Projects

These are ongoing research projects focused on unresolved questions, family connections, and the occasional rabbit hole. Some are well underway, while others are still taking shape.

Tracing Tillingers

An effort to connect the various Tillinger branches from the Ivano-Frankivsk (Stanislawów) region and nearby northern Bukovina, and follow those lines forward into the present day.

Missing Mosslers and Waning Wachs

This project began after identifying Brody as the origin of my 2nd great-grandmother. Using Brody records, I located indexed documentation for the Mossler family and identified a likely candidate for her mother. A separate research tree was created to explore these lines independently of my main tree.

The project continues to investigate the Wachs line, which remains less clearly defined beyond this generation, as well as potential connections between the Mossler family group and a Tillinger in-law branch. One working hypothesis explores whether these connections may help explain how my great-grandmother’s brother and his wife came to meet.

The Krochmal–Shapira–Bodek–Reiser Connection

This project began with a claim from a Krochmal cousin that the family may be connected to a Schapira family group associated with the founding of the Pittsburgh grocery chain Giant Eagle. Over time, it has expanded to explore possible connections to a Bodek family group and a Reiser family group, as well as other related Krochmal lines.

Sussing Out Sass

This project investigates a possible connection between the Sass surname and the family of my 4th great-grandmother, Jitte Rifke. Based on birth records of her children with Hirsch Goldbrum, her father is listed as Berl, with variations including Berl Sass. Current work focuses on evaluating these records and determining whether Sass represents her maiden name.

German Ancestry Branches

This project encompasses my German ancestral lines through my 2nd great-grandmother, Albertina. It includes research into multiple family groups across Western Germany, with a focus on identifying ancestors, clarifying relationships between branches, and organizing available records into coherent family structures. The work is ongoing and includes both confirmed connections and areas where relationships remain under investigation.

Zolotonoha–Smila Branches

This project focuses on my Ukrainian ancestral lines connected to the towns of Zolotonoha and Smila. It builds upon my father’s research, which I have continued and expanded through my own work to identify missing ancestors, clarify family relationships, and better understand how these branches connect across generations.

The project includes efforts to reconstruct family structures, evaluate possible connections between related lines, and incorporate both documented records and working theories. It also serves as a way to organize and extend earlier research while developing a clearer picture of these ancestral communities and their interrelationships.

Belarus Branches

This project focuses on my ancestral lines originating from Belarus. It builds upon my father’s research, which I have continued and expanded through my own work to identify missing ancestors, clarify family relationships, and better understand how these branches connect across generations.

The project includes organizing fragmented information, evaluating potential connections between related lines, and working through available records to reconstruct family structures. It serves as an umbrella for multiple Belarus-origin branches that are being researched in parallel, with both confirmed relationships and open questions documented as the work progresses.