German Birth Certificate

[Chainsaw]

Hi, My nephew is trying to get a copy of his late mother's birth certificate.

Her maiden name was PAULA THEODORA GRESSHOFF, born somewhere in

Germany on 13 February 1934.

Can anyone offer any helpful advice, Please.

[JustinL]

Hello,

This request has come up many times before; you should have a look at some of the older postings.

A German birth certificate is (was) issued by the registry office (Standesamt) responsible for the place of birth of an individual. Unlike the UK, there is no central register of births. Therefore, your nephew needs to know where his mother was born to establish which Standesamt to write to.

Justin

[Chainsaw]

Thanks SO MUCH for your helpful reply, Justin.

My nephew asked my help because he has little faith in psychic mediums,
and he had absolutely NO leads or information to go on.

I have managed to establish that Paula's father was August Klemens Gresshoff,
born 21 June 1902 in Nordrhein-Westfalen, Germany. I do not know her mother's
name. Paula had at least 2 brothers, Franz Joseph and August, all born at Munster.

If anyone can offer any further useful information, I would be very grateful.

[Sue15]

Hello Chainsaw
As you are aware Paula's brothers were born in Münster (Muenster) this maybe a good starting point. Note there is a Munster in Niedersachsen (without the Umlaut)

It maybe worth you trying the Standesamt in Münster for the birth certificate (Geburtsurkunde) for Paula as the family had lived in the city at some stage.

The email address is on this website

http://www.muenster.de/stadt/standesamt/

Do you have a death certificate for Paula? If so copy that to the email. The standesamt will only supply birth certificates to the individual concerned if still alive. I do not know if they will charge you for looking - but its worth finding out.

Now regarding Paula's Father August Klemens Gresshoff - it maybe worth again asking the Standesamt for a search. I think they will assume he is dead by now so that problem should not arise.

All the best
Sue

[Chainsaw]

Thank you Sue 15, that is just the sort of info I need. I will try that site.

Paula did die in the U.K., and I am awaiting a copy of the death cert.

I believe Munster is correct because my brother was stationed there, and

that is where they met.

I found her father in Einwohnerbuch Der Provinzialhauptstadt Munster 1, W. 1936.

So I am reasonably sure it was Munster ( with '' ) Nordrhein-Westfalen.

Thanks once again for your help, Sue, and for restoring my faith in human nature.