search Washington, Marriage Index, 1969-2014
• United States Newspapers from OldNews.com This collection of historical national, regional, and local newspapers, periodicals, and gazettes from United States has been created with MyHeritage’s advanced optical character recognition (OCR) technology. Covering a period from the late 1700s to the late 1900s, these printed articles feature daily news that may include mentions of relatives, and offer a rich variety of vital record substitutes, such as birth, marriage, and death notices, along with obituaries. Search United States Newspapers from OldNews.com

Example of what you could find in these records

Among the people recorded in the new 1900 Czechia Census is Josef Čapek, born on March 23, 1887, in Hronov, Náchod, Bohemia, Czechia. A Czech painter and writer and a pioneer of Czech Cubism, he is credited with coining the word “robot” for his brother Karel’s 1920 play R.U.R., a term that entered languages worldwide. He became one of Czechoslovakia’s most outspoken anti-fascist voices through his cartoons and essays of the 1930s. Arrested by the Gestapo in 1939, he died in the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp in April 1945, just weeks before liberation, and is remembered today as a founding figure of Czech modern art and a symbol of intellectual resistance. In the census, 13-year-old Josef is listed as single and living in Úpice, Trutnov, Bohemia, with his parents, Antonín Čapek and Božena Čapkova (born Novotná). The household record shows the whole family together: his sister Helena, born January 28, 1886, and his brother Karel, born January 29, 1890, along with a mother-in-law, Helena Novotná, and a maid, Anna Tláskalová. Details like these, naming every member of the household with their relationship and date of birth, make the census a valuable way to see a family as it lived together.

Summary

We hope these valuable collections help you make new discoveries in your family history research. Searching the collections on MyHeritage is free. To view the records or to save records to your family tree, you’ll need a Data, Complete, or Omni plan. For newspaper collections from OldNews.com, an Omni plan, or an OldNews Pro plan, is required to view the full newspaper images on OldNews.com. If you have a family tree on MyHeritage, our Record Matching technology will notify you automatically if records from these collections match your relatives. You’ll then be able to review the record and decide if you’d like to add the new information to your family tree. Enjoy the new collections!

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Search France, Tables of Successions and Absences, 1890–1970

The records typically include the name of the individual, date and place of death, age at death, and the name of the spouse. In some cases, you may also find additional details such as date and place of birth, place of residence, and even the names of the deceased’s parents. If the individual left an inheritance, the record will indicate the inheritance file reference, providing even more opportunities for genealogical research.

Why This Collection Is Important

This collection shines a light on the lives of people in France during an important time in history. Since national death records for this period are not yet digitized or available online, these records help fill that gap and make it easier to connect with long-lost relatives and learn more about your family’s story.

The records were originally maintained for tax purposes, used to manage inheritance claims. The inheritance files referenced in these records are a key resource for genealogists because they document the estates of individuals who passed away or were officially declared missing, which is particularly useful for tracing family lines and understanding inheritance patterns. Given that the records are organized by tax registration offices, they also provide geographic context for the deceased’s residence or place of death, which is an added bonus for locating ancestors.

A Rich Collection of French Records

This release is part of MyHeritage’s ongoing effort to build a robust collection of French records. Following the acquisition of Filae, and more recently MesAieux.com, MyHeritage now serves as one of the best resources for researching French-speaking ancestors. These records join other notable French collections on MyHeritage, such as:

France Census Records

France Birth, Marriage, and Death Records

With the addition of this new collection, we now have nearly 1.4 billion historical records from France, in 120 collections, helping users trace their French roots more easily and in greater detail than ever before.

Example

In the newly added France, Tables of Successions and Absences collection on MyHeritage, we uncovered a record for Sarah Bernhardt, one of the most iconic actresses of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. 

Born Henriette-Rosine Bernard on October 22, 1844, Bernhardt starred in some of the most celebrated French plays of her time, including La Dame aux Camélias by Alexandre Dumas, Ruy Blas by Victor Hugo, and La Tosca by Victorien Sardou. Known for her versatility, she took on both male and female roles, famously playing Hamlet and earning the admiration of writers like Edmond Rostand and Victor Hugo.

Click to zoom.

In the record, her profession is listed as “Directrice de théâtre,” which translates as ‘Theater Director.’ 

Summary

We hope this new collection will lead to meaningful discoveries in your family history. While the collection currently covers a variety of French departments, we are actively working on enriching it further, with additional departments to be added soon. 

Searching the collections on MyHeritage is free, and you can explore these newly added records without a subscription. To view the full details and save records to your family tree, you’ll need a Data, Complete, or Omni subscription.

If you have a family tree on MyHeritage, our record-matching technology will automatically notify you if records from this collection match your ancestors. You can review the record and easily add the new details to your family tree.

Enjoy exploring France, Tables of Successions and Absences, 1890–1970 and uncover more of your French heritage!

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Search German Records for Free

MyHeritage currently hosts 33 German historical record collections containing 287 million records. These collections span generations and include vital, church, and emigration records.

They can provide valuable information such as:

• Names, dates, and places of birth, marriage, and death
• Places of residence
• Family relationships, including parents, spouses, and children
• Migration and emigration details

Searching the German collections will be free for all users from October 1–5, 2026. If you already have a family tree on MyHeritage, Record Matching technology will automatically notify you when historical records match people in your tree.

German Unity Day is a wonderful opportunity to explore the people and places that shaped your family’s story. Whether your German roots are recent or reach back centuries, you never know what you might discover.

Start your search today!

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One hundred years later, the centenary offers a moment for remembrance and honest reflection. The convention was an important legal step, but it did not end enslavement, forced labor, or other forms of exploitation. Its cautious language, colonial context, and uneven implementation reveal the distance between an international pledge and the lives of people affected by these systems.

For family historians, this history is personal as well as political. Enslavement separated relatives, obscured identities, and shaped migration, labor, property, and citizenship across generations. The records left behind can help restore names and relationships, but they must be read with care because many were created by institutions or individuals who treated people as property rather than as full human beings.

Key takeaways about the 1926 Slavery Convention

• The League of Nations adopted the Slavery Convention in Geneva on September 25, 1926.
• It established an international legal definition of slavery that remains influential today.
• Participating states agreed to suppress the slave trade and pursue the complete abolition of slavery, but the convention allowed abolition to happen “progressively and as soon as possible.”
• The agreement addressed forced labor, yet permitted it for public purposes under certain conditions. Later treaties strengthened and expanded its framework.
• The convention itself is not a genealogical record set. Its history helps researchers understand why official, colonial, legal, and labor records were created and how they should be interpreted.
• Research into enslaved people often requires combining many sources, preserving uncertainty, and recognizing the bias and dehumanizing language of historical documents.

What was the 1926 Slavery Convention?

The 1926 Slavery Convention was an international treaty developed through the League of Nations. Earlier agreements had focused largely on suppressing the trafficking of enslaved people, especially at sea. The new convention aimed to address both the slave trade and slavery itself.

Article 1 defined slavery as “the status or condition of a person over whom any or all of the powers attaching to the right of ownership are exercised.” This formulation was significant because it focused on the control exercised over a person. Its influence can still be seen in later international law.

The convention also defined the slave trade broadly. It covered acts involved in capturing, acquiring, selling, exchanging, transporting, or otherwise disposing of a person with the intention of enslavement.

Under Article 2, participating states undertook to prevent and suppress the slave trade and to pursue the complete abolition of slavery in all its forms. Article 5 addressed compulsory or forced labor and required states to prevent it from developing into conditions comparable to slavery. The agreement also called for cooperation among states, penalties for violations, and the exchange of relevant laws and regulations.

Why the convention was a turning point

The convention helped move the abolition of slavery from a patchwork of national laws and bilateral agreements toward a shared international standard. It named slavery as a matter requiring collective action and established definitions that could be applied across legal systems.

That shift mattered. A common definition made it harder to treat slavery solely as an internal concern or to restrict international action to the transportation of enslaved people. It also created a foundation for later agreements addressing forced labor, servitude, trafficking, and practices similar to slavery.

The convention’s legal legacy continued after the League of Nations ceased to exist. A 1953 protocol transferred its institutional functions to the United Nations. The 1956 Supplementary Convention addressed debt bondage, serfdom, servile marriage, and the exploitation of children, while the International Labour Organization’s 1930 Forced Labour Convention developed a more detailed framework for forced labor. Later human rights and international criminal law instruments continued to draw on the concepts established in 1926.

A milestone with serious limitations

Commemorating the convention should not mean presenting it as the moment slavery ended. Its language reflected compromise. States promised to achieve abolition “progressively and as soon as possible,” rather than immediately. Its forced-labor provisions also allowed compulsory labor for public purposes and were shaped by the realities of colonial rule.

The treaty’s own signatures and reservations reveal further limits. Some governments excluded territories from particular obligations or accepted provisions subject to qualifications. The convention depended heavily on states to enact and enforce their own laws, and it did not create the kind of international monitoring mechanisms that exist under some later human rights agreements.

Most importantly, legal abolition did not automatically dismantle the economic interests, racial hierarchies, colonial structures, and coercive labor systems that sustained exploitation. Slavery and related abuses persisted after 1926, and they continue in contemporary forms today.

The centenary is therefore best understood as the anniversary of a developing international commitment. It honors an important advance while keeping attention on the people whom laws failed to protect.

Why the 1926 Slavery Convention matters to genealogy

International treaties can seem distant from family history, but laws influence which records are created, what terms they use, and whose lives become visible in official archives. The convention and the measures that followed encouraged governments to report on slavery, forced labor, trafficking, and enforcement. These activities could generate legislation, administrative correspondence, investigations, court files, parliamentary debates, labor records, and newspaper coverage.

Such sources may identify people who were subjected to exploitation, resisted it, escaped it, enforced it, profited from it, campaigned against it, or worked within institutions responsible for its suppression. They can also document places, employers, ships, routes, communities, and government agencies connected to an individual’s life.

The convention can therefore serve as historical context and as a guide to possible archives. It rarely provides a direct line to a named relative on its own. Instead, it can help explain why a record exists and suggest where to look next.

How enslavement shaped the genealogical record

Researching people who experienced enslavement presents challenges created by the system itself. Families were separated through sale, forced migration, inheritance, and removal. Names could be omitted, changed, misspelled, or imposed. Ages and birthplaces were often estimated. Relationships recognized within a family or community might not have been acknowledged by law or recorded by officials.

Many surviving documents center the enslaver, estate, business, colonial office, or court. A person may appear only as a first name, a number, a physical description, or an entry in an inventory. Reading these records requires researchers to reject the dehumanizing assumptions of the document while extracting evidence carefully.

Terminology also needs attention. In respectful modern writing, “enslaved person” often conveys that enslavement was imposed rather than inherent. Historical collection titles and quoted records may contain outdated or offensive terms. Retaining an original title can be necessary for accurate citation and search, but it does not require adopting the record creator’s language in the surrounding narrative.

Records that may help reconstruct family connections

The most useful sources vary by country, period, and system of enslavement. Researchers should begin with the most recent confirmed generation and work backward, connecting each step with evidence.

Civil registration, census, and population records

Birth, marriage, death, census, and residence records can establish family groups after emancipation and provide clues to earlier locations. In the United States, the 1870 federal census was the first census after the Civil War to list most formerly enslaved people by name, although free Black people had appeared by name in earlier censuses. Comparing households across later records can reveal relatives, neighbors, migration patterns, and possible links to an earlier community.

Emancipation and post-emancipation records

Manumission papers, freedom certificates, labor contracts, marriage registers, assistance records, bank records, military files, and claims can preserve details that do not appear elsewhere. In the United States, records of the Freedmen’s Bureau and Freedman’s Bank may name spouses, children, parents, former enslavers, employers, or places of residence. Other countries and former colonies maintained their own emancipation registers, compensation records, and administrative files.

Property, probate, and court records

Wills, estate inventories, deeds, tax lists, mortgages, bills of sale, and court proceedings may contain evidence about enslaved individuals and family groups. These documents can be painful to read because people were recorded as property. They may nonetheless preserve names, ages, occupations, relationships, locations, transfers, and paths to freedom.

In the United States, the National Archives notes that many records created before the Civil War are held by state and local repositories because enslavement and slave trading were generally treated as private property matters. Identifying an enslaver or estate may therefore be an essential research step, but the enslaved person should remain the focus of the family tree.

Religious, plantation, business, and institutional records

Baptismal and burial registers, plantation journals, account books, shipping documents, employment files, hospital registers, missionary reports, and colonial correspondence can supply fragments of identity. Search by place, organization, vessel, plantation, employer, or associated household when a person’s name is absent or unstable.

Newspapers, testimony, and oral history

Advertisements concerning sales and escapes, court reports, abolitionist newspapers, petitions, interviews, and community histories may preserve names and personal details. Oral history can carry relationships and experiences omitted from written archives. Treat every account according to how, when, and why it was created, and compare it with independent evidence when possible.

Databases such as SlaveVoyages can add wider context about forced movements across the Atlantic and within the Americas. The project’s people databases include names and personal details drawn from surviving documentation, but a similar name or route is a clue rather than proof of identity.

A careful research approach

Begin by recording what is known from family documents, photographs, interviews, and recent historical records. Note every name variant and search for relatives, neighbors, witnesses, employers, and other associates. Geographic precision is especially important because local law and record survival differ widely.

Search historical records on MyHeritage for relatives across census, vital, newspaper, and other collections, then consult collection descriptions to understand coverage and limitations. If a relevant record is not online, check national, regional, local, university, religious, and community archives. Catalogs and finding aids may use historical terminology, so careful searches sometimes require period-specific terms even when those words would not be appropriate in modern narrative.

Build conclusions from multiple sources whenever possible. An age, name, location, or association may suggest a connection, but it may not establish one. Record contradictions and gaps instead of smoothing them over. DNA matches can sometimes support relationships among descendants, but they do not by themselves identify a particular historical ancestor or explain the circumstances of a relationship.

Finally, consider how discoveries will be shared. These histories may involve violence, coercion, sexual exploitation, family separation, or an ancestor who participated in enslavement. Use direct and humane language, distinguish evidence from inference, and allow relatives time to process difficult findings.

Remembering the people behind the law

The 1926 Slavery Convention matters because it helped establish a durable international legal framework against slavery. Its centenary also exposes the limits of declaring a principle without fully securing it in practice.

Genealogy brings the history closer. Treaties describe obligations between states; family history seeks the individuals whose lives were constrained, disrupted, and too often reduced to entries in someone else’s records. By reading those sources critically and centering the humanity of the people named within them, researchers can help recover relationships that oppressive systems tried to erase.

Frequently asked questions about the 1926 Slavery Convention

When was the 1926 Slavery Convention signed?

The convention was signed in Geneva on September 25, 1926, under the League of Nations. The centenary falls on September 25, 2026.

What did the 1926 Slavery Convention do?

It defined slavery and the slave trade in international law and required participating states to suppress the slave trade, pursue the abolition of slavery, prevent forced labor from developing into conditions comparable to slavery, cooperate with one another, and establish penalties for violations.

Did the 1926 Slavery Convention abolish slavery worldwide?

No. It created international obligations, but it did not immediately end slavery. Implementation depended on participating states, and the convention allowed the abolition of slavery to proceed progressively. Enslavement and related forms of exploitation continued after the treaty was adopted.

Why is the convention still important today?

Its definition of slavery influenced later treaties and international criminal and human rights law. The 1953 protocol brought the convention into the United Nations system, and the 1956 Supplementary Convention addressed additional institutions and practices similar to slavery.

Is the convention itself useful for genealogy?

Usually as context rather than as a direct source of names. It can point researchers toward government reports, laws, investigations, court records, labor files, parliamentary material, and newspapers created as countries debated or implemented measures against slavery and forced labor.

What records can help trace an enslaved ancestor?

Useful sources may include civil registration, census records, emancipation documents, manumission papers, probate files, wills, inventories, deeds, tax lists, labor contracts, religious registers, military records, court cases, newspapers, oral histories, and records created after emancipation. Availability depends on the place and period.

What language should family historians use when writing about slavery?

Use specific, humane language that makes clear that enslavement was imposed. “Enslaved person” is often preferable to language that presents slavery as an identity. Preserve original collection titles or wording when accuracy requires it, but identify harmful historical terminology and avoid repeating it unnecessarily.

Sources

• United Nations Audiovisual Library of International Law: Slavery Convention
• United Nations Treaty Collection: text of the 1926 Slavery Convention
• International Labour Organization: Forced Labour Convention, 1930
• U.S. National Archives: Records relating to American slavery and the international slave trade
• U.S. National Archives: African American genealogy reference reports
• SlaveVoyages.org

Yan Sandler is a passionate genealogy enthusiast, specializing in Eastern European and Jewish heritage. He enjoys helping others to uncover their roots, turning complex archival fragments into meaningful family stories for researchers worldwide.

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At first glance, our historic surnames bear the familiar imprint of local regions, evoking alder forests, hidden ponds, the hills of the Meuse, or simple clearings. But for those who know how to read between the lines of family trees, these Belgian names are true golden tickets to the highest spheres of global power. Through military exploits, unparalleled financial intuition, and masterful marriage alliances, these prominent families of ours shaped the European elite. Whether funding the rise of Monte Carlo, triggering the abdication of a King of the Netherlands, making their mark in the heart of Peruvian history, or permanently embedding our DNA into modern royal successions, here are 10 Belgian family names that wrote the history of European aristocracy.

Merode

The surname de Mérode is a toponymic name tracing its roots to Merode, Germany. Linguistically, it derives from ancient Germanic words where “mer” means “lake” or “pond” and “rode” means “to clear,” evoking a cleared area near a lake.

The House of Merode is one of the most prominent families of the Belgian nobility. Establishing itself in the Low Countries in the fourteenth century via the marriage of Richard I de Mérode to Margaretha van Wesemael, the house consolidated its power within the Belgian high aristocracy through major royal alliances. In 1846, Antoinette de Mérode married Prince Charles III of Monaco, providing the dowry that funded Monte Carlo. Additionally, Louise de Mérode’s daughter, Maria Vittoria dal Pozzo, married Prince Amedeo of Savoy, Duke of Aosta, who briefly reigned as King of Spain from 1870 to 1873.

Amadeo of Savoy with his first wife Maria Vittoria dal Pozzo

This line descends directly to Prince Lorenz, Archduke of Austria-Este, whose marriage to Princess Astrid of Belgium embedded the de Merode ancestry into the current Belgian royal succession.

Ligne

The surname de Ligne is a toponymic name originating in the twelfth century from the village of Ligne in the County of Hainaut, Belgium. Linguistically, it derives from the Old French ligne, meaning “line” or “stripe,” which likely referred to a geographic boundary line or the nearby Ligne river.

Portrait of Albert de Ligne, Prince of Barbancon and Arenberg, painted in 1625–1635 by Anthony van Dyck

The House of de Ligne has secured prominent alliances with both reigning and non-reigning dynasties. In 1950, Prince Antoine de Ligne married Princess Alix of Luxembourg, closely integrating the house with the Grand Ducal Family of Luxembourg. Among non-reigning royal lines, the current head of the house, Michel, 14th Prince of Ligne, is married to Princess Eleonora of Orléans-Braganza, a direct descendant of both Emperor Pedro II of Brazil and King Louis Philippe I of France.

Lannoy

The surname Lannoy is a toponymic name derived from the village of Lannoy near Lille, located in French Flanders. Etymologically, the name is linked to the French l’aune, meaning “the alder tree” (signifying a place of alder trees or forest clearings). Emerging from the thirteenth-century nobility of Hainaut and Flanders, the family bore a distinctive coat of arms featuring three crowned green lions on a silver field. The house rose to immense historic prominence under the Holy Roman Empire when Charles de Lannoy commanded the imperial forces at the 1525 Battle of Pavia, capturing King Francis I of France. The exploit earned him the title of Imperial Count and Prince of Sulmona.

Painting of the Battle of Pavia

In contemporary history, the House of de Lannoy secured its most prestigious royal alliance through the reigning Grand Ducal House of Luxembourg-Nassau. In 2012, Countess Stéphanie de Lannoy married Hereditary Grand Duke Guillaume of Luxembourg. Through this union, the de Lannoy bloodline is directly integrated into the sovereign succession of Luxembourg, with her children, Prince Charles and Prince François.

Oultremont

The surname Oultremont is a toponymic name tracing its lineage to the medieval nobility of the Bishopric of Liège and the region of Huy. Etymologically derived from the French outre-mont, the name translates literally to “beyond the mount,” a topographic reference indicating the family’s original ancestral seat situated on the opposite side of the Meuse hills.

The house d’Oultremont’s most notable royal alliance occurred with the reigning House of Orange-Nassau of the Netherlands, sparking a major nineteenth-century political crisis. Countess Henriette d’Oultremont de Wégimont, a Roman Catholic Belgian and lady-in-waiting to Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands, and became the romantic focus of King William I of the Netherlands.

Henriette d’Oultremont

Because the union occurred shortly after the Belgian Revolution of 1830, intense Protestant opposition forced King William I to abdicate his throne in October 1840. The couple married morganatically in Berlin the following year, with Henriëtte styled as the Countess of Nassau rather than Queen.

Arenberg

The surname Arenberg is a toponymic name originating from the Eifel region of Germany near Ahrweiler, derived from the mountain and castle of Arenberg. Etymologically, the name translates to “Eagle’s Mountain,” combining the Germanic elements aren (eagle) and berg (mountain or hill), symbolizing strength and nobility. The modern lineage was established in 1547 when Jean de Ligne, Baron of Barbançon, married Marguerite de La Marck, the heiress to the sovereign territory.

Jean de Ligne

This union established the House of Arenberg as a powerful branch of the House of Ligne, and they were officially elevated to Dukes within the Holy Roman Empire in 1644. Even after losing their independent territory during the Napoleonic Wars, the family managed to retain their premier royal status — meaning they were legally recognized as social equals to reigning kings and emperors, allowing them to continue marrying into Europe’s highest royal families.

Historically aligned with the Spanish and Austrian Habsburg crowns during their administration of the Low Countries, the family’s elite status was formally solidified in Belgium when they were recognized as princes in 1953, with the head of the house confirmed as a Belgian Duke in 1994. Among its major alliances with non-reigning royal families, the house formed a prestigious dual connection to the Royal House of Bavaria (Wittelsbach) and the Grand Ducal House of Luxembourg. This occurred in 1955, when Jean-Engelbert, 12th Duke of Arenberg, married Princess Sophie of Bavaria, the daughter of Crown Prince Rupprecht of Bavaria and Princess Antonia of Luxembourg.

Riquet de Caraman-Chimay

The surname Riquet de Caraman-Chimay is a composite name of French and Belgian origin. Linguistically, “Riquet” originates from the Occitan and Old French regions, traditionally used as a nickname meaning “curly” or “curly-haired,” while “Caraman” and “Chimay” are toponymic additions representing principalities the family acquired in France and Hainaut (Belgium). The family’s noble ascent began with Pierre-Paul Riquet, the brilliant 17th-century engineer who built France’s famed Canal du Midi. By the nineteenth century, the family had secured sovereign princely status within the Holy Roman Empire, a prestige later recognized by an 1889 Belgian royal decree that permitted all male members of the house to bear the title of Prince de Caraman-Chimay.

In 1830, Joseph de Riquet de Caraman married Émilie Pellapra, who was widely known and publicly claimed to be the illegitimate daughter of Emperor Napoleon I. Their granddaughter, Élisabeth de Riquet de Caraman-Chimay (the Countess Greffulhe), became a celebrated icon of Belle Époque Paris and the primary inspiration for Marcel Proust’s famous literary character, the Duchess of Guermantes.

Élisabeth de Riquet, countess of Caraman-Chimay

Maintaining the family’s deep historical roots within the Belgian court, Élisabeth’s sister, Princess Ghislaine de Caraman-Chimay, served as a prominent lady-in-waiting to Queen Elisabeth of Belgium.

Looz-Corswarem

The surname Looz-Corswarem combines two historical Belgian roots. “Corswarem” comes from an ancient knightly family from the Hesbaye region, while “Looz” was added to show their descent from the powerful medieval Counts of Looz. The family was elevated to Dukes within the Holy Roman Empire in 1734. Even after losing their independent territory during the Napoleonic Wars, they kept their premier royal status — meaning they were legally recognized as social equals to reigning kings and emperors, allowing them to continue marrying into Europe’s highest royal families.

Portrait of Princess Herminie de Looz et Corswarem by Jozef Van Lerius, 1860

The House of de Looz-Corswarem is famously linked to two major global lineages. First, through an early marriage to the House of de Lannoy, they connected with a family that is now part of the reigning Grand Ducal Family of Luxembourg. Second, they formed an extraordinary South American alliance when in 1826, Princess Caroline-Arnoldine married José de la Riva-Agüero, the very first President of Peru. Their son, born and educated in Belgium, later became Peru’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, bridging the political and aristocratic worlds of both nations.

Ursel

The surname d’Ursel originated in Germany as a nickname derived from the Latin ursus, meaning “bear.” The modern Belgian noble family actually began as the Schetz lineage, a highly successful family of German merchants and financiers in 15th-century Antwerp. They transitioned from the business world into the landed aristocracy when Conrad Schetz was adopted by his maternal aunt, Barbe van Ursel, taking her ancient knightly surname and coat of arms. In 1716, the family’s status skyrocketed when Conrad-Albert d’Ursel was named Duke of Ursel and Hoboken by Holy Roman Emperor Charles VI.

Conrad-Albert d’Ursel, the first Duke of Ursel

The House d’Ursel went on to secure highly prestigious marriages across Europe’s elite networks. Through historical ties and a marriage to the House of de Lannoy, they are directly connected to the reigning Grand Ducal Family of Luxembourg. The family expanded its reach into France and Germany: in 1923, Henri, 8th Duke d’Ursel, married Princess Antoinette de La Trémoïlle, uniting them with one of France’s premier noble houses, while in 2012, Count Thibault d’Ursel married into the German princely house of Hohenlohe-Langenburg.

Arschot Schoonhoven

The surname d’Arschot Schoonhoven is a composite toponymic name originating from the Duchy of Brabant. “Arschot” (or Aarschot) is derived from the Belgian city of Aarschot, etymologically meaning “eagle’s wood” or “border wood.” This is paired with “Schoonhoven,” meaning “beautiful estate,” referencing one of their historic lordships. Formally recognized in the Belgian nobility with the title of Count, members of this ancient house traditionally served in the immediate households of the Belgian monarchs.

The family’s most famous alliance connects them directly to major European imperial history through a marriage into the non-reigning House of Habsburg-Lorraine and the Princely House of Windisch-Graetz. Countess Ghislaine d’Arschot Schoonhoven married Prince Franz Josef of Windisch-Graetz. Because Franz Josef was the son of Archduchess Elisabeth Marie of Austria (the “Red Archduchess”) and the grandson of Crown Prince Rudolf, this marriage directly tied the d’Arschot Schoonhoven family to the bloodlines of both Emperor Franz Joseph I of Austria and King Leopold II of Belgium.

Photographs of Prince Granz Joseph zu Windisch-Graetz and his wife, Countess Ghislaine d’Arschoot Schoonhoven

Meeûs

The surname Meeûs is a Belgian family name deeply connected to the birth of modern Belgium. Linguistically, it is a patronymic name coming from the given name Bartholomeus (shortened to Meus). Originally a prominent merchant and banking family within the Brussels middle class, the Meeûs family massively grew their fortune after Belgian independence by buying up large portions of the Sonian Forest, which the new government had seized from the Dutch King William I.

The family officially joined the aristocracy in 1836 when King Leopold I granted Ferdinand de Meeûs the title of Count.

Ferdinand Meeûs

Upon his ennoblement, Ferdinand revived a historic coat of arms originally granted in 1688 by King Charles II of Spain to a military officer in the family. After acquiring the famous Argenteuil estate near Waterloo, certain branches of the family were later authorized by royal decree to expand their name, cementing the Meeûs legacy as a cornerstone of Belgian high society and financial history.

Are there any royal surnames in your own family? Explore the origins of your last name at MyHeritage.com.

The post 10 Belgian Surnames That Shaped European History appeared first on MyHeritage Blog.

For genealogists, the centennial is more than an occasion to revisit the storm’s scale. Disasters can redirect lives in ways that appear throughout the historical record: a family leaves town, relatives take in survivors, an occupation changes, property passes through probate, or a familiar address disappears from the next directory. By examining records from before and after September 1926, researchers may uncover how the hurricane altered a family’s path.

Key takeaways about the Great Miami Hurricane

• The Great Miami Hurricane made landfall near Miami Beach early on September 18, 1926, with the strength of what would now be classified as a Category 4 hurricane.
• The official death toll remains uncertain. A Red Cross report listed 373 deaths and 6,381 injuries, while many people were reported missing.
• The storm affected communities across South Florida and later made another U.S. landfall near the Alabama–Florida border.
• Census records, city directories, newspapers, death records, property files, probate cases, cemetery records, maps, and photographs can help reconstruct a family’s experience.
• A sudden disappearance from local records does not necessarily mean that a person died. Evacuation, displacement, hospitalization, relocation, and changes in recordkeeping are also possible explanations.

What happened during the Great Miami Hurricane?

Miami was expanding at extraordinary speed in the mid-1920s. Dade County had counted 42,753 residents in the 1920 U.S. census, but its population had grown to well over 100,000 by September 1926, according to the National Weather Service. Construction was widespread, newcomers were arriving rapidly, and many residents had little experience with hurricanes.

The storm was first identified northeast of the Lesser Antilles on September 14. It moved through the Bahamas and reached the South Florida coast in the early hours of September 18. Modern analysis classifies it as a Category 4 hurricane at its Miami-area landfall.

The eye passed over the city, bringing a deceptive period of calm. Some residents emerged from shelter, unaware that the storm’s most violent winds would soon return from the opposite direction. The second half of the hurricane brought renewed destruction. Storm surge inundated Miami Beach and areas around Biscayne Bay, while powerful winds damaged buildings, utilities, boats, roads, and rail lines.

After crossing the peninsula, the hurricane moved into the Gulf of Mexico and made another landfall near the Alabama–Florida border on September 20. Its effects extended well beyond Miami, including severe damage in Fort Lauderdale, Hollywood, Moore Haven, and communities along the northern Gulf Coast.

Why the storm’s human toll is difficult to measure

The Great Miami Hurricane caused over $100 million in damage at the time — over $164 billion in today’s dollars — and left more than 40,000 people homeless. Its precise death toll is harder to establish. The National Hurricane Center cites a Red Cross report that listed 373 deaths and 6,381 injuries. It also notes that more than 800 people were missing after the storm.

Several factors complicated the count. South Florida had a large, mobile population that included recent arrivals, seasonal residents, laborers, tourists, and people living in newly developed neighborhoods. Some victims may not have appeared in local records before the hurricane. Others left the area afterward or were temporarily separated from relatives. Bodies were not always recovered or immediately identified.

For family historians, this uncertainty is a reminder that an official total and an individual family’s experience are different kinds of evidence. A death certificate may document one victim, a newspaper may report another person missing, and a later census may show that someone believed lost had resettled elsewhere. Each source answers a different question.

How the hurricane can appear in family history records

Natural disasters rarely create one complete, easily searchable list of everyone affected. Their impact is usually scattered across records produced for other purposes. The most effective approach is to establish what is known before the storm, then follow each person through the months and years that followed.

Federal census records

The 1920 and 1930 U.S. federal censuses provide useful reference points on either side of the hurricane. Compare household members, addresses, occupations, birthplaces, immigration details, and housing information. The 1930 U.S. federal census on MyHeritage may show whether a family remained in South Florida, moved to another county or state, changed occupations, or combined households with relatives.

A change between the two censuses is a clue, not proof that the storm caused it. Marriage, employment, health, economic conditions, and ordinary migration may also explain the difference. Look for supporting evidence before drawing a conclusion.

City directories

Because federal censuses were taken 10 years apart, city directories can bring the timeline much closer to September 1926. Directories often list adult residents, spouses, occupations, employers, and street addresses. Search the U.S. City Directories collection on MyHeritage for entries before and after the hurricane.

Aside from noting whether a person was present or absence, pay attention to additional details. Were they designated a widow or widower? Did they begin a new occupation, or work for a different employer? Did they move to a different address? All these may indicate that they were affected by the hurricane. Consult the directory’s publication date and introductory pages when possible: information may have been collected months before the year printed on the cover.

Death records, obituaries, and cemetery sources

If a relative may have died in the storm, search death certificates, county death records, cemetery registers, burial databases, funeral-home records, obituaries, and death notices. The Florida County Deaths collection on MyHeritage contains records from 1925 onward, although coverage varies by county and period.

Try a range of dates around September 18 rather than limiting the search to the day of landfall. An injured person may have died later, and registration could have been delayed amid widespread disruption. Search with flexible spellings, initials, nicknames, and broader geographic settings. An unidentified or badly transcribed entry may not appear under the expected name.

Historical newspapers

Newspapers reported casualty lists, missing people, hospital admissions, relief efforts, funerals, property damage, and the movements of survivors. Local coverage can reveal small details that never entered a government record, while newspapers in a person’s former hometown may have published news received from relatives in Florida.

Search for a surname alongside an address, employer, neighborhood, or relative’s name. Also try phrases such as “Miami hurricane,” “reported missing,” “among the injured,” “storm refugee,” and “returned from Florida.” Early reports were often incomplete or wrong, so follow the coverage for several days or weeks and corroborate important claims with later records.

Property, court, and insurance records

Deeds, mortgages, tax rolls, building permits, probate files, guardianship cases, and court records may show what happened after a home or business was damaged. A property might have been sold quickly, transferred within a family, rebuilt, or abandoned. Probate records can identify heirs and relatives even when a death record offers little information.

These materials may be held by county clerks, courts, local archives, historical societies, or libraries rather than in a single online database. Search under both Miami and Dade County; the county was renamed Miami-Dade County in 1997.

Maps, photographs, and relief records

Historical maps can place an address in relation to the coast, waterways, rail lines, and heavily damaged neighborhoods. Photographs from the Florida Memory historic hurricane collection and the Library of Congress can add visual context.

Relief organizations, hospitals, churches, civic groups, and government agencies also generated correspondence, reports, lists, and case files. Survival of these records varies, and access may be restricted in some cases. Repository catalogs and finding aids are often more useful than a general name search, especially when records have not been digitized.

A step-by-step research strategy

Here are some guidelines for researching family members who may have been affected by the hurricane:

1. Start with a confirmed identity. Record the person’s full name, relatives, occupation, and last known address before the hurricane.
2. Build a narrow timeline. Look for records from 1925 through 1927, including directories, newspapers, vital records, deeds, and family correspondence.
3. Search beyond Miami. Include Miami Beach, Fort Lauderdale, Hollywood, Moore Haven, other South Florida communities, and the northern Gulf Coast, depending on the person’s location.
4. Trace relatives and neighbors. Displaced people often stayed with family or moved with members of the same household or community.
5. Compare pre- and post-storm sources. Use the 1920 and 1930 censuses as anchors, then fill the decade with annual or event-based records.
6. Separate fact from family tradition. Preserve oral accounts, but test details against contemporary evidence. Dates, locations, and the identities of those involved may have shifted as the account passed between generations.
7. Document negative searches. Note the collections, date ranges, spellings, and locations checked. This prevents repeated work and may reveal gaps in record coverage.

What the centennial offers family historians

Anniversaries often prompt archives, libraries, museums, and historical societies to digitize materials, create exhibits, publish finding aids, or invite the public to share photographs and memories. The 100th anniversary may therefore surface sources that were previously difficult to locate.

It is also an opportunity to preserve material already held by families. Identify the people in photographs, scan letters and newspaper clippings, record the source of inherited accounts, and add evidence-based notes to the family tree. If a relative experienced the hurricane, document not only the dramatic day itself but also what came next: relocation, rebuilding, changes in work, the loss of property, or support from extended family.

The Great Miami Hurricane did not affect every family in the same way. Some lost relatives, homes, or livelihoods. Others left Florida, took in displaced kin, or helped rebuild the region. Following those consequences through historical records can restore individual experiences to an event most often described through totals and photographs of destruction.

Frequently asked questions about the Great Miami Hurricane

When did the Great Miami Hurricane happen?

The hurricane made landfall near Miami Beach early on September 18, 1926. It crossed South Florida, entered the Gulf of Mexico, and made another U.S. landfall near the Alabama–Florida border on September 20.

How strong was the Great Miami Hurricane?

Modern analysis classifies it as a Category 4 hurricane at its South Florida landfall. The category is a retrospective classification because the Saffir–Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale did not exist in 1926.

How many people died in the Great Miami Hurricane?

The exact number is uncertain. The National Hurricane Center cites a Red Cross report listing 373 deaths and 6,381 injuries, while more than 800 people were reported missing after the storm. Contemporary reports and later sources sometimes give different totals.

Why might an ancestor disappear from Miami records after 1926?

Death is one possibility, but it is not the only one. The person may have evacuated, moved permanently, stayed with relatives, entered a hospital, changed names through marriage, or been omitted from a directory. Follow the person through relatives, associates, newspapers, death records, property records, and the 1930 census before reaching a conclusion.

Which records are most useful for researching a relative affected by the hurricane?

Begin with the 1920 and 1930 federal censuses, then add city directories, newspapers, death and cemetery records, deeds, tax rolls, probate files, maps, photographs, and any surviving family papers. The best combination depends on whether the research question concerns death, displacement, property, or a later move.

Can I search for people affected by the hurricane on MyHeritage?

There is no single record set containing everyone affected. Search relevant collections on MyHeritage, including U.S. federal censuses, city directories, Florida death records, newspapers, and family trees. Compare results across collections and verify family tree information against original records whenever possible.

Yan Sandler is a passionate genealogy enthusiast, specializing in Eastern European and Jewish heritage. He enjoys helping others to uncover their roots, turning complex archival fragments into meaningful family stories for researchers worldwide.

The post The Great Miami Hurricane of 1926: What Its 100th Anniversary Means for Genealogy appeared first on MyHeritage Blog.

Key takeaways about New York in September 1776

• Failed Diplomacy: The Staten Island Peace Conference on September 11 marked the final formal diplomatic attempt at reconciliation before all-out warfare continued.
• British Occupation: The military landing at Kip’s Bay on September 15 allowed British forces to seize Manhattan, beginning an occupation that lasted until 1783.
• Devastating Destruction: The Great Fire on September 20–21 consumed up to a quarter of the city, leaving thousands homeless and destroying crucial property.
• Widespread Displacements: The conflict forced Patriots, Loyalists, and neutral civilians to flee, creating complex migration patterns documented in historical records.

The Staten Island peace conference: A final effort at peace

On September 11, 1776, a delegation representing the Continental Congress met with British Admiral Lord Richard Howe at the Billopp House on Staten Island. The American delegation comprised John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, and Edward Rutledge. Howe sought to offer royal pardons and secure a peaceful resolution without further military conflict.

However, the fundamental positions of both sides created an immediate stalemate. Howe possessed authority to grant pardons only if the Americans repealed the Declaration of Independence. The American representatives refused to negotiate without formal recognition of the United States as an independent nation. Consequently, the 3-hour meeting ended without an agreement, ending diplomatic efforts and ensuring that the war would be settled on the battlefield.

The British capture of New York City

4 days after the failed peace conference, British General William Howe launched an amphibious assault on Manhattan. On September 15, 1776, 5 British warships unleashed a heavy naval bombardment against American defenses at Kip’s Bay, near present-day 34th Street. Overwhelmed Continental militia forces broke rank and retreated in confusion. General George Washington arrived at the field and attempted to rally his retreating men, but British forces successfully landed thousands of troops.

By nightfall, British forces controlled lower Manhattan, forcing the Continental Army to retreat to Harlem Heights in the north. The capture of New York handed Britain a strategic deep-water port, which served as their primary naval and military headquarters in North America for seven years. The occupation transformed city life, turning New York into a crowded garrison town for British troops and a destination for Loyalists seeking British protection.

The great fire of New York City

Disaster struck during the late hours of September 20 and the early morning of September 21, 1776. A fire erupted near the Fighting Cocks Tavern near Whitehall Slip and quickly spread across lower Manhattan, driven by strong dry winds and timber-framed structures. Because many firefighters had evacuated the city or taken their equipment, extinguishing the blaze proved extremely difficult.

The fire destroyed between 10% and 25% of the city’s buildings, burning down centuries-old homes, businesses, and landmarks such as Trinity Church. British military commanders suspected Patriot arsonists and arrested hundreds of residents for questioning, though no official proof emerged. The destruction forced thousands of residents into encampments made of canvas tents and wooden huts, known locally as “Canvas Town.”

Tracing your family history in revolutionary New York

The upheaval in New York in September 1776 generated extensive record trails that allow modern researchers to discover their ancestors’ roles. Whether your ancestors served in the military, held Loyalist convictions, or lived through the destruction as civilians, several specific source collections document their lives:

• Revolutionary War Pension Files: Continental soldiers who survived the defense of Manhattan often applied for pensions decades later. These detailed applications describe personal experiences at Kip’s Bay, Harlem Heights, and subsequent campaigns.
• Loyalist Claims and Losses Records: Loyalists who fled to New York or lost property in the Great Fire submitted formal claims to the British government for financial compensation, providing details on family members, former residences, and lost personal belongings.
• Military Service Records and Muster Rolls: British Army muster rolls, Hessian regiments logs, and Continental Army rosters record enlistment dates, hospital stays, casualties, and desertions during the 1776 campaign.
• Church Registers and Property Deeds: Local parish registers of baptisms, marriages, and burials offer vital dates before and after the fire, while land registries track property transfers and post-war land confiscations.

Organizing these findings becomes clear when you construct a family tree to track ancestral lineages across generations.

Combining your lineage with a targeted search across billions of historical records helps locate individual military entries, pension filings, and tax lists.

Furthermore, taking a simple DNA test can connect you with genetic relatives who share descent from colonial New York families, providing new leads for your family history.

To discover more historical insights and explore special resources dedicated to early American history, visit the MyHeritage America 250 site.

FAQs about New York in September 1776

Why was New York City strategically vital in 1776?

New York City offered a centralized location along the Atlantic coastline and a superior deep-water harbor. Controlling the Hudson River allowed the British military to sever communications and troop movement between the New England colonies and the rest of the continent.

Who was responsible for starting the Great Fire of New York?

The origin of the fire remains historically unconfirmed. British authorities accused American sympathizers of setting the fires deliberately, while George Washington and Continental leadership denied ordering the destruction, despite recognizing the city’s strategic value to Britain.

How can I determine if my ancestor was in New York during these events?

You can search digitized military muster rolls, Loyalist compensation claims, town tax rolls, and Revolutionary War pension applications. These documents list residences, military unit movements, and property losses sustained during the autumn of 1776.

The fateful events of September 1776 altered the trajectory of the American Revolution and reshaped the lives of ordinary citizens. Exploring military rosters, compensation claims, and church registers helps bring your ancestors’ experiences during this historic crisis to light.

Yan Sandler is a passionate genealogy enthusiast, specializing in Eastern European and Jewish heritage. He enjoys helping others to uncover their roots, turning complex archival fragments into meaningful family stories for researchers worldwide.

The post New York 250 Years Ago: Tracing Your Revolutionary War Family History appeared first on MyHeritage Blog.