The Litzenberger Litzenberg Association

Litzenberger and Litzenberg: Origins of the Names and the Families is a 1,023 page hard cover book by Homer L. Litzenberg III published in 1995. It is printed on archival paper guaranteed to last 300 years with proper care or your money back. The preface includes maps, drawings, Stephan from Lützelburg's marriage licence from 1614, the coat of arms of the Baron of Lützelburg, and the family seal. Chapters include: The Adventure of Discovery; The History of Lützelburg Castle; The Litzenbergers of Gemünden; Simon Litzenberg of Pennsylvania; George, Peter, Adam and Nicholas; The Litzenbergers of Russia; The Lützenbergers of Rhodt; and various addenda. There are pages of "begats" where no other information is available, but there are also many narrative biographies, some running to several pages. The identification number which is assigned to each person in the paragraph of his or her Litzenberger parent makes it easy for almost everyone named in the book to trace their ancestors name by name, generation by generation, back to Stephan from Lützelburg. Virtually all of John Elmer Litzenberg's book, The Litzenbergs in America, has been incorporated into nine of the thirteen sections in Chapter Four and much new information has been added to some of these sections. The index contains 20,000 names including, where possible, listings under all known surnames of married women, adopted children, etc. Copies can be seen at the Library of Congress, the National Genealogical Society, and several other libraries and societies.

You can search the name index of the book by clicking on the Search button to the left.

The price of the book is $75. Media Mail postage within the United States (2 to 3 weeks for delivery) is $5. Priority Mail (about 3 days for delivery) is $11. See below for ordering information.

Newsletters, averaging 23 pages per issue, were published quarterly through 2002. They usually contain at least one feature story related to The Family Name, translations of historical French and German documents about subjects such as the town of Lutzelbourg and its nobility, and a lot of new biographical material to supplement that which is contained in the Litzenberg book described above.

The newsletters are fully indexed once per Volume, and the current 84 page index to Volume 1, containing 15,000 names, is available for $5.00.

Back issues of the newsletters are organized into decoratively labeled 3-ring binders. Volume 1 includes all issues through number 17, dated June 1999, and the full index. Volume 2 contains issues number 18 through 28. We recommend that you purchase the back issues both for the feature articles and because each one contains a lot of biographical material which may never appear anywhere else. $120 will bring you both Volumes 1 and 2, or you can purchase either for $65. Individual back issues are available for $5.00 each.

Photos

Preserve your family heritage with these photographs of places and items of historical interest. Share a tour of the Lützelburg castle with your relatives and friends! Great additions to the family photo album, or choose some to frame and proudly display.

Photo size

Price each 1-3 photos

Price each 4 or more

Set of 8

4"x 6"

$2.50

$2.00

$15.00

5" x 7"

$4.50

$4.00

$30.00

8" x 12"

$8.00

$7.00

$52.00

Panoramic

$4.00

$3.50

$26.00

Please see the "Photos" pages for more images available at these same prices. Photos 1 through 9 are available in 4"x 6," 5"x 7," or 8"x 12" formats. Photos 10 through 23 are only available in the panoramic format. Simply specify the identifying number(s) and sizes of the photos you want. You may mix sizes as much as you like within an order.


1. The face of the seal (This image has been printed in reverse to make the text readable).	2. Castle gates and tower

3. Castle keep and living quarters	4. Gate seen from inside

5. Living quarters and keep	6. Looking up in a tower

7. Zorn River seen from the castle	8. Profile of the seal and case

NOW AVAILABLE, for the first time in 500 years! Solid silver replicas of the Litzenberg Family Seal The original Litzenberg Family Seal is held in trust for its owners: all of the descendants of Stephan from Lützelburg! The original Seal, at least 500 years old, has passed from generation to generation of Litzenbergers for FOUR HUNDRED YEARS. It was apparently brought from Germany to the New World by Simon Litzenberger about the year 1750. The original is made of ferrous metal, has an oval face about 7/8 of an inch long and a handle about 1 1/2 inches high (see photos 1 and 8 above). We are now producing solid silver replicas of the Litzenberg Family Seal. Our replicas are reproduced by a method called lost wax casting. This process starts with making a rubber mold of the original. The special hard rubber faithfully replicates the tiniest details of the original. This mold is used to make hard wax copies of the original. These wax copies are then invested (embedded) in a special fine grained high temperature plaster, and the wax is melted out in a kiln. This produces a single-use mold which can withstand the high heat of molten silver. The investment mold is then placed in a device that spins the mold at a high rate while the molten silver is poured in. The centrifugal energy created by the spinning forces the silver into the details of the mold, producing an extremely accurate copy of the original. The mold is then broken away, the sprues (channels for the molten silver) are cut away, mold marks are filed off and the seal is cleaned and polished by hand. The resultant seal produces an impression almost indistinguishable from that made by the original seal. We are extremely proud of these reproductions and pleased that they will allow more of the descendants of Stephan to share this proud symbol of our family heritage and insure its survival for future generations. Please support this organization, the efforts, and expense undertaken to produce this seal by giving these very special reproductions to YOUR descendants for birthdays, graduations, weddings, anniversaries, or christening gifts. The face of the seal and the mahogany case: This beautiful museum quality reproduction of the Litzenberg family seal is delivered in a lined mahogany box. Each seal is delivered with a numbered certificate which details its history and the legends associated with the symbology on the face of the seal. Own this priceless relic of your family's heritage for just $240. Proceeds from the sale of these seals go exclusively to pay the expenses of the Litzenberger-Litzenberg Association. "I can't tell you how thrilled I was to receive that beautiful replica of our seal. It is a wonderful piece of work!" Virginia Eleanor Verrell "I received my replica of the Seal today and I am astounded beyond belief. It is just perfect! On my way to town to find some sealing wax, I stopped by my jeweler friend and let him examine it under his loupe. He said it was some of the finest work he has ever seen....The quality of the finished seal in the wax is beautiful! It is a real work of art!!" Samuel Rambo Litzenberg, Jr. To receive yours, please email your inquiry to LitzAssoc@litzenberg.org (seals are currently only made to order).
	If you would like to see a Quick Time Virtual Reality model of this seal you can click here. Note: this requires either Netscape Navigator or Microsoft Internet Explorer and the Apple Quicklime plug-in. You can get them free by clicking on the icons below.
For further information contact the Association at (408) 270-7227 or by e-mail: LitzAssoc@Litzenberg.org We are also able to make jewelry such as rings, pendants, lapel pins, and bracelets bearing the family seal. Let us know what you would like and we will give you a price quote. Surprise someone with a truly unique gift!
To order (all products): Please make checks payable to: The Litzenberger - Litzenberg Association 3233 Simberlan Drive San Jose CA 95148-3128 To order by credit card, PayPal or e-check, please call (408)270-7227. Prices include postage, handling, and taxes where applicable. All prices subject to change without notice.

LitzAssoc@Litzenberg.org

Photos

NOW AVAILABLE, for the first time in 500 years!

Solid silver replicas of the Litzenberg Family Seal