Where it all Began

When my folks came to visit last September one thing on the agenda was a roadtrip with the purpose of seeing two towns - Stadt Blankenberg and Mainz-Ebersheim.

Our original family name is Von Blankenberg, meaning one who comes from Blankenberg (Blankenberg means Shiny or Bright Mountain). It was later changed to Blankenberger, again meaning one who hails from Stadt Blankenberg. Here's a picture of Blankenberger Straße. Straße means street. Show the folks what's up, Pops...

So, we went to Mainz-Ebersheim first. We'd been there before and knew the score, mostly. We got some more information from the city hall on the history of Blankenbergers in Ebersheim. Most all present-day German Blankenbergers live in this small town outside Mainz and have since about 1700. Dad was given a book published by the town on the history of the town. There were several very old grade school photos and the like with many Blankenbergers in them. It was pretty cool.


Next was Stadt Blankenberg. This was particularly exciting because none of had been there, and Pops knew from research that there were castle ruins still there. If I got everything right from what Pops was telling me, our ancestors began in Stadt Blankenberg around 1100 a.d. or 1200 a.d. Well, they thrived for quite some time in the city and, Dad, didn't you say at one time one of the Matriarchs ran the town? Anywho, round about 1700 there was a major conflict with the church, the church took over the castle and kicked out the Blankenbergs. That is when they left town for Mainz-Ebersheim.


We went to claim our inheritance back. Here is a picture of the outermost tower that overlooks the valley. We were able to go inside and have a look around. The doorways, stairs and hallways were not made for modern man, by any means. Quite tight in there!

In German, there are two types of 'castles'. One is a 'Schloss', the other is a 'Burg'. A Schloss is a castle that is more for show - a symbol of wealth or importance. It has no particular function other than as a status symol. A 'Burg' is a castle built like a fortress - strictly for defense or military purposes. So Burg Blankenberg was quite functional and built on the very edge of some very high ground. Great location for keeping the baddies out.

There was a wall that surrounded a good portion of the town, which includes the present town as well. Dad and I both took a piece of the wall home. Consequently, we were arrested and shackled in the middle of town while old ladies threw rotten cabbage at us. Sorry, no picture of that.All in all, it truly was a great experience to know that we were walking the same steps and pathways as our ancestors did hundreds of years before. Can't quite put it into words exactly. And to know the history of the family tree, all the interesting plots and twists, made it as special as it was. This trip ranks very high on my list of experiences here so far.