AHSGR, Work Paper No. 22, Winter, 1976
Passenger List
By Gwen B. Pritzkau
(MY NOTES: This is in no way a complete list. The following contains only family names which may or may not be blood relatives. I will expand this list later on, need be.).
(Excerpts)
(Page 44)
Date: 16 April 1893
Vessel: Suevia To New York
From: Saratov, Rss
ELLENBERGER
Georg 23
Catherina 21
Catherina 3 mo.
Conrad 17 (bro)
(Page 45)
WEBER
Johannes 58
Catherina 56
Heinrich 16
Johannes 36
Maria 36
Catherina 15
Jacob 5
Catherine 3
Jacob 26
Catherina 28
Elisabeth 3 mo.
Wendel 19
Catherina 19
Date: 17 Nov. 1901
Vessel: Palactia To New York
From: Saratov, Rss
OTT
Peter 30
Elisabeth 30
(Page 48)
Date: 22 May 1878
Vessel: Wieland To New York
From: Frank, Rss
WAGNER
Johannes 20
Magdalena 53
Jacob 19
Conrad 18
Jacob 9
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
Travel Discoveries
AHSGR, Work Paper No. 13, December 1973
Research In Hesse
By Arthur and Cleora Flegel
(Excerpts)
…At Schotten, which lies directly north of Büdingen, we again met with remarkable success. The assistant pastor, Pfarrer Hoefle of the older Ev. Lutheran parish had spent some years in Brazil and was quite well acquainted with the Volga German history. He was helpful in reading records dating back to 1635. The following list reveals names which had related to the community for many generations. Thos names of unusual number are so indicated by the asterisk (*):
(MY NOTES: This is in no way a complete list. The following contains only family names which may or may not be blood relatives. I will expand this list later on, if need be.).
Becker**…, Ellenburger…, Wagner**….
(Page 33)
…Each family received besides many other benefits, as living provisions, two horses, one cow and of hard money, fifteen Rubels. So states one copied document of the early record books of Saratov concerning the foreign settlers of the settlers on the Hill and Valley sides of the Volga. It affirms that as an example, Jagodnaja Poljana was established on 16 September 1767 by 80 families of which 417 were male and 122 female in total 269 souls….
…We drove on to Haiger, where Pfarrer Becker of Berstadt had told us most of the records of the region were being stored. A very helpful Frau Schmidt, wife of the organist, showed us the records. Because of the lateness of the day, we dared not impose on Frau Schmidt too severely, and skimming through the lists, copied names of greatest familiarity. They follow:
Stoll, Müller, Schneider, Engelbardt, Weber, Michel, Koch, Stahl, Schmidt, Huck, Hoffman, Flick, Gerhard, Heinz, Pfeiffer, Krantz, Metz, Hartman, Frantz, Gross, Gress, Tielman.
(Page 36)
…Before we left Kirburg, the Pfarrer Stephan related an incident which had taken place in this community during 1890. A sizable number of the Kirburg parish members decided to emigrate to Russia at that time for religious principles. After less than a decade in Russia, the Germans, terribly disillusioned, returned almost en masse to the Westerwald. The records he possessed disclosed the Pastor’s admonition to his parishoners [sic] counseling them not to leave—evidentally [sic], much the same as had taken place a century earlier.
(Page 37)
…Retracing our route on Highway 414, we stopped at Hachenburg, one of the larger parishes. After a lengthy search, we located the parish house, but it was Saturday afternoon, and no one who could help us was to be found. Continuing east, we came to Herborn, a city in the vicinity of Giessen. Here we hoped to find information on the names “Heiser” or “Heuser.” The lists were very extensive and worthy of further study. However, that must be reserved for another time. Skimming over the names, the villages and towns most common to the family names we copied were: Amdorf, Braunfelz, Herborn and Hobach. A few of the marriages 1762-1767 follow:
(MY NOTES: This is in no way a complete list. The following contains only family names which may or may not be blood relatives. I will expand this list later on, need be.).
Joh. Jacob Clauss / Anna Katharina Weber
Joh. Jacob Weber / Christina Elis. Jung
Gottfried Weber / Anna Elisabeth Clauss
Research In Hesse
By Arthur and Cleora Flegel
(Excerpts)
…At Schotten, which lies directly north of Büdingen, we again met with remarkable success. The assistant pastor, Pfarrer Hoefle of the older Ev. Lutheran parish had spent some years in Brazil and was quite well acquainted with the Volga German history. He was helpful in reading records dating back to 1635. The following list reveals names which had related to the community for many generations. Thos names of unusual number are so indicated by the asterisk (*):
(MY NOTES: This is in no way a complete list. The following contains only family names which may or may not be blood relatives. I will expand this list later on, if need be.).
Becker**…, Ellenburger…, Wagner**….
(Page 33)
…Each family received besides many other benefits, as living provisions, two horses, one cow and of hard money, fifteen Rubels. So states one copied document of the early record books of Saratov concerning the foreign settlers of the settlers on the Hill and Valley sides of the Volga. It affirms that as an example, Jagodnaja Poljana was established on 16 September 1767 by 80 families of which 417 were male and 122 female in total 269 souls….
…We drove on to Haiger, where Pfarrer Becker of Berstadt had told us most of the records of the region were being stored. A very helpful Frau Schmidt, wife of the organist, showed us the records. Because of the lateness of the day, we dared not impose on Frau Schmidt too severely, and skimming through the lists, copied names of greatest familiarity. They follow:
Stoll, Müller, Schneider, Engelbardt, Weber, Michel, Koch, Stahl, Schmidt, Huck, Hoffman, Flick, Gerhard, Heinz, Pfeiffer, Krantz, Metz, Hartman, Frantz, Gross, Gress, Tielman.
(Page 36)
…Before we left Kirburg, the Pfarrer Stephan related an incident which had taken place in this community during 1890. A sizable number of the Kirburg parish members decided to emigrate to Russia at that time for religious principles. After less than a decade in Russia, the Germans, terribly disillusioned, returned almost en masse to the Westerwald. The records he possessed disclosed the Pastor’s admonition to his parishoners [sic] counseling them not to leave—evidentally [sic], much the same as had taken place a century earlier.
(Page 37)
…Retracing our route on Highway 414, we stopped at Hachenburg, one of the larger parishes. After a lengthy search, we located the parish house, but it was Saturday afternoon, and no one who could help us was to be found. Continuing east, we came to Herborn, a city in the vicinity of Giessen. Here we hoped to find information on the names “Heiser” or “Heuser.” The lists were very extensive and worthy of further study. However, that must be reserved for another time. Skimming over the names, the villages and towns most common to the family names we copied were: Amdorf, Braunfelz, Herborn and Hobach. A few of the marriages 1762-1767 follow:
(MY NOTES: This is in no way a complete list. The following contains only family names which may or may not be blood relatives. I will expand this list later on, need be.).
Joh. Jacob Clauss / Anna Katharina Weber
Joh. Jacob Weber / Christina Elis. Jung
Gottfried Weber / Anna Elisabeth Clauss
Among Other Items…
AHSGR, Work Paper No. 13, December 1973
Research In Hesse
By Arthur and Cleora Flegel
(Excerpts)
(Page 26)
Among other items at Schlitz, we found copies of historical transcripts of the 1762-1767 emigrations. Excerpts from these articles in the original German with English translations follow (MY NOTES: I have included only excerpts in English.):
“…On the 8th of April, the first group of people left from Queck and Rimbach in the Schlitzerland for Russia. The man received 15 Kreuzers and his wife 10 Kreuzers daily stipend. This stipend was supplied by the Russian Commisars who had established recruitment stations throughout all of Germany and more specifically in Hess.” If the writer of the daybook reports that at that time the first people emigrated from our immediate area and refers specifically to Queck and Rimbach, it can be assumed that others also followed them. Unforunately more detailed information which would be of interest to us is missing as to the numbers and names of the emigrants….
…He writes in detail, “Well, I intend to list daily, every caravan of people passing through this district intent on leaving Germany for Russia with the reasons, for otherwise, no one can understand or comprehend why the people are leaving for a foreign land. The treks are composed of German people who gathered at Büdingen under the Russian Commission and have been accepted as immigrants to Russia. On the 13th of May, the first transport moved through Schlitz. Also farmers form the Schlitz area secretly joined the treks leaving their possessions and stating that those in authority were too demanding and the work too oppressive. Within the 7 caravans through Schlitz, an estimated 500 people per trek are happily looking forward to finding a better land than this. In reality, they are no better than swindlers. Mostly such, along with some who are leaving with heavy hearts because of their burdensome debts. The children no longer mind their parents but want to emigrate for Russia. Even the farmers no longer want to work. The cost of living continues to rise, also the money is stolen out of one’s purse due to the money devaluation….” No, it was the terrible economic distress which at that time drove the people from their beloved Hessian homeland. The Seven Years War, 1756-1763, brought with itself unusually difficult conditions into the Upper Hesse and Schlitzerland. – during the course of this war, 160,000 troops were quartered in Schlitz. – Weissbeck wrote, “Here is great distress with bread and money. On the 12th of April, bread was requested from Fulda and an entire wagonload of bread came from there.”…
(Translations.) “The Russian Ambassador at Regensburg… furthered the recruitment efforts by the employment of two Agents… and in spite of all hindrances was able to send a large number of willing Emigrants from this area to Russia. In February 1766, the Elector of Mainz brought to the attention of the Hessian government the promotional activities of the agents. –This overwhelming emigration would result in a depopulation of the area. –Thus, he pleaded for the checking of this imminent danger…. Through reference to ordinances of 1630, 1658, and 1697, secret emigrations were threatened with a punishment of confiscation of all possessions. – On the basis of this survey, a statement was sent to all courts, dated April 11, 1766, covering the following provisions: Emigration without specific approval would be punishable by confiscation of property. Those eager for emigration are to be under surveillance. Proceeds from previous sale of goods will be seized. Lazy and indolent subjects may, with rare exception, be permitted to leave after fulfillment of all obligations and payments of outstanding taxes, must however, forego any thought of possible return and acceptance. Borders would be carefully watched to prevent anyone from secretly leaving or an agent from sneaking in. – Anyone observing a Russian Agent operating in the principality of Darmstadt and reporting him, would receive 12 Florins reward. Subjects who have made themselves indebted to the recruitment would be subject to imprisonment.
A list of requests for departure lie among the articles of the State Archives. For instance, one Johan Adam Walther of Dauernheim wrote “I have not so much property as 15 alb is worth, (Ed. Note: Impossible to translate “alb”. Conjecture: possible error in original transmittal, could mean 1 Kalb – 1 calf.) – even if one should include his bed, to which all people hereabout will witness. Since I no longer can provide for my children with the day’s wages, I am determined to migrate to Russia where I can find livelihood through my own efforts.”
Research In Hesse
By Arthur and Cleora Flegel
(Excerpts)
(Page 26)
Among other items at Schlitz, we found copies of historical transcripts of the 1762-1767 emigrations. Excerpts from these articles in the original German with English translations follow (MY NOTES: I have included only excerpts in English.):
“…On the 8th of April, the first group of people left from Queck and Rimbach in the Schlitzerland for Russia. The man received 15 Kreuzers and his wife 10 Kreuzers daily stipend. This stipend was supplied by the Russian Commisars who had established recruitment stations throughout all of Germany and more specifically in Hess.” If the writer of the daybook reports that at that time the first people emigrated from our immediate area and refers specifically to Queck and Rimbach, it can be assumed that others also followed them. Unforunately more detailed information which would be of interest to us is missing as to the numbers and names of the emigrants….
…He writes in detail, “Well, I intend to list daily, every caravan of people passing through this district intent on leaving Germany for Russia with the reasons, for otherwise, no one can understand or comprehend why the people are leaving for a foreign land. The treks are composed of German people who gathered at Büdingen under the Russian Commission and have been accepted as immigrants to Russia. On the 13th of May, the first transport moved through Schlitz. Also farmers form the Schlitz area secretly joined the treks leaving their possessions and stating that those in authority were too demanding and the work too oppressive. Within the 7 caravans through Schlitz, an estimated 500 people per trek are happily looking forward to finding a better land than this. In reality, they are no better than swindlers. Mostly such, along with some who are leaving with heavy hearts because of their burdensome debts. The children no longer mind their parents but want to emigrate for Russia. Even the farmers no longer want to work. The cost of living continues to rise, also the money is stolen out of one’s purse due to the money devaluation….” No, it was the terrible economic distress which at that time drove the people from their beloved Hessian homeland. The Seven Years War, 1756-1763, brought with itself unusually difficult conditions into the Upper Hesse and Schlitzerland. – during the course of this war, 160,000 troops were quartered in Schlitz. – Weissbeck wrote, “Here is great distress with bread and money. On the 12th of April, bread was requested from Fulda and an entire wagonload of bread came from there.”…
(Translations.) “The Russian Ambassador at Regensburg… furthered the recruitment efforts by the employment of two Agents… and in spite of all hindrances was able to send a large number of willing Emigrants from this area to Russia. In February 1766, the Elector of Mainz brought to the attention of the Hessian government the promotional activities of the agents. –This overwhelming emigration would result in a depopulation of the area. –Thus, he pleaded for the checking of this imminent danger…. Through reference to ordinances of 1630, 1658, and 1697, secret emigrations were threatened with a punishment of confiscation of all possessions. – On the basis of this survey, a statement was sent to all courts, dated April 11, 1766, covering the following provisions: Emigration without specific approval would be punishable by confiscation of property. Those eager for emigration are to be under surveillance. Proceeds from previous sale of goods will be seized. Lazy and indolent subjects may, with rare exception, be permitted to leave after fulfillment of all obligations and payments of outstanding taxes, must however, forego any thought of possible return and acceptance. Borders would be carefully watched to prevent anyone from secretly leaving or an agent from sneaking in. – Anyone observing a Russian Agent operating in the principality of Darmstadt and reporting him, would receive 12 Florins reward. Subjects who have made themselves indebted to the recruitment would be subject to imprisonment.
A list of requests for departure lie among the articles of the State Archives. For instance, one Johan Adam Walther of Dauernheim wrote “I have not so much property as 15 alb is worth, (Ed. Note: Impossible to translate “alb”. Conjecture: possible error in original transmittal, could mean 1 Kalb – 1 calf.) – even if one should include his bed, to which all people hereabout will witness. Since I no longer can provide for my children with the day’s wages, I am determined to migrate to Russia where I can find livelihood through my own efforts.”
A Search for Names
AHSGR, Work Paper No. 13, December 1973
Research In Hesse
By Arthur and Cleora Flegel
(Excerpts)
(Page 22)
From earlier study, we were aware that the city Fulda lay on the principal route of Volga bound emigrants traveling north to Luebbeck for transporation to Russia. Hoping the mamrriage lists would be especially plentiful, we hurried there, arriving in the late afternnon…
…Names from marriage lists of Tann 1762-1767 (MY NOTES: This is in no way a complete list. The following contains only family names which may or may not be blood relatives. I will expand this list later on, need be.):
Johann Heinrich Wagner / Magdalena Völger
Johann Georg Wagner / Eva Pilger
Sebastian Hartung / Susanna Gröning
Johann Schmidt / Maria Wagner
Samuel Wagner / Anna kath. Thiel
…Our next stop was Schlitz, to the northwest of Fulda. This community boasts a Lutheran Church dating from 1512…At Schlitz we found marriage lists of young couples actually enroute to becoming Russian immigrants… The following lists were submitted to Dr. Karl Stumpp and are printed in more detailed form on page 498 of his book, “The Emigration from Germany to Russia in the Years 1763-1862.”
…Other marriages taking place in Schlitz during the years 1762-1767 follow. Although it does not state that any of these emigrated, some very possibly did (MY NOTES: This is in no way a complete list. The following contains only family names which may or may not be blood relatives. I will expand this list later on, need be.).
Joh. Conrad Habicht / Anna Elisabeth Weber
Joh. Friedrich Weber / Anna Marg. Heyl
Joh. Christian Thöt / Anna Maria Weber
Jean Francois Obry / Anna Elis. Becker
Lorenz Becker / Anna Elisabeth Dickert
Joh. Jacob Wagner / Anna Elis. Greitzer
Joh. Georg Becker / Anna Marg. Kroh
Research In Hesse
By Arthur and Cleora Flegel
(Excerpts)
(Page 22)
From earlier study, we were aware that the city Fulda lay on the principal route of Volga bound emigrants traveling north to Luebbeck for transporation to Russia. Hoping the mamrriage lists would be especially plentiful, we hurried there, arriving in the late afternnon…
…Names from marriage lists of Tann 1762-1767 (MY NOTES: This is in no way a complete list. The following contains only family names which may or may not be blood relatives. I will expand this list later on, need be.):
Johann Heinrich Wagner / Magdalena Völger
Johann Georg Wagner / Eva Pilger
Sebastian Hartung / Susanna Gröning
Johann Schmidt / Maria Wagner
Samuel Wagner / Anna kath. Thiel
…Our next stop was Schlitz, to the northwest of Fulda. This community boasts a Lutheran Church dating from 1512…At Schlitz we found marriage lists of young couples actually enroute to becoming Russian immigrants… The following lists were submitted to Dr. Karl Stumpp and are printed in more detailed form on page 498 of his book, “The Emigration from Germany to Russia in the Years 1763-1862.”
…Other marriages taking place in Schlitz during the years 1762-1767 follow. Although it does not state that any of these emigrated, some very possibly did (MY NOTES: This is in no way a complete list. The following contains only family names which may or may not be blood relatives. I will expand this list later on, need be.).
Joh. Conrad Habicht / Anna Elisabeth Weber
Joh. Friedrich Weber / Anna Marg. Heyl
Joh. Christian Thöt / Anna Maria Weber
Jean Francois Obry / Anna Elis. Becker
Lorenz Becker / Anna Elisabeth Dickert
Joh. Jacob Wagner / Anna Elis. Greitzer
Joh. Georg Becker / Anna Marg. Kroh
Needle in a Haystack
AHSGR, Work Paper No. 9, October 1972
Genealogical Records On The Volga Germans
By Harm H. Schlomer
(Excerpts)
(Page 49)
In the years before World War I, Volga Gemran emigration lists were on file in Moscow and Saratov, but very few of our grandparents took the trouble to consult them. Needless to say, all of us fervently hope that these emigration lists still exist somewhere in the Soviet Union. They constitute the most important source of information on our background. Archives in Germany merely give us the names of perhaps 25% of the families who left for the Volga in the 1760’s. Such material does not tell in what colony these people settled….
…I found an extremely interesting document, dated October 30, 1766, in the library of Büdingen Castle. It was a report sent to the count by a court official notifying him that twenty of his subjects from the village of Düdelsheim and five from the village of Rohrbach had emigrated to Russia after paying off all their debts and taxes. Many of the names of these people sounded so familiar to me that I compared them with the names given by Jacob Volz for the colony of Balzer. In this manner I discovered that twelve families from Düdelsheim, including people named Bender, Calus, Eurich and Scheidt, as well as two from Rohrbach named Grassmück and Weber, had all arrived in Balzer in the summer months of 1767. In orther words, their place of origin was not the town of Isenburg but instead two small village [sic] in the “Grafschaft” or earldom of Isenburg- Büdingen….
Most of the names in the Stumpp Emigration Lists come from German sources…
…Those of us with such common German names as Müller, Schmidt, Becker, Koch and Weber will have the most difficult time of all. Dozens of people with these names will appear in the emigration lists. On the other hand, some Volga German family names are very unusual….
Genealogical Records On The Volga Germans
By Harm H. Schlomer
(Excerpts)
(Page 49)
In the years before World War I, Volga Gemran emigration lists were on file in Moscow and Saratov, but very few of our grandparents took the trouble to consult them. Needless to say, all of us fervently hope that these emigration lists still exist somewhere in the Soviet Union. They constitute the most important source of information on our background. Archives in Germany merely give us the names of perhaps 25% of the families who left for the Volga in the 1760’s. Such material does not tell in what colony these people settled….
…I found an extremely interesting document, dated October 30, 1766, in the library of Büdingen Castle. It was a report sent to the count by a court official notifying him that twenty of his subjects from the village of Düdelsheim and five from the village of Rohrbach had emigrated to Russia after paying off all their debts and taxes. Many of the names of these people sounded so familiar to me that I compared them with the names given by Jacob Volz for the colony of Balzer. In this manner I discovered that twelve families from Düdelsheim, including people named Bender, Calus, Eurich and Scheidt, as well as two from Rohrbach named Grassmück and Weber, had all arrived in Balzer in the summer months of 1767. In orther words, their place of origin was not the town of Isenburg but instead two small village [sic] in the “Grafschaft” or earldom of Isenburg- Büdingen….
Most of the names in the Stumpp Emigration Lists come from German sources…
…Those of us with such common German names as Müller, Schmidt, Becker, Koch and Weber will have the most difficult time of all. Dozens of people with these names will appear in the emigration lists. On the other hand, some Volga German family names are very unusual….
Monday, January 26, 2009
Volga Village Life
AHSGR, Work Paper No. 6, May 1971
The Pacific Northwesterner
Volume 8
Fall, 1964
Number 4
Inland Empire Russia Germans
By Harm H. Schlomer
(Excerpts)
(Page 58)
The homes were heated with a combination of two kinds of fuel. The “Lenne” tree was cut into cord wood for heating. The long burning fuel, however, was made from a mixture of horse manure, straw and water, compressed in forms and dried in squares. Sunflower growing was one of the main crops. In one larger village there were twenty-two (Oelmuehle) oil mills producing cooking oil. The sunflower seed was peeled. The kernel was ground to a pulp, heated and compressed. The oil would then run out of a tube at the base of the compressed container. The colonists used sunflower oil exclusively for cooking purposes.
Making pig sausage was a specialty among the colonists. The hogs were cut up, the pieces run through a sasuage grinder, then seasoned expertly with salt and pepper. Success in following the recipe included frequent tasting to get the flavor “just right.”…
On the plains (Wiesenseite) (MY NOTES: Brunnentahl) of the Volga, watermelons and Zuckermelon, like catelopes, were important crops. The summers were warm and the season right to mature large delicious melons. Wheat, rye and barley were the principal crops. The housing conditions were crowded. Up to eighteen people lived in one house. The father, mother, children and the oldest children with their wives or husbands often shared one house. Harmoney was maintained by strict training – that each member of the household must respect the rights of every other member….
Dr. Conrad Weitz, in 1913 (MY NOTES: The year the Ehlenbergers were told to flee while they could), knew that war in Europe was about to break out. Like others before him, he left on a limited pass. The Russian government sent him a telegram upon his arrival in Belmont, New York, to return immediately to report for military duty. Instead, Conrad proceeded to Endicott, Washington. The Russian government located him in Colfax. He received a second telegram to report for duty. Roy LaFollette, Conrad’s attorney in Colfax, helped him take out his first naturalization papers. This stopped the Russians…. (MY NOTES: You can see why the Ehlenbergers still feared what Russia might do, even though they had returned to America. There are several stories in this article about Germans who avoided the Russian military draft in this method—leaving on limited passes and never returning. Many came to America because the land parcels were continually being divided and became too small to be profitable.)
(Page 60)
Among the established families of the Inland Empire from the Volga colonies at Ritzville, Odessa, Endicott and Colfax, one will find the family names Becker… Wagner… Weber… These, and others, are folks who first answered the call of Catherine II, in July 1763, to come to Russia to colonize the Volga regions….
The Pacific Northwesterner
Volume 8
Fall, 1964
Number 4
Inland Empire Russia Germans
By Harm H. Schlomer
(Excerpts)
(Page 58)
The homes were heated with a combination of two kinds of fuel. The “Lenne” tree was cut into cord wood for heating. The long burning fuel, however, was made from a mixture of horse manure, straw and water, compressed in forms and dried in squares. Sunflower growing was one of the main crops. In one larger village there were twenty-two (Oelmuehle) oil mills producing cooking oil. The sunflower seed was peeled. The kernel was ground to a pulp, heated and compressed. The oil would then run out of a tube at the base of the compressed container. The colonists used sunflower oil exclusively for cooking purposes.
Making pig sausage was a specialty among the colonists. The hogs were cut up, the pieces run through a sasuage grinder, then seasoned expertly with salt and pepper. Success in following the recipe included frequent tasting to get the flavor “just right.”…
On the plains (Wiesenseite) (MY NOTES: Brunnentahl) of the Volga, watermelons and Zuckermelon, like catelopes, were important crops. The summers were warm and the season right to mature large delicious melons. Wheat, rye and barley were the principal crops. The housing conditions were crowded. Up to eighteen people lived in one house. The father, mother, children and the oldest children with their wives or husbands often shared one house. Harmoney was maintained by strict training – that each member of the household must respect the rights of every other member….
Dr. Conrad Weitz, in 1913 (MY NOTES: The year the Ehlenbergers were told to flee while they could), knew that war in Europe was about to break out. Like others before him, he left on a limited pass. The Russian government sent him a telegram upon his arrival in Belmont, New York, to return immediately to report for military duty. Instead, Conrad proceeded to Endicott, Washington. The Russian government located him in Colfax. He received a second telegram to report for duty. Roy LaFollette, Conrad’s attorney in Colfax, helped him take out his first naturalization papers. This stopped the Russians…. (MY NOTES: You can see why the Ehlenbergers still feared what Russia might do, even though they had returned to America. There are several stories in this article about Germans who avoided the Russian military draft in this method—leaving on limited passes and never returning. Many came to America because the land parcels were continually being divided and became too small to be profitable.)
(Page 60)
Among the established families of the Inland Empire from the Volga colonies at Ritzville, Odessa, Endicott and Colfax, one will find the family names Becker… Wagner… Weber… These, and others, are folks who first answered the call of Catherine II, in July 1763, to come to Russia to colonize the Volga regions….
Settling In
AHSGR, Work Paper No. 6, May 1971
The Pacific Northwesterner
Volume 8
Fall, 1964
Number 4
Inland Empire Russia Germans
By Harm H. Schlomer
(Excerpts)
(Page 56)
One hundred years after Catherine had called the Germans to the Volga, they had progressed to a level of farming leadership in Russia. Their villages were clean. The Germans had introduced water systems into their villages. Their farms were models of productivity to all the native Russians. They were prosperous….
(Page 57)
Jakob Ils, born July 8, 1878 (MY NOTES: Two years after David Ehlenberger.), on the (Bergseite) hilly side of the Volga, came to Ritzville (MY NOTES: Washington State)at the age of 35 with his wife Katherina, nee Schoessler, in the year 1912. Jakob Ils came on money that his father gave him before he left the Volga colony. In 1899 he was drafted into the Russian army and he served four years on the Turkish border. In 1904, he was released from the army to return home for a short time. In the fall of 1904, he was drafted again to serve two years in the Russo-Japanese war. He fought in the battle of “Lyonski Boye” about fifty miles from the Mukden. He was transferred all along the front to near Vladivostock as an infantry soldier…. (MY NOTES: I included this because this is very similar to the story that Grandma Behie told us about her father. She said that one of the reasons he left Russia in 1907 was because they had drafted him again, and he didn’t want to fight anymore.).
Heinrich Boos… related how his family had farmed with camels and horses. Farming with camels was quite common in the southern Russia German settlements. He had left for the greater opportunities in America. To get the money to make the trip he had sold all of his personal possessions….
(Page 58)
Adam P. and Johann Morasch referred to their village on the Volga as a “paradise in which everything grew.” In fact, there were so many native delicious wild strawberries everywhere when the colonists arrived from Germany that the village was called Jagodnaja, Russian for strawberry. On the (Bergseite) hilly side of the Volga River colony strips of land were alternately covered by woods and farmland. The woods were deciduous, mostly oak, birch and a very useful tree called “Lenne.” From the Lenne a tea was made and the bark was sliced to make shoes. Adam P., Johann, and Elizabeth recalled how in their childhood in the Volga colony they would suck the sweet sap from the Lenne tree through straws each spring of the year. What a treat this was! The lumber from the Lenne tree was used for flooring.
The Pacific Northwesterner
Volume 8
Fall, 1964
Number 4
Inland Empire Russia Germans
By Harm H. Schlomer
(Excerpts)
(Page 56)
One hundred years after Catherine had called the Germans to the Volga, they had progressed to a level of farming leadership in Russia. Their villages were clean. The Germans had introduced water systems into their villages. Their farms were models of productivity to all the native Russians. They were prosperous….
(Page 57)
Jakob Ils, born July 8, 1878 (MY NOTES: Two years after David Ehlenberger.), on the (Bergseite) hilly side of the Volga, came to Ritzville (MY NOTES: Washington State)at the age of 35 with his wife Katherina, nee Schoessler, in the year 1912. Jakob Ils came on money that his father gave him before he left the Volga colony. In 1899 he was drafted into the Russian army and he served four years on the Turkish border. In 1904, he was released from the army to return home for a short time. In the fall of 1904, he was drafted again to serve two years in the Russo-Japanese war. He fought in the battle of “Lyonski Boye” about fifty miles from the Mukden. He was transferred all along the front to near Vladivostock as an infantry soldier…. (MY NOTES: I included this because this is very similar to the story that Grandma Behie told us about her father. She said that one of the reasons he left Russia in 1907 was because they had drafted him again, and he didn’t want to fight anymore.).
Heinrich Boos… related how his family had farmed with camels and horses. Farming with camels was quite common in the southern Russia German settlements. He had left for the greater opportunities in America. To get the money to make the trip he had sold all of his personal possessions….
(Page 58)
Adam P. and Johann Morasch referred to their village on the Volga as a “paradise in which everything grew.” In fact, there were so many native delicious wild strawberries everywhere when the colonists arrived from Germany that the village was called Jagodnaja, Russian for strawberry. On the (Bergseite) hilly side of the Volga River colony strips of land were alternately covered by woods and farmland. The woods were deciduous, mostly oak, birch and a very useful tree called “Lenne.” From the Lenne a tea was made and the bark was sliced to make shoes. Adam P., Johann, and Elizabeth recalled how in their childhood in the Volga colony they would suck the sweet sap from the Lenne tree through straws each spring of the year. What a treat this was! The lumber from the Lenne tree was used for flooring.
The Russia German
AHSGR, Work Paper No. 6, May 1971
The Pacific Northwesterner
Volume 8
Fall, 1964
Number 4
Inland Empire Russia Germans
By Harm H. Schlomer
(Excerpts)
(Page 55)
In this paper the designation Russia Germans is consistently used. This designation appears to be the most correct. It is careless usage of terms to refer to these people as “Russians” or to use any term that would imply identity with the native people of Russia. In the interests of accuracy we need to remember that the colonists are Germans, and that they struggled against odds to keep their culture and civilization unaffected by their domicile in Russia. All of the first colonists were located on the west bank of the Volga, called the “Bergseite” or hilly side (MY NOTES: The village of Frank is on this side.). In 1765, villages were founded on the eastern shore or plain side (Wiesenseite) (MY NOTES: Brunnentahl is on this side.)….
(Page 56)
The struggle of the Russia Germans to make progress was slow. The first cellar houses were dug out of the hillside called Semlenke or earth house. Then the colonists made their own bricks out of loam mixed with straw four inches thick, one foot wide and eighteen inches long. The homes were built out of these bricks. As the years unfolded the Russia Germans developed wood houses built of lumber, covered with straw first, then wood and tin. Apart from agriculture, the greatest industry on the Volga was the manufacture of grain into flour. The spinning and weaving industries were also developed on the “Bergseite” hilly side of the Volga. There were no bridges across the Volga. Corssings to the capital, Saratov, were made by ship. In the winter the Volga would freeze over solidly so that colonists could drive across it in sleds.
The years of change and progress in the Volga colonies were the result of constant hard work and sacrifice. The Russia Germans developed a materialistic measure of values superimposed upon strong emotional religious traditions. Success was measured by the land one possessed. At the same time the Russia German had an awareness of his past sorrows. Often – when one touches upon the experience of his past sorrows, be becomes filled with emotion…
The Russia German believed that a man was as good as his word. In business dealings, mortgages, notes and liens were not executed. If the buyer was not to be trusted, there was no transaction. He bought when he could make payment in cash. To illustrate this trait of honesty, the following story is told. “A man once bought a horse and agreed on time payments. He had heard that in instances of this sort, the buyer eas supposed to give a note. So he gave his note to him with the remark, ‘You have the horse, you may as well have the note.’ Later the man came to pay, bringing the note with him. ‘Now,’ he said, as he paid the money, ‘you have the money and you may as well have the note also.’” For the Russia German it was a disgrace to ask for credit. Debts were a worry. When he bought he could bargain well. The price he agreed the pay was paid. If a mistake was made in the transaction in his favor he returned what he was not entitled to, often going out of his way to do so.
The Pacific Northwesterner
Volume 8
Fall, 1964
Number 4
Inland Empire Russia Germans
By Harm H. Schlomer
(Excerpts)
(Page 55)
In this paper the designation Russia Germans is consistently used. This designation appears to be the most correct. It is careless usage of terms to refer to these people as “Russians” or to use any term that would imply identity with the native people of Russia. In the interests of accuracy we need to remember that the colonists are Germans, and that they struggled against odds to keep their culture and civilization unaffected by their domicile in Russia. All of the first colonists were located on the west bank of the Volga, called the “Bergseite” or hilly side (MY NOTES: The village of Frank is on this side.). In 1765, villages were founded on the eastern shore or plain side (Wiesenseite) (MY NOTES: Brunnentahl is on this side.)….
(Page 56)
The struggle of the Russia Germans to make progress was slow. The first cellar houses were dug out of the hillside called Semlenke or earth house. Then the colonists made their own bricks out of loam mixed with straw four inches thick, one foot wide and eighteen inches long. The homes were built out of these bricks. As the years unfolded the Russia Germans developed wood houses built of lumber, covered with straw first, then wood and tin. Apart from agriculture, the greatest industry on the Volga was the manufacture of grain into flour. The spinning and weaving industries were also developed on the “Bergseite” hilly side of the Volga. There were no bridges across the Volga. Corssings to the capital, Saratov, were made by ship. In the winter the Volga would freeze over solidly so that colonists could drive across it in sleds.
The years of change and progress in the Volga colonies were the result of constant hard work and sacrifice. The Russia Germans developed a materialistic measure of values superimposed upon strong emotional religious traditions. Success was measured by the land one possessed. At the same time the Russia German had an awareness of his past sorrows. Often – when one touches upon the experience of his past sorrows, be becomes filled with emotion…
The Russia German believed that a man was as good as his word. In business dealings, mortgages, notes and liens were not executed. If the buyer was not to be trusted, there was no transaction. He bought when he could make payment in cash. To illustrate this trait of honesty, the following story is told. “A man once bought a horse and agreed on time payments. He had heard that in instances of this sort, the buyer eas supposed to give a note. So he gave his note to him with the remark, ‘You have the horse, you may as well have the note.’ Later the man came to pay, bringing the note with him. ‘Now,’ he said, as he paid the money, ‘you have the money and you may as well have the note also.’” For the Russia German it was a disgrace to ask for credit. Debts were a worry. When he bought he could bargain well. The price he agreed the pay was paid. If a mistake was made in the transaction in his favor he returned what he was not entitled to, often going out of his way to do so.
The Second Wave of Emigrants into Russia
AHSGR, Work Paper No. 6, May 1971
The Pacific Northwesterner
Volume 8
Fall, 1964
Number 4
Inland Empire Russia Germans
By Harm H. Schlomer
(Excerpts)
(Page 54)
For the first ten years the colonists harvested only subsistence crops. They experienced much of the same life as our American pioneers upon entering the unchartered west. The government was obliged to extend credit to supply seed which always came late, and to supply flour which for years was a sour mouldy rye product. Debts mounted. Moreover, the men were not permitted to leave the villages to look for work. The nomadic raiders often razed whole villages and carried men away into slavery. The immigrant had hoped to come to a land of freedom, actually he had gone from liberty into slavery. In this way the Volga colony was started…
…The solid and hardy qualities of the settlers on the Volga would also serve to great advantage to hold the new territories for Russia even though many of the colonists brought in under Catherine were of less than average quality. With a little planning and diplomacy superior and sturdy settlers could be gotten from Germany.
In accordance with this need, a second colonization policy and program was issued by Alexander I in the Ukase of February 20, 1804. Under the new policy, emphasis was placed on a selected limited immigration. German farmers and artisans were carefully selected. They were to travel in groups and not more than 200 families were accepted in one year. The agent was to pay transportation only, and to issue passports only to those who were honest, industrious and possessed not less than 300 rubles in cash or property. These colonists were to be family men.
(Page 55)
This set the second great German emigration in motion. It began in 1804, and continued until 1817. The areas settled by these people were called the Black Sea colonies….
The Pacific Northwesterner
Volume 8
Fall, 1964
Number 4
Inland Empire Russia Germans
By Harm H. Schlomer
(Excerpts)
(Page 54)
For the first ten years the colonists harvested only subsistence crops. They experienced much of the same life as our American pioneers upon entering the unchartered west. The government was obliged to extend credit to supply seed which always came late, and to supply flour which for years was a sour mouldy rye product. Debts mounted. Moreover, the men were not permitted to leave the villages to look for work. The nomadic raiders often razed whole villages and carried men away into slavery. The immigrant had hoped to come to a land of freedom, actually he had gone from liberty into slavery. In this way the Volga colony was started…
…The solid and hardy qualities of the settlers on the Volga would also serve to great advantage to hold the new territories for Russia even though many of the colonists brought in under Catherine were of less than average quality. With a little planning and diplomacy superior and sturdy settlers could be gotten from Germany.
In accordance with this need, a second colonization policy and program was issued by Alexander I in the Ukase of February 20, 1804. Under the new policy, emphasis was placed on a selected limited immigration. German farmers and artisans were carefully selected. They were to travel in groups and not more than 200 families were accepted in one year. The agent was to pay transportation only, and to issue passports only to those who were honest, industrious and possessed not less than 300 rubles in cash or property. These colonists were to be family men.
(Page 55)
This set the second great German emigration in motion. It began in 1804, and continued until 1817. The areas settled by these people were called the Black Sea colonies….
False Promises
AHSGR, Work Paper No. 6, May 1971
The Pacific Northwesterner
Volume 8
Fall, 1964
Number 4
Inland Empire Russia Germans
By Harm H. Schlomer
(Excerpts)
(Page 53)
Since the middle of the 18th century, however, Russia was not in a position to colonize the empty steppes. The bad situation of the peasants, the hard fetters of serfdom, their entire economic and cultural condition made them useless for profitable colonization. In order to realize the colonization of the steppes, therefore, Russia turned her attention over her borders to western Europe. With this a new epoch in the “Europeanizing” of Russia was opened which had already begun under Peter the Great.
(Page 54)…Now the goal was, to establish whole German settlements on the open land. So it was the obvious thing to do for Catherine II, herself a German, to turn to colonizing with Germans in a big way. Her manifesto of July 22, 1763, was the cornerstone of Russian colonization policy during her reign and in later times. In this document the colonists were promised the right to settle in any part of Russia, payment of traveling expenses, freedom of religion, freedom from taxes for thirty years, freedom from military service, and internal self-government.
…Countless copies of the Czarina’s (Catherine II) appeal were distributed in Germany. All of the ministers and representatives at the numerous courts of divided Germany spread a net of assembly points over the German “Laender.” Through all kinds of lures and inducements the Russian agents sought to get emigrants. Numerous lies and tricks were practiced by the Russian agents in their attempts to gain large numbers of colonists. The Germans were told that the country along the Volga was very much like the one in which they were living. They were told that the climate was extremely mild, the ground fertile, and the entire region a veritable paradise. In this way 25,000 people were enlisted for the colonization of the Volga region…
The German colonists were deceived the moment they set foot on Russian soil. In imagination the Germans saw a new paradise awaiting them at the end of the journey. What they found was a no-man’s land. No sooner had colonies been established than nomadic raiders descended upon the settlers to steal, plunder, rob and burn, especially on the east side of the Volga, the plains side (Wiesenseite) (MY NOTES: Brunnentahl is on the east side.). The newly acquired land on the Volga was either very light and sandy in parts or very rich. It gradually dawned on the stolid Germans that they were to be used to tame the nomadic hordes, (wild Mongolian tribes called Kalmucks, Bashkirs, Kirghiz, etc.) and to cultivate the virgin soil.
The Pacific Northwesterner
Volume 8
Fall, 1964
Number 4
Inland Empire Russia Germans
By Harm H. Schlomer
(Excerpts)
(Page 53)
Since the middle of the 18th century, however, Russia was not in a position to colonize the empty steppes. The bad situation of the peasants, the hard fetters of serfdom, their entire economic and cultural condition made them useless for profitable colonization. In order to realize the colonization of the steppes, therefore, Russia turned her attention over her borders to western Europe. With this a new epoch in the “Europeanizing” of Russia was opened which had already begun under Peter the Great.
(Page 54)…Now the goal was, to establish whole German settlements on the open land. So it was the obvious thing to do for Catherine II, herself a German, to turn to colonizing with Germans in a big way. Her manifesto of July 22, 1763, was the cornerstone of Russian colonization policy during her reign and in later times. In this document the colonists were promised the right to settle in any part of Russia, payment of traveling expenses, freedom of religion, freedom from taxes for thirty years, freedom from military service, and internal self-government.
…Countless copies of the Czarina’s (Catherine II) appeal were distributed in Germany. All of the ministers and representatives at the numerous courts of divided Germany spread a net of assembly points over the German “Laender.” Through all kinds of lures and inducements the Russian agents sought to get emigrants. Numerous lies and tricks were practiced by the Russian agents in their attempts to gain large numbers of colonists. The Germans were told that the country along the Volga was very much like the one in which they were living. They were told that the climate was extremely mild, the ground fertile, and the entire region a veritable paradise. In this way 25,000 people were enlisted for the colonization of the Volga region…
The German colonists were deceived the moment they set foot on Russian soil. In imagination the Germans saw a new paradise awaiting them at the end of the journey. What they found was a no-man’s land. No sooner had colonies been established than nomadic raiders descended upon the settlers to steal, plunder, rob and burn, especially on the east side of the Volga, the plains side (Wiesenseite) (MY NOTES: Brunnentahl is on the east side.). The newly acquired land on the Volga was either very light and sandy in parts or very rich. It gradually dawned on the stolid Germans that they were to be used to tame the nomadic hordes, (wild Mongolian tribes called Kalmucks, Bashkirs, Kirghiz, etc.) and to cultivate the virgin soil.
Economic Development. The Immigration
AHSGR, Work Paper No. 5, February 1971
(Excerpts)
Page 35:
According to the official dates of the Commissioner of Immigration since 1903 to 1927 there emigrated from Russia to the United States 115,022 persons., of German descent.
The highest number came in the years:
1905: 10,279
1906: 13,480 (MY NOTES: David Ehlenberger and family first arrived in 1907.)
1911: 11,031
1912: 17,857
1913: 9,889 (MY NOTES: The David Ehlenberger family's second arrival was in late 1913.)
Total persons who immigrated from Russia to the United States since 1857-1905: 1,565,487. (74)
This shows that the highest immigration took place during or about the time of the Japanese war and the years before World War I. Dates from 1857 to 1903 indicate in general persons from Russia, but not the nationality.
One can state that the Germans from Russia became in time quite prosperous. About half of the Volga Germans from Russia are on farms in Kansas, Nebraska, Colorado and other states. The other half lives in the cities and are employed in he factories, shops railroads, etc. They were usually much poorer than the Black Sea Germans at their arrival. Big settlements of Volga Germans employed in industries are found in Chicago, Lincoln, Denver, Portland, and Fresno. They usually live in the suburbs, but not in slums. Their yards and houses are clean. Hattie Plum Williams writes in her book A Social Study of the Russian German "Neglect and decay of buildings is nowhere visible. On the other hand many of the houses of the settlement are made over from half tumbled down structures which were brought at a low price and remodeled under the skillful and painstaking hand of the owner."
Page 36:
(Excerpt)
The steamship lines used by the Russian-Germans to reach the shores of the United States were: The Hamburg America Line, Red Star Line, Inman Line, and The North German LLoyed. (MY NOTES: David Ehlenberger and family came first on the Umbria, and second on the Ascania.)
NOTES:
(74) Rath. G. Die Russlanddeutschen in de Vereinigten Staaten von Nord Amerika. Heimatbuch. 1963. p. 42.
(Excerpts)
Page 35:
According to the official dates of the Commissioner of Immigration since 1903 to 1927 there emigrated from Russia to the United States 115,022 persons., of German descent.
The highest number came in the years:
1905: 10,279
1906: 13,480 (MY NOTES: David Ehlenberger and family first arrived in 1907.)
1911: 11,031
1912: 17,857
1913: 9,889 (MY NOTES: The David Ehlenberger family's second arrival was in late 1913.)
Total persons who immigrated from Russia to the United States since 1857-1905: 1,565,487. (74)
This shows that the highest immigration took place during or about the time of the Japanese war and the years before World War I. Dates from 1857 to 1903 indicate in general persons from Russia, but not the nationality.
One can state that the Germans from Russia became in time quite prosperous. About half of the Volga Germans from Russia are on farms in Kansas, Nebraska, Colorado and other states. The other half lives in the cities and are employed in he factories, shops railroads, etc. They were usually much poorer than the Black Sea Germans at their arrival. Big settlements of Volga Germans employed in industries are found in Chicago, Lincoln, Denver, Portland, and Fresno. They usually live in the suburbs, but not in slums. Their yards and houses are clean. Hattie Plum Williams writes in her book A Social Study of the Russian German "Neglect and decay of buildings is nowhere visible. On the other hand many of the houses of the settlement are made over from half tumbled down structures which were brought at a low price and remodeled under the skillful and painstaking hand of the owner."
Page 36:
(Excerpt)
The steamship lines used by the Russian-Germans to reach the shores of the United States were: The Hamburg America Line, Red Star Line, Inman Line, and The North German LLoyed. (MY NOTES: David Ehlenberger and family came first on the Umbria, and second on the Ascania.)
NOTES:
(74) Rath. G. Die Russlanddeutschen in de Vereinigten Staaten von Nord Amerika. Heimatbuch. 1963. p. 42.
The Volga Germans
AHSGR, Work Paper No. 5, February 1971
(Excerpts)
Page 30:
The Volga Germans
In 1874 the Evangelical and Catholic Volga German colonies held meetings which resulted in the election of 14 delegates whom they sent to the United States to look for land. Nine of them were Evangelical and five were Catholic. They came over on the ship Schiller or the Hamburg America Line. They were in the states of Arkansas, Kansas, and Nebraska. In September of the same year the immigration from the Volga began. The Protestants went to Sutton, Nebraska, and the Catholics to Kansas. Some of the Protestants also went to Kansas. (MY NOTES: Did this have anything to do with the Wagner/Ehlenberger desire to come to America?)
Page 32:
The Protestant Volga Germans started for Kansas around Christmas, 1875. They settled first near Peabody, Marion, and Tampa in the neighborhood of the Mennonites in Marion county. Later they spread farther est to Rush and Russel counties; also to Bazine and Ness counties. (51)
The Catholic Volga Germans started their immigration to Kansas in October 1875 on the ship Ohio of the North German Lloyd line. They settled also in Rush, Russel, and Ellis counties and organized a number of villages: Liebentaz, Pfeifer, Munior, Schoenchen, Catherine, and Victoria (formerly Herzog). (52) St. Francis has a Black Sea German Settlement. Some Black Sea Germans live near Russel. (53)
Page 34:
Oregon
The oldest Volga German settlement in this state is in the northern part of Portland. In the 30's this settlement numbered about 500 families. It goes back to 1882, when the Volga Germans, after having worked for the Union Pacific, were either brought to or terminated their employment in San Francisco. From there they were brought to Portland by ship.
In 1891 a group of Black Sea Germans settled in Eugene, and in 1906 and 1909 in Mulino and Newberg.
In 1892 some Black Sea Germans settled in Portland togeterh with some Catholic Volga Germans.
NOTES:
(51) Sallet, Richard. Ibid. pp. 34-35
(52) The Golden Jubilee of the German-Russian settlements of Ellis and Rush counties, Kansas pp. 13-14 and the following.
(53) Sallet, R. Ibid. p. 18.
(Excerpts)
Page 30:
The Volga Germans
In 1874 the Evangelical and Catholic Volga German colonies held meetings which resulted in the election of 14 delegates whom they sent to the United States to look for land. Nine of them were Evangelical and five were Catholic. They came over on the ship Schiller or the Hamburg America Line. They were in the states of Arkansas, Kansas, and Nebraska. In September of the same year the immigration from the Volga began. The Protestants went to Sutton, Nebraska, and the Catholics to Kansas. Some of the Protestants also went to Kansas. (MY NOTES: Did this have anything to do with the Wagner/Ehlenberger desire to come to America?)
Page 32:
The Protestant Volga Germans started for Kansas around Christmas, 1875. They settled first near Peabody, Marion, and Tampa in the neighborhood of the Mennonites in Marion county. Later they spread farther est to Rush and Russel counties; also to Bazine and Ness counties. (51)
The Catholic Volga Germans started their immigration to Kansas in October 1875 on the ship Ohio of the North German Lloyd line. They settled also in Rush, Russel, and Ellis counties and organized a number of villages: Liebentaz, Pfeifer, Munior, Schoenchen, Catherine, and Victoria (formerly Herzog). (52) St. Francis has a Black Sea German Settlement. Some Black Sea Germans live near Russel. (53)
Page 34:
Oregon
The oldest Volga German settlement in this state is in the northern part of Portland. In the 30's this settlement numbered about 500 families. It goes back to 1882, when the Volga Germans, after having worked for the Union Pacific, were either brought to or terminated their employment in San Francisco. From there they were brought to Portland by ship.
In 1891 a group of Black Sea Germans settled in Eugene, and in 1906 and 1909 in Mulino and Newberg.
In 1892 some Black Sea Germans settled in Portland togeterh with some Catholic Volga Germans.
NOTES:
(51) Sallet, Richard. Ibid. pp. 34-35
(52) The Golden Jubilee of the German-Russian settlements of Ellis and Rush counties, Kansas pp. 13-14 and the following.
(53) Sallet, R. Ibid. p. 18.
Immigration to the United States
AHSGR, Work Paper No. 5, February 1971
(Excerpts)
Page 28:
Immigration to the United States
On June 4, 1871 the government of Czar Alexander II issued a decree by which the German colonists lost all the privileges granted to them by Catherine II and Alexander I (MY NOTES: Why?). Even the name was taken away. They were no more "Coloniste" but settlers (in Russian "Paselyane"). They still were not made "Krestyane", as the Russian peasants were officially called, but in fact subjected to the "Semstwo", and made equal to the Russian peasantry. For them, this was a discrimination of their social standing. (29) They began to look for some other place for settlement. North and South America became the countries to which they emigrated.
"Among the many good reasons which motivated the immigration of the Russian-Germans to the United States, four are outstanding: 1- General unrest; 2- the wanderlust; 3- the Ukase of June 4, 1871 and; 4- land hunger coupled with land need." (30) Thus writes A. Schock, in his book: In quest of free land. This is all true, but the oral side of the problem also played an immense role.
NOTES:
(28) Ibid. Die heutigen Wohngebiete unde berufliche Aufgliederung der Deutschen in der Sowjetunion. Heimatbuch 1959. p. 3-15.
(29) Schmid, Edmund. Die deutschen Kolonien im Schwarzmeergebeit Sued Russlands p. 25-26.
(30) Schock, Adolph Pof. In quest of free land. p. 97.
(Excerpts)
Page 28:
Immigration to the United States
On June 4, 1871 the government of Czar Alexander II issued a decree by which the German colonists lost all the privileges granted to them by Catherine II and Alexander I (MY NOTES: Why?). Even the name was taken away. They were no more "Coloniste" but settlers (in Russian "Paselyane"). They still were not made "Krestyane", as the Russian peasants were officially called, but in fact subjected to the "Semstwo", and made equal to the Russian peasantry. For them, this was a discrimination of their social standing. (29) They began to look for some other place for settlement. North and South America became the countries to which they emigrated.
"Among the many good reasons which motivated the immigration of the Russian-Germans to the United States, four are outstanding: 1- General unrest; 2- the wanderlust; 3- the Ukase of June 4, 1871 and; 4- land hunger coupled with land need." (30) Thus writes A. Schock, in his book: In quest of free land. This is all true, but the oral side of the problem also played an immense role.
NOTES:
(28) Ibid. Die heutigen Wohngebiete unde berufliche Aufgliederung der Deutschen in der Sowjetunion. Heimatbuch 1959. p. 3-15.
(29) Schmid, Edmund. Die deutschen Kolonien im Schwarzmeergebeit Sued Russlands p. 25-26.
(30) Schock, Adolph Pof. In quest of free land. p. 97.
Economic and Cultural Development
AHSGR, Work Paper No. 5, February 1971
(Excerpts)
Page 27:
Economic and Cultural Development.
There was a great difference in the economical development of the Volga and Black Sea Germans. The Volga colonies practiced the so-called "Mir" system. According to this the land ided [sic] among the inhabitants. This slowed down the economic development to a large degree. At the Black Sea, though, the original colonial land had to stay with one member of the family. The others had to look out for themselves. Thus the whole village had to look for the needed room or land for the next generation. The so called "mother colonies" had to buy again and again land for the so-called "Landlosen" i.e. those of the colony who were without land. On the newly bought land originated the "daughter colonies." At the Volga, the government twice added land to the original amount; about three million acres. Nevertheless, the need for more land remained. The surplus of the population stayed and was an obstacle in the economic progress.
(Excerpt, p. 27)
Every year more land came into the hands of the German colonists, for they were thrifty and industrious people.
(Excerpt, p. 28)
The civil rule of the colonies was executed by the Committee of Guardians in Saratov and Odessa. The direction of the religious matters lay in the hands of the General Consistory in St. Petersburg. (26) The language used in school and church was the native German language. The government did not contribute to the maintenance of the church nor the schools. They were all maintained by the colonists. There was seldom found a person who could not read or write. Illiterates were practically unknown among the Russian-Germans, while according to the census of 1897 the Russian population was as high as 78% illiterate. (27)
(Excerpt, p. 28)
During the First World War the infamous government of Czar Nikolas II issued the Acts of February 2 and December 13 of 1915 (MY NOTES: Why? What is the background on this?) by which the German colonists lost all rights to their land and property. He could not live up to the execution of these laws for, as we know, he and his family were executed in Katharinenburg. Kerensky postponed the execution of these laws, but the Communists had their chance to realize the ideas of Nikolas. They deprived all Germans in European Russia of their possessions and sent them to Siberia or to Turkestan. Not a single German village is left on the European soil of Russia. But in spite of all the desaster [sic], as we hear, the German colonists came slowly back. (28)
NOTES:
(26) The Catholics were under a German-Russian Bishop who resided at Saratov.
(27) Stumpp, Karl. Die Russlanddeutschen. p. 28.
(28) Ibid. Die hetigen Wohngebiete unde berufliche Aufgliederung der Deutschen in der Sowjetunion. Heimatbuch 1959. p. 3-15.
(Excerpts)
Page 27:
Economic and Cultural Development.
There was a great difference in the economical development of the Volga and Black Sea Germans. The Volga colonies practiced the so-called "Mir" system. According to this the land ided [sic] among the inhabitants. This slowed down the economic development to a large degree. At the Black Sea, though, the original colonial land had to stay with one member of the family. The others had to look out for themselves. Thus the whole village had to look for the needed room or land for the next generation. The so called "mother colonies" had to buy again and again land for the so-called "Landlosen" i.e. those of the colony who were without land. On the newly bought land originated the "daughter colonies." At the Volga, the government twice added land to the original amount; about three million acres. Nevertheless, the need for more land remained. The surplus of the population stayed and was an obstacle in the economic progress.
(Excerpt, p. 27)
Every year more land came into the hands of the German colonists, for they were thrifty and industrious people.
(Excerpt, p. 28)
The civil rule of the colonies was executed by the Committee of Guardians in Saratov and Odessa. The direction of the religious matters lay in the hands of the General Consistory in St. Petersburg. (26) The language used in school and church was the native German language. The government did not contribute to the maintenance of the church nor the schools. They were all maintained by the colonists. There was seldom found a person who could not read or write. Illiterates were practically unknown among the Russian-Germans, while according to the census of 1897 the Russian population was as high as 78% illiterate. (27)
(Excerpt, p. 28)
During the First World War the infamous government of Czar Nikolas II issued the Acts of February 2 and December 13 of 1915 (MY NOTES: Why? What is the background on this?) by which the German colonists lost all rights to their land and property. He could not live up to the execution of these laws for, as we know, he and his family were executed in Katharinenburg. Kerensky postponed the execution of these laws, but the Communists had their chance to realize the ideas of Nikolas. They deprived all Germans in European Russia of their possessions and sent them to Siberia or to Turkestan. Not a single German village is left on the European soil of Russia. But in spite of all the desaster [sic], as we hear, the German colonists came slowly back. (28)
NOTES:
(26) The Catholics were under a German-Russian Bishop who resided at Saratov.
(27) Stumpp, Karl. Die Russlanddeutschen. p. 28.
(28) Ibid. Die hetigen Wohngebiete unde berufliche Aufgliederung der Deutschen in der Sowjetunion. Heimatbuch 1959. p. 3-15.
Russia
AHSGR, Work Paper No. 5, February 1971
(Excerpts)
Page 25 - 26:
Already Czar Ivan IV, the Terrible (1533 - 1584), had called craftsmen, merchants and officers from Germany and settled them near Moscow in a village called "Nyemetzkaya Sloboda." Czar Peter I had also invited many Germans when he built his new capital St. Petersburg. But it was the Empress Catherine II, whowith her manifest of July 22, 1763, brought about a great exodus from Germany to Russia. Not only Germans were invited to come and settle in her domain but Western Europeans in General.
The unsatisfactory conditions in Germany favored her inviation. In fact the population suffered mimmensely under the steady wars. There were the three Silesian wars between Austria and Prussia; 1740-1742; 1742-1745; and 1756-1763. Interwoven with them were the Austrian Succession war 1741-1748; adn the Bavarian Succession war 1778-1779. Finally the French Revolution came in 1789 (12) midst [sic] the general poverty and misery the call to Russia came for many as a relief or last resort.
Of most importance among the provisions of the manifesto, are the first 10 sections. Essentially they promise and grant to the settlers the following:
1. Freedom of Religion.
2. Exemption from taxes for a period of ten to thirty years.
3. Loans for the acquisision of necessary tols.
4. Thirty to sixty hectars [sic] of land.
5. Exempton from military service for "all the time of their residence in Russia."
6. Self-rule in church and school.
Item number seven, which deals with the freeing from military ervice, reads thus:
"Paseliwschiesya w Rassii innostrannye wa wso wremya prebywanyia swayewo, ni w wayennuyu, ni w graschdanskuyu sluschbu protiwu woli ich apredeleny ne budut."
In English:
"The foreigners which have settled in Russia shall during all the time o heir living there not be put into military or civil service agains their will."
Government agents spread copies of the edict translated into different languages in Germany, France, Swtzerland, Holland, Austria and Prussia. About 25,000 persons were recruited and directed to the sea ports of Luebeck,Rosslau and also some Hollandish ports including Kronstadt. (13) Some of the emigrants were settled around St. Petersburg in 13 villages, but the great majority was sent to the Volga over Novgorod, Tver, Moscow, Ryavan and Pensa. They landed in Saratov and were placed under the direction of a "Board of Guardians." This board settled the newcomers on both sides of the Volga river. Forty-four villages were founded on the so-called hillside and 60 on the meadowside. Some to the north-east and some to the south of Sarotov [sic]. (14) (MY NOTES: Brunnentahl is just Southeast of Saratov.)
The emigration to Russia went on till 1768, when the German states place a prohibition on further emigration. This was not, however, until Germany in Russia had beome the largest colonist group. Before the First World War it counted 554,000 persons. (16)
In spite of the measures of the western states, the emigration to Russia continued. In the years from 1765-1789 a number of Protestant and Catholic colonies were founded in the provinces of Chersn, Voronezch, Tschernigov and Ekaterinoslav. (17)
NOTES:
(12) Stumpp, K. Dr. Die deutsche Auswanderung nach Russland 1763-1862. Page VI.
(13) Bonwetsch, Gehardt Dr. Geschichte der deutschen Kolonien an der Wolga pp. 30-31.
(14) Stumpp, K. Dr. The German Russians p. 12.
(16) Mortitz, Andreas. Aus der russlanddeutschen Forschung. Deutsche Post aus dem Osten 1940. p. 14.
(17) Stumpp, Karl Dr. Die Russlanddeutschen. p. 13.
(Excerpts)
Page 25 - 26:
Already Czar Ivan IV, the Terrible (1533 - 1584), had called craftsmen, merchants and officers from Germany and settled them near Moscow in a village called "Nyemetzkaya Sloboda." Czar Peter I had also invited many Germans when he built his new capital St. Petersburg. But it was the Empress Catherine II, whowith her manifest of July 22, 1763, brought about a great exodus from Germany to Russia. Not only Germans were invited to come and settle in her domain but Western Europeans in General.
The unsatisfactory conditions in Germany favored her inviation. In fact the population suffered mimmensely under the steady wars. There were the three Silesian wars between Austria and Prussia; 1740-1742; 1742-1745; and 1756-1763. Interwoven with them were the Austrian Succession war 1741-1748; adn the Bavarian Succession war 1778-1779. Finally the French Revolution came in 1789 (12) midst [sic] the general poverty and misery the call to Russia came for many as a relief or last resort.
Of most importance among the provisions of the manifesto, are the first 10 sections. Essentially they promise and grant to the settlers the following:
1. Freedom of Religion.
2. Exemption from taxes for a period of ten to thirty years.
3. Loans for the acquisision of necessary tols.
4. Thirty to sixty hectars [sic] of land.
5. Exempton from military service for "all the time of their residence in Russia."
6. Self-rule in church and school.
Item number seven, which deals with the freeing from military ervice, reads thus:
"Paseliwschiesya w Rassii innostrannye wa wso wremya prebywanyia swayewo, ni w wayennuyu, ni w graschdanskuyu sluschbu protiwu woli ich apredeleny ne budut."
In English:
"The foreigners which have settled in Russia shall during all the time o heir living there not be put into military or civil service agains their will."
Government agents spread copies of the edict translated into different languages in Germany, France, Swtzerland, Holland, Austria and Prussia. About 25,000 persons were recruited and directed to the sea ports of Luebeck,Rosslau and also some Hollandish ports including Kronstadt. (13) Some of the emigrants were settled around St. Petersburg in 13 villages, but the great majority was sent to the Volga over Novgorod, Tver, Moscow, Ryavan and Pensa. They landed in Saratov and were placed under the direction of a "Board of Guardians." This board settled the newcomers on both sides of the Volga river. Forty-four villages were founded on the so-called hillside and 60 on the meadowside. Some to the north-east and some to the south of Sarotov [sic]. (14) (MY NOTES: Brunnentahl is just Southeast of Saratov.)
The emigration to Russia went on till 1768, when the German states place a prohibition on further emigration. This was not, however, until Germany in Russia had beome the largest colonist group. Before the First World War it counted 554,000 persons. (16)
In spite of the measures of the western states, the emigration to Russia continued. In the years from 1765-1789 a number of Protestant and Catholic colonies were founded in the provinces of Chersn, Voronezch, Tschernigov and Ekaterinoslav. (17)
NOTES:
(12) Stumpp, K. Dr. Die deutsche Auswanderung nach Russland 1763-1862. Page VI.
(13) Bonwetsch, Gehardt Dr. Geschichte der deutschen Kolonien an der Wolga pp. 30-31.
(14) Stumpp, K. Dr. The German Russians p. 12.
(16) Mortitz, Andreas. Aus der russlanddeutschen Forschung. Deutsche Post aus dem Osten 1940. p. 14.
(17) Stumpp, Karl Dr. Die Russlanddeutschen. p. 13.
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