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Microfilm Research Room,
National Archives at College Park,
8601 Adelphi Road,
College Park, MD 20740-6001
Phone: (301) 713-6785; FAX: 301-713-6169
National Archives Microfilm Publications are not available via inter-library loan, but specific rolls or entire series, except those containing privileged material ("R" rolls), may be purchased at the current price of $34.00 (domestic) or $39.00 (international) per roll by contacting:
National Archives Trust Fund
P.O. Box 100793
Atlanta, GA 30384-0793
Toll-free: (1-800) 234-8861
FAX: (301) 713-6169
Voice: (301) 713-6800
For more detailed reference information concerning the records, please write to:
Modern Military Records (NWCTM),
Room 2400, National Archives at College Park,
8601 Adelphi Road,
College Park, MD 20740-6001.
Phone: (301) 713-7250,
FAX: 301-713-7482, or via electronic mail to: inquire@nara.gov
A history of the American and Allied, public and private projects in which these records were created or assembled, exploited, described and microfilmed can be found in: Robert Wolfe, ed., Captured German and Related Records,
A National Archives Conference
(Athens, Ohio: Ohio University Press, 1974) 279 pp. [ISBN 8214-0172-6] [LC 74-82495]
NATIONAL ARCHIVES COLLECTION OF FOREIGN RECORDS SEIZED
RECORD GROUP 242
The microfilm publications in this record group are listed below according to the place where the records were filmed. Nearly all the original paper records have been returned to their respective countries of origin. A relatively small number of these papers may have been of private origin, but the fact of their seizure is not believed to divest their original owners of any literary property rights in them. Anyone, therefore, who publishes them in whole or in part without permission may be held liable for infringement of property rights. For suggestions on citing captured German and related records, see pages 14-16 below.
CAPTURED GERMAN RECORDS MICROFILMED AT WHADDON HALL, U.K.
Microfilm publications of records of the German Foreign Ministry, 1867-1945; papers of
Some German diplomats, 1833-1931, and records of the Reichs Chancellery, 1919-1945, are listed immediately below, under the finding aids that describe them. (Descriptions of
Microfilm Publication T120 are divided between two catalogs comprising five volumes).
Finding aids: A Catalogue of Files and Microfilms of the German Foreign Ministry
Archives, 1867-1920 (Oxford: 1959) (also available as Microfilm Publication T322, 1 roll);
A Catalog of Files and Microfilms of the German Foreign Ministry Archives, 1920-1945, 4 vols. (Hoover Institution, Stanford: 1962-1972).
Einwandererzentrale.
OTHER RELATED RECORDS RECORDS OF U.S. ARMY COMMANDS, 1942- RECORD GROUP 338
Below is a very brief description of the EWZ collection:
During the final months of World War II through October 1953, the Western Allies under US Army control consolidated the large caches of Nazi Party and affiliated government organization documents that were found throughout Germany. These documents were stored and examined in Berlin in a facility that was called the Berlin Document Center (BDC).
In 1993, an agreement was reached to transfer title and control of the BDC to Germany by July 1, 1994. One article of the agreement was that all captured German records would be microfilmed and that one complete set would be provided to the US. These records were given to the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) for archiving and making available to the public.
One wartime German agency whose records were captured was the EWZ. The EWZ, Immigration Control Center, was established in 1939 to coordinate the resettlement and naturalization of qualified ethnic Germans who resided outside of Germany. The EWZ processed more than 2.9 million persons during the period 1939-1945. Most EWZ records were found intact by Allied Forces - an estimated 70,000-80,000 files were destroyed before capture.
Screening (Durchschleusing) the eligible ethic Germans involved interviews and examinations by 6-9 EWZ offices. Families were generally processed together and all persons aged 15 and above were registered separately. Photographs were taken, medical examinations were performed, fluency in German language was tested, family histories and racial examinations based on anthropological evaluations of physical attributes were recorded, etc.
Some or all of the following documents were prepared by the EWZ for each ethnic German that was interviewed:
•EWZ-Kartei (or E-Kartei), a general information card;
•Gesundheitskartei (or G-Kartei), a health examination card, which included biographical data, a genealogical chart, and a photograph [Health Cards];
• Volkstumsausweis Certificat, an applicant's ethnic German background, birthplace, and residence, and Umsiedlerausweis, an applicant's resettlement status;
•Rasse-Kartei, cards that summarized the racial examination, including a photograph [Race Cards];
• Anträge, naturalization application case files, which are generally very thick files containing, among other items, a Stammblätter, a standard form which was used to summarize personal information, including spouse and children, and family history ["Family Form"]; Einbürgerungsanträge, (abbreviated as Vfg.), the naturalization application form; Umsiedler, which includes a description of property left behind; related correspondence; etc.
As stated above, the NA has a complete set of the EWZ records. The set of EWZ records is on microfilm and the microfilms are kept at the NA's facility in College Park, Maryland. This facility is called Archives II and is located near Washington, DC. The NARA microform publication number for the EWZ collection is A3342, "Documents Generated In Connection With Activities Of The EWZ."
Here are the major series of the A3342 collection that contain genealogically-useful information:
1. EWZ-50: Anträge (Applications)for naturalization of ethnic Germans from the USSR,
2. EWZ-51: Anträge for naturalization of ethnic Germans from Romania [includes all of Bukowina and Bessarabia],
3. EWZ-52: Anträge for naturalization of ethnic Germans from 1939 Poland,
4. EWZ-53: Anträge for naturalization of ethnic Germans from the Baltic countries,
5. EWZ-541: Anträge for naturalization of ethnic Germans from Yugoslavia,
6. EWZ-542: Anträge for naturalization of ethnic Germans from France,
7. EWZ-543: Anträge for naturalization of ethnic Germans from Bulgaria,
8. EWZ-544: Applicants for Wehrmacht, Organisation Todt, SD, and SS,
9. EWZ-545: Anträge for naturalization of ethnic Germans from Sud-Tirol,
10. EWZ-56: Rasse-Kartei, and
11. EWZ-57: E-Kartei and G-Kartei (E/G Kartei).
E/G Kartei served as the central registry of the EWZ. The E/G Kartei collection contains approximately 2.9 million alphabetically-ordered cards.
NA staff do not perform research. They will however examine the available indexes to determine which microfilm rolls MIGHT contain records of individuals that you are interested in. [That is, the indexes only provide a range of names that appear on individual microfilm rolls.] Copies of NARA's EWZ microfilms can be purchased from NARA.
If you are unable to visit Archives II or do not want to take a chance of purchasing a roll(s) of microfilm that may not contain the person(s) that you are researching, consider hiring a professional who is very familiar with and can easily access the EWZ collection, such as Laurence Krupnak. Laurence is a member of the APG, the Association of Professional Genealogists, a peer-reviewed organization. Laurence frequently contributes to the Bukowina Mailing List. Laurence can be contacted by e-mail at Lkrupnak@erols.com, or by post at 1711 Corwin Drive, Silver Spring, Maryland 20910.
Records of the Reich Ministry for the Occupied Eastern Territories
Textual Records: Records, 1921-45 (107 rolls), consisting of records of component and field organizations of the ministry dealing with the administration of German-occupied territories of the USSR (the Baltic States, the Ukraine, and Belorussia), 1941- 45; records of Minister Alfred Rosenberg covering his entire career as NSDAP ideologist, 1921-45; and records of Task Force Reich Leader Rosenberg, the organization engaged in cultural spoliation throughout occupied Europe, 1941-45.
Microfilm Publications: T454.
Finding Aids: GG 28.
Related Records: Microfilm copies of records of the Reich Commissioner for the Baltic States, a subordinate organization of the Reich Ministry for the Occupied Eastern Territories, Under 242.5.1.
https://www.archives.gov
Lkrupnak@erols.com
See also listing on Captured German Records on Jewish Gen website
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