HEIMAT BÜTOW
Genealogical research has come a long way since I began my adventure in family history. The advent of the home computer, Internet, websites dedicated to genealogical research have all aided in more and more people being able to learn about their ancestors and has sparked the hobby of tracing one's roots. It was possible, though, to make great strides in research before these tools came into place and my research on my Kolberg family is proof of that.
Come along and join me on my journey from a tiny bit of basic information on my Kolberg family to my crossing the Atlantic Ocean and discovering the great rewards of years of research and dedication. While I did end up using the tools of the Internet, I did spend the first 25 years researching this family using good old fashioned elbow grease, patience and hard work.
When I first developed an interest in genealogy in the mid-1970's the family I was most interested in expanding my information on was my Kolberg family. I had been extremely close to my maternal grandmother, Ella Kolberg Kijak, and I wanted to honor her memory by learning as much as I could about her family. She had passed away in 1973, and while she had not discussed her family that much with me over the years, I decided to focus my new found love of genealogy on her line.
In Berrien County, Michigan, where my grandmother had been born and where her father, August Kolberg and four of his brothers had settled when they immigrated to America, there were many, many listings of Kolberg in the telephone books. Over the next 30+ years, with intensive research, I would come to learn that each and every person in Berrien County with the name of Kolberg would tie into our family group.
A long research project was begun. Genealogy research hints in magazines gave advice on where to start when attempting to trace one's roots and I followed these tips to the letter:
1. Look for information in letters, notes, photos that are/were in the possession of one's immediate family. To begin my research, I gathered the information that I did have from my grandmother which was minimal. My grandmother had a few photos of her father which she had previously given me, but there was no indication on these photos, nor on any of her notes, of where in Germany August or his brothers had originated.
I did have a letter written by my grandmother's mother, Bertha Kramp Kolberg, and I had Bertha's German prayer book but that was the extent of my keepsake items. The only information contained in the prayer book was the notation that "grandmother Kolberg came over from Germany in 1882 and brought this book with her". The handwriting in the book was my mothers and I knew that both August and Bertha Kolberg had passed away before 1925 when my mother was born as my mother had never known them. This was very basic information and would not take me very far in progressing with my research.
2. Talk to senior family members and question them as to their memories and inquire if they had photos, documents, information that would reveal more data on the family. I decided to make a trip to St. Joseph, as I was living in the Detroit suburbs at the time, where I was hoping to seek out some of my grandmother's cousins who I hoped might have further information. Her one cousin, Grace Kolberg Gaul, (daughter of Otto Kolberg) was someone I was particularly close to and I visited her at her home. She suggested that we go to the home of cousins, Ruby Kolberg Berndt and Edna Kolberg, (sisters, who were the daughters of Paul Kolberg) and visit with them. I had never met these two ladies but found them to be delightful and pleased to be able to sit and discuss their memories of their father and the Kolberg family.
With the help of Grace, Ruby and Edna I learned more than I could have hoped for. They were willing to pull out their photo albums and I saw photos on the family that I could have only hoped to one day find including a family photo of my great-grandparents, August and Bertha, with their first two children. This is the only photo that I have of my great-grandmother, Bertha.
Photo of August and Bertha Kolberg with Amelia (standing) and Hedwig (sitting) follows:
After our visit I took a trip to the local photography studio to leave the photos to be reproduced (remember this was before computers and scanners) and then returned the originals back to these three cousins. As well as photos, Ruby and Edna pulled out letters that their father had written and from these letters I learned even more exciting data. The parents of my August Kolberg were Friedrich-Wilhelm Kolberg and his wife, Henriette Amalie Kautz, and they were the parents of 12 children (11 sons and 1 daughter) with 7 of these sons living to adulthood. The names of all 7 sons were listed in Paul Kolberg's notes and showed sons Friedrich-Wilhelm, Jr., August, Heinrich, Johann, Otto, Paul and Ferdinand. The notes also stated that August, Heinrich, Otto, Paul and Ferdinand had immigrated to the United States - to Berrien County, Michigan - between 1880 and 1910.
In addition, there was documentation that brother, Johann, had moved with his family to Berlin from the home village and that oldest brother, Friedrich-Wilhelm, Jr., had remained in the home village on the family farm. The home village - dare I hope - yes, it was indeed listed in Paul Kolberg's notes and I now knew that my Kolberg family had been from the small village of Klein Tuchen, near Groß Tuchen in Bütow, Pommern, Germany.
The highlight of the visit was to actually see, as well, a wonderful photo of Friedrich-Wilhelm, Sr. and Henriette Amalie Kolberg with their oldest son, Friedrich-Wilhelm, Jr. and his wife (whose name was not indicated):
It was also from these notes and recollection of Grace, Ruby and Edna Kolberg that I learned that the surname was alternately spelled "Colberg" and/or "Kolberg". Over the years since then I have seen German records with either spelling with no rhyme or reason so for the purposes of this blog and this series I am going to standardize the spelling of the surname as "Kolberg" which is the spelling used in the United States.
Here are the three cousins who helped me immensely on my journey of researching our family.
Grace Kolberg Gaul, daughter of Otto Kolberg, ca 1979:
Ruby Kolberg Berndt, daughter of Paul Kolberg, ca 1980:
Edna Kolberg, daughter of Paul Kolberg, ca 1980:
I am forever grateful to these three wonderful ladies for all of their help in starting me on the road to my research on our mutual Kolberg family.
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