Lutheran Parish Records from
the Upper Ottawa Valley, 1861 -1890,
with Information on Searching your Family History.
This book was written about the early Lutheran immigrants to the Upper Ottawa Valley (mainly Renfrew County, Ontario). It is available in several libraries around Pembroke, Ontario.
Reference: Daniel J. Faber, Franz Kapeller & Jean Ringhofer, 1998. 82pp., 2 maps, 35pp. data, 4 appendices, A, B, C and D. ISBN 0-9683673-0-5
Published by: (Former) National Capital Genealogy Club, 9 Bellfield Street, Nepean, Ontario K2B 6K6.
IT IS THREE BOOKS IN ONE, including:
Part 1) History of the Lutheran Church in the Upper Ottawa Valley;
Part 2) 2000 names with vital statistics from Pastor Gerndt's Saddlebag Parish Records; One map of Europe and one map of the Upper Ottawa Valley, indicating where immigrants came from and where they are buried.
Part 3) Searching your Family History in the Upper Ottawa Valley.
The front cover has six photos of modern churches from the Upper Ottawa Valley on it. Included on the front cover are: Zion Lutheran Church, Pembroke, ON; St. John's Lutheran Church, Augsburg, ON; St. John's Lutheran Church, Ladysmith, QC; Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Woito, ON; St. Peter's Lutheran Church, Alice, ON; and Grace Lutheran Church, Greenlake (Rankin), ON.
PART ONE of this publication describes the beginning of the Lutheran ministry in the Upper Ottawa Valley where several waves of German immigrants arrived in Canada. These immigrants were landless farmers, labourers and/or craftsmen who often lived in servitude in the class-based society of 19th century Europe. In 1858, L.H. Gerndt, a Lutheran pastor originally from Berlin, was appointed to serve the spiritual needs of the widespread rural community. After Pastor Gerndt was appointed to another post by the Lutheran Synod, other pastors carried on his ministry.
PART TWO is an extraction from the original German of Pastor L.H. Gerndt's Saddlebag Records of the Upper Ottawa Valley. There are almost 2000 names listed along with vital statistics such as places of origin, and dates of births and deaths. Included is a map of Europe showing the towns and provinces from which they emigrated and a map of the Upper Ottawa Valley showing where some of these immigrants were buried.
PART THREE shows readers how to search their family histories in the Upper Ottawa Valley and in Europe, utilizing the names of towns in Europe as recorded in the parish records. Archives in the Upper Ottawa Valley and in Europe are listed as well as useful genealogical Internet websites.
The back cover has nine photos of churches taken in the late 1800s to early 1900s. Included on the back cover are: St. Stephen's Lutheran Church, Schutt, ON; Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Woito, ON; St. John's Lutheran Church, Petawawa, ON; Zion Lutheran Church, Pembroke, ON; St. Paul's Lutheran Church, Denbigh, ON; St John's Lutheran Church, Ladysmith, QC; St. John's Lutheran Church, Bonnechere, ON; and St. Peter's Lutheran Church, Alice, ON.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Forward ......................................................................... 3
Preface ........................................................................... 4
PART ONE
THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN THE UPPER OTTAWA VALLEY
The Lutheran Church
in the Upper Ottawa Valley ........................................... 9
1. The Origins
2. The Appeal
3. The Pastor
4. The Records
5. The Aftermath
6. The Legacy
7. Selected References
PART TWO
LUTHERAN PARISH RECORDS, 18611890
1. How to Read the Parish Records ............................... 18
2. Lutheran Parish Vital Statistics Records from the Upper Ottawa Valley, 18611890 ................. 20
3. Footnotes ................................................................... 60
4. Map of Europe Where People from the Upper
Ottawa Valley Originated .............................................. 62
5. Map of Selected Cemeteries Where Immigrants from the Upper Ottawa Valley are Buried ..... 63
PART THREE
SEARCHING YOUR FAMILY HISTORY
Searching your Family History .................................... 67
1. How to Start Searching
2. Introductory Genealogy Books
3. Family History Centres
4. Genealogical Archives in Europe
5. Genealogical Archives in Canada
6. Internet Websites
APPENDICES
APPENDIX A: European Archive Addresses ............. 75
APPENDIX B: Lutheran Cemeteries in U. O. Valley .. 77
APPENDIX C: Publications about U. Ottawa Valley .. 79
APPENDIX D: Selected Germanic Bibliography ........ 81
Book Review
(from "German Genealogical Digest", Vol. 15, No. 3, Fall 1999)
Lutheran Parish Records from the Upper Ottawa Valley
This valuable book includes three parts: Part one describes the beginning of the Lutheran ministry in the Upper Ottawa Valley in Ontario. In the summer of 1857 a number of German immigrants began to arrive in Canada. The government of Upper Canada waged an active campaign to attract settlers to the Upper Ottawa Valley. The majority of these early immigrants were Lutherans who came from Pomerania, Posen, Brandenburg, Mecklenburg, Silesia and Saxony. They were landless farmers, laborers and/or craftsmen who often lived in servitude in the class- based society of 19th century Europe.
They traveled to the ports of Bremen and Hamburg and then by ship to Quebec, and by boat, train and wagon to the townships of Alice, Wilberforce, Bromley, Admaston, North and South Algona, Petawawa and Westmeath in the Upper Ottawa Valley. In 1855 Ludwig Herman Gerndt, a Lutheran Pastor, originally from Berlin, was appointed to serve the spiritual needs of the valley.
Pastor Gerndt's records of pastoral duties were meticulously kept, stored in his saddlebags and carried about with him- they came to be known as his "Saddlebag records". Part two is an extraction of these original records written in the old German script. These records listed events from the whole area in which he served and also include the records of his successors until the year 1891. The extracted records are alphabetically arranged by surname and include the following: surname, given name, sex, birth date, birthplace, death date, death place, burial place, and names of parents. The cause of death and name of godparents at baptisms are not included in the extracted list. About 2,000 names have been listed. A map of the Upper Ottawa Valley showing cemetery locations is keyed to burial places on the extraction list.
Part three provides helpful suggestions for persons starting to search their European family roots from Renfrew County.
Appendix A contains a list of European Archives with addresses. Appendix B lists Lutheran cemeteries in Upper Ottawa Valley. Appendix C gives selected publications about the Upper Ottawa Valley. Appendix D is a selected Germanic Bibliography.
The front cover has six photos of modern churches and the back cover has nine photos of churches from the Upper Ottawa Valley taken in the late 1800s to early 1900s.
"Lutheran Parish Records from the Upper Ottawa Valley 1861-1890 with Information on Searching your Family History" by Daniel Faber, Franz Kapeller and Jean Ringhofer. Published in 1998 by the "National Capital Genealogy Club", 9 Bellfield Street, Nepean, Ontario K2B 6K6. ISBN 0-9683673-0-5. Soft cover, 8-1 /2 x 11 inches, maps, illustrated, 82 pages.