Martin was born in Potsdam, Prussia, Brandenburg, Germany. He travelled to New Zealand and then on to Sydney, NSW, arriving on 2 Mar 1876 per the Brig ?Welcome? remaining there for one year. From there, he travelled to Tasmania where he met and married Julia Mary Jane Delphin. He was in Tasmania for seven years before coming to Carlton, in Melbourne where they settled. They lived at 5 Little Grattan Street, Carlton when he first received his naturalization certificate in July 1906 and his occupation was Marine Stores Collector. They resided at 171 Madeline Street Carlton when he made the application for a replacement in March 1915.. The certificate was actually burnt some years before.

Prussia no longer exists as such but its boundaries were:
North: Bound by Baltic Sea, Denmark and North Sea
South: Bound by Czechoslavakia, Bulgaria
West: Luxemberg, Belgium, Holland
East: Poland Lithuania



Well, well, well, after all these years I have had huge success. I was referred by another researcher on the internet to the registry office in Potsdam. That advice was soon poo pooed by another researcher who pointed out that those records (civil registrations) did not begin until 1874, the record I am looking for is 1850. However, I had already emailed the Registry office in Potsdam and they were so wonderful, they immediately referred me to churches who hold the older records and I now have the baptism certificate for Martin Ferdinand Karl Jordens and his parent's names. My next email to them will be for siblings. So if anybody is looking for old recrods in Potsdam try this www.landeskirchenarchivberlin.de and the cost was as small 17.80 Euros.

Liz