The Village Frank Newsletter
Volume 22, Number 1
Winter 1992/1993
Sherrie Stahl, editor
Casey Haas Visits The Village of Brunnental – Summer 1992
(Excerpts)
(Page 9)
“…It was my wife’s family that came from Brunnental. She was born Gloria Becker. George Friedrich Becker (b. 30 Jul 1875) was her grandfather and Katherine Elizabeth Melcher 9b. 15 Feb 1877) was her grandmother. Her father was August Becker (b. 5 May 1911).
“Our trip to Brunnental lasted two days and one night. We stayed with a Heinrich Hartung family of German/Russians. He was a wonderful host and fed us well. We ate four meals a day, and three of those were served with vodka. We ate such things as noodle soups and we had fish for breakfast.
“Mr. Hartung was born in Brunnental in about 1934 and was 7 years old in 1941 when his family was deported, along with all the other residents of the village, to Kazakhstan. They returned to Brunnental in 1976 along with 15 other German families. They are preparing to emigrate to Germany, as soon as they are allowed to. They knew the Becker family…
“The conditions in Brunnental are very much as we have heard about in the other villages--- they do have electricity, but no running water. There are no paved streets and no indoor plumbing. There is one store in town (a room about 15 feet by 20 feet) where they sell sacks of potatoes and loaves of bread (not wrapped) and sugar (which is being rationed at 1 kilo per month). There is very little food to be purchased and almost everyone has a garden and raises their own food--- the main occupation is farming.
“Brunnental is located on the east side of the Volga River about 30-40 miles from the river itself. It is also about 90 miles from Saratov. The roads from Saratov were very poor and rough.
(Page 10)
“The are near Brunnental looks like the plains--- there are very few trees left--- the land has been cleared as far as the eye can see. We did find a few of the apple gardens on the outskirts of town.
“There are no mills left, but the dam is still there. It has 12 gates and operating gears, but the rods are missing to operate it. There are planks laying across the top and I walked across--- this is called the Bisjuk River --sp?) and it is only 30-40 feet wide, but then spreads to 100 feet behind the dam.
“There are a few cars in town, but nowhere to get gas. One of the strangest sights is the amount of modern farm equipment, sitting out in fields, that is broken down--- they are unable to get parts to fix it, so it just sits there.”
(Continued later)
Thursday, February 26, 2009
Families From FRANK
The Village Frank Newsletter
Volume 22, Number 1
Winter 1992/1993
Sherrie Stahl, editor
Did Your Family Come From The Village of FRANK??
(Excerpts)
(Page 2)
(This information is a reprint from AHSGR-Clues 1972-Part 1)
FRANK- (Russian name: Medveditskij or Medwedizkoi Krestowoj Bujerak), present name is Medweditza, (see Work Paper #23, p. 3). Kanton: Frank, Wolost: Frank. Established May 16, 1767, 115 families, 525 settlers. Lutheran Colony on the Bergseite, located in the A-4 quadrant in Stumpp map #6. As given by Mr. Carl Eckhardt, Hastings, Nebraska in Die Welt Post,, 19 Oct. 1939.
(MY NOTES: This is in no way a complete list. The following represents known family names only. I will add to this as necessary.)
74. Wagner
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ON FRANK
Surnames found in Frank, Russia. Based on list given by Mr. Fred Grosskopf of Greely, Colorado in 1968.
4. Bath, Bott
14. Elenberger
63. *Wagner
65. Webber, Weber
*Fred Grosskopf thought these families came from Saxony.
(Excerpts)
(Page 4)
“…The exciting news is that one afternoon, a Mr. Batt, formerly from FRANK and now residing in Germany presented me with an outstanding map of FRANK. It identifies every resident of FRANK from 1767 to 1941 by name and location. The map is very professional. I believe that Mr. Batt was an engineer at one time. I have sent the map to Lincoln to have it reproduced and made available for sale to the AHSGR membership. It was the request of Mr. Batt-- who would not take any money for the map—to have it made available to our AHSGR membership….”
…this village map (Map #55) is now available from AHSGR in Lincoln, NE... Please write to: AHSGR, 631 D. Street, Lincoln, NE. 69502-1199.
According to the AHSGR Newsletter, the #55 FRANK Village Map was drawn by Heinrich Batt of Germany, and it shows who was living in each homestead as of August 1941. The newsletter goes on to say that this new map is much more thorough than the other FRANK Map #19 which depicted the village at the turn of the century.
Volume 22, Number 1
Winter 1992/1993
Sherrie Stahl, editor
Did Your Family Come From The Village of FRANK??
(Excerpts)
(Page 2)
(This information is a reprint from AHSGR-Clues 1972-Part 1)
FRANK- (Russian name: Medveditskij or Medwedizkoi Krestowoj Bujerak), present name is Medweditza, (see Work Paper #23, p. 3). Kanton: Frank, Wolost: Frank. Established May 16, 1767, 115 families, 525 settlers. Lutheran Colony on the Bergseite, located in the A-4 quadrant in Stumpp map #6. As given by Mr. Carl Eckhardt, Hastings, Nebraska in Die Welt Post,, 19 Oct. 1939.
(MY NOTES: This is in no way a complete list. The following represents known family names only. I will add to this as necessary.)
74. Wagner
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ON FRANK
Surnames found in Frank, Russia. Based on list given by Mr. Fred Grosskopf of Greely, Colorado in 1968.
4. Bath, Bott
14. Elenberger
63. *Wagner
65. Webber, Weber
*Fred Grosskopf thought these families came from Saxony.
(Excerpts)
(Page 4)
“…The exciting news is that one afternoon, a Mr. Batt, formerly from FRANK and now residing in Germany presented me with an outstanding map of FRANK. It identifies every resident of FRANK from 1767 to 1941 by name and location. The map is very professional. I believe that Mr. Batt was an engineer at one time. I have sent the map to Lincoln to have it reproduced and made available for sale to the AHSGR membership. It was the request of Mr. Batt-- who would not take any money for the map—to have it made available to our AHSGR membership….”
…this village map (Map #55) is now available from AHSGR in Lincoln, NE... Please write to: AHSGR, 631 D. Street, Lincoln, NE. 69502-1199.
According to the AHSGR Newsletter, the #55 FRANK Village Map was drawn by Heinrich Batt of Germany, and it shows who was living in each homestead as of August 1941. The newsletter goes on to say that this new map is much more thorough than the other FRANK Map #19 which depicted the village at the turn of the century.
Kansas and Oregon Volga Germans
The Village Frank Newsletter
Volume 21, Number 3
Fall 1992
Sherrie Stahl, editor
Can Your Help Us Do Research In Your Geographical Area?
(Excerpts)
(Page 2)
COLORADO & KANSAS: …The beet industry developed swiftly and with it the expansion into the South Platte River Valley of northeastern Colorado. A sugar refinery in Loveland was built in 1901, another in Eaton and in 1902 one in Windsor. Others were erected later in Greely, Brighton, Longmont, Fort Collins, and in 1905, in Sterling, Colorado. Loveland in the South Platte Valley had the oldest settlement. In May, 1901 some twenty families, most of them originating in Frank, Russia, came here from McCook, Nebraska. Others arrived from Denver, Sutton and Hastings. Even in 1930 Volga Germans from Frank represented most of the population in Loveland and also in Greeley, Colorado….
(Page 3)
WASHINGTON, OREGON AND CALIFORNIA: The first Volga Germans reached the west coast as early as 1881. Several Frankers were part of the wagon train that left Sutton, and Culbertson and headed west to Ritzville, Washington. In 1888 to 1890 Portland, Oregon received an influx of immigrants from Frank and Brunnental. Another large migration took place in 1907, and another in 1912. (MY NOTES: David and Katherine Ehlenberger first arrived in 1907.)
(Excerpted from the 1923 poem, “A Mournful Song on Brunnental” by Elias Hergert, as translated by Marie Trupp Kreiger.)
(Page 8)
I believe I have listed all
I do not find anymore
Of our dear Brunnental
Only one more, JACOB LEHR.
Now I remember as I end this
That is my in-law, with
JOHN ELENBERGER for spite
Make no further complaint….
Volume 21, Number 3
Fall 1992
Sherrie Stahl, editor
Can Your Help Us Do Research In Your Geographical Area?
(Excerpts)
(Page 2)
COLORADO & KANSAS: …The beet industry developed swiftly and with it the expansion into the South Platte River Valley of northeastern Colorado. A sugar refinery in Loveland was built in 1901, another in Eaton and in 1902 one in Windsor. Others were erected later in Greely, Brighton, Longmont, Fort Collins, and in 1905, in Sterling, Colorado. Loveland in the South Platte Valley had the oldest settlement. In May, 1901 some twenty families, most of them originating in Frank, Russia, came here from McCook, Nebraska. Others arrived from Denver, Sutton and Hastings. Even in 1930 Volga Germans from Frank represented most of the population in Loveland and also in Greeley, Colorado….
(Page 3)
WASHINGTON, OREGON AND CALIFORNIA: The first Volga Germans reached the west coast as early as 1881. Several Frankers were part of the wagon train that left Sutton, and Culbertson and headed west to Ritzville, Washington. In 1888 to 1890 Portland, Oregon received an influx of immigrants from Frank and Brunnental. Another large migration took place in 1907, and another in 1912. (MY NOTES: David and Katherine Ehlenberger first arrived in 1907.)
(Excerpted from the 1923 poem, “A Mournful Song on Brunnental” by Elias Hergert, as translated by Marie Trupp Kreiger.)
(Page 8)
I believe I have listed all
I do not find anymore
Of our dear Brunnental
Only one more, JACOB LEHR.
Now I remember as I end this
That is my in-law, with
JOHN ELENBERGER for spite
Make no further complaint….
Escape From Russia
ESCAPE FROM STARVING RUSSIA
By Edward John Amend
Source unknown—possibly AHSGR
(MY NOTES: I have included excerpts from this story because it represents the fate of many Russia Germans after the Bolsheviks took control. It may also represent the fate of those Ehlenbergers and other relatives who stayed behind, rather than emigrate to America.)
(Excerpts)
(Page 17)
My knowledge of the conditions in Soviet Russia is based on the fact that I was a native-born Russian subject and personally experienced the revolution and the first hectic years of Communist rule. I was born in one of the German colonies in the Volga region, received most of my education in Russian schools and served in the Czarist army during the world war. For three years after the war I taught school in a rural community and then in 1921, at the age of twenty-three, left the country.
Whatever may have been the various difficulties at the outbreak of the revolution and during the first years of the new regime, the fact that I was a German, my education and the comparative security I enjoyed as a Soviet employee should have made it easier for me to endure the general hardships in Russia. But when the famine invaded our district, it spared no one except, of course, the privileged members of the ruling party. To save myself from starvation, I seized an opportunity that offered itself to escape from the land of my birth.
…Before Bolshevism appeared on the scene, the life in our little village was peaceful. It was true that during the war there was a shortage of many of the necessities that were abundant prior to its outbreak, but at least we always had more than enough to eat. Our community was located in one of the most fertile sections of the country, and our people were relatively well off even during the four years of war. With the advent of Communism, however, the entire picture changed. After the overthrow of the Czarist regime, rumors of the Kerensky revolution reached our out-of-the-way community, but our life was not materially disturbed. Even the subsequent change in government hardly affected us. But during the fall of 1918, after just a few months of Bolshevik rule, terrible events soon made our existence almost unbearable.
In the winter of 1919-1920 famine swept over the country for the first time. At that point it was predominantly the city population that suffered. In spite of the new government’s urgent orders, accompanied finally by violent threats to compel the peasants to deliver their farm produce, the farmers openly ignored both orders and threats and refused to part with their grain. The main reason for this non-compliance with government orders was the fact that the peasants were offered ridiculously low prices, hardly enough to pay for their seed. “Let them come and get it”, was the sullen grumble of every farmer. And that is exactly what the government did: it sent out detachments of the Red Army into every town, village and hamlet, who collected at gun-point all the grain they could find, paying the peasants nothing at all for it. Under the existing conditions, this desperate step was necessary not only to save the people in the cities, but, above all, to save the new government itself, for Communism then was supported chiefly by the city population.
(Page 18)
…During the winter of 1920-1921, however, the situation was reversed. This time it was the turn of the peasants to starve, while the people in the cities were amply provided for by the government. Early in the fall of 1920, the Bolsheviks, taught by their experience of the previous eyar, sent out their collecting agents with strict orders to take from the peasants all the farm produce they had, including vegetables and fruits. All the grain and other edibles were collected at the nearest city, where regular distribution was made to the city workers and Soviet officials, while the farmers, relying on the promises of the collectors, waiting impatiently for their just shares, which never arrived. Famine spread quickly over the poverty-stricken countryside. To save their lives the farmers had to butcher their last cows and sheep, and after these were gone, their horses also had to be sacrificed. Throughout that long, dreary, and exceptionally cold winter, we existed on a diet that consisted exclusively of meat and, what was worse, meat which had to be prepared without salt. Like salt, many other necessities of life were lacking; items such as sugar, soap, matches and kerosene were unobtainable by the people in the villages…
By Edward John Amend
Source unknown—possibly AHSGR
(MY NOTES: I have included excerpts from this story because it represents the fate of many Russia Germans after the Bolsheviks took control. It may also represent the fate of those Ehlenbergers and other relatives who stayed behind, rather than emigrate to America.)
(Excerpts)
(Page 17)
My knowledge of the conditions in Soviet Russia is based on the fact that I was a native-born Russian subject and personally experienced the revolution and the first hectic years of Communist rule. I was born in one of the German colonies in the Volga region, received most of my education in Russian schools and served in the Czarist army during the world war. For three years after the war I taught school in a rural community and then in 1921, at the age of twenty-three, left the country.
Whatever may have been the various difficulties at the outbreak of the revolution and during the first years of the new regime, the fact that I was a German, my education and the comparative security I enjoyed as a Soviet employee should have made it easier for me to endure the general hardships in Russia. But when the famine invaded our district, it spared no one except, of course, the privileged members of the ruling party. To save myself from starvation, I seized an opportunity that offered itself to escape from the land of my birth.
…Before Bolshevism appeared on the scene, the life in our little village was peaceful. It was true that during the war there was a shortage of many of the necessities that were abundant prior to its outbreak, but at least we always had more than enough to eat. Our community was located in one of the most fertile sections of the country, and our people were relatively well off even during the four years of war. With the advent of Communism, however, the entire picture changed. After the overthrow of the Czarist regime, rumors of the Kerensky revolution reached our out-of-the-way community, but our life was not materially disturbed. Even the subsequent change in government hardly affected us. But during the fall of 1918, after just a few months of Bolshevik rule, terrible events soon made our existence almost unbearable.
In the winter of 1919-1920 famine swept over the country for the first time. At that point it was predominantly the city population that suffered. In spite of the new government’s urgent orders, accompanied finally by violent threats to compel the peasants to deliver their farm produce, the farmers openly ignored both orders and threats and refused to part with their grain. The main reason for this non-compliance with government orders was the fact that the peasants were offered ridiculously low prices, hardly enough to pay for their seed. “Let them come and get it”, was the sullen grumble of every farmer. And that is exactly what the government did: it sent out detachments of the Red Army into every town, village and hamlet, who collected at gun-point all the grain they could find, paying the peasants nothing at all for it. Under the existing conditions, this desperate step was necessary not only to save the people in the cities, but, above all, to save the new government itself, for Communism then was supported chiefly by the city population.
(Page 18)
…During the winter of 1920-1921, however, the situation was reversed. This time it was the turn of the peasants to starve, while the people in the cities were amply provided for by the government. Early in the fall of 1920, the Bolsheviks, taught by their experience of the previous eyar, sent out their collecting agents with strict orders to take from the peasants all the farm produce they had, including vegetables and fruits. All the grain and other edibles were collected at the nearest city, where regular distribution was made to the city workers and Soviet officials, while the farmers, relying on the promises of the collectors, waiting impatiently for their just shares, which never arrived. Famine spread quickly over the poverty-stricken countryside. To save their lives the farmers had to butcher their last cows and sheep, and after these were gone, their horses also had to be sacrificed. Throughout that long, dreary, and exceptionally cold winter, we existed on a diet that consisted exclusively of meat and, what was worse, meat which had to be prepared without salt. Like salt, many other necessities of life were lacking; items such as sugar, soap, matches and kerosene were unobtainable by the people in the villages…
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
A Mother's Quest For A Better Life
AHSGR, Vol. 9, No. 1, Spring 1986
A Mother’s Quest For A Better Life
By Harold D. Kauffman
(Excerpts)
(Page 34)
Heeding the invitation of a former German princess, Catherine the Great, who had assumed the throne of the Tsar, they fled poverty and the greedy dukes who conscripted their young men and sold them as mercenaries to the highest bidder. Their homes and small fields had been destroyed repeatedly by the ravages of European wars, and the legions who had bled upon them were made up of their sons.
Knowing the desperation of her countrymen, Catherine appealed not only to their land hunger but also promised freedom of religion and language, financial aid and transportation costs, a tax-free existence for years, and above all, freedom from military conscription in perpetuity. Although some came from other parts of Europe, 27,000 had set out from Germany, abandoning whole villages and frightening their dukes into banning further emigration.
Among these Rhenish and Saxon settlers had been the ancestors of Maria Dorothea and Martin Gruenwald who had helped to found the village that lay southwest of Saratov on the Medveditsa River. The Russians called it Medveditskoi-Krestovoi-Buerak, but the German settlers knew it by the name of its first mayor—Frank.
In 1871 their families had taken them at age 13 to new lands on the east side of the Volga River where they joined a new colony—Krijovar, or as it was known to the German residents: Brunnental, Spring Valley.
(Page 35)
…The lives of the young people followed the seasons. A short period of hard work during the brief Russian summers was followed by the severe winters. Situated in an area that was open to both east and west, the colonists found themselves living in a mixed culture. Although Brunnental was staunchly Lutheran, near it were Roman Catholic, Mennonite and Reformed villages. Interspersed were Orthodox villages of Russians.
Each summer Muslim tradesmen and artisans would come form the area around the Caspian Sea, and it was at Martin’s home that they often stayed while in Brunnental. The settlers realized that the camel was probably well suited to their land, and soon the tall dromedary joined the horses and oxen of their tradition. Camels would eat the Russian thistle and thrive, and so these were gathered in the summer while tender and piled on shed roofs where they provided fodder for the camel in winter.
The broad, splayed hooves of the camels made them sure-footed in the snow, and their wool grew thick and luxurious in the winter cold. In the spring this provided the housewife with a rich crop of wool for spinning into soft, warm garments and blankets.
…As early as 1871 (MY NOTES: 5 years before David Ehlenberger’s birth), the privileges granted by Catherine the Great were revoked. A new interpretation of “perpetuity” was accepted and, after one hundred years, the final blow came in 1874 with the conscription of young men from the German villages for a five-year peiord of military duty.
Maria Dorothea’s eldest son was among those called up in 1901, and upon his return in 1905, he told of the disaster of the Japanese war and of the uprising he had witnessed while on duty in Kiev. As the new head of the family, he convinced his mother that the time had come for emigration. Early in 1907 the second son and his bride departed for Kansas and then Nebraska, preparing for the family to follow the next year.
(MY NOTES: Why is this relevant? David Ehlenberger fought in this same war, and also emigrated in 1907. Additionally, I remember my grandmother [David’s daughter] mention that they stopped to visit relatives in Kansas/Nebraska while en route to Oregon from the east coast on their return from Russia in January of 1914.
Also interesting, is that this story refers to a “David” who was Maria Dorothea’s cousin, who helped her across the frozen plains when her husband died. He saved her life. I have come across very few “David”s in my research of Brunnental, other than this story and my great-grandfather.)
(Page 36)
As the hot summer days wore on, another danger reappeared: cholera raged across the Russian countryside. Anna, Maria Dorothea’s daughter-in-law, began to fear for the lives of her three sons, her own life and loved ones. Adamantly she pleaded that they leave immediately, that winter would be too late.
In concert with relatives and friends, including David, the faithful cousin (MY NOTES: this would eliminate him from being David Ehlenberger because David Ehlenberger emigrated in May, 1907 on the Umbria. There could still be a connection, however.), the widow made arrangements, selling unharvested crops and other possessions for a pittance. In late August thirteen people set out by rail on the first leg of their trip to America.
Conditions on the train were crude. Benches ran down each side of the car; above these were shelves for baggage, and in the aisles lay the large bags and bundles of the emigrants upon which many sat and slept. Lice infested everyone. On the third day, Anna, the daughter-in-law, her guard momentarily lowered, purchased some fresh fruit from a peasant along the route. Within three days she was seized by the horrible disease she so feared.
The entire Brunnental party was put off the train at a small Ukrainian town and lodged in the station. Anna was placed in a rail car on the siding, and her husband and another young man cared for her. On the second day the three were taken by freight car to the nearest city. Upon arrival, they were placed in quarantine on a siding, and the young mother died.
…Once reunited, the party continued to Libau, where on Oct. 7, 1907, they were to embark upon the Russian East Asiatic Steamship Co.’s vessel, Estonia. Twenty days later they arrived in New York after a stormy North Atlantic voyage, during which the barrels of salted meat spilled, spoiling most of the dry staples. Upon arrival at Ellis Island, smallpox was discovered on the ship, and all its passengers were quarantined on a neighboring island for several days.
(Page 38)
…Maria Dorothea had grieved for her missing daughter for years. First came the hardships of World War I, followed by communist Revolution which raged back and forth across the German colonies for several years, both sides wreaking retribution upon the detested Germans.
Surviving this era and the starvation years of 1920 and 1921, Anna Margaret’s husband was executed or deported as a kulak, and his considerable property was confiscated. Another period of deprivation followed in 1928 through 1932 during the first five-year plan when Stalin’s forced collectivization of farm land resulted in another severe famine…
A Mother’s Quest For A Better Life
By Harold D. Kauffman
(Excerpts)
(Page 34)
Heeding the invitation of a former German princess, Catherine the Great, who had assumed the throne of the Tsar, they fled poverty and the greedy dukes who conscripted their young men and sold them as mercenaries to the highest bidder. Their homes and small fields had been destroyed repeatedly by the ravages of European wars, and the legions who had bled upon them were made up of their sons.
Knowing the desperation of her countrymen, Catherine appealed not only to their land hunger but also promised freedom of religion and language, financial aid and transportation costs, a tax-free existence for years, and above all, freedom from military conscription in perpetuity. Although some came from other parts of Europe, 27,000 had set out from Germany, abandoning whole villages and frightening their dukes into banning further emigration.
Among these Rhenish and Saxon settlers had been the ancestors of Maria Dorothea and Martin Gruenwald who had helped to found the village that lay southwest of Saratov on the Medveditsa River. The Russians called it Medveditskoi-Krestovoi-Buerak, but the German settlers knew it by the name of its first mayor—Frank.
In 1871 their families had taken them at age 13 to new lands on the east side of the Volga River where they joined a new colony—Krijovar, or as it was known to the German residents: Brunnental, Spring Valley.
(Page 35)
…The lives of the young people followed the seasons. A short period of hard work during the brief Russian summers was followed by the severe winters. Situated in an area that was open to both east and west, the colonists found themselves living in a mixed culture. Although Brunnental was staunchly Lutheran, near it were Roman Catholic, Mennonite and Reformed villages. Interspersed were Orthodox villages of Russians.
Each summer Muslim tradesmen and artisans would come form the area around the Caspian Sea, and it was at Martin’s home that they often stayed while in Brunnental. The settlers realized that the camel was probably well suited to their land, and soon the tall dromedary joined the horses and oxen of their tradition. Camels would eat the Russian thistle and thrive, and so these were gathered in the summer while tender and piled on shed roofs where they provided fodder for the camel in winter.
The broad, splayed hooves of the camels made them sure-footed in the snow, and their wool grew thick and luxurious in the winter cold. In the spring this provided the housewife with a rich crop of wool for spinning into soft, warm garments and blankets.
…As early as 1871 (MY NOTES: 5 years before David Ehlenberger’s birth), the privileges granted by Catherine the Great were revoked. A new interpretation of “perpetuity” was accepted and, after one hundred years, the final blow came in 1874 with the conscription of young men from the German villages for a five-year peiord of military duty.
Maria Dorothea’s eldest son was among those called up in 1901, and upon his return in 1905, he told of the disaster of the Japanese war and of the uprising he had witnessed while on duty in Kiev. As the new head of the family, he convinced his mother that the time had come for emigration. Early in 1907 the second son and his bride departed for Kansas and then Nebraska, preparing for the family to follow the next year.
(MY NOTES: Why is this relevant? David Ehlenberger fought in this same war, and also emigrated in 1907. Additionally, I remember my grandmother [David’s daughter] mention that they stopped to visit relatives in Kansas/Nebraska while en route to Oregon from the east coast on their return from Russia in January of 1914.
Also interesting, is that this story refers to a “David” who was Maria Dorothea’s cousin, who helped her across the frozen plains when her husband died. He saved her life. I have come across very few “David”s in my research of Brunnental, other than this story and my great-grandfather.)
(Page 36)
As the hot summer days wore on, another danger reappeared: cholera raged across the Russian countryside. Anna, Maria Dorothea’s daughter-in-law, began to fear for the lives of her three sons, her own life and loved ones. Adamantly she pleaded that they leave immediately, that winter would be too late.
In concert with relatives and friends, including David, the faithful cousin (MY NOTES: this would eliminate him from being David Ehlenberger because David Ehlenberger emigrated in May, 1907 on the Umbria. There could still be a connection, however.), the widow made arrangements, selling unharvested crops and other possessions for a pittance. In late August thirteen people set out by rail on the first leg of their trip to America.
Conditions on the train were crude. Benches ran down each side of the car; above these were shelves for baggage, and in the aisles lay the large bags and bundles of the emigrants upon which many sat and slept. Lice infested everyone. On the third day, Anna, the daughter-in-law, her guard momentarily lowered, purchased some fresh fruit from a peasant along the route. Within three days she was seized by the horrible disease she so feared.
The entire Brunnental party was put off the train at a small Ukrainian town and lodged in the station. Anna was placed in a rail car on the siding, and her husband and another young man cared for her. On the second day the three were taken by freight car to the nearest city. Upon arrival, they were placed in quarantine on a siding, and the young mother died.
…Once reunited, the party continued to Libau, where on Oct. 7, 1907, they were to embark upon the Russian East Asiatic Steamship Co.’s vessel, Estonia. Twenty days later they arrived in New York after a stormy North Atlantic voyage, during which the barrels of salted meat spilled, spoiling most of the dry staples. Upon arrival at Ellis Island, smallpox was discovered on the ship, and all its passengers were quarantined on a neighboring island for several days.
(Page 38)
…Maria Dorothea had grieved for her missing daughter for years. First came the hardships of World War I, followed by communist Revolution which raged back and forth across the German colonies for several years, both sides wreaking retribution upon the detested Germans.
Surviving this era and the starvation years of 1920 and 1921, Anna Margaret’s husband was executed or deported as a kulak, and his considerable property was confiscated. Another period of deprivation followed in 1928 through 1932 during the first five-year plan when Stalin’s forced collectivization of farm land resulted in another severe famine…
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
Researching Russia-German Names
AHSGR, Clues, 1986 Edition—Part 2
Genealogy – Special Problems For The Advanced Researcher
By Arthur E. Flegel
(Excerpts)
(Page 24)
…Another significant aspect of names is the contraction of given names. This custom that was taken along to Russia was very common to the regions where our ancestors originated in Germany. As a matter of fact, during the ancestral period of history we are researching, it was custom to give children double names, which were later shortened or altered according to the whim of family members.
All male members of a given family might begin with the Christian name, “John” (Johann) followed by the second name which was the primary one, such as: Johann Conrad, Johann Jakob, Johann Georg, etc. However, that person would never be called Johann. Instead, within the family circles, he would be referred to as Conrad or Jakob or Georg, etc., which could be confusing for the novice researcher. The contraction of the name Johann Georg to Hanjerg was another common occurrence. Should a young man be named Johannes, he would normall not have a second name and would be called either Johannes or Johann.
In the case of women, the combination names normally included an Anna or Maria such as Anna Elisabeth, Anna Margaretha, Maria Katherine, Maria Elisabetha, etc. From time to time, I receive ancestral charts indicating someone’s great-grandmother as being named “Alice.” This is definitely an error, for the name “Alice” was unheard of among our ancestors. In fact, the name was Anna Elisabeth, which having been shortened to “Annalies,” eventually became “A’lies” and was then translated “Alice.” Anna Margaretha could become “Anna-grete,” with further corruption to “Amagrete.” Maria Elisabetha commonly became “Marilies” or “Maralies.”
Another curious custom was the practice of identifying the feminine gender by adding an “in” to the woman’s maiden name, thus for Schmidt, “Schmidtin,” or for Gross, “Grossin” or for "Weberin for Weber" etc. This could lead to the entry of an incorrect surname in the researcher’s records. Unelss special attention is given to these peculiarities, frustrating research problems can develop. But, let us always remember that these customs are very definitely a part of our valued heritage. They were not uniquely German from Russia, but instead had originated in the Rhineland, Hesse, and Palatinate regions of Germany from whence they were taken into Russia and eventually brought along to the Western World…
Genealogy – Special Problems For The Advanced Researcher
By Arthur E. Flegel
(Excerpts)
(Page 24)
…Another significant aspect of names is the contraction of given names. This custom that was taken along to Russia was very common to the regions where our ancestors originated in Germany. As a matter of fact, during the ancestral period of history we are researching, it was custom to give children double names, which were later shortened or altered according to the whim of family members.
All male members of a given family might begin with the Christian name, “John” (Johann) followed by the second name which was the primary one, such as: Johann Conrad, Johann Jakob, Johann Georg, etc. However, that person would never be called Johann. Instead, within the family circles, he would be referred to as Conrad or Jakob or Georg, etc., which could be confusing for the novice researcher. The contraction of the name Johann Georg to Hanjerg was another common occurrence. Should a young man be named Johannes, he would normall not have a second name and would be called either Johannes or Johann.
In the case of women, the combination names normally included an Anna or Maria such as Anna Elisabeth, Anna Margaretha, Maria Katherine, Maria Elisabetha, etc. From time to time, I receive ancestral charts indicating someone’s great-grandmother as being named “Alice.” This is definitely an error, for the name “Alice” was unheard of among our ancestors. In fact, the name was Anna Elisabeth, which having been shortened to “Annalies,” eventually became “A’lies” and was then translated “Alice.” Anna Margaretha could become “Anna-grete,” with further corruption to “Amagrete.” Maria Elisabetha commonly became “Marilies” or “Maralies.”
Another curious custom was the practice of identifying the feminine gender by adding an “in” to the woman’s maiden name, thus for Schmidt, “Schmidtin,” or for Gross, “Grossin” or for "Weberin for Weber" etc. This could lead to the entry of an incorrect surname in the researcher’s records. Unelss special attention is given to these peculiarities, frustrating research problems can develop. But, let us always remember that these customs are very definitely a part of our valued heritage. They were not uniquely German from Russia, but instead had originated in the Rhineland, Hesse, and Palatinate regions of Germany from whence they were taken into Russia and eventually brought along to the Western World…
Büdingen, Germany 1766 Document
AHSGR, Vol. 3, No. 1, Spring 1980
A Document of 1766 Found in Büdingen, Germany
By Emma Schwabenland Haynes
(Excerpts)
(Page 1)
In Work Paper No. 9 for October 1972 on page 50, I described a very interesting document dated October 30, 1766 which is in the library of Büdingen Castle east of Frankfurt, Germany. During the past year several people have written to ask for further details of this historic paper, which lists the names of twenty-five heads of families who left Germany for the Volga.
Since not all members of AHSGR possess early issues of our publications, may I repeat that Büdingen was the most important “Sammelplatz” or gathering place of those Germans who wanted to emigrate to Russia in the late eighteenth century. The town was headquarters for a Russian commissioner named Facius who moved to Büdingen after being expelled from Frankfurt. Numerous edicts had been passed by the rules of south-western Germany prohibiting emigration. But in spite of their efforts, it is presumed that approximately 27,000 people left for the Volga after 1763.
The Russian government preferred that stable citizens settle in their domains, and for that reason 375 marriages took place in the Protestant church of Büdingen between February and July of 1766. In 1971, shortly after our Society was organized, I made a trip to Büdingen to look at these marriage lists…
At the same time, I also went to the castle of Büdingen, which is used as a home by members of the family. They have hired a full time archivist, Frau Dr. Reimers, to take care of the manuscripts and books belonging to the castle. I asked Dr. Reimers for documents and other material going back to the year 1766 when hordes of would-be emigrants converged on the city. To my great disappointment she said that nothing remained except five pages listing the citizens of Düdelsheim and Rohrbach who had left for Russia.(1) At my request she made a copy of the document, three pages of which are reproduced in this issue of the Journal.
At the top of the first page… may be roughly translated as, “A report most respectfully submitted to the highly esteemed government chancery of the Count of Ysenburg- Büdingen.”
The document then goes on to say that all of the subjects who left the country for Russia have sold their goods and peroperty and have paid the necessary taxes, with the exception of:
(MY NOTES: The following is the complete list given.)
1. Johann Stephan Claus, who has given everything to his step-son, Johann Henrich Menges, on condition that if he arrives safely in Russia, his step-son will pay off his debts.
2. Andreas Klink. His parents have recently died and their estate is still not settled…
3. Johann Peter Claus, who went to Russia as an unmarried traveling artisan, has given his share of the family property to his brother Johannes to be used until he returns home again or writes that his part should be sold.
4. Conrad Raab has sold his possessions but this will scarcely pay for all of his debts.
5. Johann Henrich Scheyd with his wife made so many debts through disorderly living that he could hardly repay them. In a few years he would have had to go begging or else become a shepherd’s servant at the home of his father-in-law Hohnstein. He would not have been good either for his master or for the community. At his departure he turned over all his goods to his brother, Johann Adam Scheyd to pay the interest which must be met before other payments are made….
(MY NOTES: The following is NOT a complete list given. I have listed only names that may or may not be directly related.)
From ROHRBACH: All were citizens.
Casper Weber’s widow
(Page 2)
…I was very excited to discover that thirteen of the families from Düdelsheim and three form Rohrbach were listed as settling in Balzer.(5) There names and dates of arrival as given by Merkel follow:
From ROHRBACH:
Anna Margareta Weber [presumably of Casper Weber]
August 8, 1767.
NOTES:
(1) Both Düdelsheim and Rohrbach belonged to the “Grafschaft” or earldom of Isenburg- Budingen.
(4) For a complete list of those people who settled in Balzer see Hattie Plum Williams, The Czar’s Germans, published by AH”SGR in 1975, pages 102-105.
(5) My article in 1972 was based upon Jacob Volz's booklet which is not completely accurate.
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