LICA-LEACH-LITZER surname background

[Donald S. Litzer]

I'd appreciate some insight on a reference to a term I've found identical to
my surname, LITZER. My ancestor, a Kashub who emigrated from Wiele
parish near (then) Berent in (then) Westpreussen in 1860, found his surname
evolving from LICA to LITZER while in predominantly German Wausau, WI during
the 1880s. In the course of my research, I found the following reference in
the book <<Die Deutschen und die Amerikaner (The Americans and the Germans>>,
published in 1977 by Heinz Moog Verlag, Munich in German and English,
in a general discussion of emigration conditions for Germans on page 46:

"The emigrants did not fare any better in the ports on both sides of the
Atlantic; as soon as there was a sufficient number of them, they fell prey to
the greed of the local racketeers. Con-men and swindlers--called "LITZERS"
(emphasis mine) in Bremen, "runners" in New York, robbed them of their
hard-earned savings by overcharging them for lodgings, selling them unneeded
equipment or even phoney tickets, before the poor "greenhorns"...had a chance
to realize what was going on."

Although I certainly hope the evolution of my surname is not related to this
use of the term "LITZER", it's at the least an interesting application (which
would make great copy for the book). Any suggestions for reference sources or
other contacts to find out more about this term would be welcome!

Don Litzer
dli...@tso.cin.ix.net
Cincinnati, Ohio

Happiness = Reality minus Expectations

[W. Fred Rump]

"Donald S. Litzer" <dli...@TSO.CIN.IX.NET> wrote:

>"The emigrants did not fare any better in the ports on both sides of the
>Atlantic; as soon as there was a sufficient number of them, they fell prey to
>the greed of the local racketeers. Con-men and swindlers--called "LITZERS"
>(emphasis mine) in Bremen, "runners" in New York, robbed them of their
>hard-earned savings by overcharging them for lodgings, selling them unneeded
>equipment or even phoney tickets, before the poor "greenhorns"...had a chance
>to realize what was going on."

I've never heard of the term but I have a possibility for you. A Litze
is a Besatzschnur or Tresse in German. In other words a particular
decoration on one's clothing. I would suspect that these Litzers were
identifyable somehow by their dress and therefore the name.

I could be in left field here but if I am someone will ssurely point
it out to both of us.

Fred
W. Fred Rump Fr...@k2nesoft.com 'A home page will be built
Beverly, NJ Fr...@compu.com in 1996' - Resolution by me
609-386-6846 fred...@msn.com