Forest-filled and hilly, Saarland lies in southwestern Germany, and it is the tiniest German state in both area & population. It is bordered by France to the west and south, Rheinland-Pfalz to the north and east, and it shares a small border with Luxembourg.

Saarland has been ruled by France, Prussia, the Kingdom of Bavaria and the German Empire. It was engulfed in the Franco-Prussian War in 1870/71, World War I, and World War II, each having its own impact on Saarland. It was an independent state, then joined the Federal Republic of Germany in 1957.

My immigrant ancestors from Saarland were:

• Johann Jacob Weber, his wife Gertrud (Rechin) Weber, and their son Jacob Nicolaus Weber
  • Immigrated in 1856, approximate ages 54, 53, and 16
    
    
• Eva Catharina (Wagner) Gräbel and her daughter Catharina Gräbel
  • Immigrated in 1863, approximate ages 53 and 17

They were all born in a town called Bierbach, and they were basketmakers, a common occupation in Bierbach. They brought that trade with them to the United States, spending some time in Illinois and eventually settling for good in Buffalo, New York.

I am a descendant of the following families from Saarland:

Both of my parents have at least some ancestry in Saarland. While my father’s ancestors emigrated directly from Saarland to the United States, my mother has Saarland ancestry in one of her lines from Alsace-Lorraine along the German border. In fact, they both have ancestry in a village called Medelsheim, and I discovered that they are distantly related – more on that to come later.