The Not so Good News From Eisenstadt
The BB recently contacted Mag. Bernhard Weinhäusel, the head archivist of the Eisenstadt Catholic Diocese, about the current status of their church records (matrikels) digitization project.
Unfortunately, we were told that the digitization project has been halted due to budget limitations created when it was discovered that a significant number of church books were in quite poor condition. Thus a decision was made to dedicate the currently available money to restoration of books only. While this does not help internet researchers immediately, it does mean the books will not be lost to decay, will be available in the Diocese Archives for onsite research, and will survive for potential digitization in the future. Herr Weinhäusel assured us that onsite researchers are still welcome (though an advance appointment is mandatory).

Father Joseph Graisy Biography
The BB published a short biography of Father Josef Graisy, author of a historical book about the houses of Wallern, Burgenland, and the people who lived in them. The book is titled „Wallern in der Geschichte seiner Häuser; eine Studie über die Entwicklung von Wallern in der Zeit von 1683-1914“ (Wallern in the History of its Houses; a study about the development of Wallern at the time from 1683 to 1914). A scan of the book (copied by permission) and the full biography can be found here: the-burgenland-bunch.org/Father-Graisy/Book.html. A limited run of hardcover books was published around 1981.
Father Graisy was born in Wallern and became a priest of the SVD (Societas Verbi Divin / Society of the Divine Word) in 1937. He worked as a missionary priest in China and the Philippines before finishing his career in Germany and Austria. He died Jan 10, 1983, in Vienna.
Because of the book, he was made an honorary citizen of Wallern and the square in front of the old parish kindergarten was renamed „Father Joseph Graisy Square“ in his honor.

Tom Steichen, BB President