Hello,
This is my second attempt to post this topic — the first disappeared when I hit post!
As some background, I've spent the last 20 years attempting to pinpoint the origins of my great-great-great grandfather, John Malich Madrers (1838-1906). I've tried just about everything — surname variants (eg, Madrer, Maderer); DNA tools; searching historical newspapers; endless databases — except I haven't tried Genealogica!
Here's some background, John:
- Arrived in England before October 1872. As "Mr Madrer's", John placed a newspaper advertisement in his local newspaper (Eastern Morning News, 23 October 1872) looking for a machinist "used to coats";
- Had various occupations: tailor, dealer in German books, grocer;
- Married my German great-great-great grandmother (Maria) at Hull in 1873. His father's name was recorded as Adam, a merchant; and
- Left England for New South Wales (Australia) in 1885 with his wife and five children.
Surviving records (1881 England Census; 1906 New South Wales death certificate) identify John's place of birth as Bucharest. John's birth date, according to family records, was 13 February 1838. His father's name was, apparently, Adam. DNA tests of immediate family members indicate that he was likely of Jewish descent. Neither John nor Adam are traditional Jewish first names.
What are my chances of tracing John back to Bucharest? I'm happy to provide further information where I can!
Best wishes,
Sarah
Hello Sarah and welcome to Genealogica!
As far as I know, there are no Jewish records for Bucharest prior to 1865 at the national archives.
One thing to try would be to verify the 1838 census for Bucharest. As Adam is such an unusual Jewish name, and there were only around 200 Jewish families in Bucharest at the time, it might be possible to identify him, even if John hadn't been born at the time.
Thank you, Andrei. I am unable to access the online name search for the General Census of Wallachia (1837–38) through this link: http://demist.iini.ro/en/Baza%20de%20date.php. I receive this error message: 'This site can't be reached. Check if there is a typo in demist.iini.ro.' Is there a typo in the web address? What is the best way forward?
Sarah