A portrait of our work in the FAZ Sonntagszeitung
As historians and lawyers who usually do their work at their desks or in archives, we are naturally not media professionals. That's why we always feel a little nervous when journalists ask us about our work. At the same time, however, it's a special opportunity to raise awareness of our work when a major national newspaper such as the Frankfurter Allgemeine reports on us. Journalist Leon Scherfig took the time to discuss the most important questions about heir tracing with us in detail. He also interviewed an experienced estate administrator and an heir we traced, painting a comprehensive picture of our work.
Even close relatives can be unknown
The described constellation of an unknown aunt is not as rare as many people think. Time and again, we hear people say that they know their family very well and that there is nothing to inherit from the people they know. Much more frequently, however, our research concerns more distant relatives. In these cases, it is easy for the heirs we contact to understand that they do not know all their second cousins.
A small addition to the content
We noticed one more thing that could be misunderstood in the otherwise great article: The Bayreuth Federal Archives do not store any civil status documents. Our statement refers to a large number of other documents held there, but not to civil status documents.