We are in the fortunate situation that the
University
of Augsburg, the
Bayerisches
Staatsarchiv in Augsburg and local historians, among them Rolf Hofmann,
Doris Pfister and Peter Fassl have taken a special interest in the Jewish history
of the region. As a consequence, we not only have an exhaustive catalogue of
available documents accessible on the internet, but Rolf Hofmann has already
transcribed most of the BMD (birth, marriage & death) registers and grave
lists in the Oettingen area. The
Pfister/Fassl
catalogue has pinpointed corresponding documents for the other regions in
Bavarian Swabia. Most of the BMD registers were collected by the Nazi "Reichssippenamt"
for its criminal purposes. The system of Jewish Civil Records in Southern Germany
has its own fascinating history.
(click
here)
This situation created a unique opportunity for Jewish genealogists not only to develop an integrated genealogical database for a defined Jewish population in Southern Germany in the early 19th century, but to also expand our understanding of the historic, geographic, cultural and economic circumstances which allowed this society to flourish.