The Luxemburger Gazette was published by Nicholas
Gonner, and later his son, in Dubuque, Iowa from 1871-1918. In addition to
news of Luxembourg, it featured news of Luxembourgers and Luxembourg
communities throughout the United States. The pro-German sympathies of the
paper, just prior to World War I, contributed to the paper's demise during
an era of anti-German sentiment in the United States.
Because of its broad scope in reporting personal news of
Luxembourger-Americans, the Gazette is an excellent source for determining
marriage and death dates. The newspaper's coverage of a time when civil
registration was not required in many states, makes the Gazette a possible
source of information not available from the state or county records. More
importantly, obituaries often identify the town in Luxembourg where an
ancestor was born or emigrated from.
Volume II of the 1987 reedition of Luxembourgers
in the New World contains an invaluable index to personal and place
names found in the Gazette. The index contains the name exactly as it
appeared in the newspaper so there can be variation. For example, Nicholas
Ney might be listed as Ney, N.; Ney, Nic.; Ney, Nick; or Ney, Nicolas.
There are fewer surname spelling variations than in the U.S. census,
presumably because the newspaper's editors and contributers were
Luxembourgers themselves, but it is still something to take into
consideration.
| Sample Entry: |
NEY, Nicholas
22.02.1910, 5 |
Each entry consists of the date of newspaper and the page the name
appeared on. Note the European dating: Day - Month - Year, so this entry
appeared in the February 22, 1910 issue.
This is the corresponding article for the above example:
Translated this article reads: "Village Grafton (WI): Married last
Tuesday by Rev. W. P. Peil at St. Joseph's Church: Nicholas Ney and
Maggie Uselding. In the presence of their many guests, the joyous wedding
was celebrated at the home of the bride. The young couple will live in
Chicago."
The Gazette was printed in a typeface known as German Gothic, Fraktur
or Black Letter. If you aren't familiar with this script it can be a
little challenging to read. This guide to
reading black letter script may help readers find the names they are
looking for more easily. It is useful to put together the letters of the
surname to help recognize the name. It is also important to keep in mind
that nouns are also capitalized in German.
Luxemburger Gazette Holdings
Copies of the Luxemburger Gazette are available at the
following organizations. Most of the libraries, archives and societies
listed below have a microfilm copy of the Gazette. This table illustrates the microfilm reel numbers and
corresponding dates.
Family History
Library
The Family History Library has a microfilm copy of the Gazette
available for loan to any Family History Center. The Family History
Library Catalog entry for the Luxemburger
Gazette lists the film numbers (1844424-1844444) and corresponding
dates and provides information for finding the Family History Center
nearest you.
Loras College
The Loras College Wahlert Library, in Dubuque, Iowa, has the only
known extant print copy of the Gazette. The Library has
microfilm copies of the Gazette available through interlibrary loan. Due
to limited staffing, individual requests for printed copies of specific
citations cannot be fulfilled.
Balch
Library and Archives
The Balch Institute for Ethnic Studies, a museum and library located
in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, has a microfilm copy.
Milwaukee County Federated Library
System
Milwaukee Public Library located in Milwaukee, Wisconsin has a
microfilm set of the Gazette available through interlibrary loan.
State Historical Society
of Iowa
The Society has microfilm copies of the Gazette available through
interlibrary loan.
Stearns
History Museum
Located in St. Cloud, Minnesota, a microfilm copy is available from
the Museum's Resource Center and Archives. Photocopy services are
available from the Center for a fee.
University
of St. Thomas Libraries
Located in St. Paul, Minnesota, the University has a microfilm copy.
Photocopy services are available from the Library for a fee.
