This Web site is dedicated to our ancestors who had the ambition
and courage to seek a new life in America. They left their
family, friends, and homeland - knowing they may never return again
- to
experience the adventure and promise of a better life. We owe our freedom
and the opportunities we cherish, indeed life itself, to their faith and pioneering spirit.
Purpose
The purpose of this website is twofold - first
it is an excellent medium to record the known ancestral data of our
family for generations to come. Unlike printed publications, it can
be easily corrected, revised and updated at any time. Second it
provides an efficient mechanism to reach other interested members of the
family tree and genealogists worldwide who may be interested in, but unaware of,
these data. Hopefully, contacts will be made that will lead to the
discovery of additional new and interesting information about our
ancestors, both known and unknown.
Introduction
This Maas Family site is concerned with the roots
and branches of the Gene and Norma (Harrington) Maas family. Our intent is to
record and document the genealogical data and history that we have
accumulated since 1987 and which we hope to find in the future. Some branches are
known back to the late 1500's, others only to the mid 1800's. Our
Germanic ancestors emigrated from Pomerania, Prussia; Württemberg,
Germany; and Kassel, southern Russia. The original homeland of some
of Norma's ancestors is still unknown but include England, France and
Germany. A list of known surnames is
shown below. Information about some of the families and their known descendants can be viewed by clicking on
the highlighted surnames. Clicking on either Gene
or Norma will display a list of all of
our known ancestors.
In addition to our own ancestral data, I have
extracted and documented birth, marriage and death data on over 1100 other individuals, including over
750 Maasses, most of whom lived in the counties of Naugard and
Regenwalde in Pomerania. A list of most of these Pomeranians
has been compiled on this site. Fewer than 50 of these Maasses have been
documented as members of our family tree. I am willing to
share this information with anyone who is researching their Maass
ancestors in this area.
Looking for someone or something in particular?
Enter a name, place, keyword or a phrase in the box and click on the
search button. (Exact phrases must be in quotes)
Disclaimer
Not all of the genealogical data on this site have been confirmed and
documented. Some have been personally researched and verified in
original church and civil records, other data have been extracted from
data bases and family heritage books prepared by others. Hopefully,
the data will aid others in assembling their own family trees, but
everyone is urged to confirm and document the data on their own. I
regret any errors or omissions and would appreciate hearing from anyone
who finds mistakes or can add new family data. It is my intent to
continually improve and update the information on this site.
Acknowledgements
I am grateful to many individuals for their contributions
to this site. They include those who have contributed genealogical
data, family biographies and history, German translations, photographs,
obituaries, and other documents. I am especially grateful to my
father, Walter Maas, who invested considerable time and resources in
collecting and compiling the Maas family data, and to my wife, Norma,
who spent endless hours typing, editing, and composing our Maass
Family Book.
My thanks to the many graphic artists who freely
contribute their original work for inclusion on personal websites like
this. Credits appear below and on subsequent pages. The search
engine is courtesy of PicoSearch® and the guestbook is generously
provided by RootsWeb.com, Inc. If I
failed to acknowledge anyone or inadvertently failed to abide by your
terms of use, please let me know.
Feedback
Please take a moment to sign our guestbook. We would
love to hear from you. Your comments in the guestbook or via email
would be greatly appreciated.
Notice! Because my
guestbook has been targeted by SPAMMERS, I have been forced to suspend
the guestbook for awhile. Please contact me by email.
Sorry for the inconvenience.