Germans from Russia - Family History & Genealogy Message Board

Re: Seewald Seratov Russia

seewalt2 — 2013-05-13 03:53:18Z

any information would be appre

Re: Information for Germans from Russia

samerchant — 2013-05-10 06:47:36Z

Yes, that is an excellent resource. Be sure to check out the "Learn" section. Lots of good background material, village names and such.

Re: Catholic churces in the Schönberg/Szymbark area

andreastill73 — 2013-05-09 20:49:22Z

Thank you very much! I guess I should have cast my net further out. The situation was similar for my ancestors while in Russia. My cousin was quite surprised to discover registrations in Taganrog until he found out that was the location of the closest Catholic church.

I will check to see if the films are available. I've had no luck with 8+ parishes in Nordrhein-Westfalen because they always seem to be out on loan. Hopefully I'll find what I'm looking for.

Thanks again.

Re: Catholic churces in the Schönberg/Szymbark area

KlausWa — 2013-05-09 20:12:37Z

Hi andreastill73

By googleing I found information, that Schönberg/Szymbark had no own catholic church during german times. catholic people from Schönberg belonged to parish of city of Berent.
Berent catholic church books you will on microfilm find at LDS
familysearch.org
Klaus

Catholic churces in the Schönberg/Szymbark area

andreastill73 — 2013-05-08 17:41:46Z

I'm not getting any response in the relevant Poland board so I thought I'd post here just in case someone here has information on this area of old West Prussia, now Poland.

A cousin of mine has done extensive research and has traced our family back to the village of Schönberg/Szymbark, in Warmia-Mazury. Peter STILL (birth date unknown) and his family (unnamed wife and children Peter, Johann, Martin and Maria) were issued a visa by the Russian consulate to travel to Russia in 1819. They settled in the Eichwald colony. Some of their descendants left and came to Canada in 1905 - my branch of the family.

Does anyone have information on Catholic churches in the Schönberg/Szymbark area? The only one I've been able to locate is an evangelical Lutheran church and this family was most definitely Catholic.

Thanks in advance.

Re: Information for Germans from Russia

andreastill73 — 2013-05-08 15:18:51Z

There is another one which went online in 2011, Black Sea German Research: http://blackseagr.org/.

This site includes access to a database of over 2 million names. I was able to find information on some of my great-grandfather's siblings here.

Mueller - SS Minnedosa 1930

Lalalux — 2013-05-02 00:44:33Z

I am looking for more records or passenger lists from this specific ship. I am also looking for more information on a specific passenger of this ship.

Re: Ott-Bessinger

ssallyonthego — 2013-04-09 23:16:41Z

Hi, I am related to Gottfried Bessinger, he was my mother's father, his parents were John Henry Bessinger and Lydia Sherer, Lydia's 2nd marriage was to Phillip Frehling; My mom, Rose (Bessinger)Harvey was born in Reese, Mi. I found that John Henry's father was Heinrich Bessinger b. abt. 1828 wife Christina Elizabeth Kroll (Krill)b. abt. 1833 Per a letter from my Uncle, they lived in an area near TIBLISI,
my email: ssallyonthego@aol.com

Re: Immigration from Gostynin - through Hamburg?

halpark — 2013-03-30 14:51:21Z

Bremen was a city in the Hanseatic League founded in the 13th century. It is 60km south of the mouth of the Weser where the river enters the North Sea. Bremerhaven is at the mouth of the river, i.e. 60km from Bremen, a quite separate city founded in 1827 as ships began to be too big to navigate the higher reaches of the Weser to get to the Port of Bremen, but this did not mean that Bremen ceased to be a port. Two completely different cities. However the city of Bremerhaven which did not even exist at the time of the Hanseatic League, is included in the modern "Land" (state) of the Freie Hansestadt Bremen (Free Hanseatic City of Bremen) which is a "Land" (state) in the modern Federal Republic of Germany. Your ancestor left from either Bremen or Bremerhaven so looking for records will require knowing which port it was.

Re: Immigration from Gostynin - through Hamburg?

halpark — 2013-03-30 14:47:07Z

Re: missing family

halpark — 2013-03-30 11:08:36Z

I am not sure whether it adds anything or not but "ein Streicher" is a string instrument player in an orchestra, "eine Streichgruppe" is the "string" section. As a verb "streichen" has several meanings, to paint, spread, butter etc., stroke, caress, take off a list, wipe out (in the sense of you cannot wipe out a memory), pull down a flag, sharpen a razor, and a few others. "Streich" can be a prank or a hoax but is also a blow, stroke or lash or a trick of the memory. Plenty of choice!

Re: missing family

JerryFrank59 — 2013-03-29 22:15:44Z

Your message does not seem to fit the thread in which it is posted but I will try to comment on what you have said. Based on what I found on the Internet, there is no doubt that at least some people with the Goltz surname are connected to German nobility. However, it should be noted that some people who provided meritorious service to their Lord were allowed or given the right to use his surname. You may well be descended from that noble family but you have to trace the lineage to prove it.

I cannot find any verification of the surname translation you have provided. Streicher is the German word for string. However, it is more likely that it derives from Streich which is the German word for a prank or hoax. Streich, Streicher, and Streichert are all valid Germanic surnames. The Goltz surname, as far as nobility is concerned, appears to derive from the Golczewo place name but I have not found any translation for it in either German or Polish. Note that in Polish, Golcz would be pronounced as Goltz.

Jerry

Re: missing family

pjaninevargo — 2013-03-29 21:15:16Z

28 March 2013
Dear Jerry,
I don't get the full use of the inernet and it i expensive for me to use it at this Rehab Home. I can verify that the names from Poland were names of landlords. My mother's family came from the castle named Golczewo. And they had the name "Goltz". There are many, many, of them all over. The history says that my great grandmother
's name was Christina "GOltz". It means clearing in the woods. And my grandfather's name was Streichert. One of them means Wood Cutter. They changed their name to Lorin in Detroit MI. Paula

Re: Immigration from Gostynin - through Hamburg?

pjaninevargo — 2013-03-29 20:50:05Z

29 March 2013
I have been told that the town where 30 Streicherts still live is about 4 miles out of Gostynin on th e was to Plotzsk Poland. My grandfather who left for the U.S. from Gostin lived there. I think that the town is named(sp?)
Ludowocowicz(?)? My grandfather was German and his wife was from Plotzsk--there was a slave labor camp there during the WWII. 90% of citizrns from Poland, since the new constittion, claim to be Catholic. My grandfather lived there during the Russian occupation in the German Empire. Paula J Vargo

Re: anton russia census 1834

kisselmann_d — 2013-03-26 13:57:30Z

Hi! I also look for Census for 1834. If somebody has. If, somebody can send to me it? kisselmann.d@web.de
Thanks in advance

Re: Russians into New Orleans

ERhodes1135 — 2013-03-18 03:57:04Z

I would really help if you provided further info such as a name. Ancestry.com does have New Orleans info from that period.

Russians into New Orleans

michaelstoune — 2013-03-18 02:15:25Z

G-grandfather in New Orleans by 1850, in census he claims to be from Russia. Hunting for New Orleans passenger lists.
Any information welcome.

Re: Schoenchen, Russia - Mertz, Merz, Depperschmidt

JerryFrank59 — 2013-02-27 15:26:57Z

You may have heard about this resource but am providing just in case you are new to the hobby. www.ahsgr.org serves extensively the German colonies along the Volga River in the Saratov region. They serve other regions as well but are particular focused on this one.

Jerry

Re: Schoenchen, Russia - Mertz, Merz, Depperschmidt

gravesmsdeidreg — 2013-02-26 23:39:41Z

I am not going to be helpful at all but the name Schoenchen caught my eye. There is a Schoenchen, KS. I thought you might like to know that, if you didn't already.
Thanks to you I now know where the name came from.
I am new to this and am still learning my way around the website.
I hope someone can help you with your search, good luck!

Re: Immigration from Gostynin - through Hamburg?

halpark — 2013-02-25 01:32:52Z

Your latest message was directed to me I suppose because I once put a small point about German spelling which seemed to be puzzling people on the board. Back to your original question. I would think there is a good possibility that your ancestors used what was known as the "indirect route" - google will give you a lot of links. Put shortly a vast number of emigrants, particularly from Poland and Russia left from Baltic ports - Libau (Liepaja), Memel (Klaipedia)Danzig (Gdansk), Gdynia. They bought a through ticket from home station to ship - to England (mostly east coast ports), rail ticket to Liverpool, Glasgow or Leith mostly for North America, Southampton for Australia or South Africa. The stream was so big that a special station solely for emigrants in transit was built in Grimsby in addition to the "ordinary" station. Ships from Hamburg and Bremen also used this route the main reason being that it was much cheaper than taking the regular service big line trans-Atlantic ships. The main shipping line involved in the Baltic runs, especially from Scandinavia, was the Wilson Line which almost had a monopoly on the trade. It could well be worth investigating these routes and don't forget that Bremen itself, as well as Bremerhaven (two different places!) also took a lot of emigrant trade - it wasn't just Hamburg. Hope these ideas have some use for you.

Re: Immigration from Gostynin - through Hamburg?

collageman — 2013-02-24 17:33:43Z

Hello - I started this thread with a question about my Gostynin ancestors, and while it is largely unanswered, the thread has now veered widely. May I suggest re-starting the query, if needed? I can however state that I have been a member of SGGEE for several years, and can vouch for the quality of Jerry Frank's work and that of the organization. I have made many wonderful discoveries with their help, with that part of my family knowledge reaching back to the late 1700's. Thanks! Steve

Re: Immigration from Gostynin - through Hamburg?

jarmilarusinak — 2013-02-23 23:58:26Z

Hello Paula,

We are back from our trip to Costa Rica. Could you please get in touch with me? My email address is : jarmilarusinak@yahoo.ca

I also created My Heritage site, and in Mindala family I have members of family that match the ones of Valerie Vargo. Would that be your sister?

Jarmila

Re: George Mueller of St Joseph, Missouri

m_118637 — 2013-02-23 22:54:30Z

I am great grandson of raymond ernst mueller

Re: Siller in Milwaukee's German newspapers

rebholzgary — 2013-02-02 23:32:38Z

In case it's helpful to your research there are just a couple of Siller entries in "Milwaukee's German Newspapers; an index of death notices and related items" (1844-1950).

Siller, Bertha J. H. (née Struve)
Siller, Emma (née Budde, survived by Charles)
Siller, Frank / Franz
Siller, Sarah M.

For more specific information contact:
Gary Rebholz, compiler/editor
Milwaukee Wis.
gary.rebholz@gmail.com
Indexing Milwaukee's German newspapers continuously since 2007... helping to access our historic German-American culture.

Re: Immigration from Gostynin - through Hamburg?

JerryFrank59 — 2013-01-30 17:29:30Z

Four years ago I gave you a link reference to material that will help with your search. SGGEE focuses on Germans from Russian Poland.

If you go to https://sggee.org/research/parishes/church_parishes/Lutheran... you will find a list of parishes in Russian Poland and it will show the records available on microfilm through the LDS or in Polish Archives if you need more recent ones.

Our Master Pedigree Data base (Members Only) shows a variety of Streich and Streicher(t) living in this parish but most of these may be too early for your research. If you can latch onto just one more generation, you may be able to utilize that resource. One of these is married to a Fender(t) woman probably in the 1820s. If you could connect to that family, you might find yourself related to me as my great grandmother was a Fender(t).

Jerry

Re: Immigration from Gostynin - through Hamburg?

JerryFrank59 — 2013-01-30 17:05:37Z

I have relatives in Berrien County, Michigan but none that I know of in Ohio. My Frank family did live in the Gostynin Parish and their migration tracks through Volhynia, Russia (today NW Ukraine) to soutern Manitoba with one branch going to SW Michigan.

Jerry

Juliet Genevieve Brower

pamcardamone — 2013-01-30 04:17:27Z

Hello, I am searching for any information on my great Grandmother Juliet Genevieve Brower (Brauer)born in the USA in 1845, her father was Elias but mother not known.
Any information at all would be very much appreciated.

Re: Immigration from Gostynin - through Hamburg?

jarmilarusinak — 2013-01-28 19:38:20Z

Hello Paula,

Your Grandma Sasana Vargo(Mindala ) had also brother Stephan Mindala who lived in Cleveland, OH and sisters Eva Tunder and Anna Kraynak.
They are all siblings of my Grandpa Michal Mindala who was the youngest in the family. My Mom Helena is your father's first cousin and that makes me your second cousin.
You have no idea how long I have been searching for you. My name is Jarmila and I live in Canada. My husband is Canadian that's how I end up here. We are getting ready for a trip to Costa Rica and so if you would like to keep in touch and learn more about me, please email me to my address:
jarmilarusinak@yahoo.ca

Looking forward to hearing from you again! I am sure that we are related.
Regards,
Jarmila

Re: Immigration from Gostynin - through Hamburg?

pjv13161 — 2013-01-28 17:56:30Z

No birth certificates. I dont know where to get them.
But my ggreat grandfather was name August Streichert and on the manifest to visit his son(my grandfater) he says he leaves Rosalia in Gostin,Russia) They all left via Hamburg: I can't remember now but the SS Lincoln, etc.

Re: Immigration from Gostynin - through Hamburg?

pjv13161 — 2013-01-28 17:49:03Z

Re:Zuzanna Mindala 29 Jan 2013
Just who are you? My grandmother was descended from a mindala line. It just might be her. She married Stephen Vargo . They had three sons: John, Steve, and Joseph(my father sho had three kids name Valerie, Paula(me) and Joseph). They were members of St Michael's Russian Orthodox Church on Union Ave. They lived on E 113 st on the south side of Cleveland.

Re: Immigration from Gostynin - through Hamburg?

pjv13161 — 2013-01-28 17:44:03Z

Re: Gostynin location 29 Jan 2013

Are you related to the Frank family in Ohio that lived on Messenger Rd in Auburn OH near Chagrin Falls, OH? The next farm where my mother lived was owned by the Franks. I only know what my mother told me about them. The daughter's name was Helen Frank who was the Geauga County Auditor and her brother also lived there. I can't remember his name(Jack?). My mom always said that their mother Mrs. Frank was the nicest women in the world!! She had a big wall of Hollyhocks growing in her yard that my mother used to remember. I am 63 and related to a graduate of the old AUburn High School in 1936 & 1937. My mother lived on her aunt's farm. her name was Florence Streichert-Vargo It was the LAVE farm that had dairy cows. it belonged to Mary and Edward Lave. They are buried inthe small cemetery around there. They had other children named Martha, Edward, Otto(,
Elsie.

Re: Immigration from Gostynin - through Hamburg?

pjv13161 — 2013-01-28 17:29:36Z

Re: Gostynin 29 jan 2013
My grandfater left through hamburg and I was told that Russia was occupying Poland in parts and that records may have been taken to St Petersburg or Moscow.

Paula Streichert-Vargo

Re: Please answer!

pjv13161 — 2013-01-28 17:25:49Z

Re: family name change 29 Jan 2013
My grandparents came from Eastern Europe with a name that was the same as a person that was hanged at Nuremburg. They subsequently changed their name to a totally different name. From an "S" name to a "Lorin" name.
PJanine V
Ohio

In search of...

kmc1374 — 2013-01-27 14:20:36Z

Hello All,
My mother was adopted from Germany in 1950. She was two when she traveled with a nun to New York. Her parents had immigrated from the Ukraine to Germany with her brother before she was born. She was given up to an orphanage in Tegernsee Germany after her mother died from complications with her birth. We really do not know what happened to her father and brother. I am in search of any relatives. Her birth name is Nicollette Koschmann. Her adopted name is Petroi.

Gottfried Demlang

jokur996 — 2013-01-14 18:09:47Z

Looking for immigration info on Gottfried Demlang and wife Wilhelmine Tonn from Kozki area, Radziejow, Poland, under Russian rule, about 1900-1903 to US. I show Gottfried living/working in Cloquet MN. They had a daughter Helene.

Re: missing family

Anne_Berns — 2013-01-10 00:52:46Z

thanks so much for your thoughts. vindright is unusual. the freibaum has been spelled fretbaun, fribaum etc. very hard to work with

Re: missing family

halpark — 2013-01-09 20:31:19Z

Sorry - should have added that Freibaum could also fit this pattern. Baum = tree and one of the many meanings of frei (basically free) is something that stands alone, single. This chap could have taken his name because he had just one tree in his garden.

Re: missing family

halpark — 2013-01-09 20:28:26Z

These names certainly sound Germanic but there is one thing which might be helpful, these appear to be Jewish names and it is important to remember that Jews took "Europeanised" name quite late in history, a lot I believe were simply ordered to toe the line by Napoleon. This meant that instead of being "ben" something = son of, they had to have "proper" family names and in many cases they just used the name of geographical features like Sternberg = star mountain, Rosenfels = rose mountain, Gruenewald = green woods and so on. Bernstein is simply "Amber" in German. Vindright is a bit of a puzzle but "Windrichtung" (W has v sound) = the direction of the wind - it is possible that such a word was used but for simpliocity the "ung" was dropped and the "W" replaced with "V" because everyone assumed it was. Hope this may open up a few new thoughts.

Re: Please answer!

DuaneDipert — 2013-01-09 15:03:41Z

I think it would be somewhat common to change last names. My last name (Dipert) used to be Deibert around 1800. The pronunciation would sound more like Deibert, but whoever wrote it down forever changed the name. I found the family of Dippert who are related, and a teacher apparently told one of the kids he spelled and pronounced his name incorrectly. My great uncle had last name of Ahnger but on the ship manifest and city directories of Leadville, CO (where he emigrated to from Finland) show his name as Anger. My first wife's family name was Stone--her father's family were French-Canadians whose original name was LaPierre--which apparently means "Stone" in French. And, I have found that the handwritten documents such as ship's manifest are often transcribed incorrectly--for example my grandmother's first name of "Aino" appears as "Amo" on the manifest.

Re: missing family

Anne_Berns — 2013-01-08 21:27:05Z

i am unable to find even 'easy' things, i.e. my fathers marriage, high school info and military and i know where he was stationed and when and what high school he went to. the info on this site is so inconsistent. people i have pictures of existed but yet despite the info i have there is little to nothing on them. the name freibaum shows on 2 death certificates. one fretbaum on one and freibaun on the other. go figure

Re: missing family

JerryFrank59 — 2013-01-08 15:35:01Z

No need to apologize. We all started somewhere. Though I had family to ask, they either could not or would not share anything with me. Yet I managed to track my mother's side of the family back to 1560 in Wuerttemberg. It took lots of years to do it.

Freibaum definitely sounds Germanic. However, when I look at all the Freibaum that came in through Ellis Island, I see most of them with names like Berl, Chane, Gemandel, etc. which all suggest Jewish origin. The same applies to Bernstein. I know of ethnic German families with surnames like Czarnecki, Lewandowski, Girschewski, Borkowski, etc. The surname does not always clearly define the origin.

You may be able to track origins through the community in which they lived, the synagogue the attended (or church if my assumption is wrong), passenger ship records, etc. Bernstein might be difficult to track. Over 4000 with that surname came through Ellis Island alone. However, there were only 13 Freibaum. That branch should be much easier to trace though you may have to investigate other ports to find your specific ancestor.

Vindright is so unusual that search results are virtually nil. Windright has a few entries but neither sounds east European. Your family lore about that surname may not be accurate OR this person may not be from eastern Europe.

I encourage you to keep digging. It may take awhile but something may pop up. Sometimes genealogy is relatively simple but sometimes it is hard slogging work. I've been searching for the origin of one branch of my ethnic German family in Poland (historically Russia) for over 20 years and finally found it just before Christmas.

Good luck.

Jerry

Re: missing family

Anne_Berns — 2013-01-08 03:24:20Z

i appreciate your help and advice. however i have no family to ask so i am flying solo. the other sides of the family are doable but not this side. names were shortened and first name spellings changed. the name freibaum sounded german to me. sorry. i am not an expert at this.

Re: missing family

JerryFrank59 — 2013-01-07 15:25:55Z

Anne,

Your query is a bit of a shot in the dark since you cannot even verify a country of origin. Even if they are ethnic Germans, you need a point to start from and that would require at the very least a parish name or better yet a village name of origin. A Google search does not turn up any Vindright surnames. I doubt that it is Germanic.

My best guess is that these families are Jewish. Jews did not use surnames until mandated to do so by Napoleon in the late 1700s. They often adapted or adopted some surname that often sounds ethnically German, Polish, Russian, etc. Therefore you cannot determine a place of origin on the basis of their current or recent surname.

I think you need to do more research this side of the pond before branching out to other countries. If you find they are ethnic German from Russia, return here with more questions. If they are ethnic Germans, you will need to find another forum for their specific point of origin. If they are Jewish, you may find more help at www.jewishgen.org .

Jerry

missing family

Anne_Berns — 2013-01-05 01:01:06Z

looking for a sarah vindright or robert Freibaum. not sure if spelling is right. names sound german but could be from russia. they are the parents of minnie (mary) berns. she married issac berns (bernstein) lived in new york and chicago.

Re: Rosenhiem, Russia? Is this the same Rosenhiem in Germany?

thekid186 — 2012-12-31 05:10:40Z

Hello Cousin Cindy!

So nice to meet you! You can contact me directly at my email: katiejedipm1@yahoo.com.

Henry Goebel's father married a Grossman and Henry's sister Dorthea/Dorothy married a Grossman (probably a cousin, haven't ironed that out yet)

Dorothy would be my 2nd great grandmother.

I look forward to sharing info with you!

Katie

Re: Rosenhiem, Russia? Is this the same Rosenhiem in Germany?

Happyhome1035 — 2012-12-30 03:18:32Z

I'm sure you already found your answer, but I took notice of your posting because my grandfather was Henry Goebel from Rosenheim, Russia. Rosenheim was near Sarotov on the Volga River. It now has a different name. My grandparents (my grandmother was Christina Scheidt) came to Sheboygan, Wisconsin around 1914. I have a memory that they had relatives named Grossman.

Cindy

Re: GUTZAT & OBEREINER and Suwalki/Wartele (DE),Valteliai areas

halpark — 2012-12-09 14:38:40Z

One further point in case it has been missed - there is only one Germany now - after the collapse of Communism the two Germanies re-united and their is just Bundesrepublik Deutschland (FederalRepublic of Germany) from west of the Rhine to the Polish and Czech borders.

Re: GUTZAT & OBEREINER and Suwalki/Wartele (DE),Valteliai areas

Tokorozawa60 — 2012-12-09 13:00:08Z

Thanks for your suggestions. I am working from addresses on envelopes. It seems there is a different format for addressing envelopes in Germany. Then there is the other task of reading the handwriting, I just take my best shot.
Cindy

Re: GUTZAT & OBEREINER and Suwalki/Wartele (DE),Valteliai areas

halpark — 2012-12-09 11:52:08Z

Hattingen is in the Ruhr, use Google maps. As far as I know Nietwerder is not a town, could be a street. Playing around with google is very useful.

Re: GUTZAT & OBEREINER and Suwalki/Wartele (DE),Valteliai areas

Tokorozawa60 — 2012-12-08 23:05:16Z

Thanks for the history. Trying to play catch up on the history of this area is challenging. I can only rely on information my mother provided me while she was alive. I believe this location is from the area where the family lived; Nietwerder, 1 Aus bau 5a. I have another letter from Hattingen, Eichnog 7, W. Germany. The young woman who wrote from this address said she attended Central School. Do you know where any of these might be located in present day?