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Simmental, Switzerland
A Family Heritage Resource

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Swiss Bernese Oberland: A Travel Guide with Specific Trips to Mountains, Lakes and Villages

Simmental or the Simme River Valley is located in the Bernese Oberland, the upland and mountain region of Canton Bern in west-central Switzerland. Marianna Stocker was from Zweisimmen in the Simme River Valley. The Glarus Valley or Glarnerland in eastern Switzerland was the native home of Joachim Speich.

Marianna and Joachim came  to Milwaukee, Wisconsin, with relatives in the mid-1800s. They married there and had six children, three with descendants:  Albert, Emma and Caroline.  Daughter Caroline Belle Speich married Jesse Charles Bradley, grandson of pioneer carpenter Benjamin Church who arrived from New York in November 1835.

Here are the mountains, valleys and towns of the Bernese Oberland and the Simme River Valley; genealogy resources for Switzerland; plus Swiss immigration to Wisconsin.

GO TO:  Introduction | History | Maps | Genealogy | Photographs

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Alpine Views: Alexandre Calame
and the Swiss
Landscape

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Switzerland (Eyewitness Travel)

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Living and Working
in Switzerland

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Passport Switzerland: Your Pocket Guide to Swiss Business, Customs & Etiquette

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Beyond Chocolate: Understanding
Swiss Culture

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Swiss Cookbook

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Walking Switzerland
The Swiss Way

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Why
Switzerland?

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Rick Steves' Switzerland 2006

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Heidi (Children's Classics)

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Fodor's Switzerland
(43rd Edition)

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In Search of Your German Roots. The Complete Guide
to Tracing Your Ancestors in the Germanic Areas of Europe

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Swiss in
Wisconsin

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Yodeling in
Dairyland: A History
of Swiss Music
in Wisconsin

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Cultural Map of Wisconsin:
A Cartographic
Portrait  of the State

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The Swiss
Reformation

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Introduction   [ Top ]

Canton of Bern: the second largest of the Swiss cantons. located in west-central Switzerland. It is bilingual with 22 Swiss German-speaking districts and 3 French-speaking districts. Also spelled Berne. Swiss Reformed Church dominates.  Includes maps such as this one showing the canton's districts. Canton Bern Profile including geography, history, demography, genealogy, links to 26 districts and 400 political communities, and map

ORDER Frommer's Switzerland

Kanton Bern / Canton de Berne: official site in German, French

Translate German text or Web pages here

Bernese Oberland:  the southern area of Canton Bern, this is the Bernese highlands and part of the famous mountains, the Alps.

Bernese Oberland: illustrated essay about the famous Alps region with visitor details, and a color sketch of the Alps with the famous Jungfrau [maiden], Eiger (ogre) and Monch (monk) as well as the deep lakes -- Brienzersee and Thunersee -- on either side of he town of Interlaken

Bernese Oberland: overview of visiting and winter recreation, with a useful map showing the northern portion with famous lakes, alps

Berner Oberland including satellite map, brief history of mountain climbing in the Oberland and link to many key peaks

Bernese Oberland western valleys include the valleys of the Kander River and the Simme River, the latter running through old villages with many heavy-eaved and ornate chalets. This site includes a detailed map of the Bernese Oberland [pdf] and selected links.. Obersimmental: this is one Canton Bern's 26 administrative districts, located in the far southwest corner of the canton. It has four small municipalities which include Boltigen, Lenk, St. Stephan and Zweisimmen.

ORDER Switzerland's Mountain Inns: A Walking Vacation in a World Apart

History & Culture   [ Top ]

Swiss History: including the Celts, Romans, Germanic peoples, the rise of the confederation, role of religion and more

Timeline of Swiss History:  Bern joined Swiss confederacy in 1353 while Glarus joined in 1352; federal constitution came in 1848

Canton Bern History Timeline from 1191 when the city of Bern was founded to 1996/1997

Emergence of the Swiss Nation: including the defeat of the Hapsburgs, 1380s, more

SwissWorld: learn about Swiss geography, people, culture, history, science, more. In English, German, French, Italian, Spanish, more. Swiss Culture including its languages, religions, more, and a look at some Swiss customs Swiss Culture and Roots: learn about the country's diversity of languages and religion, distinctive regions, the arts, seasonal festivals and about "Swissness"

ORDER Ticking Along with the Swiss .

Switzerland A to Z: quick compendium of facts

Swiss History Festivals include Geneva's Escalade, Canton Glarus' remembrance of the Battle of Nafels and the Unspunnen Festival near Interlake recalling efforts to reconcile the people of the once independent Bernese Oberland with the government in Bern.

Cantons of Switzerland: see Bern and Glarus in context, assisted by a detailed map

Swiss Maps   [ Top ]

Detailed map [pdf] of the Bernese Oberland Bernese Oberland Map showing nine areas to click and visit, including Lenk-Simmental Panorama Maps of the Alps -- summer and winter -- to click and enlarge, then scroll to the far right to see Lenk and Zweisimmen Clickable map of Swiss cantons, including  one for Bern Canton [BE] with Zweisimmen shown

ORDER Lonely Planet Switzerland

Map showing Zweisimmen, Gstaad, Saanen, St. Stephan

Map of Canton Bern

Map of Switzerland:  this large map shows administrative districts with Bern being No. 6 and Glarus being No. 9, including key cities and lakes and the countries that surround Switzerland

Maps of Switzerland:  see the country in the context of Europe, as well as a large map of the country with major cities, lakes

Map showing Switzerland surrounded by Austria, Germany, Italy, France

Maps of Switzerland:  collection of maps for key cities and regions, including tourist regions such as Eastern Switzerland [2] that includes Canton Glarus and the Bernese Oberland [6] with Lenk and  Zweisimmen Glarus Map showing Schwanden, Luchsingen, Diesbach, more Topographical Map: see Glarus in the Linth River valley not far west of the Swiss border with Liechtenstein and Austria, and another view

ORDER Glarnerland SEE: Canton Glarus

Towns of Simmental   [ Top ]

Obersimmental: this Canton Bern district has  four small municipalities: Boltigen, Lenk, St. Stephan and Zweisimmen.

Boltigen: a tiny, traditional village now famous for winter sports, and more on this historic municipality and parish first mentioned in records in 1228, and the official site for Boltigen in German

Zweisimmen:   today, Zweisimmen is known as the gateway or access point to the winter recreation and skiing area of Gstaad. Zweisimmen is an historic market town in the Simmental

Zweisimmen Tourism: in German

Genealogy Resources   [ Top ] Stocker Family Genealogy Forum Stucker Family Genealogy Forum Switzerland Genealogy Forum Genealogical Societies for Canton Bern Family Genealogy Pages for Canton Bern, many listed, from Aellen to Zwiacher Swiss Roots with a wealth of resources including a page for Swiss genealogy search Swiss Heritage and immigration to the USA in the 18th century and 19th century, the latter largely due to famines and economic change Switzerland and Swiss-Americans: a look at immigration, history, religion, family, more Rootsweb Mailing Lists for Swiss surnames and for Switzerland's regions including Canton Bern Swiss Mailing Lists: many cantons, surnames Swiss Genealogy Resources: history, cantons, research Tracing Swiss Ancestors: time-saving hints, advice Kanton Glarus Genealogy with history of the region, links to many Glarus family histories including the Speich family of the Sernf and later Linth valleys, the Speich article in pdf format

ORDER The Researcher's Guide to American Genealogy   ORDER BOOKS The Swiss Emigration Book The Swiss In the United States The German and Swiss Settlements of Colonial Pennsylvania   ORDER Karen Brown's Switzerland, 2007: Exceptional Places to Stay & Itineraries

Swiss Immigration to Wisconsin: for 1826-1900, with the largest numbers arriving in the 1840 and 1850s. Project underway since 1980.

Stories of Swiss Immigrants to Wisconsin: a collection of 54 articles concerning Swiss immigrants published between 1878 and 1935, with many on New Glarus, from the Wisconsin Historical Society

Stocker Family in Wisconsin   [ Top ]

Marianna Stocker married Joachim Speich in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on March 31, 1857.  They both were born in Switzerland.  Her father Jacob and brother Samuel had two farms, 70 acres total, in Greenfield, Milwaukee County, from 1852-1861. A biography of Joachim and Marianna's son Albert Speich and his photo.

Immigrants in Southcentral Wisconsin including the Swiss in Monroe and New Glarus, Green County, with the story of Joshua Wild

New Glarus:  an 1883 article on the colony in [then] southwest Dane County, Wisconsin, noting a promise of a 22-acre farm rent-free for 10 years made to those who would pioneer there. The Glarner settlement, the first cows, expansion, the role of the Reformed Lutheran Church, more. Founding of New Glarus: 1926 article on this unique experiment in Swiss emigration and more on the history of New Glarus and the founding of southern Wisconsin's now famous cheese industry.

ORDER The Swiss Colony (Images of America)

Immigrants to Wisconsin  from England, Ireland, Germany, Holland, Scandinavia, Poland, and Switzerland.

Photographs & Images   [ Top ]

Zweisimmen aerial photo: village in valley, part of large Berner Oberland photo gallery Zweisimmen panorama, other views Simme River photos, hiking Jungfrau region photos, with details Photos of Canton Bern from images of mountain to the city Bern at night Fields in Canton Bern, wildflowers near Bern, Bern's old town, and Alps, Jungfrau, more Scenes of Switzerland: includes a picture of Thun and the Oberland Swiss Pics & Postcards: large collection on many topics including famous mountains, wildflowers, customs and more, plus 30 images to send as email postcards Zurich Photos: each photo leads to more including city by night, mountain village

ORDER Michelin the Green Guide Switzerland   ORDER Chamonix to Zermatt: A Walker's Haute Route

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