Alexander Dietz

Alexander Wilhelm Dietz (born July 30, 1864 in Frankfurt am Main ; † January 14, 1934 in Bad Homburg vd H. ) was a lawyer and notary as well as an economic and social historian.

Dietz earned special merits through the unique register of Frankfurt Jews (1907), as well as through the five-volume “Frankfurter Handelsgeschichte” (1910–1925).

life and work

Cover page of the register of Frankfurt Jews from 1907

Alexander Dietz was the descendant of a family of trade and lawyers who had been based in Frankfurt since the middle of the 17th century and had previously been based in Worms, Odenheim, Darmstadt and Marburg.

His father Friedrich Wilhelm Dietz (1833-1897) exercised the professions of violinist and composer and broke with the traditional professions of his ancestors. Together with another artistically inclined mother Emma Suppius (1841–1928), this family supported the young Alexander so much that at the age of 15 he was able to play Mendelssohn's violin concerto by heart.

Nevertheless, at the request of his parents, Alexander Dietz devoted himself to studying law in Marburg , Berlin and Leipzig . In 1886 he received his doctorate in Göttingen Dr. jur. and established himself as a lawyer in Frankfurt in 1892.

Since his job did not satisfy him, he devoted himself to music and history. As a merchant's grandson, he turned to the history of the Frankfurt bourgeoisie. In addition to major works in several volumes, he created numerous publications on Frankfurt family history, especially on the circle around Goethe . In addition, Dietz occasionally worked for various Frankfurt newspapers ( Frankfurter Zeitung , Frankfurter Nachrichten ).

Alexander Dietz was married to Emilie Lejeune (daughter of the merchant Julius Lejeune 1836–1905) and was the father of a son (Herrmann Dietz) and three daughters. At the age of 65 in 1929, Dietz decided to visit his son in America and stayed there for a longer period. He dedicated his last work 'Alt-Sachsenhausen' to him.

Works (selection)

Frankfurter Bürgerbuch. Historical reports about 600 known Frankfurt families from the time before 1806 . Frankfurt a. M. 1897. University Library Frankfurt / M. ULB Düsseldorf
Family tree of the Frankfurt Jews. Historical information about the Frankfurt Jewish families 1339–1849. Frankfurt a. M. 1907. HAAB Weimar ULB Düsseldorf (extensions in vol. 32 (1920) and in the Frankf. Bll. F. Familiengesch., 1, p. 151 ff. (1908))
Frankfurt trading history :
- Volume 1 . Frankfurt a. M. 1910 (reprint Glashütten iT 1970). ULB Darmstadt
- Volume 2 : Frankfurt a. M. 1921 (reprint Glashütten iT 1971). ULB Darmstadt
- Volume 3 : Frankfurt a. M. 1921 (reprint Glashütten iT 1972). ULB Darmstadt
- Volume 4 Part 1 : Frankfurt a. M. 1925 (reprint Glashütten iT 1973). ULB Darmstadt
- Volume 4 Part 2 . Frankfurt a. M. 1925 (reprint Glashütten iT 1974). ULB Darmstadt

“ Franz Wirth and the Frankfurt Peace Association . Festschrift to celebrate its 25th anniversary ”(1911).

literature

Arthur Czellitzer : Counselor Dr. Alexander Dietz in memory . In: Communications from Jewish family research . Volume 10, 1934, issue 35, p. 589 f. (Printed in: Paul Arnsberg : The history of the Frankfurt Jews since the French Revolution . Volume 3. Eduard Roether Verlag, Frankfurt am Main 1983, ISBN 3-7929-0130-7 , pp. 10-11.)
Dietz, Alexander Wilhelm. In: Wolfgang Klötzer (Ed.): Frankfurter Biographie . Personal history lexicon . First volume. A – L (= publications of the Frankfurt Historical Commission . Volume XIX , no. 1 ). Waldemar Kramer, Frankfurt am Main 1994, ISBN 3-7829-0444-3 . , P. 158.

Individual evidence

^ HF Friederichs: Hessian family history. Vol. 3, Issues 1–12 as well as 1 register booklet, Arbeitsgemeinschaft der Familienkundlichen Societies in Hessen (Ed.), 1954–1956, p. 645 http://wiki-de.genealogy.net/Hessische_Familienkunde/Band_3
^ HF Friederichs: Hessian family history. Vol. 3, Issues 1–12 as well as 1 register booklet, Arbeitsgemeinschaft der Familienkundlichen Societies in Hessen (Ed.), 1954–1956, p. 645. Quotation: “A standard work that first brings to mind the great importance of this trading town since the Middle Ages : an immense abundance of people and families with biographical and genealogical data, which of course need to be checked, from the merchant and craftsmen, the development of trade in general and wealth, the work of merchants in the state, has processed Justice Councilor D. in 30 years of studies and the results are recorded here. "
↑ Wolfgang Klötzer (Ed.): Frankfurter Biographie . Personal history lexicon . First volume. A – L (= publications of the Frankfurt Historical Commission . Volume XIX , no. 1 ). Waldemar Kramer, Frankfurt am Main 1994, ISBN 3-7829-0444-3 .

Web links

Wikisource: Alexander Wilhelm Dietz - List of publications (German)

Literature by and about Alexander Dietz in the catalog of the German National Library

personal data
SURNAME	Dietz, Alexander
ALTERNATIVE NAMES	Dietz, Alexander Wilhelm (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION	German lawyer and notary as well as economic and social historian
DATE OF BIRTH	July 30, 1864
PLACE OF BIRTH	Frankfurt am Main
DATE OF DEATH	January 14, 1934
Place of death	Bad Homburg vor der Höhe

[1] HF Friederichs: Hessian family history. Vol. 3, Issues 1–12 as well as 1 register booklet, Arbeitsgemeinschaft der Familienkundlichen Societies in Hessen (Ed.), 1954–1956, p. 645 http://wiki-de.genealogy.net/Hessische_Familienkunde/Band_3

[2] HF Friederichs: Hessian family history. Vol. 3, Issues 1–12 as well as 1 register booklet, Arbeitsgemeinschaft der Familienkundlichen Societies in Hessen (Ed.), 1954–1956, p. 645. Quotation: “A standard work that first brings to mind the great importance of this trading town since the Middle Ages : an immense abundance of people and families with biographical and genealogical data, which of course need to be checked, from the merchant and craftsmen, the development of trade in general and wealth, the work of merchants in the state, has processed Justice Councilor D. in 30 years of studies and the results are recorded here. "

[3] Wolfgang Klötzer (Ed.): Frankfurter Biographie . Personal history lexicon . First volume. A – L (= publications of the Frankfurt Historical Commission . Volume XIX , no. 1 ). Waldemar Kramer, Frankfurt am Main 1994, ISBN 3-7829-0444-3 .