The backbone of this blog is my Holford ancestry, back to northern Germany (Denmark) in the late 1700s. The stories, however, are not just of the Holfords but the various individuals who have married into the line and the families from which they have originated. The … Continue reading Six generations of Holfords
Category: History
Johann Holtorf – German or Danish?
Johann Holtorf was born in Bimöhlen, a tiny village in the Duchy of Holstein, on April 6, 1828. He left Holstein in 1856 when he was 28 years old. He was unmarried and travelled alone to Australia where he subsequently built a life for himself. … Continue reading Johann Holtorf – German or Danish?
Nineteenth century Germany
In an attempt to understand where my German ancestors came from, I have tracked down this useful map from Wikipedia. There was no Germany as we know it in the nineteenth century, rather a confederation of German speaking kingdoms and duchies (the German Confederation or … Continue reading Nineteenth century Germany
The Holtorf family of Bramstedt
The following is an undated version of an article posted here previously, but which was inaccurate on a number of counts. The information now contains my understanding of the Holtorf family as of today’s date, 20 September 2014. Such are the joys of family history … Continue reading The Holtorf family of Bramstedt
Egypt 1915
I have been thinking about Charles Holdorf’s journey from Sydney to Egypt in 1915. His departure is well documented on November 9th, but the exact route taken by the troopship Beltana is uncertain. Did the ship sail north via Brisbane and up over the top … Continue reading Egypt 1915
Forgotten tales 