Having reached a point where I'm not getting anywhere working backwards on my family tree, I've decided to work downwards instead, filling in a lot of the gaps of brothers, sisters, and cousins of my ancestors. Right now, I'm working on the Hampel family that lived in Jefferson County, Missouri. They arrived some time prior to the Civil War, and there are likely still some people with that surname in the area.

I'm descended from Magdalena Hampel, daughter of Peter Hampel and Magdalena Thines. Peter was the son of Jacob Hampel, and this Peter and his brother, Jacob, were the ones who immigrated to the Jefferson County, MO, area.

I'm trying to sort out all of the various family lines, which is made more difficult by the preponderance of Jacobs, Peters, Johns, Michaels, Marys, Margarets, and Magdalenas.

If you are related to this bunch, please drop me a line!

Dawn