Notes: Geoff and Lee Andersons’ visit to the “Palatinate” in Germany in 1995

Hermersberg is in the state of South Westpfalz, about 40 miles west of St. Johann. It lies north of the city of Pirmasens off highway A62, and is said to be the town Christian Albrecht and family left in 1784, when they moved to Galicia (Austria.)

The town is on a wind- swept hill top, surrounded by forests and valleys. Locals indicate that snow remains on the town streets weeks after it has melted in the surrounding areas.

One Albrecht family remains in Hermersberg - a catholic hairdresser. The minister, Mr. Emerich, was eating an under-ripe apple picked from the back churchyard. He was remodelling the parsonage of the church - which was build in 1912. Mr. Emerich would put us in touch with a local historian by the name of Christian.

Albsheim on the Eis brook is the little town in the beautiful Rhein-Pfalz region of Germany. This town was the home of the Schrag family prior to their move to Galicia in 1786; at that time this region was known as the Palatinate. The Schrags were said to be millers; the lumber mills would have been outside town.

We had a wonderful dinner at Gerds Bockremer Fass in nearby Bockenheim, a mile north of Albsheim. Vineyards are everywhere and "romantic roads" abound.

Rhein River From Ludwigsburg we drove west, crossed the Rhein by cable ferry at Ratstatt into France (at the town of Seltz), then after 15 minutes in France, we drove north through Landau into the Westphalz - historically part of the Palatinate region of Germany.

St. Johann Said to be the Senner family home town in the early 19th Century when they migrated to Poland and Volhenia, St. Johann lies just west of the town of Landau, North of highway 10 at Albersweiler.

St. Johann is in the heart of the wine country, vineyards abound. A nature park reserved for hiking borders the west side of the village. In town we followed hand written "Excavation" signs and happened onto an archeological dig, which had been the site of four churches (2nd, 10th, 13th and 16th Centuries.) These archeologists worked for the local state government and they pointed out the cornerstones of the Roman 2nd C. church and much of the other history. Two headstones had been discovered that morning when they were driving stakes as markers for their work.

The community is currently catholic. Over the centuries this site saw first the services of early Christians, then Catholics, followed by Protestant reformists, and once again Catholics. A new church was built down the street in about 1850 - and only the foundation remained at this location. (Our branch of the Senners had emigrated many years earlier.)

Today, this is an attractive residential community - folks probably commute to nearby Landau.