Speaker: Carolyn Schott

Areas of focus or expertise:

  • Germans in Eastern Europe

Email contact: cgschott@comcast.net

Web/social media:

Home: U.S., Washington, Seattle

Native language: English

Presentation language(s): English

Preferred presentation type: virtual and in-person

Travel preferences: It depends on whether reimbursement is available for travel expenses.

Biography

Carolyn Schott CG has researched her German ancestors for 20+ years, following their wanderings through Eastern Europe before arriving in the U.S. She is a founder of the Black Sea German Research Community (www.blackseagr.org), a former board member of the Germans from Russia Heritage Society (GRHS), and author of the book, “Visiting Your Ancestral Town.”

Schott’s research has required her to research records in the U.S., Germany, Ukraine, Moldova, Hungary, and Poland. The Black Sea German Research Community, which she helped found, is a website dedicated to helping people with hard-to-find information on their ethnic German ancestors who lived in areas bordering the Black Sea.

Schott has been speaking on genealogy-related topics since 2007 and has been a regular speaker at the Germans from Russia Heritage Society, the American Historical Society of Germans from Russia meetings, the International German Genealogy conventions, and genealogy societies in Washington.

In which societies are you a member? Society of German Genealogy for Eastern Europe, Association of Professional Genealogists, National Genealogical Society, Germans from Russia Heritage Society

Speaking experience/references
  • Allen County Public Library; 2023; Expanding Your German Research Beyond Ancestry and FamilySearch
  • American Historical Society of Germans from Russia (AHSGR) Annual Conference; 2019, 2021, 2022, 2024; ABC … 123 … EWZ! Diving into Using EWZ Records for Your Research; Coming Full Circle: To Poland, the Black Sea, and Back; Discovering Your Black Sea German Ancestors; The Black Sea German Website; Voyages of the Donauschwaben; Walking in the Footsteps of Your Ancestors
  • AHSGR local chapters (Seattle, Portland, Minneapolis/St. Paul, Edmonton, Phoenix); 2015, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024; ABC … 123 … EWZ! Diving into Using EWZ Records for Your Research; Black Sea German Research Basics; Black Sea German Research Website; Discovering Your Black Sea German Ancestors; Expanding Your German Research Beyond Ancestry and FamilySearch; From Church Archives to KGB Archives; German Wanderers: Migrations to/from the Black Sea Region; The Black Sea German Website; Ukraine: Our Homeland in Crisis 2016; Ukraine: Our Homeland in Crisis 2022; Walking in the Footsteps of Your Ancestors
  • Foundation for East European Family History Studies; 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024; ABC … 123 … EWZ! Diving into Using EWZ Records for Your Research; Coming Full Circle: To Poland, the Black Sea, and Back; Discovering Your Black Sea German Ancestors; From Church Archives to KGB Archives; Voyages of the Donauschwaben
  • Germans from Russia Heritage Society Annual Conference; 2007, 2008, 2009, 2016, 2018; Bessarabia and Dobrudscha research workshop; Bessarabian Migrations: From Germany to Bessarabia to the Americas; Genealogy 101; Genealogy Research in Germany; Germans from Hungary to Russia workshop; Ukraine: Our Homeland in Crisis 2016; Walking in the Footsteps of Your Ancestors
  • International German Genealogy Conference; 2017, 2019, 2021; ABC … 123 … EWZ! Diving into Using EWZ Records for Your Research; Discovering Your Black Sea German Ancestors; From Church Archives to KGB Archives; The Road Less Traveled: German Enclaves in Galicia, Bukovina, and Bessarabia; Voyages of the Donauschwaben
  • Ohio Genealogical Society Annual Conference; 2022; Discovering Your Black Sea German Ancestors; From Church Archives to KGB Archives; Voyages of the Donauschwaben
  • Seattle Genealogical Society; 2017, 2021, 2022; Expanding Your German Research Beyond Ancestry and FamilySearch; From Church Archives to KGB Archives; Walking in the Footsteps of Your Ancestors
  • Society for German Genealogy in Eastern Europe; 2018, 2022; Black Sea German Migrations from Poland; Expanding Your German Research Beyond Ancestry and FamilySearch
  • Southern California Genealogy Jamboree; 2022; From Church Archives to KGB Archives

Recording of previous presentation OR an IGGP partner you have presented for: I’ve spoken at the International German Genealogy Conference, AHSGR, FEEFHS, and SGGEE. A recording of one of my talks: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DMYmGtDE0PA

Payment/expense arrangements

How do you approach payment for making a presentation? I am willing to negotiate a speaking fee with clients

Other expenses you would like to have reimbursed if you travel? Travel expenses (transportation, hotel)

Recordings/additional materials

Are you willing to prepare a handout? Yes

Would you be willing to develop a presentation on another topic? Yes

Do you have any restrictions on recording, re-use of recordings, handouts, etc? In most cases, I allow recordings when they will only be shared with members or conference participants.

Are you willing to have the presentation translated or translate it yourself? Yes

Presentation topics

Click title to expand

1816: The Year Without a Summer and Its Impact on German Migration

Discussion of the intertwined environmental, economic, and social ramifications of the Year Without a Summer, highlighting its pivotal role in the history of German emigration.

  • Level: Intermediate
  • Lanuage: English
Who’s Your Daddy? The Hunt for Katharina Bohlander’s Father

Case study on identifying family relationships when minimal records exist, focused on a Black Sea German family.

  • Level: Intermediate
  • Lanuage: English
Germans of the Northern Plains States

Migration, settlement patterns, and cultural impact of ethnic Germans in the Northern Plains states of the U.S.

  • Level: Beginner
  • Language: English
Expanding Your German Research Beyond Ancestry and FamilySearch

Exploring resources other than Ancestry and FamilySearch (such as the online Meyers Gazetteer, Archion, Matricula, Compgen.de) available for German research.

  • Level: Intermediate
  • Language: English
ABC … 123 … EWZ! Diving into Using EWZ Records for Your Research

Using records from the Einwanderungszenstralstelle

  • Level: Intermediate
  • Language: English
From Church Archives to KGB Archives

Identifying types of records to use to under a family’s story.

  • Level: Intermediate
  • Language: English
Using School Records to Solve Family Mysteries

How to use this underutilized resource

  • Level: Intermediate
  • Language: English
Discovering Your Black Sea German Ancestors

History and records available for researching Black Sea Germans

  • Level: Intermediate
  • Language: English
Voyages of the Donauschwaben

History and records available for researching the Donauschwaben

  • Level: Intermediate
  • Language: English
The Road Less Traveled: German Enclaves in Galicia, Bukovina, and Bessarabia

Researching German enclaves in Galicia, Bukovina, and Bessarabia

  • Level: Intermediate
  • Language: English
Black Sea German Website

Overview of getting the most out of the resources on this website

  • Level: Beginner
  • Language: English
Walking in the Footsteps of Your Ancestors

Tips on researching to find ancestral towns and tips on creating memorable visits to those towns.

  • Level: Beginner
  • Language: English