John Blankenbaker's Germanna History Notes

Note 333

Not long ago, I acquired a relatively new book, "The German Research Companion," by Shirley J. Riemer.  The book is more than 600 pages of information about Germany and genealogy.  The first five of the thirty-three chapters are:

1) Germany: some basics,
2) Emigration,
3) Immigration,
4) Arrival in America, and
5) Church and civil records.

Much of the material pertains to the nineteenth century as opposed to the eighteenth century.

The range of material is unusual and one wonders how it was all acquired.  Chapter 21 is:  Religions, and a short note is given on almost every church with a European origin.  Because many of these churches have merged in this past century, these mergers are given.  If there is an archive for a denomination, that is given.

To give an idea of some of the crafts to which your ancestors might have belonged, here is a listing of the craftsmen in the city of Jena in 1800:

There were:

55 coblers,
46 butchers,
33 bakers,
24 leather workers of various types,
16 in the cloth crafts,
16 blacksmiths, nailsmiths, and coppersmiths,
15 stocking makers,
11 linen weavers,
11 cabinetmakers,
8 glassmakers,
8 potters,
8 ropemakers,
7 each of coopers, bookbinders, millers, locksmiths, spur makers, & soapmakers,
6 hatmakers,
6 coach or wheelmakers,
4 each of wood turners, furriers, needlemakers, & tin founders,
3 each of tinsmiths, gold workers, button makers, fitters and mechanics, & tanners,
2 each of combmakers, basketmakers, & lacemakers, and
1 each of papermaker, velvet worker, polisher, & type founder.

(Notice there is none that pertains to light such as candlemakers.)

In the city of Jena, wages in 1804 were between 8 and 15 Talers per month for the craftsmen.  One Taler is equal to 24 Groschen and each Groschen is equal to 12 Pfennige.  Guldens were another common coin and it took one and a half gulden to equal one Taler.  One hundred and sixty liters (about a bushel?) of wheat cost 12 Taler.  ( See Note 335 below for a discussion of how many Bushels 160 Liters equals. )  The same quantity of oats cost only 3 Taler.  One pfund (about one pound) of beef was only 2 groschen and pork was the same, but a beef tongue was 10 to 12 groschen.  One sausage (bratwurst) cost one groschen.  To judge these prices, a craftsman was earning about 240 groschen per month.  One old hen was 6 or 7 groschen, but a hare was 10 to 18.  Other meats you could buy were:  eel, carp, venison, goose, duck, pigeons, bacon, & liver; however, the predominance of meats here in the price list should not indicate that meat was a main stay.  Many of the vegetables were home grown.

1 Taler = 24 Groschen
1 Taler = 1½ Gulden
1 Groschen = 12 Pfennige

Unfortunately, "The German Research Companion," is poorly edited.  Spaces are missing so words are run together, and even lines of type of missing.  Since the book is loaded with facts, one wonders how carefully the details were checked.