Structure

Structure

The basic structure of the German Emigrants Database is determined by the design of the passenger manifests on the emigrant ships. In the mid 19th century there were 14 entries for each emigrant. At the beginning of the 20th century, due to stricter immigration laws, the number of questions asked by the American immigration authorities had risen to forty.

Each emigrant recorded in the database can be clearly identified by the list number on the original passenger manifest and therefore easily found. In addition you can call up information about the ship and the crossing as this data was also included in the lists. The data from the  passenger manifests are supplemented  by information from other sources  such as certificates and details  from Vital Statistics Offices.

The German Emigrants Database is primarily concerned with the German emigration ports of Bremen/Bremerhaven, Hamburg, Brake, Emden and Cuxhaven. However, in some cases the ports of Boulogne, Cherbourg, Le Havre or Southampton and others are also recorded as frequently the ships would call at various European ports and take passengers on board before crossing the Atlantic. Business travelers, tourists and people in transit who were among the passengers on the ship, are also recorded, but marked accordingly.

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