DREIFUSS/HESS/BLOCH/BERNHEIM

If you have a special identification with a user name containing a special character click here otherwise continue.

This subgroup of our family (with almost 2000 people) is the largest. The current update was uploaded on 14 on May 2021. Clicking either the Surnames or Index of Names links above will take you to the genealogy records of the Dreifuss, Hess, Bloch and Bernheim families. These families were associated for many years with ancestral homes presently in Baden-Württemberg, Germany (Altdorf, Schmieheim, Emmendingen, Tiengen), Hesse Germany (Hinterstainau, Flieden, Fulda), Alsace (Sierentz), and Switzerland (Bern and Thun). It includes the ancestors and descendants of the gentlemen shown below. You will need a password to proceed to the data and photos beyond this page. Consult the About Us link for information.

Isaac Dreifuss- husband of Rosa Bernheim Dreifuss and father of Leopold, Aaron, Henry and Rosa Dreifuss Gunzburger. Isaac was born in Altdorf, Baden, Germany

Solomon Bernheim, father of Rosa Bernheim Dreifuss. Salomon was born and died in Schmieheim. Salomon was also grandfather of Isaac W. Bernheim, the distiller and Philanthropist.

Benedict Hess father of Karolina Hess Dreifuss. Benedict was born in Hintersteinau, Germany and died in Fulda.

The photo at far left taken in the 1860s is certainly one of the earliest photos in our collection. Isaac Dreifuss, the son of Abraham Dreyfuss and Duset Weil Dreyfuss of Altdorf Germany was born 26 September 1808. He and his second wife, Rosa Bernheim Dreifuss were our great, great grandparents.

One of the greatest mysteries yet to be revealed in our family history is what happened to Isaac after the sudden death of his wife Rosa. Rosa, daughter of Solomon Bernheim from Schmieheim (center photo) died in childbirth at age 43 in April1864. After that date the children including our great grandfather Leopold became orphans. Isaac appears to have abandoned or become unable to take care of his children. There is no record of Isaac dying in Altdorf or anywhere else. The four living children immigrated to the U.S. beginning in 1868 when Leopold came over. Leopold married Eugenie Bloch in New York in 1873 and they had eight children. Eugenie was born in Bern Switzerland, but her family's history has Alsatian (Sierentz) and German (Emmendingen) roots. An explanation of the mobile nature of the family can be found here.

Leopold Dreifuss's oldest son, Isaac (Joe) would marry the immigrant daughter of Benedict Hess (photo at right), Karolina Hess in June 1910. Karolina immigrated to the U.S. in 1906 from Fulda, Germany.

Our Research Tools

Our research tools are quite numerous and include standard methods or determining immigration records, census records, vital records for those events occurring in the U.S. Among those especially important tools for ancestors in this group include:

Ortssippenbücher of Altdorf and Schmieheim
Der jüdische Friedhof in Schmieheim (The Jewish Cemetery in Schmieheim) by Naftali Bar-Giora Bamberger, Publication Date: 1999. This book contains over 2,500 tombstone photos and inscriptions dating back to 1701 for the regional Jewish cemetery in Schmieheim. Combines information with the Schmieheim Ortssippenbuch.
Schicksal und Geschichte der jüdischen Gemeinden: Ettenheim, Altdorf, Kippenheim, Schmieheim, Rust, Orschweier; ein Gedenkbuch
Author: Bernhard Uttenweiler
et al.
Staatsarchiv Freiburg, Landesarchiv Baden-Württemberg These are the original German online records archived for Altdorf, Ettenheim, Schmieheim, Rust, Kippenheim, and many more communities in Baden-Wȕrtemmberg.
The Hess Gatermann Index

Links change and we regret that some links may no longer work for you.

None of the above books are readily available and the Online records from Baden-Wȕrttemberg and Hessen are in German and difficult to navigate.

Contact Us

for help researching your family.

The Jewish Cemetery in Schmieheim (Photo by P.A. Dreifuss 1999)