Welcome! These pages present the genealogy of six brothers who immigrated to Waterloo County, Ontario, Canada from Beerfelden, in the Grand Duchy of Hesse-Darmstadt. The information presented here is constantly being updated so please check back. The discovery of additional descendants and family history are my primary goals. Perhaps one day another family reunion can be held like those held in Waterloo County during the late 1930's. Other Waterloo County surnames include: Allemang, Berscht, Blohm, Fink, Grittmann, Hoefler, Losch, Mueller, Pommer, Reiber, Ruthig, Tilk, Wiles, Witmer and Ziegler. In addition, I am hoping to discover and link Doersams who may have emigrated to other parts of North America and to find if and how we are connected to the Doersams who settled in Ohio during the 1800's.

Origin of the Doersam Surname

Doersam is the anglicized spelling of Dörsam. The origin of the Dörsam surname is unknown. Although the name appears in records back to the 16th century in the Odenwald region of Germany, it is apparently not German nor has an English translation. H. Bahlow's Deutsches Namenlexikon has been consulted with negative results. Any additional information about the Doersam surname would be appreciated.

Background

In the 1840's, six brothers emigrated to Waterloo County, Ontario, Canada from Beerfelden, in the Grand Duchy of Hesse-Darmstadt. (Beerfelden is located approximately 35 kilometers or 22 miles northeast of Heidelberg, Germany.) The brothers' names were: Johann Jacob, Johann Peter, Johann Georg, Johann Adam, Valentine and Georg Wihelm. Their parents were Johann Jacob Doersam and Anna Maria Volk. Their father who was a master weaver, was born in Grasellenbach on 25 October 1794. He married Anna Maria Arras nee Volk, a widow, on 1 August 1816 in Beerfelden. Anna Maria was the daughter of Englebert Volk and Anna Margarete Sauer. She was born on 25 February 1790 in Beerfelden and died on 3 December 1833. Johann Jacob died on 13 March 1871 in Beerfelden.

Three of the brothers settled in Wellesley, one in St. Agatha, one in Heidelberg and one in Berlin. Subsequent generations moved to the counties of Perth, Wellington, Grey, Simcoe and Bruce as well as to the western provinces. Some descendants emigrated to Illinois, Michigan, Nebraska and New York in the United States.

Doersam Family Reunions

Doersam family reunions were held during the years of 1936, 1938, 1939 and 1940. The reunion with the largest attendance was held on Saturday, July 2, 1938 in Waterloo Park. It was attended by approximately 200 Doersam descendants. The photo of the assembled attendees above is believed to have been taken by Dora Doersam Heimbecker and was provided by her daughter Lucy Heimbecker Boyd.

Searchable Family Database

You may search by surname or using the persons index. The database was converted to HTML using Gene Stark's GED2HTML program. Details concerning the living and those believed to be living were removed using the GEDLiving program created by Randy Winch.

Passenger List of the Brig Fame

The passenger list of the Brig Fame which arrived in the port of New York on 27 September 1843 from Rotterdam can be found here. This list was transcribed from the LDS Family History Library film #0002299. The majority of passengers were from the Dukedoms of Hessia and Nassau.

Family Photo Album

Various old photos can be viewed by clicking:

• Jacob Theiss Doersam - Kurtzville, 1923(28k)
• Catherine Doersam - Waterloo Co., c. 1870(34k)
• Catherine Doersam Orth and family - Plymouth(30k)
• Peter G. Doersam and family - Ayton, c. 1912 (104k)
• John Doersam and family - Penetanguishene, c. 1906 (46k)
• H. Arthur, Eleanor Ann and Paul Doersam - Saginaw, 1942 (33k)
• Barbara Doersam Berscht and family- Wellesley, c. 1888 (66k)
• Harry Charles and Rebecca Sue Doersam - Saginaw, 1960 (47k)

Useful Links

City of Waterloo Tour
Waterloo County Genealogy Cooperative
Ontario Genealogical Society, Waterloo-Wellington Branch
Waterloo County, Ontario GenWeb Site
Ontario Cemetery Finding Aid (OCFA)
Canadian Genealogical Resources
Canadian Genealogy and History
German Embassy, Ottawa
Hessen Regional Genealogy(in German)
Hessen GenWeb Site
GENDEX - WWW Genealogical Index

Other Researchers

Lucy Boyd of Clifford, Ontario is responsible for much of the information about Johann Jacob Doersam and contributed the photograph of the 1938 family reunion held at Waterloo Park.

Ralf Dörsam of Berlin, Germany has been conducting a one name study of the Doersam/Dörsam surname. His web pages contain names, vital information, locations and sources of persons with the surname of Doersam/Dörsam, however, the persons are not linked by relationship.

Steve Doersam of Elmwood, Ontario has provided much of the Doersam family information especially the descendents of Peter G. Doersam.

Barbara Berscht Ford of Santa Barbara, California has provided the information concerning the descendants of Barbara Doersam Berscht as well as the ancestors of Anna Maria Volk.

Vida Gronnestad of Victoria, British Columbia has published The Descendants of Philip Jacob Orth, a copy of which can be found at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah. Some of the information concerning the descendants of Catherine Doersam Orth has been extracted from this source.

Joan MacKenzie of Rogue River, Oregon has been researching the descendants of Estella Doersam Forster.

Merle and Sonia Rust of Arvada, Colorado have also provided information about the descendents of Catherine Doersam Orth through her daughter, Ilda Virginia Orth. They have published a family history entitled Unger Ancestors - The Descendants of Alma Kathryne Unger Rust With Allied Families, a copy of which can be found at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Last modified 28 March 1999