J Heath Vogel

The Vogel Families of Gera J Heath Vogel

Gera is one of the crown jewels of the Vogtland. Unfortunately, the 17th and 18th century records for family research in Gera are sparse and heavily damaged. Mr. J. Heath Vogel, founder and Director of the VHS-USA, provides the researcher with his step by step process of family discovery through the available Gera Church Records.

Also included here is an exhaustive presentation of all the Vogel (and Grimme) families found in these records (1608 - 1752) as well as hints for future research in the region.

Last but not least, Mr. Vogel has provided the researcher with a handful of tools for personal research: a list of the available online church records for Gera, a timeline for Gera's history (up to 1768), and a history of the Counts of Reuss-Plauen who once ruled the City of Gera.

Mr. Vogel's 5G-Grandfather, Johann Gottlieb Vogel (1745 - 1814), was born into a shoemaker family in Gera. Gottlieb's godfather was one of the famous Friederici brothers of Gera, whose instruments Mozart deeply admired.