History

of the

Johann Friedrich Mohr

Family

Original printing in legal format (the black book) by Eugene Irving Mohr

With photographs and additional information added by Theodore W. Mohr

DEDICATION

The dedication of this book is to the memory of several people. First it would be good to dedicate it to the memory of Johann Friedrich and Elizabeth Catharine Mohr, my great great grandparents. They had the foresight to think of the future and to want something better for their family and their descendents. Have you ever thought where you would be if Friedrich had not put his family aboard the Steamship Shiller and arrived at Castle Garden, Battery Park, New York.

To Eugene Irving Mohr, who with the desire to learn more about his ancestors originally put into print this information so other descendents of Friedrich and Elizabeth Mohr might know their roots, spent many hours of his time and much of his resources traveling and doing research into our Mohr Family History. The first section of this book is Irving's work. It was because of his desire that all of Friedrich and Elizabeth's descendants know about their heritage and with his encouragement, that I put this information into print.

To Vernon Mohr, who in the early 1940s put a tremendous amount of energy into beginning the original research of the Mohr Family History.

APPRECIATION, ACKNOWLEDGMENTS AND EXPLANATIONS

The compilers begin this acknowledgment by expressing their great appreciation and gratitude to the many descendant of Johann Friedrich Mohr who gave information and/or suggested sources where some information might be found, we are the first to admit that the Johann Friedrich Mohr History is far from complete. In researching the genealogy of a family as large as the Johann Friedrich Mohr family, we realize that one cannot get all of the information necessary to make this record one hundred percent complete or accurate. In the first place, it was started too late, Hence, many family members, who might have contributed valuable information on the origins and early generations in Germany and Russia, are deceased, Secondly, a great deal of the more recent data are incomplete since it was not possible to obtain the cooperation for whatever reason of some family members who might have provided the data on the more recent generations. Thirdly, There are living descendents for whom one cannot find any address to make contact with. In addition to such omissions, it is possible that there are some errors due to misunderstandings, incorrectly written records, and/or faulty memories of some family members who were most helpful in providing information on their branch of the family. In some cases, conflicting information was received from different sources hence the more probable data or sources were accepted, while the task often was most frustrating, nevertheless it was at the same time enjoyable and rewarding.

Since this is a revised addition of the original “black book”, we have the addition of photographs that compiler Theodore W. Mohr has inserted. We want to thank all of those who supplied these photographs. This has made a real contribution to having a better knowledge of our ancestors.

In this book, you will find the names of Johann Friedrich Mohr's children given in most cases in their given German form and in some cases in their English form. In the picture section as well as in the genealogy section at the back of the book, you will notice that the names are in their given original German form.

In the genealogy section, divorced persons are not necessarily indicated as such except in cases where I was given specific information as such, also in some cases in a dissolved marriage only where no children were born, I honored certain requests that the divorced partner not be included. One further note, adopted children are not noted as such. Some parents listed their children as adopted but some did not want them to be listed as such. So to be consistent, and fair to all I did not list them as adopted.

It was always the desire of Irvine Mohr to find the Mohr ancestry back into Germany. He spent time and money in travel and correspondence to this end. However his dream was never realized. So as you read his section on his search for our ancestry, remember this is written way before the information that we now have obtained.

I hope that this book will give you the reader a better understanding and pride of your heritage. We hope you will receive as much satisfaction from reading this history as the compilers have in preparing it.

INTRODUCTION

In attempting to record the history of a family, it is obvious that it cannot present any data beyond the date of final compilation. On the other hand, how far into the past should any research be carried to find clues concerning the origin of the same family? This is not nearly as simple and will depend on the availability of family records, data from census records, migration records, church records, etc. Nevertheless, it is possible to obtain some insight into the past by examining the condition and events which motivated their peers to seek an improvement in their condition by emigration.

It should be noted that the Reformation (1521) divided the German people into two opposing camps. A generation of religious wars actually resulted in the defeat of both sides. The following one hundred and fifty years wrote a record of the performance by 266 secular and 65 ecclesiastical principalities and 1400 noblemen who were sovereign rulers of their small estates. The resulting antagonism and rivalries were the source of many of the problems which plagued the country.

The Thirty Years’ War (1618-1648) left the German states in a lamentable condition, with population losses in some cases as high as fifty percent. This disaster was followed by the War of the Netherlands (1672-1679) and the War of Succession in the Palatinate (1688-1697). The German principalities on the Upper Rhine were especially exposed to the destructive effect of this succession of wars.

During the years 1671 to 1677, William Penn made journeys through southern Germany. When he received a land grant in the new world, he invited the persecuted sects to come to Pennsylvania In 1683 thirteen families from Germany arrived in Pennsylvania, and settled in Germantown. An increasing tide of immigration caused this number to swell to about 225,000 German speaking people in the American colonies at the start of the Revolutionary War.

The rulers of the South German states tried to stop the exodus with meager results, However, the outbreak of the Seven year’s war (1756-1763) accomplished that which decree and hostility could not. Emigration ceased for all practical purposes.

About two hundred years ago German colonies began tilling the soil of the areas along the Volga River and around the Black Sea, land which had not been cultivated previously. About one hundred and twenty years ago they repeated history by doing the same in Kansas and nearby states. It is the saga of hardy and resourceful pioneers on two continents.

REASONS FOR IMMIGRATION TO RUSSIA

The first emigrations from the Hessian provinces of Germany (divided among six rulers) to the Volga region of Russia were most directly caused by the seven Years’ War, with the resulting havoc and destruction, the war taxes, and the presence of foreign troops. For example, the cities of Kassel and Marburg (in Hesse) were captured and regained five times in the fighting between French and North Hessian troops. On top of all this, the German princes led a life of ease and luxury at the expense of their impoverished subjects. This is shown by the burdensome taxation as well as the acquisition of large sums of money by placing Hessian troops at the disposal of foreign powers, such as the 17,000 North Hessian soldiers who fought in America under the direction of England during the Revolutionary war.

These political conditions had economic overtones. Low productivity of the soil, high taxes and rents, as well as the requisitioned labor service, were the reasons that the majority of the people were heavily in debt. The crops were just not adequate to pay for the taxes and rents required by the princes. This made it necessary for them to sell a part of their land. Hence the emigration records repeatedly reveal statements such as these “scarcity of food,” “hard times,” “lack of livelihood,” “poor crops,” “high taxes,” etc, as reasons for their emigration.

It was in the midst of these conditions in the German Principalities that the Russian Empress Elizabeth Petrovna died (25 December 1761). Thus it was that her son came to the throne as Peter III. His wife Catherine, whom he married on 21 August 1744, was the daughter of a Prussian general, the Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst. Peter’s reign was short since he was strangled on July 8, 1762 by one Orlov. Hence, his wife Catherine came to the throne as Catherine II. It was reported that she was “brilliant, intelligent, willful, ambitious, generous and cruel.” So it could be expected that Catherine would continue plans to colonize Russia with settlers from Europe, in competition with inducements offered by Denmark, Spain, Austria, Hungary and Prussia.

Russia, a huge kingdom, with scanty population had broad unpopulated steppe regions. The Volga, longest river in Europe, and its environs had for centuries been a stronghold of nomadic tribes, thieves and fugitives. Catherine decided to populate and develop this area by putting into practice the ideas started by the empress Elizabeth Petrovna. In order to do this, she needed many immigrants for the task. She hoped that they would not only develop the region, but would also serve as a buffer to keep the nomads and ruffians out of her territory. Since Catherine was of German origin, she preferred immigrants of German descent, who by their industry and neatness would set an example for her careless Russian peasants.

Catherine II issued a manifesto on 4 December 1762 inviting people of all nationalities, except Jews, to come to Russia, however, because of the Seven Year’s war most of the men were away in the army and the invitation received no response.

In the meantime, the war ended and a great economic crisis swept over Europe. Thus when Catherine issued her second manifesto on 22 July 1763 (more alluring than that from any other country), it was discussed at meetings, by groups in the streets, and by families at home. Thousands from all parts of the country accepted the invitation. Selling what little property they had, they paid their debts, took the remaining possessions on their backs and set out toward the sea, in route to Russia.

In order to understand why so many were ready to leave their homeland and go to Russia, it is necessary to refer to the promises contained in the manifesto. Refer to page 45. It granted:

1. The free exercise of religion,
2. Exemption from land taxes for 10-30 years,
3. Interest free loans for the purchase of equipment,
4. Exemption from military service for an unlimited time,
5. Self rule of the community,
6. Maintenance of their customs, language and private schools,
7. 30-80 dessiatines (81-216 acres) of free land per family from the crown.

In the light of the economic conditions mentioned previously, the manifesto proved to be a real incentive for any to reach the decision to seek a new home, in the hope of bettering their economic condition.

Very few Volga German travel documents, memoirs, or diaries of the 1760 have been found. One of these is a poem of sixty-seven stanzas written by Bernhard Ludwig von Platen. He tells that he spent 14 days in Lübeck before his boat left port. (In some cases emigrants spent all winter there in barracks). His Russian bound ship took six weeks to make this trip which normally took 10 days. In this way the captain was able to sell all his provisions at inflated prices. They finally landed at Oranienbaum not far from St. Petersburg (Leningrad) and spent five weeks in these two cities. From St. Petersburg they crossed Lake Ladoga to Novgorod here they transferred women, children and baggage to wagons. The able-bodied were expected to walk. Many colonists, and especially small children, died along the way and were buried by the roadside. It had been planned that the journey should continue on the Volga from a town near Torzhok. However, ice was forming already on the river when they reached it, so they were lodged in the homes of Russian peasants. This proved to be very unsatisfactory for them as well as for their Russian hosts. It was inconvenient for the Russians, while the German colonists were shocked to find chickens, sheep and even pigs under the same roof with them. In addition, they did not understand each other’s language,

At long last, the winter came to a close, the ice melted on the river, and it was possible to begin the journey down the Volga. They finally arrived at Saratov, at that time a town of about five thousand inhabitants, The region to be settled extended from Saratov to Tzaritsin a distance of 160 miles from North to South and 65 miles from East to West, along both sides of the Volga river. On the west side of the river the terrain was rolling and was thus called the hilly side (Bergseite), while the east side was a grass covered plain called the prairie side (Wiesenseite) of the river.

What the rest of the journey may have been like can be imagined from a description of the trip by another group in a book written by Christian Züge. It records that they left Saratov by a very rough road. Before long they found themselves in a flat countryside with no sign of any habitation. Their Russian guide called a halt and told them that they were at the end of their journey. To their dismay, nothing could be seen except largely withered grass. Help had been promised for the construction of homes, but this did not materialize. The only shelters they were able to manage before the coming of winter were Russian style dugouts. These were damp and dark but served as a protection from the wind and could be warmed with a small amount of fuel.

In the spring, they turned their attention to breaking the ground and planting their crops in order to produce their food. Then late in the summer and early fall they again turned their attention to building. In some cases the dugouts were repaired, while in others, houses were built above ground by the use of mud bricks. Later they built houses of wood or stone.

LIFE ALONG THE VOLGA DURING ONE HUNDRED YEARS

The oldest settlements in Russia were made in the Volga area (1763-1768), with most of them going to the west side of the river. (The first settlement of Beideck was 10 August 1764). The Black Sea German colonies were established much later (1789-1824). During the first years the Volga German settlers were able to provide only for a miserable existence. They suffered the frontier problems of sickness, wild animals, rebel raids, savage tribes and robber bands. In addition, the government officials failed to fulfill many of their promises. Instead, officials of the colonial office exploited them by pocketing a part of the loans promised to them by the government.

Another source of demoralization was the failure of the German colonists to provide an adequate system of local government, Since they came from various German provinces with widely different types of local government, culture, customs, dialect, and education, there was no political bond or tradition to unite them, Thus the colonial office drew up (1768) a system of rules for local government, The parish pastor or priest was to be the guiding factor among his people. His duty to the state was that of registering marriages, births and deaths which were to be reported to the government periodically. The Evangelical-Lutheran Church was the principal one among the Volga colonists.

The political functions of the community were given to a manager (Vorsteher) elected by the people for a year, and to associates (Beisitzer) elected for six months, This plan of 1768 was a temporary measure to be terminated when the colonists had made provision for their own local government.

When Paul I succeeded his mother Catherine to the throne, he assumed a paternal attitude toward the German colonists. A separate Department of Colonial Affairs was established at Saratov. He sanctioned the use of the German language by requiring that all orders to the colonists were to be written in German. He ordered that the same system of local government be used in all of the colonies (1801-1803), coordinated with the central government. The village authority was vested in a representative assembly composed of one member from each family. This body elected the manager (Vorsteher) and two assistants. These, together with the clerk (Schreiber) cared for all routine matters of village government.

The next fifty years (1801-1850) represented a period of economic progress. The pressure of an unfavorable government was removed. Crude Russian instruments were replaced by better German tools. The native crops (wheat, barley and oats) were soon raised more successfully by the thrifty Germans than by the native Russians. In addition, they introduced the potato which became their chief household food, as well as the sugar beet. Nevertheless, in spite of their progress, the mode of living remained very simple.

Before two generations had passed, they faced a crisis due to lack of land. For mutual protection, the villages had been placed too near one another. With a rather high rate of increase in population, the amount of land available for each person became too small to support them. In 1798 there were forty-one acres per person. This decreased until only about eight and one half acres were available per person by 1857.

As noted before, the village pastor or priest was empowered to take periodic census records, copies of which were to be sent to the regional or central government. Many of these census as well as visa records are still available for the Black Sea area. However in the case of the two hundred year history of the Volga Germans, it is as if no one had kept church records or immigration lists. Dr. Karl Stumpp reports that he spent a great deal of time researching books and archives and making personal contact with but limited results in the case of the Volga Germans.

In the book “The Emigration from Germany to Russia in the Years 1763 to 1862,” by Dr. Karl Stumpp, he lists a total of twelve families by the name of Mohr, coming from various parts of Germany and going to the Black Sea area of Russia. He also gives much information on some of these families in regard to their life in Russia as obtained from census records, visas and immigrant lists. In contrast, in the case of the emigrants to the Volga area he gives the following incomplete data for what may be only a partial list of the emigrants by the name of Mohr:

1. Mohr, (no name), from Pfalz (Germany) to Bauer, Volga area, Russia.
2. Mohr Friedrich, with wife and two children (ages 9 and 5 years) from Winterberg, Westphalia (Germany) to Saratov in 1764 under Captain Paykul and Colonel Rehbinder, final destination unknown.
3. Mohr Johannes, from Höllerbach, Erbach (Germany), married in Budingen (Germany) to Elisabeth Kramer,
4. Mohr, Johann Konrad (28 years old), from Münzenberg (Germany) to Jagodnaja Poljana, Volga area (Russia) with wife Henette Christine (35 years of age).

It is assumed that Johann Konrad Mohr (No. 4) could not be an ancestor of Johann Friedrich Mohr since these of his descendants in Jagodnaja Poljana that emigrated to the U. S. went directly to our northwest (Washington). In the case of the nameless Mohr (No. l) from Pfalz, it should be noted that he went to Bauer, located about twenty-two miles to the southeast of Beideck, the point of origin of our ancestor Johann Friedrich Mohr. Thus he could only be an ancestor of Johann Friedrich Mohr if he or a descendant of his moved from Bauer to Beideck later on. Finally, no conclusions about any possible relationship can be drawn in the case of Johann Friedrich Mohr (No. 2) and Johannes Mohr (No. 3) since the place of settlement is not given. Horst Scharffs, an Accredited Genealogist in Salt Lake City was unable to find any clues in the records of the Genealogical Society of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Philipp Mohr, oldest son of Johann Friedrich, thought that the Mohr family emigrated from Saxony when they went to Russia, according to the recollection of his daughter, Lillian (Mohr) Ogdon,

It must not be assumed that all persons bearing the family name MOHR are descendants of the same ancestor. The use of surnames (family names) in modern times cannot be traced back farther than the latter part of the tenth century. They were first used in France, becoming general there about this time. The SUR of surname comes from super meaning over or additional name from the practice of writing it over the given name. Family names “can be conveniently classified into five groups, according to their manner of origin:

(1) They are descriptive of the person’s appearance or character.
(2) They record an incident or exploit.
(3) They identify him by his connection with some other person, usually his father.
(4) They give his residence or former residence.
(5) They specify his occupation . . . The inherited family name is a comparatively recent development in the European tradition.” (Encyclopedia Britannica, Vol, 15, 1973 edition).

Thus one might ask for the meaning of the family name MOHR (MOOR). Who are they? MOHR (German or French) from the Latin MAURUS designates (l) one who came from Morocco--a Moor: (2) a dark or black man: (3) a pet form of names beginning with MOR (importance) such as Morfried, Morhart, etc.

It might be of interest to note that a village by the name of MOHR or MOOR (Kljutschi) was located about 14.6 miles south of Beideck (origin of the Johann Friedrich Mohr family) and 13.4 miles east of Bauer (destination of the Mohr from Pfalz, Germany. The village of MOOR was founded 1 July 1766, By 1773 there were 61 families (276 persons) and by 1908 there were 5,407 persons. From this German-Russian village Adam Moore came to America in 1875 and settled north of Otis, Rush County, Kansas. His children were George, Fred, John, Jacob and Katie Moore-Bauer. This information was obtained from Verda L. McGee, a granddaughter of George Moore, and verified by the census records of 1880 and 1885. At the time this is being written, it is not known whether Adam Moore was related to Johann Friedrich Mohr from Beideck.

As stated previously, the Johann Friedrich Mohr family came from Beideck (Talowka) (Lugnaskoje), Gouvernement Saratov, Kreis Kamyschin, which was founded 10 August 1764, or two years earlier than the village of Mohr, It was 37 miles south of Saratov. The first statistical report on the Volga Colonies, dated February 14, 1769, was presented to Empress Catherine II by Count Orlov, head of the Council appointed to supervise the settlement of foreigners in Russia. The report indicates that at that time Beideck had 76 families, consisting of 144 males and 154 females. The village had 48 houses, 1 granary and 7 stables. They had 186 horses, 26 work oxen, 193 cows and calves, and 49 swine. That fall they harvested 323,730 bushels of grain, and then planted 39,285 bushels of rye for the following summer. By 1908 there were 6857 inhabitants. (Data from “Die Deutschen Kolonien an der unteren Wolga” by Gottlieb Beratz (1923). It would seem that Beideck was an important German-Russian settlement. Hence in December 1884, H. Günther, pastor in Beideck, started to print a religious monthly periodical called “Friedensbote auf Berg und Wiesenseite der Wolga,” for the purpose of edifying and instructing the Lutheran evangelical churches. It contained approximately 40 pages (4" x 7") each month and was printed in his own shop. Bound copies of the publication for the years 1885, 1886, 1887 and 1890 and portions for the years 1889 and 1891 were examined in the “Institut fur Auslandsbeziehungen,” Stuttgart, West Germany. It was not possible to determine if the publication continued beyond the seventh year (1891).

The village of Balzer (Golyj Karamysch) was located about 10.4 miles south of Beideck. It was founded about a year later than Beideck (28 August 1765) by 9 families and named in honor of its first mayor, Balzer Barthuly. It was located in a valley of the Volga, on the bergseite (mountain side) and about 8 miles from the river bank. The valley slopes down from the north and provided about 18,000 acres of farmland. In this village a woman by the name of Louise Moore (Mohr) was married to a Jacob Kaehm who had a weaving business. Their children were Johannes, Elizabeth, Anna Marie, Marie Elizabeth (who with her husband, Ludwig Weber, came to America accompanied by three children), Jacob, and Amelia (who came to America as a single woman, here she married John Heckman). Amelia was the grandmother of Mildred Heckman Pelkey, who provided this information.

The colony of Balzer was bordered on the north by Beideck (10.4 miles), on the west by Kutter (7.3 miles), on the southwest by Messer (8.4 miles), on the south by Mohr (4.2 miles), to the east by Anton (7.3 miles) and Moldava. The latter was on the Volga and served as port for Balzer. A creek, the Huttenteich, passed through the southern part of Balzer. It was on the bank of this creek that the first 49 colonists spent their first winter in dugouts. By 1773 it had 98 families (479 persons) and by 1908 there were 10,302 persons.

Norka, about 15.6 miles west of Beideck, was founded 15 August 1767. By 1773 it had 215 families (957 persons) and by 1908 it had increased to 13,416 persons. Some Mohrs came to America from Norka. This is being researched by Katherine Langmacher, who had no additional information at the time this was written.

Stahl (Stepnoje) was founded 13 August 1767 on the Wiesenseite (prairie or east side) of the Volga. It was about 12.7 mile east of Beideck. By 1773 lt had 58 families (188 persons) which had increased to 3929 persons by 1908. Margaret Mohr was married to a Mr. Nielsen of Stahl. Their son John Peter Nielsen came to America in 1902, He was the grandfather of JoAnn Kleim who furnished this information.

Thus in addition to the fact that a Mohr went from Pfalz, Germany, to Bauer, Russia, it will be noted that in Beideck as well as in a number of villages around Beideck, there were German-Russians by the name of Mohr. Since all of these villages were relatively near each other, it is possible that all of the above mentioned Mohrs may have been related. However, it must not be assumed that this is necessarily true about Mohr families living in villages located at considerable distances from Beideck.

It has been stated above that all of the Mohrs mentioned in the above Volga German villages might have been related. Obviously, one would like to trace the ancestry of these Mohrs back to the Mohr or Mohrs that migrated from Germany to the Volga area and more specifically to the area around Beideck. More to the point, one would like to trace the ancestry of the Johann Friedrich Mohr family back beyond 6 November 1874, the date on which they left Beideck, Russia to travel to America. In other words, one would like to identify the various generations of Johann Friedrich Mohr ancestors that resided in Russia, and then, hopefully, be able to identify the Mohr ancestor that came from an identifiable place in Germany to Russia.

In pursuit of this objective, Eugene Irving Mohr visited the headquarters of the “Landsmannschaft der Deutschen aus Rusland” (Society of German countrymen from Russia), Stafflenbergstrasse 66, 7 Stuttgart-Ost, Germany, as well as the headquarters of the “Heimatortkartei fuer Ostumsiedler” (Archives of origins of settlers in the east, Rosenbergerstrasse 50, 7 Stuttgart-Ost, Germany. Neither society was able to furnish any information on the Johann Friedrich Mohr family. However, a visit to the “Intitut fuer Auslandsbeziehungen,” Charlottenplatz 17, 7 Stuttgart, Germany, proved more helpful. This library has 200,000 volumes and subscribes to 4,400 periodicals and newspapers. Its collection on German-Russian history is one of the largest in the entire western world. A number of the library’s books on the Volga Germans were examined. Although no information was found on the Johann Friedrich Mohr family and/or ancestors, they did provide the information on the Volga German villages referred to in the foregoing pages.

As has been mentioned previously, Dr. Karl Stumpp spent a great deal of time researching books and archives and making personal contacts with but limited results in the case of the Volga Germans. Nevertheless, one ought not to give up hope. Dr. Karl Stumpp personally told Eugene Irving Mohr in a telephone conversation in June 1977, in Stuttgart, Germany, that it is quite possible that a good deal of information might be found in the national archives in Saratov, Russia. He stated that he has been encouraging a genealogist in Russia to make such a search. May he be successful!

And now it may be of interest to examine some possible clues concerning the place of origin in Germany of the Johann Friedrich Mohr family. As stated earlier, Johann Friedrich Mohr’s oldest son Philipp thought they had come from Saxony (as recalled by Philipp’s daughter Lillian). This would place the origin in an area south and west of Hamburg. One must also keep in mind that most of the migrants to the Volga area of Russia in 1761 to 1768 came from “the two Hessian States of Kassel and Darmstadt and their contiguous territories,” and the Palatinate (Pfalz). This would agree with the experience of Eugene Irving Mohr during his travels in Germany during June 1977. He found that he readily understood the German dialects in Saxony and Hesse, but had a great deal of difficulty in trying to understand the dialects in the southern part of Germany (Bavaria). This might suggest that the Johann Friedrich Mohr ancestors came from central or northern West Germany.

* During the month of September 1992, Theodore Mohr and his wife June traveled throughout Germany. It was with great interest that he discovered in the telephone directory for Karlsruhe, located in the southern Rhineland-Palatinate area, the name Mohr had 105 entries. He found various German villages all through this area with multiple entries of the Mohr name. Other villages in the east and the northern part of Germany had very few if any entries of the Mohr name. * Paragraph inserted by Ted Mohr.

A few years ago, there was an active Mohr Family Association in Barmstedt, Holstein, Germany. While in Germany, Eugene Irving Mohr visited Barmstedt which is located about 40 miles north northwest of Hamburg. He spoke with Mrs. Herman Mohr, Otto Mohr, and Ernst Adolf Wiechers (related to two branches of the Mohr family). This Association is no longer active. According to Wiechers, the Barmstedt Mohrs originally came from Holland and spoke low German (Plattdeutsch). There is no information that any of them ever went to Russia. This probable fact in addition to the low German dialect would seem to preclude any relationship to the Johann Friedrich Mohr family ancestors.

In early July 1977, Eugene Irving Mohr stayed for a few days with Christian Mohr in Kiel, Germany. While there he read the surviving sheet of a letter written by Johann Friedrich Mohr’s second son, John Balthasar, to Christian Mohr’s mother (The first and last parts of the letter were missing. The first line of this page is the last part of a sentence or thought. It alludes to something that John B. Mohr’s father Johann Friedrich had often related to him. From the context, it seems to refer to something about the Johann Friedrich Mohr relatives in Germany and/or Russia. John B. Mohr then went on to write that he had read the obituary of Christian Mohr’s father in the German “Watchman Magazine.” Briefly, this obituary stated that Juergen Mohr died May 18, 1915 on the Russian front at 35 years of age, when Christian was 8 years old. Juergen and his wife Christine (who died in 1936) were members of the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Neumuenster, Germany. In the letter John B. Mohr went on to state that he had heard about the want and misery of the brethren in Germany. Hence he and his wife had decided to send to Christine and her 8 year old son one thousand dollars. However, he found when he tried to do so, that the government would not allow it because of the war (World War I).

Christian Johannes Friedrich Mohr was born 11 September 1905 in Neumuenster, Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. He studied music and was apprenticed to a shipbuilding firm. In 1932 he married Martha Jacobsen. In 1938 he became conductor of the orchestra of the Kiel Howaldt Shipbuilding Firm. In 1940 he was drafted into the German army and served as a courier in his company. At the close of the war he became a prisoner of the British. Following World War II, there was a great deal of want and misery in Germany. As Christian Mohr thought of his family’s need--wife, son Lothar and daughters Hella and Karin--he remembered the help his family had received when he was just a boy. Thus he wrote a letter which he addressed as best he could recall to “The Mohr Family,” Shaffer, Kansas. This was in the late l940s. The letter was received by Willis C. Mohr, Esther (Mohr) Heiser, and Eva (Mohr) Herbel, grandchildren of John B. Mohr. They sent packages to the Christian Mohr family for a number of years. The Christian Mohrs wrote letters of appreciation and gave news about the family. When Willis C. Mohr showed the last letter (dated 1952) to Eugene Irving Mohr, the latter felt that there must be a story behind these letters and that there might be a possibility that the Christian Mohr family might be related to the Johann Friedrich Mohr family. The ensuing correspondence finally resulted in the visit to Germany by Eugene Irving Mohr in the spring of 1977.

Christian Mohr has three children. The oldest daughter Hella is married to school teacher Werner Wiencke. They have three children: Carsten, Rainer and Anja. Next is son Lothar Mohr who is a master baker and confectioner. His wife is Helma and their three children are: Andrea, Joachim and Hauke. Christian’s youngest daughter Karin is also married to a school teacher, Klaus Peter Butz. They have two children, Stefan and Simone.

Daughter Karin was 4 years old when the Christian Mohr family received the packages from Shaffer, Kansas. She told Eugene Irving Mohr how thrilled she was when the packages arrived, especially when she saw all the clothes which were suitable for a 4 year old girl.

Since these days, the Christian Mohr family has seen much better days and has enjoyed the prosperity common to all of West Germany. Eugene Irving Mohr and his wife Marjorie found their hospitality most sincere and touching.

We return again to consider the allusion made by John B. Mohr to something which his father, Johann Friedrich Mohr, had related many times. Might it refer to a possible relationship of the Christian Mohrs in Kiel, Germany, to the Johann Friedrich Mohr family? Obviously, one way to find an answer, might be that of tracing the Christian Mohr ancestors. With this in mind, Christian Mohr and Eugene Irving Mohr visited the pastor of the Lutheran Church where Christian Mohr’s grandfather was born and baptized. They were able to obtain the following information:

Christian Mohr’s great grandfather and great grandmother were:
Jacob Christian Mohr of Hegenholz, Schleswig-Holstein, Germany.
Elisabeth Catalina (Joense) Mohr

His grandfather and grandmother were:
Julius Christian Mohr, born 14 November 1842
Elsabe (Thoem) Mohr, born 25 February 1845

His father and mother were:
Juergen and Christine Mohr.

A researcher at the Luther Haus in Eckernfoerde, Schleswig-Holstein, Germany, is being retained to try and trace Christian Mohr’s ancestry back beyond his great grandfather and determine whether any of his ancestors went to Russia and/or back to Germany from Russia. It may take some time to find the answers if indeed they can be found.

The period from 1850 to 1871 was characterized by a change in the status of the Volga German colonists. Due to the special privileges and prosperity of the Volga Germans, the Russian people and officials looked with jealousy and increasing dislike on them. Moreover, the crown now began to change its policy toward them. Russian legislation of 1864, one hundred years after the arrival of the first Germans in the Volga area, introduced representative local government in Russia. The Volga German colonists had been more or less autonomous, but on 4 June 1871 a decree incorporated the German villages into the new local government system. This abolished the special status of the Volga German settlers, and opened their closed villages to Russian influences. Even more distressing to the German colonists was the law of 1874 making all citizens, including the Germans, liable to compulsory military service. All of this caused a great deal of disenchantment among the Volga Germans. Meetings were held to discuss the problems. Delegations were sent to the United States and also to South America. Most of the members of these delegation came back with favorable reports.

An important factor that influenced the decision to emigrate was the American Homestead Act of 1862, which extended the privileges of the Preemption Act of 1841, and contributed greatly to the settlement of Kansas. According to this act, any citizen of the United States or a person who had declared his intention of becoming a citizen, was able to acquire up to a quarter section of land (160 acres) under either the Preemption or Homestead Laws. Under the Preemption Act a person could settle on the land and make some improvements and file his claim within a period of one year to thirty-three months. He gained title to the property upon payment of $.25 per acre ($2.50 if within 10 miles of a land grant railroad). Under the Homestead Act a person staked his claim, paid a legal fee of $10.00 and half of the commission ($4.00) for 160 acres held at $1.25 per acre or 80 acre held at $2.50 per acre. He had six months to occupy and improve it. After living on the land and cultivating it continuously for five years, he had two years to appear at the district land office with two witnesses as proof of settlement, pay the remaining commission and receive his certificate of title and patent. If the person had $200.00 in cash and didn’t want to wait five years, he could buy his claim after six months if he had made suitable improvements on one or more acres.

Possibly of equal importance were the eight and a half million acres which were set aside in Kansas by Congress to be given to promoters provided that they built railroads through the territory. These grants gave alternate sections of land extending 20 miles on both sides of this right of way. Thus the railroads began an extensive advertising campaign to sell this land to help then meet their payrolls and make payments on their loans. Depending on the location of the land, the railroad promoter sold it for amounts varying from $2.50 to $5.00 or more per acre.

EMIGRATION FROM THE VOLGA VILLAGES

Soon hundreds of Volga German families migrated to the new world. Among them was our ancestor, Johann Friedrich Mohr, who was born in Beideck, Canton of Balzer, Province of Saratov, Russia on 6 March, 1832, and his wife Elisabeth (Liese) Catharina Steinbrecher, born in Beideck on 6 January 1833. They were accompanied by their five sons and one daughter and the oldest son’s wife and nine month old son.

According to the family Bible of one son, Conrad, they left Beideck on 6 November 1874. A record of their itinerary has been obtained from a small black notebook, written in German script, which originally belonged to the youngest son, Jacob, and prior to that probably to Johann Friedrich Mohr himself. It is now in possession of Edward F. Mohr, Otis, Kansas. The data obtained from this notebook was checked by means of an 1879 map of Russia, showing the railway system of the time. This map is the property of, and examined at the Historical Library and Archives at Bethel College (Mennonite), North Newton, Kansas. The record states that they left their fatherland and travelled toward America. From Beideck they went to Saratov, then to Orel, to Wyrballen at the border, to Eidkuhnen, just across the border, to Berlin and then to Hamburg where they reached the sea.

On 26 November 1874 they set sail from Hamburg, Germany, on to London, England then to New York on the vessel S. S. Schiller. They passed through the Castle Garden Immigration Station, Battery Park, N.Y. The ship’s passenger list contains 77 passengers, including the Mohr family. This list names Johann Friedrich Mohr (age 43), his wife Elisabeth (Liese) (42), oldest son Johann Philipp (Philipp) (21), and his wife Katherine (21) and their son David (age 9 months) In addition, it lists the minor children Johann Balthasar (19), Georg Konrad (14), Georg Heinrich (12), Johann Jacob (3), and Anna (16). A photocopy of the ship Schiller’s manifest obtained from the United States Archives, gives the same information and states that they landed in New York on 9 December 1874.

By a presently unknown route, they went from New York to Peabody, Marion County, Kansas. According to a microfilm of the 1875 census of Marion County, dated 1 March 1875, examined at the State Historical Library and Archives, Topeka, Kansas, the Mohr family resided in Wilson Township, Marion County, Kansas, at the time of the census it lists the following members together with their ages: Johann Friedrich Mohr (45), his wife Elisabeth Mohr (44), son Philipp (23) and his wife Katherine Mohr (22) with their son David (2), and the rest of Johann Friedrich’s children: John (19), Conrad (16), Henry (12), Jacob (4), and Maria (17).

                          Photo courtesy of the Mariners Museum, Newport News, Virginia.

STEAMSHIP SCHILLER
The “Schiller” was built by R.Napier & Sons, Glasgow for the Adler Line of Hamburg. She was a 3,421 gross ton vessel, length 380.5ft x beam 40.1ft, two funnels, two masts, iron construction, single screw and a speed of 13 knots. There was accommodation for 90-1st, 100-2nd and 800-3rd class passengers. Launched on 26/8/1873, she sailed from Hamburg on her maiden voyage to New York on 5/2/1874. On 27/4/1875 she sailed on her 8th eastbound voyage from New York for Plymouth, Cherbourg and Hamburg, but on 7th May, she ran aground on the Retarrier Reef, Scilly Isles in dense fog and a heavy swell. The accident occurred at 10 pm when it was impossible to see the length of the ship. Against the wind, the waves and the fog no distress signals could be seen or heard. People gathered at the deckhouse over the first class cabins, but at 2 am the next morning the deckhouse crowded with 200 people was swept away by the high sea. The captain then encouraged people to the bridge but this too was carried away one hour later. The ship finally sank the next morning, May 7 at 7:30 am, with the loss of over 300 lives just 5 months after the Mohr family came to America. The Schiller was chiefly known as being the ship on which the fourteen Volga German scouts came to America earlier in 1874. This was considered one of the worst disasters of that period. Since the ship was on its way back to Europe, there were no German-Russians on board. She had aboard 59-1st, 75-2nd and 120-3rd class passengers as well as her crew of 101. The heavy seas broke her up with the loss of 312 of the 355 aboard. [North Atlantic Seaway by N.R.P.Bonsor, vol.3, p.952] [Merchant Fleets in Profile by Duncan Haws, vol.4, Hamburg America Line.]

These are news items that appeared in the Illustrated London News under various dates during 1875/76.:
July 3, 1875: “With regard to the wreck of the Schiller, which was lost off the Scilly Islands with 331 lives, an official report has been made which attributes the disaster to the neglect of ordinary precautions”
Aug. 7, 1875: “Two kegs which divers have recovered from the wreck of the Schiller are supposed to contain together L20,000.”
Aug 14, 1875: “Two more boxes, containing L20,000 worth of dollars, recovered from the wreck of the Schiller, have been landed at Penzance by the Scilly cutter.”
March, 18, 1876: “The wreck of the German Mail Steamer Schiller amongst the Scilly Islands on May 7 last gave rise to a claim for salvage in the Admiralty Division on Wednesday, when the owners and crew of the pilot cutter Rapid were awarded L500, in addition to what they had already received from those who were saved from the stranded vessel.”
April 8, 1876: “ A sum of L10,000 has been removed from the wreck of the Schiller, which was lost upon the rocks of Scilly last year.”

Passenger List of the S. S. Schiller listing the Friedrich Mohr Family

(Standing l to r); Shirley Jean Mohr, Abe Mohr, Jewell (Mohr) Groom, Freda (Mohr) Schneider, Florence (Mohr) Parks, Teddric Jon Mohr. Standing in front of Abe Mohr is Joanna (Mohr) Codington.
 

In the fall of 1874 a group of Mennonites came from the Crimea, Russia and established the colony of Gnadenau (Grace Meadow) in Marion County, Kansas, about three miles southeast of Hillsboro, Kansas. The village of Gnadenau was located on section 11 in Township 20 south, Range 2 east. This places Gnadenau about one and a half miles west of the boundary of Wilson Township where the Mohr family resided at the time of the census of 1875. The family lived and worked there for about a year. It is reported that Johann Friedrich preached to the Mennonite Church.

Some years ago, as reported by Abe Mohr (son of Conrad), he and his brother Fred, and Lottie Mohr (wife of Henry Mohr, went in search of Gnadenau to see if they could find where Johann Friedrich and Elisabeth Mohr had lived. They asked several persons for information and found a lady who said that her mother had lived there but was living in Hillboro at the time of the visit. They went to see her. The lady asked “What was your grandfather’s name?” When Abe answered “Johann Friedrich Mohr,” she said “you have contacted a woman who knew your grandfather.”

It was at Christmas time in 1949 when Abe Mohr visited Gnadenau, apparently for the second time (as reported by Robert Groome to Eugene Irving Mohr). He was accompanied by his daughter Jewell (Mohr) Groome and her husband Robert Groome, his daughter Shirley Jean, his son Teddric’s children Joanna (Mohr) Codington and Teddric Jon Mohr, and his cousins Freda (Mohr) Schneider and Florence (Mohr) Parks Robert Groome took a picture of the group standing at the well used by the colonists at Gnadenau who lived in the “great house” which stood on the site at one time. This well was located on the north side of an east-west road, just across the road from the site of the original Gnadenau Mennonite Church. At the time of the visit the well had a sandstone curb and was covered by a farm implement wheel. (Evidently the well has since been filled in since it could not be located in the fall of 1975).

Abe Mohr wondered if there might be any old settlers still living in the area who remembered Johann Friedrich Mohr, since he seems to have been one of the elders or church leaders of the Gnadenau settlers. Hence they drove east about a mile and a half to where the road dead-ended in a north-south road. Just across the intersection they found an old house with a screened-in porch. A very elderly lady came out. Abe Mohr asked her in German whether she might have known his grandfather, Johann Friedrich Mohr. She thought for a moment, then looked up and said in German: “Er war ein kleiner mann” (He was a small man). Abe continued to converse with the lady in German, but Robert Groome admitted that he was unable to follow the rest of the conversation. (Incidentally, this house is just inside the boundary of Wilson Township, where the Mohr family lived in 1875.

About a year after reaching Marion County, Kansas, the Johann Friedrich Mohr family moved to the eastern part of Rush County, Kansas, about 100 miles and four counties due west.

The Johann Friedrich Mohr Children
(Standing l to r); Johann Balthasar, Johann Philipp, Georg Heinrich, Georg Konrad, (Seated l to r); Johann Jacob, Anna Maria.
Another son Georg Jacob and daughter Susanna Catharina died in Russia.
 

NEW HOME OF THE MOHR FAMILY

Before continuing with the history of the Mohr family, it might be of interest to obtain a word picture of the area that was to be their new home. At the time of their arrival, Kansas was but a youngster in the sisterhood of states since it had only achieved statehood in 1861.

During the period just prior to the settlement of Rush County, the American Buffalo or Bison was by far the principal animal species of the plains. They were so numerous at the close of the Civil War (1865) that General Sheridan and Major Inman estimated, after careful calculations, that there were at least 100 million within a 100 mile radius of Dodge City, Kansas. In addition, there were an abundance of antelope, as well as a number of other species of animals.

Rush County, in common with the rest of the prairie country, had few trees. These were found mainly along the banks of most streams. Three types of grass flourished on the prairie. Along the bank of draws and ravines, and in low places blue stem grass grew in clumps and patches. Most of the remaining soil was covered by varying proportions of gramma and buffalo grass. These were well adapted to the semi-arid climate. The buffalo grass had nourished the vast herds of buffalo for centuries.

Although the settlers found few trees, they did find a most useful substitute for many purposes. Rush County is located in the heart of what is known as the Land of the Post Rock. This land stretches for about 200 miles from the Nebraska border near mabaska, almost directly southwest to within a few miles of Dodge City, Kansas. The width ranges from less than 10 miles to more than 40 miles. It covers about five thousand square miles or more than three million acres. Underlying this area, there is a layer of soft limestone, Because of the effects of erosion, the limestone crops out in many areas. After exposure to air, the soft rock becomes quite hard. Hence because of its abundance and availability, the limestone was used extensively for the construction of homes, schools, churches, bridges, etc. It was also used a great deal for fence posts to support the barbed wire fences. It is because of the latter use that the limestone is known as post rock.

Rush County was named in 1868 by Colonel S. J. Crawford, Governor of Kansas. It honored Alexander Rush, Captain of Company H, Second Kansas Volunteer Colored Infantry, who was killed in battle at Jenkins Ferry on 30 April 1864.

The first settler in Rush County was William Basham. He arrived in the fall of 1870. He settled in Pioneer Township, Just south of Walnut Creek and west of the Barton County line. By the end of 1870 the population of the county had reached 75 and by the end of 1874 it was 600.

On 22 September 1874 Governor Thomas A. Osborne appointed William S. Wood as census-taker for Rush County. Wood made his report in early December of 1874 signed by forty householders. The report showed that Rush County had 600 inhabitants. This was the minimum number required by law for county organization. Hence the governor made a proclamation on 5 December 1874 for the official organization of Rush County. He appointed three commissioners and a county clerk. rush County celebrated its centennial during the last week in May of 1974.

Economy was the first post office in Rush County. It was located on the Ft. Hay-Ft. Larned trail about three mile east of Walnut City (Present day Rush Center).

Established in 1871, it was served by military courier. It was abandoned in 1872. Interestingly, about 26 towns and/or post offices were established in various parts of Rush County which no longer exist. These were often started in homes and changed in location when the families moved.

Present day towns, Otis, Bison, La Crosse, Hargrave, and McCracken are located on the Missouri pacific Railroad, while Shaffer, Timken, Rush Center, Nekoma and Alexander are located on a branch line of the Santa Fe. Only Libenthal, north of La Crosse, and Loretto, north of Bison, are not located on a railroad. Of these present day towns, Alexander is the oldest town in Rush County. It started as a trading post on the north bank of Walnut Creek in 1869. It was located on the military road known as the Ft. Hays-Ft. Dodge Trail.

La Crosse, the county seat, Was the second oldest town in Rush County. Located at approximately the center of the county, it was organized in November of 1886. It was named by one of it founders for La Crosse, Wisconsin, the city where he had resided previously.

The first white family to settle near the present site of Walnut City (Rush Center) was that of J. S. Templeton on S 1/2 of SE 1/4 of section 28-18-18 on 1 August 1871. Walnut City was not much more than a trading post in the early days. The first store was opened by John Hubbard in 1874.

The Missouri Pacific Railway Company erected a depot and section house one mile west of the Barton County line. The town that developed at this location was organized in 1886. It was named Otis in honor of the son of a former military man, Major Moderwell.

Bison is located in an area where a large herd of buffalo were grazing in 1873, hence the name of the American Buffalo, Bison. The land at this site had been homesteaded in 1876. The Missouri Pacific Railroad came through in 1886 and built a platform to unload passengers. The town that developed in the vicinity was organized in 1888. (About a mile and a half southeast of Bison, there was an abandoned Indian camp covering about 40 acres when Bison had its beginning).

In the spring of 1890 three Shaffer brothers came to Rush County and purchased land south of Walnut Creek. The town of Shaffer came into existence on the Santa Fe branch line on 19 February 1892 when Frank F. Shaffer established a post office.

At the present time Rush County measures 30 miles from east to west and 24 miles from north to south. Originally the county was 36 miles long and 36 miles wide. This placed Walnut City (Rush Center) near the center of the county and was designated the county seat. However, when the dimensions of the county were reduced to 24 miles by 30 miles, La Crosse was near the center of the county. As a result, rivalry developed between the two which lasted from 1876 to 1888. Several elections made one and then the other the county seat. Finally, an election on 23 August 1887 designated La Crosse as the official county seat.

The population of Rush County increased rapidly between 1874 and 1880 (from 600 to 5,498) due to two factors. First, the rapid development of railroad transportation in the area, (The Missouri Pacific reached the western edge of Rush County in February of 1887 and the Santa Fe branch line reached Rush Center in September of 1886). To encourage this expansion, the government gave immense land holdings to the railroad companies. Secondly, the railroad wanted to sell these holdings to obtain revenues. They did a great deal of advertising in Eastern United States and in Europe to encourage the coming of farm families. And come they did, from the eastern states and from Europe. Some came only to leave again. There were many difficulties which the early settlers had to face. Among these may be mentioned the grasshopper plague of 1874, the drought of 1870 to 1874, the occasional prairie fires, the blizzard of 1886, etc.

The Kansas prairies were similar to the farm land the German-Russians had known for 100 years in Russia. Thus many of these families came to western Barton County and eastern Rush County. Since much of the Walnut Valley had been taken already, they chose higher ground toward the north where they settled in language groups.

Hence we find that the Mohr family, after leaving Marion County, moved to the eastern part of Rush County where a large settlement of German-Russians was being established. Their first home in Rush County consisted of a dugout on the bank of Walnut Creek. This probably was located on the southwest quarter of section 16, Township 18 south, and Range 16 west, about four miles south and two miles west of Otis, Kansas (data from Edward F. Mohr, Otis). Their first post office was located 4 1/2 miles south of Otis, Kansas, on the south-east corner of the intersection of Otis road and Highway 96. It was established on 13 February 1874 in the log home of Alfred Belfield and known as the Belfield, Kansas post office.

Soon after the arrival of the Johann Friedrich Mohr family in Rush County, two of his nephews (sons of a brother) arrived. These were George Mohr and Johannes (John) Mohr. The older of the two, George, became quite prosperous. He had two children, Susan who married Jake Hanhardt and a son about whom no information is available. George lived 1 1/2 miles south of Otis. John, the second nephew, married but had no children. He lived about five miles south-west of Shaffer, Kansas. George belonged to the Lutheran Church, while John became an Adventist. John, sickly, died young and is buried in the Shaffer, Kansas, Seventh-day Adventist cemetery. No additional information about these nephews of Johann Friedrich Mohr is available at this time.

It appears that the last Indians went through Rush County in 1878. There were two chiefs with about 500 Indians, dressed only in loin cloths. Some of the Indians had broken into a hardware store in Fort Hays, taking rifles and ammunition. A garrison of Federal soldier stationed at Fort Hays killed and buried one Indian. The rest got on their horses and departed, crossing the Walnut Creek near Shaffer, on their way to Fort Larned. It is believed that Johann Friedrich’s wife Elisabeth was one of the women who was washing clothes at the creek that day. When the ladies saw all of the Indians, they were terrified. As a gesture of good will, one of the chiefs shook hands with the ladies before departing.

Johann Friedrich Mohr homesteaded on the southwest quarter of section 2, Township 18 south and Range 16 west (one mile west and two miles south of Otis Kansas), where they lived in a sod house. The homestead patent, in possession of Edward F. Mohr, Otis, is dated 20 October 1883. Later they constructed a two story stone (post stone) house, which was located near the southwest corner of the 160 acre homestead.

According to the land records of Rush County, Kansas, in the office of the Register of Deeds, Johann Friedrich’s son Georg Heinrich (Henry) homesteaded on the northwest quarter of this same section (filed 1 March 1898). In 1901 Henry purchased the 160 acre homestead of Thomas Lamming near Nekoma, Kansas (section 10, Township 19 south, Range 19 west) two miles east and four miles south of Nekoma. Johann Friedrich’s oldest son, Johann Philipp (Phillip) received a homestead patent on the northeast quarter of section 14, Township 17 south, Range 17 west (recorded 2 June 1890). This homestead was located 2 miles east and 4 miles north of Bison, Kansas. Later, Philipp purchased two quarter sections four miles east of Bison where they lived in a sod house for a time. Later Philipp built a two story frame house and the school teacher Doering lived in the sod house. Johann Friedrich’s son Georg Konrad (Conrad) received a patent from the State of Kansas on a quarter section of state school land (the northeast quarter of section 16, Township 18 south, Range 19 west). This was located about a mile east and a mile north of Nekoma, Kansas. The Rush County land records list over 40 transactions by members of the Mohr family for the period of 1894 to 1909, in which one of Johann Friedrich Mohr’s sons or grandsons purchased a quarter section of land.

Johann Friedrich Mohr received his naturalization paper on 1 March 1883 (in possess-ion of Edward F. Mohr, Otis) and his oldest son Philipp received his on 17 May 1887 (in possession of his daughter Lillian (Mohr) Ogden). They wanted to belong to their newly adopted country.

The Black Sea German immigrants usually brought along a certain amount of cash when they came to the United States. In the case of the Volga Germans, many came with very little money or possessions. In the first year usually not more than ten acres could be brought under cultivation. During this time the family had no income to live on, so they looked for other means of earn-ing enough for living expenses. Some earned money by gathering buffalo bones from the prairie and hauling them to market, and gathered buffalo chips for fuel. Others found part time work in factories and still others found a real opportunity for work in the construction of new railroads. Thus we find that when Johann Friedrich’s son Henry Mohr was 16 year old he went to Great Bend, Kansas to find a job. A Santa Fe Railroad recruiter who was looking for men asked Henry where he might pick up 25 men. The next day Henry was back with 25 young men, including his brother Conrad, age 18, All of the young men were sent to Raton, New Mexico. The construction company separated the small boys from the larger ones. Thus Henry Mohr was sent with others into the mountains to cut railroad ties for about three years, sending most of his wages to his father to keep the claim going. Conrad and the larger fellows were put on a construction gang for a year, He also sent his savings home. Before he went to New Mexico, Conrad married Margretha Beltz, who stayed with Johann Friedrich and Elisabeth while he was away. When Conrad returned from New Mexico, he and Margretha moved to Trinidad, Colorado for a time.

Johann Friedrich Mohr was pastor of a German Baptist Church north of Bison, Kansas. One Sunday morning he, Elisabeth and Margretha returned from church to find two dogs and a cat in the sod house. The dogs had chased the cat up one of the two poles that held up the roof. John Jacob, seven years old, was lisping, “Siccum!” to the dogs which scared the cat even higher. Margretha begged Johann Friedrich not to whip John Jacob, but he went out to get a stick, and you can guess the rest!

Some interesting information was obtained from the census records for Rush County, Kansas for 1 March 1885. It lists Johann Friedrich Mohr in Pioneer Towns-hip (age 52), his wife Elisabeth (52), son Henry (22) and son Jacob (13). He had 160 acres valued at $1,200.00, implements valued at $200.00. He had 110 acres in wheat, 15 in rye, 10 in spring wheat, 46 in corn, 15 in barley, 15 in oats, 1 in potatoes, 5 in sorghum, and 10 in millet. He had 500 bushels of wheat and 30 of corn on hand. He had 4 horses, 4 milk cows, 11 cattle, 20 hogs and 2 dogs.

The oldest son Philipp also resided in Pioneer Township. Philipp was 31 years of age, his wife Kate (31) son David (11), Isaac (9), John (8), Sarah (7), Jacob (3), and Elizabeth (2). Philipp Mohr had 160 acres valued at $1,200,00 and implements valued at $75.00. He had 40 acres of wheat, 15 of corn, 6 of sorghum, etc. (The rest of the microfilm of the census was not clear enough to read the balance of Philipp's possessions.)

The second son, John B. Mohr, also resided in Pioneer Township He was 29 year old. His wife Katie (29), children Hannah (6), Mary (4), Benjamin (2), Emmanuel (10 months). John Mohr had 160 acres valued at $1,000.00 and implements valued at $80.00. He had 60 acres in winter wheat, 10 in rye, 25 in corn, 10 in barley, 10 in oats, 1 in potatoes, 4 in sorghum, and 4 in millet, He had 3 bushels of corn, 50 of wheat and 10 tons of hay on hand. In addition, he had 2 horses, 1 milk cow, 1 head of cattle, 3 hogs and 2 dogs.

Conrad Mohr (24) and his wife Margaret (27) resided in Garfield Township. He had 160 acres, valued at $200.00, and implements valued at $20.00. He had 30 acres in wheat, 10 in rye, 20 in corn, 3 in oats, 10 in millet. He had 300 bushels of wheat, and 5 tons of hay on hand. He had 3 milk Cows, 6 head of cattle, 9 hogs and 1 dog.

The German-Russian immigrants that came to eastern Rush County, Kansas, belonged to various faiths such as the Lutheran, Baptist, Methodist, etc. Johann Friedrich Mohr, as mentioned previously, was pastor of a German Baptist Church north of Bison, Kansas. It is not too clear what the church affiliations of each one of Johann Friedrich’s children may have been when they came to Rush County. A brief family history of the John Mohr family states that they were Lutherans. In the obituary of Philipp Mohr’s wife Katherine it states that she originally belonged to the Lutheran Church. On the other hand, the obituary of Anna Maria (Mohr) Reinhardt states that at an early age she was baptized in the Church of the United Brethren. Later she became one of the first members of the Baptist Church.

After a time, a German preacher by the name of S. S. Schrock came to eastern Rush County, Kansas from Wisconsin. He labored tirelessly among the German settlers. His custom was to call at every farm house as far as possible, even during harvest and threshing time. While the men were eating their meals at some farmer’s house, the preacher would stand at the end of the table, and read text after text from his Bible. There were three families (Johann Friedrich Kraft, Balzer Eitel and Philipp Mohr) in whose home he was a frequent visitor in order to study the Bible with them. Soon these three families decided to join the Seventh-day Adventist Church. It was not long before these families were joined by others in the neighborhood. A partial list of these families follows: the George Huenergardts, the John Simons, the Kaufmans, the Adam Schneiders, the John Schmidts, the Henry Hanhardts, the Jake Westermeyers, Johann Friedrich’s wife Elisabeth and her children the John B. Mohrs, the Conrad Mohrs, the Henry Mohrs, the Jacob Mohrs, and the John Reinhardts.

The first German Seventh-day Adventist Church in Rush County, Kansas was organized by L. R. Conradi in 1886 as the Otis Seventh-day Adventist Church, of which the above were charter members. (The nearest post offices at the time were in Otis, La Crosse, and Rush Center, since Bison and Shaffer did not exist until later.) The first church building was established on a parcel of land donated by Philipp Mohr. This was located at the southeast corner of the northeast quarter of section 6, Township 18 south, Range 16 west (four miles east and one half mile south of Bison). This land had belonged to Balzer Eitel who sold it to Philipp Mohr on 16 March 1893. A cemetery for this congregation was established at the northeast corner of this same quarter section. In time the original building had to be enlarged for the growing congregation. This also became too small, and a new building was erected at the southwest corner of the northwest quarter of section 9, Township 18 south, Range 16 west (one mile south and one mile east of the original site) and henceforth became known as the Shaffer Seventh-day Adventist Church.

It had been customary in Russia for each village to have its own German Church School regardless whether the village was Evangelical or Catholic. This practice was often followed in America. Thus it was that in the summer of 1894 a German school teacher, A. E. Doering, visited the Otis Seventh-day Adventist Church to interest its members in establishing their own school. Plans were soon finalized and on a bright Monday morning of the following fall school opened with 48 pupils, consisting of adults, teenagers and children. The following members of the Mohr families attended this first German church school: Philipp Mohr and his children Isaac, John and Sarah: Hannah, Mary and Ben Mohr, children of John B. Mohr; Fred Mohr, son of Conrad Mohr: Henry Mohr and J. Jacob Mohr.

The Shaffer Seventh-day Adventist Church and School.
The church and the school were auctioned off to the highest bidder on November 1, 1992.

During the one hundred and twenty-eight years since Johann Friedrich Mohr came to Kansas, his descendants have scattered to many states of the union. Very few of them are still able to speak the German language and know little or nothing about their German-Russian background, even less about the place of origin of their ancestors in Germany. It is hoped that the brief historical overview presented in the preceding pages will be of interest to all of Johann Friedrich Mohr’s descendants.


POSTSCRIPT

When Eugene Irving Mohr and Vernon Paul Mohr compiled the information on the Johann Friedrich Mohr family, little or no attention was paid to the spouses of Johann Friedrich Mohr’s children. Believing that some information concerning the spouses would be of interest to those who purchased the Johann Friedrich Mohr Family History, Eugene Irving Mohr collected some information and human interest stories over a period of several years and presents it in the following pages. However, before going into this narrative, it might be helpful to get some idea about life in Kansas during pioneer days.

Life on the Kansas Frontier was commonly very difficult and lonely for the homesteader during the early years. Lilla Day Monroe came to Kansas in 1884 when the frontier period was coming to a close. She became active in the struggle for woman’s suffrage. During the early 1920s she launched an effort to record the history of the pioneer women of Kansas. Eventually she accumulated the personal memoirs of 800 Kansas women. She had hoped to write a book on frontier history based on these memoirs. However, she passed away before she was able to realize her dream.

In the winter of 1975, Mrs. Monroe’s great granddaughter, Joanna L. Stratton, was visiting her grandmother. She became interested in the treasures stored in the attic. Noticing some filing cabinets wedged beneath the eaves, she looked through the files and found these memoirs-of the 800 Kansas pioneer women. They were carefully labeled and filed alphabetically. As she examined them, she was thrilled and decided to complete the task commenced by her great grandmother many years before. It became a reality when it was published by Simon and Schuster in 1981 under the title “Pioneer Women: Voices from the Kansas Frontier”. For these voices to be heard, a few of the stories will be presented here.

“For Ary Johnson’s family, the nightmare of one sudden blizzard was not easily forgotten. According to one daughter, ‘New Year’s morning in the year 1886 gave promise of being one of the lovely days of western Kansas, but by one o’clock the clouds began to darken the skies and by night were very heavy; snow flakes beginning to fall very lightly at about six o’clock and by ten o’clock everyone realized that the country was in the grip of a terrible blizzard, the wind blowing a gale and the snow coming in a blinding rush. By morning, nothing could be seen, and in order to care for the stock in the barns, it was necessary to draw a rope from house to barn. The cold was so intense that fires had to be kept going in the house day and night, and many people suffered from a lack of provisions and fuel.

‘This continued for four days. Cattle on the range could not be cared for and it was not possible to search for them until after the fourth day of the storm. Losses were extremely heavy, and searchers would find them frozen to death, some with mouths frozen shut, some with their feet frozen. It was only with the greatest difficulty that progress could be made through the large drifts, and men on horses were frequently compelled to get off, make their way as best they could through the drifts and then pull the horses to them by a rope previously tied to their heads. The snow made everything look alike and it was only by the aid of familiar posts or fences that one was able to keep from getting lost. A week after the storm, searchers saw steam coming from a drift and found 100 head of cattle that were in good shape, all that was left of a bunch of 500.”’

“‘I remember driving over to the (Groves) ranch one beautiful day in early spring,’ wrote Susan Profitt. ‘The great acres gave promise of an unusual harvest of feed for the thousands of white-faced cattle grazing contentedly in the pastures. A more beautiful scene I never saw.’

‘Spring gave into summer, and in August at the close of a hot day when the grasses seemed to wither and the cattle bunched up near the creek and well and no air seemed to stir the leaves on the trees, all nature seemed still with an ominous stillness. A mass of black clouds loomed up in the west, distant thunder rumbled, the clouds gathered fast, taking on a greenish hue, thunder boomed and lightning streaked the sky and cut through the landscape and then with a rush and roar came the hail, devastating everything.

After the storm had passed, the Groves ranch was damaged thousands of dollars, the acres of feed was beaten into the ground, there was no pasture for the thousands of white faces, and next day I drove out to the ranch. Mrs. Groves was with her husband on the ranch and met us with a smile and greeting so bright that we almost forgot her great loss. When we did speak of it, she smiled and replied, “It is bad, but our neighbor has suffered a heavier loss than we.” This reply was characteristic of her; in her busy life she always had time to listen and sympathize with others, but of her own troubles she seldom spoke.”’

“In 1877, Anna and Jacob Ruppenthal brought their five children to a home-stead ten miles north of Wilson, Kansas. Like other families, the Ruppenthals experienced the trials and tribulations of farming on the wide open prairie. As. J. C. Ruppenthal later explained, prairie fires were a constant source of worry: ‘In the days of endless sweep of prairie, of grass without limit for many, many miles, the ripening of the grass in early fall or its premature drying from drought was a signal for renewed nightly vigilance in watching the horizon all around. Every light against the sky told of a prairie fire in that direction. The direction of the wind, either from or opposite the direction of such a fire, or sidewise, the unsteadiness of the wind with possibility of veering so as to bring fire toward the home--all these were noted. The last act at night, after seeing that the children were all asleep, and all quiet among the livestock in sheds, pens and corrals, was to sweep the entire horizon for signs of flame.

‘Many times, on awakening in the dead of night, the room was light with reflection from the sky, shining through uncurtained windows from some fire ten or twenty or fifty miles away. Often in the small hours mother watched from window to window to see if the light died away, indicating that the fire had gone out, or had grown brighter threatening a wider scope of blackened prairie behind it.

‘At times the flames themselves were visible at night up to twenty or twenty--five miles away, as they crept up hills in the buffalo grass, or flared longer in the redtop bunch grass, and when the fire rolled down into a hollow in big blue stem grass, though the flames might not be seen, the general red glare in the sky told somewhat of the heat and light from the tall grass below. Despite the fear inspired by a prairie fire, there was a fascination to watch a fire by night, advancing, brightening, showing masses of solid flame and myriads of tiny jets that flickered and went out, to flash again farther along. At times the silhouettes of men fighting could be seen against the background of distant flames.”’ (He then describes how his parents fought several fires that threatened to destroy their home.)


STEINBRECHER

When Johann Friedrich Mohr, progenitor of the Mohr family in the United States, arrived in New York on the S. S. Schiller on 9 December 1874, he was 42 years, and 6 1/2 months old. His wife, Elizabeth (Liese) Catharina Steinbrecher, born 7 January 1833, and their six children accompanied him. The same vessel also brought Johann Steinbrecher, (a cobbler), 21 years old, his wife Maria (25 years) and daughter Maria (9 months). Hence it is likely that Johann was related to Elizabeth Catharina (Steinbrecher) Mohr. He may have been a younger brother or more likely a nephew of Elizabeth. It is not known where Johann and his family went after landing in New York.

Johann Friedrich and Elizabeth (Steinbrecher) Mohr were born in Beideck, Russia. Records show that Steinbrechers resided in Beideck, Russia (founded in 1764), and in Dönhof, Russia (founded in 1766), located 14 miles southwest of Beideck. Hence it is quite likely that the Steinbrechers in the two villages were related.

Records show that a Johann Steinbrecher, farmer, was married to Eleanore Schneyder in Luebach, Germany, in 1766, most likely while they were waiting for a boat to go to the Volga region of Russia. He may have settled in Dönhof, Russia, and be the ancestor of Elizabeth (Steinbrecher) Mohr.

According to records, a David Steinbrecher (born in the 1790s or early 1800s), and wife Catherine (Kraus) Steinbrecher resided in Dönhoff, Russia, when their son Johann Wilhelm Steinbrecher was born on 5 March 1834. He was married to Catherine Elizabeth Kraus. A grandson, John William Steinbrecher, was born in Russia 5 July 1859. He was married to Elizabeth Hettinger 4 June 1879. He and five children landed in Baltimore, Maryland from the S. S. North German Lloyd Bremen in the spring of 1892. A great grandson, John Steinbrecher, born 22 June 1894 in Fulton County, Ohio, married Amelia Emma Graber on 19 June 1922. A great great granddaughter, Ruth Steinbrecher, born 2 February 1925, married Ronald E. Ormsby 4 February 1950. A great great great granddaughter, Kimberly Kay Ormsby, born 6 February 1959 in Toledo, Ohio, supplied the information on the David Steinbrecher descendants.

The Johann Wilhelm Steinbrecher (born 5 March 1834) mentioned in the paragraph above, in addition to his son John William Steinbrecher (born 5 July 1859), had another son, Henry Steinbrecher, also born in Russia. He came to the U.S. in 1887, five years before his father and brother arrived in Baltimore. In fact, Henry went to Baltimore to meet them in 1892. Henry’s son Joseph Steinbrecher was born 28 April 1891 in Denver, Colorado. Joseph was married to Anna Kundiunda Reichardt. A son Lewis Joseph Steinbrecher was born 6 October 1921 in Wauseon, Ohio, and married Mary Elizabeth Beverly. Their son, Lewis Joseph Steinbrecher, Jr., was born 5 November 1952 in Toledo, Ohio, and supplied the above information.

Some information on a Steinbrecher family was supplied by Gayle Behm. This information was given to her by her mother-in-law, Katherine Elizabeth (Steinbrecher) Behm (88 years old in 1983). Katherine Elizabeth came to the U.S. from Russia in 1912 when she was about 17 years old. Her father was George Jacob Steinbrecher (born 27 October 1863). Her grandfather was Henry Steinbrecher, who lived with his family in Unterdorf, Russia, about 66 1/2 miles south of Beideck and 54 miles south of Dönhof. He was married to Katherine Lei and had the following children: Henry, Katherine, Alexander (Sander), George Jacob (mentioned above), Jacob, Eva Elizabeth, and Maria Katherine. Katherine Elizabeth (Steinbrecher) Behm remembers hearing her grandfather talking about Beideck and Dönhof, hence assumes that this line of Steinbrechers came from the Beideck/Dönhof, Russia, area and thus might be related to Elizabeth (Steinbrecher) Mohr. George Jacob Steinbrecher had a cousin Michael whose boys apparently went to South America.

In 1764 a Friedrich Mohr, with wife and two children, ages 9 and 5 years, from Winterberg, Westphalia, Germany, went to the Volga area of Russia. This is the year when Beideck, Russia was founded. If he went to Beideck, Russia, he might be the ancestor of Friedrich Mohr who came to the U.S. in 1874.

Kaspar Mohr and his wife went from Beideck, Russia (on the Bergseite of the Volga River) to Reinwald, Russia (on the Wiesenseite of the Volga), where he died in 1870. A daughter, Katarina Margareta Mohr was born to them on 26 March 1868 in Reinwald, Russia. Katarina Margareta married Heinrich Kempf, who was born in Stahl, Russia (12 1/2 miles east-southeast from Beideck across the Volga River) on 15 March 1864. The couple lived in Stahl and Heinrich Kempf died there. A son Carl Kempf was born to them on 22 January 1895, and supplied the information. Karl Kempf resides (January 1983) at Route 2, Oxford, Wisconsin 53952. Katarina Margareta (Mohr) Kempf’s brother Heinrich Mohr served in the Russo-Turkish War and later lived some distance from Stahl, Russia. Katarina Margareta (Mohr) Kempf’s brother, Johann Jakob Mohr, served in the Russian army after the Russo-Turkish War. He later traveled about the country building windmills in the German Colonies as well as on the Russian Estates, employing a number of helpers. He finally settled in Beideck, The time and place of his death is unknown. Since Kaspar Mohr came from Beideck, Russia, and his daughter Katarina Margareta was born in 1868, Kaspar must have been born in the 1830s or 1840s. Hence it is very likely that Kaspar was a brother, cousin or nephew of Friedrich Mohr.

Sometime in the year 1885, Friedrich Mohr had a stroke. He was bedfast for two years until he passed away on 25 May 1887. During these two years, his five sons, Johann Philipp, Johann Balthasar, Georg Konrad, Georg Heinrich, and Johann Jakob, took turns caring for him around the clock.

DAHMER

Katherine Elizabeth Dahmer was born in Beideck, Russia, on 15 August 1853. In May 1872 she married Johann Philipp Mohr, oldest son of Friedrich Mohr. The couple came to the U.S. on the S.S. Schiller, landing in New York on 9 December 1874, accompanied by their nine months old son David, and Philipp’s parents, and four brothers and one sister. Katherine’s parents were Ludwig Dahmer and Magdalene Pfannenstiel, both born in Beideck, Russia. Katherine’s grandson, Eugene Irving Mohr, remembers her as a buxom, kindly person and at the same time quite outspoken. He remembers a time when he accompanied his father and grandparents in a carriage which was hitched to a team of horses. Grandmother Katherine said: “Irving is a little Philipp (Grandfather Philipp was a small man), but he is not worth his salt.”

Donald Henry Damer of Merrill, Michigan, was born 21 March 1926. His father, Heinrich (Henry) Dahmer, born in Beideck, Russia, 9 July 1893, came to Michigan. He had a brother Johannes (John) and sister Elizabeth (Dahmer) Greenmeier. Donald’s grandfather was Peter Heinrich Dahmer, born in Beideck, Russia. Peter Heinrich had a number of brothers and sisters also born in Beideck, Russia. One of them was Maria Elizabeth (Dahmer) Walz, born in Beideck 12 September 1856. (She had 6 sons, 1 daughter, 30 grandchildren and 36 great grandchildren when she passed away in 1946). Donald’s great grandfather, Peter Dahmer, was married to Katherine Elizabeth Schnegelberger. This Peter Dahmer may have been a brother of Ludwig Dahmer, father of Katherine Elizabeth (Dahmer) Mohr. Whatever the facts, it is certain that Donald’s family was related to Katherine Elizabeth (Dahmer) Mohr.

The father of Marie (Becker) Worster of Buchanan, Michigan, was Peter Becker, born in Beideck, Russia, 20 December 1875. His mother was Elizabeth (Dahmer) Becker. Elizabeth (Dahmer) Becker’s brother was Conrad Dahmer. Conrad had the following children: George Dahmer born in 1877, Marie Katherine (Dahmer) Becker born in 1879, and John Dahmer born in Beideck, Russia, 24 October 1881.

The death certificate of Christina Margaretha (Dahmer) Roemer’s father is given as Louie Dahmer. Might this be Ludwig Dahmer, the father of Katherine Elizabeth (Dahmer) Mohr? This Christina Margaretha (Dahmer) Roemer was born in Beideck, Russia, 10 November 1837, and could be Katherine Elizabeth (Dahmer) Mohr’s sister, aunt or cousin.

Although the exact relationship of the several Dahmer families coming from Beideck, Russia, is uncertain, there should be no doubt that they were related. However, in the case of some Dahmers that came from Reinwald, Russia, to settle in Wisconsin, it is impossible to know whether there is a relation-ship without additional information. Beideck was about 29 miles south of Saratov, Russia, and Reinwald was about 21 miles east of Saratov. With a separation of this kind in the days when travel was by foot or wagon, it is less likely that the Dahmers of Beideck and Reinwald were related. Nevertheless, it is not impossible since the Kaspar Mohr and wife mentioned previously went from Beideck to Reinwald.

It is not known from what part of Germany the ancestors of the Dahmers of Beideck, Russia, came. However, the records list a Magdalena Dahmer who went from Bieber or Lohrhaupten, Gelnhausen, Hesse, Germany, to Russia in 1765. She was the widow of Ulrich Dahmer, but it is not known to what part of Russia she migrated.

Some human interest stories from the lives of Katrina Elizabeth (Dahmer) Mohr, and her husband Johann Philipp Mohr, were related by their daughter, Lillian (Mohr) Ogden (born 13 December 1885 in Rush County, Kansas) to her daughter Marjorie (Ogden) Snyder (born 2 October 1909 in Spokane, Washington). These occurred in Russia or during the early days in the United States.

This incident from Russia. It seems that grandfather and grandmother had gone to a program in the church of a neighboring village, either at Christmas or Easter, in a sleigh. It was a moonlit night. When they were on their way home, they could hear large timber wolves howling in the distance. The wolves kept getting closer and closer and they realized that they were in grave danger. (There were stories about people being attacked by timber wolves and killed by them). They prayed and grandfather kept whipping the horses so that they would be able to get home before the wolves caught up with them. Finally, they were able to see the wolves which kept gaining on them. Grandfather realized that they could not make it home in time unless the Lord intervened. All of a sudden the wolves commenced to fight among themselves until one of them went down.

The rest of the wolves then attacked and killed it. During this melee, the wolves were delayed long enough so that grandfather and grandmother made it home safely, just as the wolves caught up with them again. Yes they made it home, and very thankful to the Lord for their deliverance from the wolves.

Philipp and Katrina (Dahmer) Mohr homesteaded on a quarter section of land 2 miles east and 4 miles north of Bison, Rush County, Kansas. They received the patent on this homestead on 2 June 1890. Later Philipp purchased two quarter sections four miles east of Bison where they lived in a sod house. He subsequently built a two-story wood frame house. (The German church school teacher then lived in the soddie). During pioneer days the terrible Kansas blizzards could be the cause of some very trying ordeals. These blizzards at times lasted for days, so grandfather and the boys used to string a rope between the house and barn so they could go back and forth to feed the animals without becoming lost. On one occasion, grandfather and grandmother had gone to town using a team of oxen. While in town a blizzard came up, so it was rather slow going with the oxen on the way home. Grandfather became confused and kept trying to get the oxen to go in the direction which he thought was home. He tried to turn them again and again. Finally he said: “Mother, I can’t do anything with these oxen, so I will just have to let them go”. It was not long before the oxen turned around and went in a direction opposite to the one in which grandfather had tried to make them go. It was not long before they were home. Apparently, the oxen had a better sense of direction than grandfather.

The noted frontier historian, Everett D. Dick, stated in one of his books: “To the poverty stricken homesteader, struggling to wrest a competence from the face of the virgin plains, all nature seemed hostile.” None the less, the great calamity of the year 1874 was never equaled before or since. In late July grasshoppers came suddenly, traveling with a strong wind, appearing like a dark cloud in the distance, which kept coming for hours. In places they covered the ground four to six inches thick. The spring and summer had been very favorable for growing crops, but the grasshopper soon had them eaten completely. Their destruction was felt from the Dakotas to northern Texas. They returned again in 1875, 1876 and 1877, but never again were they equal to the scourge of 1874, the year in which the Mohr family arrived in the United States.

Because of the locusts, grandfather and grandmother had very little food and were almost at the point of starvation. To make matters worse, they had another of the famous Kansas blizzards. One day a neighbor’s calf came into their yard. When the blizzard had abated a little, grandfather said: “Mother, I have to take that calf home. We don’t have any feed and it will starve over here.” So he went and took the calf home. When he got there, the neighbor said: “Brother Philipp, do you have anything to eat at your house?” Grandfather said that they had very little. The man had evidently killed an animal of some kind and had made some head cheese. He gave a whole head cheese to grandfather to take home. This took care of their needs for several days until they were able to get some-thing to eat. They thought it was an answer to prayer.

The next incident shows how God sometimes works for us. It also took place during the years of the locust plague. Grandfather would rig up a tub with sheet metal behind it. When the grasshoppers jumped against the sheets, they would fall into the tub and die. They were then dried for chicken feed. But where the family was concerned, they had neither food nor money to buy any. Grandfather decided to try and find some work in order to obtain money to purchase some food. He started out to go to Great Bend, about 30 miles away. He walked along the railroad tracks, since it was shorter than going by way of the highway. He had not had food for several days, so he felt faint as he continued on the way. He feared that he might not make it to Great Bend. He prayed, asking the Lord to show him something to eat so that he could go on. Just then a train came along. The conductor was standing in the doorway. When he came up to grandfather, the conductor threw out a large bag of crackers and cheese. This may have saved his life. If he had laid down beside the track, he might not have been able to get up again. He went on his way praising the Lord and thanking him for saving his life.

Life was not always hard and sad. There were also humorous incidents. One of these was especially enjoyed by Marjorie (Ogden) Snyder as a child. It was an incident which her mother, Lillian, had seen herself. It seems that grandmother had a huge old rooster that was the boss of the farmyard. The children often got black and blue legs from him when they tried to interfere with him, or if he was in a bad mood. One day the old tom cat had a mouse. It was playing a typical cat and mouse game, letting the poor thing run, recatching it, and letting it run again and again. The old rooster came along just as the cat had let the mouse run. Lo and behold, the rooster grabbed the mouse, and swallowed it head first with only the tail sticking out of his mouth. The cat did not see him get it, so hunted and hunted for his mouse.

AN EVENT OF 1875

On 1 June 1875, the City of Richmond arrived in New York from Liverpool, England The passengers were for the most part Pietistic Volga German Protestants. The Herald of Truth for July 1875 stated: “On the 21st of June, 14 families.... arrived from Russia . . . These all paid their own passages. Eight of them went to Kansas to meet others of their church which had preceded them last year. The six remaining families went to Holmes County, Ohio . . . The families that went to Ohio, not finding employment there, as they say, came to Elkhart, Indiana, the 29th where they yet are.”

Among these families which are of interest in the Friedrich Mohr Family History, were two Arnbrecht families, two Beltz families, an Eitel family, a Sell family, and a Schneider family. These will be referred to later. In addition, the passenger list included the families of Heinrich Hardt, Christian Schmidt, Gottlieb Hanhardt, Adam Harnhardt and Peter Betz, names well known to older members of the Friedrich Mohr descendants and related by marriage to several families.

SELL

Johann Balthasar Mohr, the second son of Johann Friedrich Mohr, was married to Katherine M. Sell on 22 April 1877 in Rush County, Kansas. Katherine was born in the Volga Village of Kutter, Russia, 11 miles south-southwest of Beideck on 29 April 1856. Her father was Heinrich C. Sell, born in Kutter (Papowka), Russia, on 14 May 1832 and married to Maria E. Schneider on 5 March 1852. Heinrich C. Sell, his wife Maria (age 43), and children Heinrich (23), Katherine (19) and Gottlieb (17) arrived in New York on the S.S. City of Richmond on 21 June 1875 and went to Kansas. The Sell family were members of the Baptist Church and Katherine later joined the Seventh-day Adventist Church. Heinrich C. Sell’s wife died in 1890, and he lived with his daughter Katherine (Sell) Mohr for 25 years until his death on 27 October 1914.

The J. B. Mohr home. This picture was taken in January 23, 1905 on the wedding day of his fourth child Emmanuel Manuel Mohr to Mollie Winters.
 

Katherine’s brother Henry Sell lived in Garfield Township, Rush County, Kansas, at the time of the Kansas State Census of 1885. It lists Henry Sell (age 33), wife Mary (28), and children Sisy (7), John (5), Mary (4), Emmanuel (2), and Jacob (9 mo.). The census gives the following information about the family: Henry had 160 acres of land having a cash value of $150.00. He had the following crops: 30 acres of winter wheat, 10 of rye, 10 of corn, 5 of millet, 3 of oats, and one acre of potatoes. He had 75 bushels of corn, 6 tons of hay and 1 ton of prairie hay on hand. He had sold 200 lbs. of butter and slaughtered animals valued at $28.00. He had the following animals: 3 horses, 2 milk cows, 3 cattle, 3 hogs, and 2 dogs.

Katherine’s brother Gottlieb Sell lived in Garfield Township, Rush County, Kansas, at the time of the Kansas State Census of 1885. It lists Gottlieb Sell (age 26) and wife Jane (23). In the same house lived his father, Conrad Sell (52), and his wife Maria Elisabeth (age 53). The following information is given: They had 160 acres of land, with the following crops: 50 acres of winter wheat, 10 of corn, and 5 of millet. They had 50 bushels of wheat and 5 tons of hay on hand. They had the following animals: 2 horses, 2 milk cows, 2 cattle, 4 hogs, and 2 dogs.

Gottlieb Sell is also listed in the U. S. Census of 1900, in which his wife is listed as Antonie (is this his wife Jane or is it a second wife?). The Census lists the following children: Joseph (age 15), Louise (14), and Frank (10). Also listed is Gottlieb’s brother John Sell (age 21) who was born in Kansas in April 1879.

REINHARDT

Anna Maria Mohr, fourth child of Friedrich Mohr, was married to Johannes (John) Reinhardt on 5 May 1879 at Bison, Rush County, Kansas. John Reinhardt was born in the Volga village of Neu Dönhof, Russia, on 30 November 1855. (Neu Dönhof is about 15 miles west of Dönhof and 28 miles west-southwest of Beideck, Russia, the home village of Friedrich Mohr.) His parents were Georg Heinrich Reinhardt and Katherine Schwartzkopf. They had eight sons and two daughters. John’s brother Wilhelm (William) was born in Russia on 8 March 1856. He served in the Russian army for six years. John’s sister Katherine Reinhardt was born in Russia on 11 December 1857(?). She married Friedrich Schwartzkopf.

The John and Anna Maria Reinhardt home located in Bison, Kansas.
 

John Reinhardt came to the U.S. in 1875 at the age of twenty in order to avoid military service in the Russian Army. Friedrich Schwartzkopf, his wife Katherine Reinhardt and their son William came to the U.S. 11 December 1875, probably in the company of John Reinhardt. They established their home near Bison, Rush County, Kansas. In addition to their son William, they had the following children which were born in the U.S.: Jake, John, Fred, Herman, Edward, Elizabeth (Lizzie, and Mary.

On 1 April 1933 William Reinhardt’s daughter-in-law gave the following information in regard to the parents of John Reinhardt: Grandfather George Henry Reinhardt lived to an old age. He was a farmer and excellent woodworker. In fact the whole family was handy in woodworking and made their own wagons during the winter months. The Reinhardt family was well-to-do, always having plenty of money in their trunk. They also were a very religious people. George Henry Reinhardt’s wife died while she was quite young, but George Henry never remarried. Apparently he and his children, except for the three mentioned above, remained in Russia. If any of them survived, they must have endured a great deal of suffering in common with other German-Russian families that remained in Russia.

In 1887 John Reinhardt’s brother Wilhelm (William) Reinhardt came to the U.S. with his wife and sons William S., Henry and Conrad. They were accompanied by a sizable group which included Johann Wilhelm Kaiser, whose daughter Rosa recorded the following: “It was on 16 April 1887 when they arrived in Rush County, Kansas, to set foot on what was to become their adopted homeland. Skies were sunny, the wind was blowing the tall prairie grass, and there was a promise of spring in the air.”

“A farmer with team and wagon met them at the Rush Center, Kansas, railway station and took the whole group northeast across the prairie. They first stopped at the John Reinhardt farm (on what is now the east-west Hwy #4 one mile north of Bison). John left his team standing and came over to greet his brother Wilhelm (William) and family. Then the whole load drove north to the next farmstead--the Friedrich Schwartzkopf farm where they received a wonderful welcome. Naturally the housewife looked after the food and comfort of her friends. The newcomers were tired, hungry, in need of soap and water, and rest. Katherine (Reinhardt) Schwartzkopf set out the food and bread which she had on hand, and then made baking powder biscuits until all had been fed.”

John Reinhardt, as well as his brother William, were short, stocky and fair. Both were dedicated to hard work and had an unwavering faith in God. (It is said that William would unload fifty bushels of wheat without stopping to rest). They set a hard pace for themselves which they held for years. In addition to William’s children mentioned above, he had the following children born in the U.S.: Mollie, Martha, Pauline, Jacob, Samuel, and Seachardt.

John Reinhardt homestead on land east of Bison, Rush County, Kansas. As was true of other German-Russian immigrants, he worked on the Santa Fe Railroad helping to lay tracks across Kansas in order to have some income. (When William arrived in the U.S. he worked on the Missouri Pacific from Hoisington, Kansas to Pueblo, Colorado.) Thus it was that one summer while John was working on the railroad, his wife Anna Maria hoed forty acres of corn in order to have a crop in the fall. It was while he was working on the railroad that a fellow workman accused John of stealing his coat despite protests to the contrary. John was judged to be guilty and sentenced to hang for his alleged crime. He was about to be hanged when the foreman showed up, identified him as an honest workman, and saved his life. After some years he sold his homestead for a good price, but oil and gas were discovered on it later. Although it did not give a high yield, it did prove helpful to the new owner.

After selling the homestead, the John Reinhardts lived near Shaffer, Rush County, Kansas and later on the farm previously mentioned located northeast of Bison. After some years they retired from the farm and moved to Bison, Rush County, Kansas.

The year 1912 had most unusual weather. January was extremely cold. The last of February and first part of March brought a lot of snow. (Bison had no train service from March 10 to March 15). On the evening of May 3 over five inches of rain fell in 1 l/2 hours, washing out several hundred feet of track in Bison. But the outstanding event was the tornado which hit the southeast part of Bison at about 2:30 on April 20, causing a great deal of damage in Bison, and two deaths on the Kottal farm south of town. This was shortly after John Reinhardt’s daughter married Carl F. Newman. All of their wedding gifts were stored at the Reinhardt home. The tornado drove a board through the china closet where the gifts were stored and all of them were destroyed. John was reported to have been carried a great distance from town by the force of the wind and when found he was about three miles from town, walking toward Bison. Wilhelm Reinhardt’s son William S. also was caught with a team of horses and was carried some distance. Although he was separated from the horses, both William and the team survived.

As a youth, John Reinhardt was a member of the Brethren Church. He attended Lutheran parochial grade schools. In 1880 he joined the Baptist Church, and in 1895 he became a member of the Seventh-day Adventist Church. This caused some tensions in the Friedrich Schwartzkopf family when his wife was encouraged to join the Adventist Church. William Reinhardt interceded when his wife was encouraged to join the same church.

John Reinhardt’s grandnephew, Clarence F. Reinhardt, grandson of Wilhelm and son of William S. Reinhardt, recalls that John was friendly and warm, with a unique sense of humor. As a youngster, Clarence carried on conversations with him, at times asking foolish questions. John’s answers did not always satisfy Clarence. John was frequently humming a tune or singing. Always help-ful to his relatives, he was considered to be an excellent house painter.

John Reinhardt had a special gift for verse and song. He wrote thousands of poems in the German language. Many of them were published in the German edition of the Adventist Review. He was also gifted in composing and writing music. Eight of his songs were published in the German Adventist Hymnal and are sung by church members. Eugene Irving Mohr remembers hearing him hum a tune while someone (very likely Oliver S. Beltz) wrote out the music. The German Seventh--day Adventist Hymnal, Zions Lieder (Songs of Zion) published by the Pacific Press Publishing Association, Brookfield, Illinois, had 945 songs in the original edition. This was expanded to 1089 songs in the edition of 1917. The latter contains five songs by John Reinhardt. No. 998 Felsengrund (Rock Foundation) sung to the tune of A Higher Plane, by Charles Gabriel. No. 1004, Wir Sind Ya Nur Pilger (We are only pilgrims), but the source of the music is not indicated. No. 1024, Es Zieht Mich Himmelwaertz (It draws me Heavenward), with music by Oliver S. Beltz. No. 1051, Seele, Liebst Du Deinen Herrn (Soul, do you love your Lord?), with music by Oliver S. Beltz. No. 1088, Komm Heim, Komm Heim (Come Home, Come Home), with music by John Reinhardt himself.

In 1923 John Reinhardt moved to Finney County, Kansas, where he lived at the edge of Garden City, Kansas. He kept chickens and a cow or two and sold milk and eggs in town. He was well known and acquired the name of “Honest John” since his word was his bond. He walked to make his deliveries since he never owned or drove an automobile.

The U.S. Census of 1900 gives the following information for Pioneer Township, Rush County, Kansas: John Reinhardt, a farmer was 44 years old. He immigrated from Russia in 1876 (really 1875). Also listed are his wife Mary (Anna Maria Mohr) age 39, and children Lidia (15) Hanna (11) and Herman (really Harry) (10) (Harry died as a boy).

Records for the migration of 1763 to 1765 list a John Reinhardt who went to Russia from Mettenheim, Worms, Rhein-Hesse, Germany, and a Karl Ludwig Reinhardt who went to Russia from Frankfurt, Germany. It is not certain to what part of Russia they went, although it was probably to the Volga area, nor is it known whether either of them was an ancestor of John Reinhardt.

BELTZ

Georg Konrad Mohr, fifth child of Friedrich Mohr, married Margaret Beltz on 23 March 1880. Margaret was born in the Volga Village of Kutter, Russia, 11 miles south-southwest of Beideck, Russia, on 15 February 1858. Her father was George Beltz, born in Russia in 1825 and married to Maria Katherine Wagner. George Beltz (age 50), his wife Maria (51), and his son Johann (29), with wife Catherine (28), and child Jacob (1 year), and children Heinrich (27), Elizabeth (19), Margaret (17), and Johanna (12), arrived in New York on the S. S. City of Richmond on 21 June 1875 (according to the passenger list in the Journal of the AHSGR, Vol. 1, No. 3), and went to Elkhart, Indiana. (The 1 year old boy Jakob died and was buried at sea). The relationship of the 12 year old Johanna is not clear since Margaret had no sister by that name.

Some time later Margaret’s father, mother and brother Heinrich moved to Kansas. Margaret remained behind in Elkhart for about two years to work as a maid in a private home. Her brother Johann and wife Catherine also remained in Elkhart to work. While Margaret was working in Elkhart, Indiana, her brother Heinrich became ill, and her mother had the additional burden of caring for him. Katherine, a sister of Margaret, had stayed in Russia. Thus with a part of the family in Russia, and others in Indiana, and the additional burden of caring for a sick son, Margaret’s mother also became ill due to her grief for the absent members and the sick son. Hence, Margaret was called home from Elkhart to take care of her sick mother and brother. Shortly both the mother and brother Heinrich died and were buried in a corner of the homestead (The southwest quarter of section 15, Township 18 south, Range 16 west) in Rush County, Kansas, about a mile north of Shaffer, Kansas. Margaret took care of these graves daily until she moved away to get married. She found that it was constantly necessary to restore the mound over the graves because they were leveled off by the antelope. Finally all the land was put under cultivation and the graves were lost. (This homestead owned by Harry Herbel and his wife Eva, the daughter of Emmanuel Mohr and granddaughter of Johann Balthasar Mohr, was sold to Roger C. Mohr son of Edward F. Mohr and grandson of Johann Jakob Mohr and later sold to Alan Brack).      Comment in parenthesis inserted by Theodore W. Mohr.

One day, while Margaret was taking care of her mother, she did the family laundry. Since they had no well, she took the clothes down to the Walnut Creek (which runs eastward through the homestead) to wash them. When she happened to look up, a dozen Indians were looking down from the bank watching. The chief came down to shake hands with her, motioning for her not to worry since they would do her no harm. She remembered at the time that the chiefs hands were as soft as cotton and thought that he probably never worked very hard.

After Margaret’s mother died, she took care of her father for a time, and later worked in a hotel in Hays, Kansas. When the Union Pacific Railroad came through Hays, Buffalo Bill had been hired to supply them with buffalo meat. Thus, Margaret prepared buffalo meat as well as bear meat for the railroad crew. During this time she became quite proficient in reading and writing English.

As stated before, Margaret Beltz’s sister Katherine (Beltz) Miller remained in Russia when her father came to the United States with his family. However, after Katherine’s husband died, Conrad Mohr sponsored Katherine and her children Mollie Miller and John Miller and John’s wife to come to the United States. Mollie was a very capable worker and endeared herself to many young and old. When Eugene Irving Mohr was about three years old, Mollie served as a maid in his parent’s home. Margaret (Beltz) Mohr’s son Rufus Eugene Mohr (born 7 May 1898 in Rush County, Kansas) related some human interest incidents in the lives of the Mohr family during the early years in the United States, to Eugene Irving Mohr (born 29 September 1903 at Rush Center, Kansas).

During those early years there were very few roads in Rush County, Kansas. For the most part the people lived in sod houses. When Conrad Mohr (Rufus’s father) was about 15 years old, a rancher by the name of Belfield (?) living between Shaffer and Timken, Kansas, used to hire Conrad to deliver young horses to the army at Ft. Hays, Kansas. Riding a horse, Conrad would lead about six horses. He would follow the ravines so that the Indians would not see him and steal the horses.

During those early days several companies were trying to be the first to extend the railroad to the west coast. The Santa Fe Railroad had been extended to Trinidad, Colorado. Conrad Mohr (born 28 January 1861 in Russia) was about 16, and his brother George Henry (born 18 August 1862 in Russia) was about 14 years old. They went to Trinidad to get a job on the railroad. Conrad got a job, but they would not hire Henry because he was too young. So Conrad took Henry to Trinidad and bought a ticket to send him home. Conrad wrote a letter to his folks to tell them about it, but Henry never showed up at home. It seems that while Henry was waiting for the train, some loggers found him and hired him to cut trees. They were logging to make ties for the railroad. Apparently, the company sent a part of the wages to Henry’s folks so they knew that he was alive and well. Henry was missing from home for a year and a half. Meanwhile, Conrad was working with a rough crowd. There was one fellow in the crew that never gave his name. Since he came from Kansas everyone called him “Kansas”. In order to get Conrad away from the rough crew, the supervisor had him work in the railroad cook shack. That is how Conrad learned to cook. One day two U.S. marshals came and arrested “Kansas”--apparently he had been in some sort of trouble. He was never heard from again. A few years ago, (related in 1981) Rufus visited boot hill in Tombstone, Arizona. On one headstone he saw the name “Kansas”. The dates indicated that most likely this was the “Kansas” that Conrad Mohr knew when he worked on the Santa Fe Railroad.

Conrad Mohr did not have a homestead. His first home was south of Shaffer, Kansas. Later on they moved to the north side of the Walnut Creek (this land now belongs to Alan Brack). When Conrad Mohr’s son Rufus was one year old, this house was moved twenty miles to Kansas State School land northeast of Nekoma, Rush County, Kansas. While they were moving, Rufus, his mother Margaret, and a setting goose were in the house.

The Conrad Mohr home near Nekoma, Kansas.

Conrad Mohr was a self-made man. He became very proficient in all kinds of jobs. This was especially true of carpentry. Being an excellent carpenter, he taught the trade to most of his sons, as well as his nephew John Henry Mohr, the son of Conrad’s brother Philipp. Conrad built the Nekoma Seventh-day Adventist Church. At the same time John Henry Mohr built the Shaffer Seventh-day Adventist Church. When the Wichita, Kansas, Sanitarium decided to build a new girl’s dormitory, Conrad Mohr was hired for the job. He supervised the construction of the two -story brick veneer building. The city inspector found the building completely satisfactory.

Henry Mohr, Conrad’s brother, was not a carpenter, but he also was a very capable man. He had a very strong personality, and although a farmer, he was a very good fundamentalist preacher. He served as elder of the Nekoma Seventh-day Adventist Church for 25 years. There were some things with which he could not agree. He met Elder O. Montgomery, a vice president of the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists, at the Kansas campmeeting. Henry Mohr talked with him about his complaints. Elder Montgomery said that he would like to visit and preach in the church of which Henry Mohr was elder. Rufus Mohr stated that he was thankful that he grew up in a church that was as fundamental as the Nekoma Church.

Nekoma Seventh-day Adventist Church, Nekoma, Kansas.

The first church school teacher at the Nekoma Seventh-day Adventist Church was a man by the name of Harder. He was the uncle of Frederick Harder, until recently associated with the Department of Education of the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists. Two sons of the church school teacher are retired (1981) and live in the Paradise Manor, home for retirees, in National City, California. The younger of the two, used to teach at Enterprise Academy, Enterprise, Kansas.

The passenger list of the vessel that brought Margaret (Beltz) Mohr’s family to the United States, also listed her grandfather, Johann Beltz (age 75), and her father’s brother, Johann Beltz (age 35). Johann was accompanied by his wife Margaretta (35) and children Maria (14), Alexander (11), Johann (6), Jakob (5), and Adam (l). This family is listed in the U.S. Census of 1880 in Pioneer Township and also in La Crosse Township, both in Rush County, Kansas. Evidently the family moved during the period while the census was taken. In addition to the above members of the family, the census lists one year old Lydia, born in Rush County, Kansas.

The U.S. Census of 1880 for La Crosse Township, Rush County, Kansas, also lists Margaret’s grandfather Johann, now 80 years old, her father George (53), her brother John (35), his wife Catherine (32), daughter Lydia (5) and son Isaac (2).

The Kansas State census of 1885 for La Crosse Township, Rush County, Kansas, lists Margaret’s uncle, John Beltz (age 44), his wife Margaretta (44) and children Mary (23), Alexander (21), John (17), Jacob (14), Adam (12), Sadie (6), and David (2) . The census gives the following information about the family: John had 160 acres of land valued at $800.00, and machinery valued at $200.00. He had the following crops: 50 acres of winter wheat, 35 of corn, 20 of barley, 8 of oats, 5 of rye, 8 of cane, 10 of millet, 1 of potatoes, 1 of garden and 14 acres in trees. He had 200 bushel of wheat, 400 bushels of corn, 20 tons of hay and 20 tons of prairie hay on hand. He had sold 300 lbs. of butter, $5.00 of poultry and eggs, slaughtered animals valued at $72.00 and paid $250.00 in wages.

The Kansas State Census of 1885 for Rush County, Kansas did not list Margaret’s father, brother or sister as residing in Rush County. Her brother and father had moved to California, and her sister had married and was listed under her husband’s name.

The U.S. Census of 1900 for Lone Star Township, Rush County, Kansas, lists Margaret’s uncle, John Beltz (age 60), his wife Margaretta (59), and Margaret’s cousins Mary (39), Adam (26), and David (18). The Census for Center Township, Rush County, Kansas, lists Margaret’s cousin Alexander (Alex) Beltz (age 36), wife Eva (32), and their children Oliver S. (12), a well-known Seventh-day Adventist musician, Henry (11), Amy (10), Harry (8), Sarah (5), Daniel (3), and Esther (1). For La Crosse Township, Rush County, Kansas, it lists Margaret’s cousin John E. Beltz (32), wife Katie (28), and children Martha (5) and Theodore (1).

SCHNEIDER

George Henry Mohr, sixth child of Johann Friedrich Mohr, married Charlotte Schneider on 22 December 1885. Charlotte Schneider was born on 6 September 1866 in the Volga Village of Kutter, Russia. Her father, Gottlieb Schneider, was married to Susanna Hanhardt in Russia. Gottlieb Schneider (age 42), his wife Susanna (38) and children Elizabeth (12), Adam (11), Charlotte (9), and Gottlieb (6), arrived in New York on the S. S. City of Richmond on 21 June 1875. A number of families that arrived on the same vessel came from the Volga villages of Beideck, Kutter and Messer, thus one would expect that the Schneider family also came from one of these villages. As a matter of fact, Mrs. Heinrich (Schneider) Sell, the mother of Katherine (Sell) Mohr (Mrs. John B. Mohr), came on the same vessel from Kutter, and may have been the place of origin of the Gottlieb Schneider family. It is interesting to note that families by the name of Schneider also lived in the Volga villages of Bauer, Huck, and Norka located in the same general area, in addition to seven other villages located somewhat farther away from Beideck. At the time of the U.S. Census of 1880, Gottlieb Schneider (age 48) was residing in Banner Township, Rush County, Kansas, with his wife Susanna (45), and children Elizabeth (19), Adam (17), Charlotte (14), and Gottlieb (11).

At the time of the Kansas State Census of 1885 no listing was found for Charlotte (Schneider) Mohr’s father, and family, with the exception of her brother Adam Schneider (age 21). It gave no additional information on Adam Schneider. At the time of the U.S. Census of 1900, Charlotte (Schneider) Mohr’s brother Adam (age 36) was living in Pioneer Township, Rush County, Kansas, with his wife Lena (Schiedeman) Schneider (Mary?) (33), and children Augusta (Sarah) (12), Pearl (Rebecca) (11), and son Chester (Conrad) (8). (The names in parenthesis are those given in the census records, which often are incorrect). A related family, Gottlieb Schneider (age 43) resided in Banner Township, Rush County, Kansas, with his wife Anna (38) and children Mary (16), Gottlieb (11), Eva (9), Furl (7), Esther (2), and Elkanah (3 months).

In the book “The Emigration from Germany to Russia in the years 1763 to 1862”, Karl Stumpp lists many persons by the name of Schneider that went from Germany to the Volga region of Russia. Many of these came from the Hesse region of Germany. Among these was a Johann Adam Schneider that went to Beideck, Russia, and a Johann Heinrich Schneider that went from Duedelsheim/Buedingen, Germany, to Balzer in the Volga region of Russia.

EITEL

The Johann Jakob Mohr home built in the year 1907 by Sam Eitel. This home was built across the road from the old Johann Friedrich Mohr home and is now the residence of Mr. and Mrs. Roger Mohr, Grandson of Jakob Mohr. As you look to the right of the picture in the background, you see some of the old buildings of the old Friedrich Mohr homestead.

Johann Jakob Mohr, youngest son of Friedrich Mohr, married Anna Marie Eitel on 25 June 1891. Anna Marie Eitel was born in Beideck, Russia, on 19 February 1871. Her father, Balthasar Eitel (age 39), his wife Margaret (Rodie) Eitel (37), and children by his first wife, Maria (19) (later Westermeyer) and Balthasar (17), and his children by the second wife (Margaret Rodie), Peter (12), Maria (10) (later Fisher), Catherine (8) (later Hagen), Anna Marie (4), John (3), and George (1), arrived in New York on the S.S. City of Richmond on 21 June 1875. One reason for their coming to the U. S. was the fact that Balthasar was almost 18, and would have had to enter the Russian army. Hulda (Mohr) Riffel, daughter of Anna Marie (Eitel) Mohr, provided the information that her uncle J. Balthasar Eitel told her that the Eitel side of the family originally went to Russia from Switzerland. It is possible, however, that they might have come from Hesse, Germany, where some regions are called “Schweiz” (Switzerland).

It seems that the Eitel family spent the first winter after coming to the United States in a dugout on the bank of the Walnut Creek in eastern Rush County, Kansas, where they took a 160 acre homestead claim, 3½ miles straight south of Otis). They next lived in a sod house until they were able to construct a stone house. On occasion an Indian would come by and point to a chicken and then to himself to indicate that he wanted the chicken. The older children slept in an old granary. They were able to see the stars through the roof. At times during the winter they woke up under a blanket of snow. A common task of some of the children was that of herding the cattle on the prairie.

The U.S. Census of 1880 lists Balthasar Eitel (age 44), wife Grace (?) (41), and children Balthasar (21), Peter (17), Mary (15), Grace (Catherine) (12), Anna (10), John (8), George (6), and Henry (3) (born in Rush County), living in Pioneer Township, Rush County, Kansas.

Kansas State Census of 1885 for Pioneer Township, Rush County, Kansas, lists J. B. Eitel (Balthasar) (age 49), his wife Mary (45), and children Anna (15), John (13), George (10), Henry (7), and Jacob (4). The census gives the following information on the family: J. Balthasar had 320 acres of land valued at $2000.00 and machinery valued at $200.00. He had the following crops: 50 acres of winter wheat, 20 of corn, 8 of barley, 8 of oats, 5 of rye, 10 of millet, 5 of sorghum, and one of potatoes. He had 1000 bushels of wheat, 100 bushels of corn, 24 tons of hay, and 10 tons of prairie hay on hand. He had sold poultry and eggs valued at $40.00 and slaughtered animals valued at $40.00. He had the following animals: 1 horse, 10 milk cows, 35 cattle, 2 hogs, and 1 dog. (A few years later, Balthasar Eitel participated in the Oklahoma land rush. He lost the land later since he was not able to comply with the residence requirements.)

The same census of 1885 for Pioneer Township lists J. B. Eitel’s son, J. B. Eitel (27) as having 160 acres of land valued at $1000.00 and machinery valued at $75.00 He had the following crops: 60 acres of winter wheat, 15 of oats, 10 of rye, 5 of barley, 3 of millet, and one-half acre of potatoes.

The same census of 1885 for Pioneer Township lists J. B. Eitel’s son Peter Eitel (age 22), and wife Katie (22). He had 160 acres of land valued at $1000.00 and machinery valued at $200.00. He had the following crops: 55 acres of winter wheat, 20 of corn, 7 of barley, 7 of oats, 5 of rye, 5 of millet, 1 of sorghum, and one-half acre of potatoes. He had the following animals: 2 horses, 1 milk cow, 2 cattle, 2 hogs, and one dog. He had paid out $150.00 in wages.

The U.S. Census of 1900 lists Balthasar Eitel (age 64), residing in Pioneer Township, Rush County, Kansas, with his wife Mary (61), and children Henry (22), and grandson Albert (12) . It also lists Anna Marie (Eitel) Mohr’s brother John. John Eitel (age 28), his wife Elizabeth (20), and children Abner (3), and Esther (1). (Later children were Jacob, Edward and Clystia). The same census also lists Anna Marie (Eitel) Mohr’s brother Balthasar (calling him John, and referred by Hulda (Mohr) Riffel as J. B. Eitel (age 41). It also lists his wife Mary (37), and children David (17), Samuel (15), Charles (14), Elizabeth (11), Sarah (10), Joseph (7), Daniel (6), and Anna M. (l). The first four children were born in Kansas, the next three in Wisconsin, and the last one again in Kansas.

J. Balthasar Eitel, Jr., sponsored a cousin (nephew of J. Balthasar Eitel, Sr., according to the best information available) and his family to come to the United States from Russia. Through some mix-up in the visa, they went to Wisconsin when they arrived in 1892, instead of coming to Kansas as had been planned. He was Heinrich Eitel, born in Saratov, Russia, (Beideck, Russia, according to the family Bible), on 21 April 1855. It is said that he resided in Saratov until he was a young man. On 7 March 1884 Henry Eitel married his first cousin Maria Catarina Dreuth, born in Beideck (Talowka), Russia on 15 March 1860. They had the following children: Johann Eitel, born in Beideck 31 May 1885; Catarina Eitel (Mrs. Charles Hein), born in Beideck 22 July 1887; Heinrich Eitel, born in Beideck 30 November 1889; Maria Eitel, born in Beideck 19 April 1892; Emilia Eitel (Mrs. William Harris), born in Baraboo, Wisconsin, 26 March 1894; and Elizabeth Eitel, born in Baraboo, Wisconsin 17 May 1896. Henry Eitel became a U.S. citizen soon after arriving in the U.S. He was active in the community until shortly before his death on 9 December 1938. His wife had preceded him in death on 21 April 1938.

Eugene Irving Mohr, researcher and compiler of this postscript, did not guarantee the completeness and/or accuracy of this postscript. The information which was taken from census records is only as accurate as the data recorded by the census takers, and the names recorded and/or spelling of the names often leaves much to be desired. Moreover, the incidents recorded are only as accurate as the recollection of those who contributed them may be 50 or 100 years or more after the event. Irving regretted that he did not become interested in preserving a record of these and other events 50 or 60 years earlier, while parents and grandparents were still alive, and that he paid little attention to the incidents which were related by them at the time. Nevertheless, he did everything possible to make it as accurate as possible under the circumstances.



GENEALOGICAL INFORMATION RECEIVED

I have now received some exciting information from Russia. Dr. Igor Pleve, professor at the University of Saratov in Russia, just finished the research on the genealogy of the Mohr family. He was hired by myself to do the research because of his trusted work done for the American Historical Society of Germans from Russia.
I now have information in chart form, that takes the Mohr ancestry 3 more generations past Johann Friedrich Mohr into Germany. We now know what town they came from in Germany and many of the children from each of the ancestral Mohr families.
This information is available from me by submitting your order with $35.00 check or money order and sent to:
Theodore W. Mohr
327 Shining Rock
Beaumont, CA 92223

My email is tw.mohr@verizon.net

Please include your address so I may ship a copy or copies of the 2 genealogical charts and the working papers to you.

You will find this information to be very enlightening and interesting.

THE GERMAN PEOPLE THEN

Compiled by Theodore W. Mohr

After reading the previous pages of this book, we now know the history of our ancestor Johann Friedrich and Elizabeth Catharina Mohr, but I would like to go back further and talk about the reasons why and what really lead to the immigration of southern Russia by our ancestors. Explaining about life in the Russian Volga river region, and their reasons for finally leaving their adopted homeland in Russia. It is important to remember our heritage. It is important that our children also know and are reminded of their rich heritage. By doing this we can better understand who we are, why we do the things we do, and why our parents brought us up the way they did. What was behind the things they did what they did. I hope that by my sharing with you just a little bit of the German-Russian history, we can better answer some of these questions. In the previous pages compiled by Eugene Irving Mohr, he has given an abbreviated history of the German people. Even though he has written this short, and well documented history, I would like to go into this with a little more detail showing at greater length the history of the German peoples before and after their migration to Russia and the fate of those who decided not to emigrate from their adopted land. To do this I will no doubt cover some of the same ground that Eugene Irving Mohr has so well covered.

Other peoples throughout history also suffered and died, other people also were banished from their homelands. The world has long heard much about the many aspects of ruthlessness and suffering visited upon millions of Jews during the second world war, the terrible crimes against the Armenians in the early 1900’s by the Turks. The whole world knows about the mass killings in Cambodia by the Pol Pot regime, and sufferings of the Kurds in northern Iraq. The list goes on and on, but in the world at large, little has been revealed about a people who having been invited to come to a country to settle, and then the peoples of that country leading a campaign of terror, persecution, and in the end a statement of genocide against them. These people are known as the German-Russians. The world has chosen to ignore and few people even know about this part of history, and that possibly because of the time in history during which it was happening, during a time when the German peoples were not looked upon very favorably.

The Reformation (1521) had divided the German people into two irreconcilable hostile camps. A century later the country was plunged into the midst of a religious war which lasted for a generation and which, as armed conflict has so often done, bequeathed defeat to both combatants. The Treaty of Westphalia, which ended the war, left the German states nominally under the control of the emperor of the Holy Roman Empire. In reality he was stripped of his power and sovereignty was given to the princes of the various states. Germany thus became a confederation of the loosest sort with a state of anarchy such as the world had never before seen.

The Thirty Years War (1618-1648) had left Germany in a lamentable state. Some estimates put the population losses as high as fifty per cent. Starvation and pestilence were everywhere. Commerce and industry were non-existent. Fields lay fallow, and towns which had once been prosperous were now charred collections of roofless houses. All restraint, moral and religious, was removed, and robbery, pillage, arson and torture were common.

Before the succeeding generation could restore normal conditions, Germany was again invaded. Louis XIV, desiring to extend his territory northeast, repeatedly attacked the Rhineland after 1674. In the Palatinate, in Baden and Wuerttemberg towns were burned, crops destroyed or requisitioned and peasants driven from their homes. Destruction was particularly savage in the year 1689 when the beautiful castle of Heidelberg and the cities of Mannheim, Worms, and Speyer were laid waste. The Rhineland was to be turned into a desert so that it could not be used as a granary by the enemies of France. Ruins from the French predatory wars still were smoldering when the Hessian states were overrun and devastated anew in the War of Spanish Succession. Again they paid dearly for their strategic position. During the War of the Spanish Succession (1701-1714), French armies were again quartered upon the Germans, and in 1707 the Palatinate suffered great destruction from French raids. To this day ruined castles and vineclad walls remind the traveler down the Rhine of the French vandalism of this period.

The most disastrous of 18th century conflicts—the Seven Years War—was still to come. Although this was primarily a contest between Frederick the Great of Prussia and Maria Theresa of Austria for control of Silesia, all Europe soon became embroiled in the struggle. The combined armies of Prussia and England were opposed by almost the whole continent, with the majority of the German states joining in the coalition against them. Battles of the war were fought on Ger-man soil, and again, towns were burned, fields and crops destroyed and industries paralyzed. Saxony which Prussia disarmed shortly after the beginning of hostilities was heavily burdened with levies of troops and taxes during the entire period. The western provinces were the scenes of the campaign against the French, who, in 1757, made them-selves masters of nearly all of North Germany west of the Elbe. At one time thirty thousand Russian troops marched through the Rhine provinces and were quartered upon the inhabitants. Various German provinces in the east, also, were overrun by the Russian armies whose Cossacks outdid the French in burning, wasting and killing every-thing in their path. The war ended with a final victory for Friedrich the Great, but by this time conditions had become so desperate that widespread emigration resulted, not only to Russia but to many other countries of Europe.

At the conclusion of the Seven Years War, Prussia was the most devastated of all German kingdoms. Yet Prussia was the first of all German states to recuperate. It was only here that one could find a sovereign who considered himself the servant of his people. In most of the other German principalities petty rulers, puffed up with ideas of grandeur and self-importance, held to the principle that subjects existed only for the good of their prince. As late as 1875 the following sentence could be found in a catechism used in the common schools of a South German principality: “Subjects should consider themselves as servants, because the prince is their master and has power over their property.”

Most of the minor princes regarded Louis XIV as their political ideal. Almost without exception they were vain, selfish, and extravagant. Educated at the courts of England, Italy and France, where they became accustomed to luxuries there prevailing, they did not seem to appreciate the absurdity of a small poverty-stricken state maintaining a retinue comparable to that of powerful empires and of building palaces as luxurious as those in which queens were housed.

This life of splendor and extravagance was only maintained by enormous taxes imposed upon the peasantry. Whenever money from taxes was not sufficient to support the pomp of a baroque court, subjects could be sold as soldiers to foreign powers. During the American Revolution nearly 30,000 Germans, primarily from Hesse-Kassel were brought to America to fight in the British army.

The selfish attitude of the rulers toward their people, their heedlessness with regard to their subjects welfare, and the absence of any bond of common interest between prince and people are reflected in the conduct of these rulers. In 1720 Charles Philipp had moved his capital from Heidelberg to Mannheim. Forty years were then spent building one of the largest baroque palaces in Europe.

Bribery was open in the government, and in the court, extravagance and immorality were rampant. Karl Theodor's magnificent court, with innumerable fine rooms, stables with hundreds of horses, gardens and orange groves, was the resort of countless adventurers who were fed by scores at the monarchs table. Meanwhile every nineteenth inhabitant was a beggar and the result of the census was concealed for it showed a progressive diminution of population.

In the mid-eighteenth century, at least five generations had been suffering miseries resulting from political turmoil in the numerous Germanies, the subdivisions of the expiring Holy Roman Empire. In 1740 they numbered some 318 states, besides a kingdom and numerous principalities; toward the end of the eighteenth century there were 1,786 such sovereignties. Because of the widespread poverty which resulted from such disunion, German subjects were able to find relief only by wandering out into the wilderness of the world. They have done more to populate the frontiers of the earth with less advantage to their Fatherland than any other people of modern times. These independent principalities had as few as 1000 to 1500 inhabitants. These tiny enclaves were supplemented by numerous city states which had existed from remote times. The religious situation was also one of disunion. Some provinces were strongly Catholic; some strongly Protestant; others were torn with dissension between the two bodies or between the Reformed, the Lutheran and the Pietistic faiths.

Each of the princes had the sovereign right to declare war on his neighbors. Consequently the peace of the land was frequently broken by such trivial causes as the possession of a small town or of a forest, the location of a bridge, or the adjustment of tolls between provinces.

Not even the danger of foreign invasions was able to act as a unifying force. The French kings were always able to play upon the vanity of the German princes in order to further French interests. They kept the courts of their German cousins swarming with their ambassadors, and received insignificant rulers at Versailles with the pomp and ceremony accorded great kings. The French rightly judged the effect of display upon the German princes and their official retinues, gorgeously decked Ollt, paraded the streets of German cities. What France could not gain through persuasion or threat, she did not hesitate to buy; and many a German prince, hard pressed for revenue for public or private ends, willingly exchanged his vote in the German Reichstag for subsidies furnished by the diplomats of the French government.

Religious Differences which led to Cruel Persecution. The Treaty of Westphalia supposedly established religious toleration for members of the Catholic, Lutheran and Reformed faiths. Each ruler had the right to determine the religion of his realm and in many of the areas a state of confusion developed. A town might be transferred through inheritance or war to a ruler of the opposite faith; a Catholic archbishop might obtain territory in a predominately Protestant area; or a prince might decide to change his religion. The Rhenish Palatinate, for example, had been a Protestant stronghold since the time of Elector Frederick II (1544-1556) who had embraced the Reformed faith. In 1685 the line of Protestant princes died out and was succeeded by a collateral line of Catholic electors under whom religious persecution prevailed. During the French raids of this period, both Protestant and Catholic subjects suffered the destruction of their property, but when a peace treaty was signed in 1697, the Protestants were subjected to discrimination and efforts were made to force them to embrace the Catholic faith.

The outbreak of the Seven Years War succeeded in accomplishing what the decrees of the German princes against emigration of their subjects and the hostility of English officials against German immigrants had failed to prevent. For all practical purposes emigration from Germany to America was completely suspended from 1756 to 1763. Only one small group of Germans numbering thirty individuals arrived in Pennsylvania during this period. Immigration did revive at the close of the war, but it took many decades until it again reached the proportions of the first half of the 18th century.

This does not mean that emigration from the German states came to a halt in the 1760s. In actual numbers the movement even became greater, but the great bulk of German emigration now turned from America to European countries.

So then around the mid 1700, many countries started a campaign of colonization to entice immigrants to populate their countries. One of the first bids for colonists came from Denmark. Quite a number of Catholic Germans went to Spain where they had a very attractive colonization scheme. Amazingly enough Friedrich the Great of Germany tried to move much of the German population to the areas of diminishing population by offering rather enticing remunerations. But measured by the extent of the concessions tendered, it was from Russia that the most alluring call came to the German peasants to leave the Fatherland and travel far over sea and land to seek his fortune under an alien flag. This call was voiced in the successive manifestoes of one of the most unique rulers of the century, Empress Catherine the Great, by birth a German princess. The Germans who responded to her invitation by the thousands are the ancestors of those immigrants to America who are erroneously known throughout the middle west as Russians.

The concept of colonizing the wilderness areas did not originate with Catherine, but she was responsible for implementing it. Elizabeth had planned to settle foreigners along the frontier, which at this time remained under de facto control of Asiatic tribesmen.

Tsar Ivan the Terrible (1533-1584) and Peter the Great first called upon foreign specialists, especially German engineers, scientists, officers, merchants, and administrative officers, to build the cities and modernize the army and civil administration. About 100.000 lived and worked in the various cities of Russia. Thus the precedence of using foreigners to help run the country had been well established.

Catherine II of Russia, was born into a family of minor nobility. Her father was Prince Christian August Anhalt-Zerbst, a general in the army of King Frederick William of Prussia. Her mother was Johanna Elizabeth Holstein-Gottrup. Her father was the impoverished bishop of Lübeck. Johanna became royalty by adoption when her godmother, the Duchess of Brunswick, offered to raise the child as her own. She was introduced to the important people of her time. Among the many royal friends who called upon her adopted family would be the Empress Elizabeth of Russia, who at one time had been betrothed to the Duchess' brother before he died of smallpox. The Empress had never married.

And so General Anhalt-Zerbst, 37 years old set up housekeeping with his new wife 15 year old Johanna, and on April 21, 1729 the future Empress of Russia Catherine II was born as Sophia Augusta Frederica Anhalt. Sophia's mother neglected her but the family hired Mademoiselle Babette Cardl, a French Huguenot, as substitute mother and teacher. She taught the girl fluent French and other important studies of the day.

It was said that Sophia started thinking about marriage at the age of seven, and at the age of 15 her mother, Princess Johanna Anhalt-Zerbst received an invitation from Empress Elizabeth of Russia herself, for her and her daughter Sophia to come at once with all possible speed and secrecy. The purpose was not stated.

So it is that Elizabeth had chosen Sophia as the chosen bride for her son Grand Duke Peter, her successor to the throne. What a striking difference, Sophia was an intelligent, alert, vivacious and frank girl of 15, he a frail, unhealthy youth of 17 and very limited intelligence. The mismatch of the century. He was born in Kiel, Germany in 1728, grew up to be cowardly, boastful, capricious, cruel and remained immature throughout his life.

Sophia was a good public relations expert. From her first day in Russia she devoted her energies to making a good impression to people around. Everything she did was calculated to gain power for herself. She devoted herself to the study of the Russian language and to the tenets of the Orthodox religion. In fact she changed from the Lutheran religion to the Orthodox religion. She would get up at night, wearing only a nightgown and pace the floor while studying, this resulted in illness which turned into pleurisy. She made sure that all the court knew her illness resulted from her ardent study of Russian. This made a big impression on the Russians, who had suffered so long from foreigners in their midst, the kind who absolutely refused to learn the language of the country. The population of this great land soon grew to love their new Empress to be.

At last the seven-year war was finally brought to an unexpectedly early end by the death of one of the belligerent’s rulers, Empress Elizabeth of Russia, on Christmas Day of 1761. She was succeeded by her nephew, Peter III, whose first act as Tsar was to cease hostilities, abandon Russia’s allies (Austria, France, Sweden, and others), and offer his support to the enemy, Frederick the Great of Prussia. At the end of the seven-year war historians recorded the human cost to be more than 800,000 soldiers lost in that conflict. There was no shortage of poor and unhappy people after the war. Conditions were ripe for emigration. The widespread misery which the Seven Year's war brought to Germany might be compared to conditions in Germany following World War II. If, in 1945-1947 any outside government had offered German citizens the same privileges that Catherine II extended in 1763, and equally large number would have emigrated.
 

The new Tsar Peter III was never crowned. After six months of misrule, he was overthrown by his wife, who was promptly declared Empress Catherine II by the St. Petersburg Guard units, the Holy Synod, the Senate, and the nobility. Peter, imprisoned, perished eight days later in an officially unexplained manner. However historians are fairly positive that with Catherine's blessing, Alexis Orlov, her favorite court advisor, and father of at least one of her children, had Peter murdered. There were two other young contenders to the throne, and Catherine went to visit both of them, after each visit both mysteriously met their death. But now Russia had only one autocrat. She was to rule until her death in 1796. She created the Volga German Colonies and maintained her interest in them, became their protectress, and saw them flourish before her reign ended. Thus she became known as Catherine the Great.

After her unfortunate marriage to Peter III, Catherine never remarried. She is said to have loved Alexis Orlov, but her marriage to him would have caused much suspicion among those who still had high regard for Peter III. This affair with Orlov was the result of the inability of Peter III to consummate the marriage, and the continued threatening of Empress Elizabeth to Catherine that she would be replaced by another wife for Peter III if she did not produce an heir to the throne.

Only twenty-one days after her coronation in 1762, she addressed a ukase to the Senate authorizing this advisory body to admit into the country all persons who wanted to settle in Russia—except Jews. On December 4, 1762, she issued a royal manifesto authorizing and welcoming such immigration, but the 190-word document was worded in generalities and had a disappointing response. At the same time she created a special ministry to oversee her proposed colonization program, the Chancellery for the Guardianship of Foreigners, which the Germans called the Tutel-Kanzlei—the tutelary chancellery.

THE SECOND RUSSIAN MANIFEST ISSUED BY CATHERINE

In the beginning of this book, Eugene Irving Mohr explained in abbreviated form this manifest issued by Catherine. The following paragraphs explain in greater detail this important paper, to fully explain just why the Germans were attracted to migrate to a land of which they knew very little.

Catherine being very persistent, issued her second Manifesto on July 22, 1763. This one was to become associated with the birth of the Volga German minority, hence is identified by capitalization. The document contained some 1,350 words in ten sections setting down in detail a cornucopia of privileges and benefits. It granted all foreigners permission to settle wherever they wished, freedom of religion, thirty years of tax exemption for those settling in undeveloped areas, perpetual exemption from military service, and interest-free loans for ten years to build homes and buy agricultural equipment and tools. Foreign capitalists who with their own funds would establish new kinds of factories in Russia were granted the right to buy peasants and serfs, in addition to land and other aid.

The Manifesto stipulated free transportation for the immigrants from the German ports of embarkation to their destinations, and declared that they also would receive an unspecified sum of board money upon re-porting to the Tutelary Chancellery established for them in St. Peters-burg, or with crown representatives at Our border cities. No further mention was made regarding living-allowance monies. Living allowances were provided under a supplement to the Manifesto, entitled Avertissement. These offered an immediate benefit that swayed the decision of many destitute prospective immigrants: daily food and living allowances for each immigrant upon reporting to the Russian representatives at the Hamburg and Lübeck embarkation points, plus free lodging. Comparable and in some respects more generous offers were made in a contract with a French recruiting director.

The Manifesto granted all those settling in Russia the right to return to their lands of origin at any time; this helped to remove any hesitation that still might be holding back a prospective recruit.

This document did not designate the amount of land the colonists were to receive; it merely assured it would be adequate for agricultural purposes or factory sites. It was the Colonial Law of 1764 that allocated 30 desyatiny of land for each family (about 80 acres).

The following is a translation of the manifesto by Fred C. Koch published in his book The Volga Germans, and published by The Pennsylvania State University.

Preamble

Inasmuch as the vast expanse of Our Empire’s territories is fully known to Us, We perceive that, among other things, no small number of such regions still lie unimproved that could be employed with lucrative ease for a most productive settlement and occupation by mankind, most of which regions conceal within their depths an inexhaustible wealth of multifarious precious ores and metals; and since the selfsame [regions] are richly endowed with forests, rivers, seas, and oceans convenient for trade, so they are also exceptionally well adapted for the establishment and growth of many types of mills, factories, and various other plants. This gave Us cause for issuance of the manifesto that was publicized for the benefit of all Our loyal subjects on the 4th of December of the past year, 1762. Nevertheless, since We communicated Our wishes therein only summarily to those foreigners who might be desirous of making their homes in Our Empire, We therefore now ordain, for the better clarification of this matter, the following decree, which We hereby most solemnly confirm, and command that it be implemented, to proclaim it to all.

1

We permit all foreigners to enter Our Empire in order to settle down in any government wherever it may suit each of them.

2

Such foreigners, after their arrival, may announce themselves not only at Our Residence [St. Petersburg] in the Tutelary-Chancellery especially established for foreigners for this purpose, but also, for the convenience of everyone, elsewhere at the border cities of Our Empire with their Governors, or, where they are not available, with the cities’ foremost commanding officers.

3

Since among those foreigners desirous of settling in Russia there also may be some without sufficient means to defray the requisite travel costs, then the same can report to Our Ministers and Ambassadors at foreign courts who not only shall transport them to Russia at Our expense without hesitation, but also shall provide [them] with travel funds.

4

As soon as such foreigners shall have reached Our Residence and have reported to the Tutelary-Chancellery, or likewise at a border city, they then shall be expected to declare their true intentions as to wherein their real desires specifically lie, and whether they shall wish to consent to being registered among the tradesmen or in guilds and become burghers, and indeed, specifically in which city; or whether they are desirous of settling down to farming or diverse useful trades in segregated colonies or hamlets on un-claimed and productive land; whereupon all such persons shall promptly be granted their choice in compliance with their own wishes and desires; at the same time it may be perceived in the appended Register where and in which regions of Our Empire the specific lands, unclaimed and suitable for making one’s home, are available; albeit besides those listed in the aforementioned Register still incomparably more extensive regions and diverse landed properties are to be found upon which We likewise authorize anyone to settle where each shall decide it to be most advantageous to himself.

5

Immediately upon arrival in Our Empire of every foreigner who contemplates settling down, and toward this end reports to the Tutelary-Chancellery established for these foreigners, or instead at other border cities of Our Empire, such person before all else must declare his personal decision, as outlined above in Section 4, and then render the oath of allegiance and loyalty in conformity with everyone’s own religious conviction.

6

In order, however, that the foreigners who wish to settle in Our Empire may become apprised how far Our benevolence extends to their interest and advantage, this then is Our will:
(l) To grant all foreigners entering Our Empire the unhindered freedom of religious worship in accordance with their church dogmas and practices; to those, however, who intend not to settle in cities, but in uninhabited areas, particularly in colonies or hamlets, We grant permission to build churches and campaniles and to maintain the number of priests [clergy] and deacons necessary thereto, only the construction of cloisters being excluded. Nevertheless, everyone is warned hereby under no pretext whatsoever to persuade or mislead any Christian fellow-believer residing in Russia into embracing, or assenting to, his faith or Church, should he not wish to subject himself to fear of punishment to the full force of Our laws. Sundry nations adhering to the Mohammedan faith that border on Our Empire are excluded herefrom; with respect to these, We permit and sanction everyone not only to incline them to the Christian faith through proper procedure, but also to acquire the same as his serfs.
(2) None among such foreigners coming to settle in Russia shall be compelled to pay the least in taxes into Our treasury, or to render either usual or unusual services, or be forced to furnish billeting, but in a single word, everyone shall be free of every tax and impost to the following degree: those, for instance, who as part of many families and segregated colonies will occupy a hitherto unimproved region shall enjoy thirty free years; those settling in cities, however, and wishing to enroll themselves either in guilds or the body of merchants, [or] even to take up residence in our Residence Saint Petersburg or in neighboring cities in Livonia, Estonia, Ingria, Karelia, and Finland, no less than in Our Capital City Moscow, [shall] have five free years; in all remaining Governments or Provinces and other cities however, ten free years. Moreover, everyone who does not come to Russia for perhaps only a brief time but instead actually to make his home, shall have, beyond all this, free [living] quarters throughout an entire half a year.
(3) All foreigners coming to Russia to make their homes, who are inclined toward either farming and other manual industry, or instead toward establishing mills, factories, and plants, will be offered every helping hand and consideration, and be granted not only adequate and productive land for everyone’s purpose, but also, according to the pertinent circumstances of each, be extended requisite support depending on the future need and utility of such proposed factories and plants, particularly however, of such that until now have not yet been established in Russia.
(4) For the construction of houses, for the acquisition of various breeds of livestock required for the household, and for all types of equipment, accessories, and materials necessary for farming, as well as for handcrafting, the needed finances shall be advanced to everyone from Our treasury without any kind of interest; on the contrary, only the capital shall be repaid in three equal parts over three years, but not prior to the expiration of ten years.
(5) We leave to the established, segregated colonies or hamlets the internal framework of government in accordance with their own discretion in such manner that the administrative personnel appointed by Us shall not participate in any way in their internal affairs; otherwise, though, such colonists are obligated to submit to Our civil laws. However, should they themselves desire to receive from Us a particular person as their guardian or patron for their security and defense who is provided with an armed guard of soldiers who maintain good military discipline, until they [the colonists] have acquainted themselves with their neighboring in-habitants, then they also shall be accommodated in this matter.
(6) To every foreigner wishing to make his home in Russia, We shall allow the completely duty-free importation of his property, of whatever it may consist, with the reservation, however, that such property shall be intended for his own use and need, and not for sale. Nevertheless, whosoever, beyond his personal requirements, still might bring along a few goods to sell, to him We grant free tariff on 300 rubles worth of wares for each family, but only in such event that it remains in Russia at least ten years; failing which, upon its return journey, toll will be collected for the imported as well as the exported goods.
(7) Such foreigners who have settled in Russia shall, during the entire time of their living here, be enlisted against their will in neither the military nor civil service, except for the customary Land-Dienste; indeed, no one shall be constrained to render even this Land-Dienst before the expiration of the aforementioned years of immunity: however, whosoever is disposed to enter the military service voluntarily as a soldier will be given, aside from the usual pay, thirty rubles bonus upon his enlistment in the regiment.
(8) As soon as the foreigners have reported to the Tutelary--Chancellery established for them, or otherwise at Our border cities, and have announced their decision to move into the inner-most portion of the Empire and settle there, at that time they also will receive board money besides free vehicles [transportation] to their chosen destination.
(9) Whosoever among said foreigners settling in Russia establishes such mills, factories, or plants, and produces goods therein that until then have not been current in Russia, to him We grant permission throughout the stated ten years to sell freely without imposition of any kind of inland-sea or border duty, and to export from Our Empire.
(10) To foreign capitalists who at their own expense establish mills, factories, and plants in Russia, We hereby allow the purchasing of serfs and peasants necessary for such plants, mills, and factories. We also allow
(11) all foreigners settled in colonies or hamlets in Our Empire to operate daily or annual markets at their own discretion without paying any kind of tax or impost whatsoever into Our treasury.

7

All the aforementioned benefits and accommodations shall be enjoyed not only by those themselves who have come into Our Empire to make their homes, but also their surviving children and descendants even though they were born in Russia; and that is to say, that their years of immunity are to be computed from the day of their forefathers’ arrivals in Russia.

8

After expiration of the aforementioned years of immunity all foreigners who settled in Russia are obligated to pay the customary imposts entailing no burden whatsoever, and like Our other subjects, perform Land-Dienste.

9

Finally and in conclusion, whosoever among these foreigners who have become settled and have submitted themselves to Our dominion might come of a mind to leave Our Empire, to him We indeed give the liberty to do that at all times, but with this explanation, that such shall be required to pay into Our treasury a portion of their entire property profitably acquired in Our Empire; those, to-wit, who have lived here from one to five years [shall] pay the fifth Pfennig [one-fifth of its value], however, those who have dwelt in Our Land from five to ten years and more, the tenth Pfennig [one-tenth of its value]; thereafter everyone is permitted to journey unhindered anywhere he pleases.

10

When, moreover, any foreigners desirous of making a home in Russia, for one or another particular reason may wish to procure still other conditions and privileges beyond the foregoing, such may, on this account, apply personally or in writing to Our Tutelary-Chancellery created for foreigners, which will report everything to Us in detail; whereupon We then, after considering the circumstances, will not hesitate to make a still more favorable Sovereign determination, such as each may confidently expect from Our love of righteousness.
Given at Peterhof, in the year 1763, on the 22nd of July, in the second year of Our reign.
Her Imperial Majesty has subscribed the Original by Her Own hand as follows: CATHARINA.
Published by the Senate on the 25th of July, 1763.

Immigrants settling in colonies were granted full local autonomy and the right to hold periodic public markets. The colonists were authorized not only to Christianize neighboring people of the Mohammedan faith, but also to acquire them as serfs. Catherine was advised by Gregory Orlov minister of the Tutel-Kanzlei, that all of the immigrants would be Christians.

Catherine’s colonizing decree was printed in several languages and disseminated throughout Europe by posters, fliers, proclamations before groups, and publication in the existing newspapers. Yet, despite its many allurements and the employment of Russia’s entire foreign service in the Germanic states, the response from the destitute populations still was disappointing. Consequently, the determined Empress formulated an auxiliary recruiting program operated by commissioned French administrators who in turn hired field agents. These Menschenfaenger (people catchers), armed with the Manifesto, supplements, contracts, and smooth tongues, swarmed over the countryside. Later, additional fliers were printed in color, in which the facts about the proposed colonizing region were colored too.

After the independent operation got under way early in 1765, the Tsaritsa set up a third recruiting organization operated by the Crown itself, aside from her foreign-service people. While the three-front campaign attracted recruits from many of the German political subdivisions and from several countries of Western Europe, it was not until the fourth and final year (1766) that the full impact of the colonist hunt struck the two Hessian states of Kassel and Darmstadt and their contiguous territories. Here the Tsaritsas hunters found the softest spots in the economic and social structure.

SAYING GOODBYE TO THE GERMAN MOTHERLAND

And so began one of the largest immigrations of one country in the last 1000 years. They gathered at the cities of Hamburg and Lübeck. And since the Empress mainly wanted married people, these cities experienced mass ceremonies where hundreds of couples got married. They came mainly from the two Hessian states of Kassel and Darmstadt and their contiguous territories.

The heavy 1766 emigration caused several German rulers to issue futile bans against enrollment in the Russian colonization program. Even Emperor Joseph II (of the Holy Roman Empire) at last was persuaded to promulgate a decree forbidding further participation in it by the German populations.

By this time, Empress Catherine had no concern about the furor she was creating in the German ruling houses, for she had scored a success far greater than anything she or her foreign offices could have anticipated. Moreover, her colonizing program had run out of funds. Hence she abruptly terminated the operation, although once its momentum had come into full acceleration, it was difficult to stop and resulted in widespread hardship among those already enrolled who had to be abandoned in the German states.

The final emigrant sailings from Lübeck, or any other port, came in late summer of 1766, timed to reach Kronstadt before winters freeze-up. With this last transport, the recruiters, too frequently employing deceptive and totally misleading descriptions of the settlement area awaiting them, had enrolled some 8,000 families, consisting of about 30,000 men, women, and children. Most of these would be sent on into the wilderness of Russia’s interior, knowing pitifully little or nothing at all except what the Menschenfaenger had told them in the rosiest terms. Even the Empress had only a vague knowledge of the primitive frontier buffer zone she was determined to civilize, develop, and actually fortify with a dependable settler population that would take root and flourish, and, furthermore, would serve as an exemplary influence in agriculture and industry for her native populations. She envisioned the wasteland along the lower Volga being converted into a region of productivity and social stability through this program, and in her lifetime she was to become aware of her dream definitely beginning to achieve reality.

Knowing where grievances and distress were widespread and most aggravated, in the last year of Catherine’s recruiting program the Men-schenfaenger scored their greatest successes, for the 1766 recruiting produced in the following year 68 of the 104 original colonies that were to be founded under this program. After 1767 only stragglers came down the Volga and 1768 virtually saw the end even of the occasional latecomers too—until a new but far smaller movement of immigrants was settled on the lower Volga after the mid-1800s.

Thousands of colonization recruits already assembled at Lübeck were left stranded by the sudden cessation of sailings, while other thousands still were plodding to this principal port of embarkation.

They faced the bitter prospects of having to return to the lands upon which they had turned their backs in their thwarted flight to escape a bleak, hopeless future.

Had the brakes not been applied suddenly, under the then current hopeless situation of many classes of German society, nearly one-half of the population would have gone to Russia, and there would not have been 2.5 million Germans in that great land, but probably 20 to 25 million. What consequences this might have had for Germany, and more particularly Russia, and whether we are to lament the 1766 checking of emigration or look upon it as something gratifying, remains a question.

Kufeld writes of 2.5 million Germans resident in Russia before World War I, but other writers seldom venture above 2 million in their estimates. Neither number derives entirely from the 30,000 in Catherine’s first Ger-man colonization, for she approved a smaller project in the Ukraine 20 years later, and a third one was started in 1804 by her grandson Tsar Alexander I to settle German colonizers in Bessarabia, the Ukraine, Crimea, and the Trans-Caucasus.

Very few Volga German travel documents, memoirs, or diaries of the 1760 have been found. One of these is a poem of sixty-seven stanzas written by Bernhard Ludwig von Platen. He tells that he spent 14 days in Lübeck before his boat left port. (In some cases emigrants spent all winter there in barracks). His Russian bound ship took six weeks to make this trip which normally took 10 days. In this way the captain was able to sell all his provisions at inflated prices. They finally landed at Oranienbaum not far from St. Petersburg (Leningrad) and spent five weeks in these two cities. Oranienbaum was the summer palace of Empress Catherine II and she made herself available to greet most of the large groups of Immigrants arriving into Russia, and in her presents took the oath of fealty to the Crown. They were required to register their preference of profession, trade or occupation and to indicate their choice of residence. With the exception of a few craftsmen who were allowed to remain in St. Petersburg, all of the others were told they were to make their homes along the Lower Volga River and become farmers. In thunderclap sentences that hardly required translation, the immigrant people learned for certain that the promises of the Crown had been no more than empty words. About half of the immigrants were farmers, the others were not. At this time the colonists realized that they had been deceived.

Each group were told to what area and if a colony had been established what colony they were to go to. And if not what area to go to start a colony. Generally groups of settlers would travel together who knew each other from their villages back in Germany. These groups would generally go to an area together to settle. Protestant separated from Catholic. Catherine II knew this would preserve better unity.

During the journey into the interior, the caravans were led by Russian officers. Every ten or fifteen wagons were provided with an escort. In spite of the good intentions of the government the German immigrants fared badly. At last toward the late summer they started for their final destination, only to find upon their arrival a barren waste, promised homes were nowhere in sight. What the arrival was like was written in a book by Christian Zuge;

“When we had traveled a while longer, after leaving the last trace of a road, in a barren, sober waste, we came to a brook, which, if my memory does not fail me, was called Medveditza. Our guides called 'Halt!' at which we were very much surprised because it was too early to put up for the night; our surprise soon changed into astonishment and terror when they told us that we were at the end of our journey. We looked at each other, astonished to see ourselves here in a wilderness; as far as the eye could see, nothing was visible except a small bit of woods and grass mostly withered and about three shoes high. Not one of us made a start to climb down from his horse or wagon, and when the first general dismay had been somewhat dissipated, you could read the desire in every face to turn back. This, however, was not possible. With a sigh, one after another climbed down, and the announcement by the lieutenant, given with a certain degree of importance, that everything we saw here was presented to us with the compliments of the Empress, did not produce in one of us the slightest pleasure. How could such a feeling have been possible, with a gift which was useless in its present condition and had not a particle of value; a gift that must first be created by us with great toil and which gave no certain assurance that it would repay the labor and time spent upon it?”

“This is truly the paradise which the Russian emissaries promised us in Lubeck,” said one of my fellow sufferers with a sad face.

“It is the ‘lost paradise,’ good friend,” I answered.

Help had been promised for the construction of homes, as they waited for the carpenters to come and build their promised homes, they lived out of their wagons, until the native Russians came and warned them that the promised homes might be late in coming so they had better prepare for the winter. The Russians helped them build the “Semlyanka”. These were covered dugouts like the wild tribes nearby lived in. These dugouts were damp and dark but served as protection from the wind and could be warmed with a small amount of fuel and large enough to hold three or four families.

In the spring, they turned their attention to breaking the ground and planting their crops in order to produce their food. Then late in the summer and early fall they again turned their attention to building. In some cases the dugouts were repaired, while in others, houses were built above ground by the use of mud bricks. Later they built houses of wood or stone. The colonies being laid out by the Russian officer in charge who was an engineer.

Initially 144 colonies were established; 45 on the Bergseite, and 59 on the Wiesenseite. There were 38 original Catholic villages, and 65 original villages as Lutheran. These were solidly Hessian villages. The villages were inhabited from the north going on to the south, the changing of villages by inhabitants once settled was virtually unheard of, so with this data we can almost certainly assume that the Mohr family settled in the village of Beideck in 1764, or very close to that date. Beideck was founded in 10 August 1764.

Source: from Catherine to Khrushchev by Adam Giesinger

Those who grew up in any of the transplanted Volga villages in America can easily visualize a village on the Russian steppe. Certainly German villages on the Volga had much in common with those established in Ellis county in 1876 Herzog (now Victoria) was built on the same plan as the town by the same name in Russia. Much the same can be said for the Kansas villages of Catherine, Schoenchen, Milburger and Liebenthal.

Houses were built with the back door facing the street. You would enter the house through this door and hang your heavy work clothes up on pegs before entering the house. Each side of the square house had two windows equipped with shutters which were nearly always closed to keep out the sun in summer and the cold air in winter. Shutters also served as protection during the Kirghiz and Kalmuk raids. Some homes were build within a courtyard encircled by a high wooden fence. The house, a summer kitchen and cellar were separated from the barnyard by a board fence. The outbuildings consisted of a barn, sheds, granary and pens for the animals.

Houses on the Volga were all built within the protection of villages. There were no homes built as in the Midwest where you have one farm within a mile or two range of each other. The villages were surrounded by the farm land that was given to each family as saw fit by the town officials. The villages protected the settlers from raiding tribes like the Kirghiz and the Kalmuk, and even at that several villages were raided and destroyed never to be rebuilt. The inhabitants killed, raped or taken captive to be sold in their lands as slaves.

The first fifteen years of living in their new land proved to be very trying if not unbearable indeed. They were in a new area where the seasons were different then what they were used to. The planting season was different, and the winters harsher. Then in the lower eastern area of the Volga colonies, the wild nomadic tribes of the Kirghiz and the Kalmuk were raiding and plundering villages who they thought were taking away their land. The villages plundered and destroyed were Hummel, Casarfeld, Keller, Louis, the first colony destroyed was Schasselwn, the inhabitants murdered or carried away, the villages never to be rebuilt.

Due to space only a few animals were kept over winter. as soon as it became cold enough, an extra heifer and several hogs were butchered and preserved.

Generally within the courtyard there were gardens of vegetables, sunflowers, tobacco, and various fruit trees. The sunflower seeds were crushed to extract oil for cooking.

The early years were spent in a state of perpetual anxiety. As the day began and the village came to life one could see a courtyard door being unlocked by a woman with a white shawl on her head. During the warm months she went barefooted. After opening the door she would glance fearfully up and down the wide street. Milking the cows and goats was done by the women. The milk was taken to a backhouse that also served as the summer kitchen. Here the milk was strained through a spotless white cloth into gallon crocks, and then taken to the cellar.

The homes were almost too small even by their standards. Frequently a household consisted of four or five married sons and their families The father and mother of the household were automatically respected as the head of the house hold, while the oldest son and his wife were accorded responsibility in line with the seniority principle they, in effect, had rank privileges and controlled the younger married couples and their families.

The land was parceled out according to the (mir) system. It also was referred to as Seelenland or (soul land) since women according to the Russians had no souls, they were not entitled to land shares, only a male regardless of age or physical fitness could hold a share of soul land. So therefore the object was the more male children one had the more land was parceled out to that family. The Mohr family must have done extremely well, as it seems they were well blessed with male children.

It indeed was providential that not only farmers came to Russia from Germany, because of the special needs of the farmers. For instance, the sod was too difficult to break with the old wooden hook plows given to them by the Russian government. So those with blacksmith knowledge were called upon for help and produced wooden plows with steel moldboard plows. Eventually two and sometimes three-bottoms displaced the single share plow. The sickle was replaced by the cradle, Clumsy Russian pole wagons by the German rack wagon. Dutch windmills were built by the Dutch and utilized by the them as well as the Germans. General mercantile stores were opened by those with experience. Other businesses were developed that made life for the colonists just a little more bearable.

Generally during the wintertime evenings the men would come together to smoke their long pipes and talk about animals, crops, and political problems around them. the women would get together to gossip while spinning, sewing and knitting. The young men and women would congregate within their own sexes, trying to impress the other. During the spring and summer months when there was much work to be done socializing was mainly done on Sundays.

There was very little crime that needed to be dealt with within the Volga villages. The old Biblical adage was very prevalent here “he who didn’t work, did not eat”. The biggest deterrent to crime was the shame the offender brought upon his family. However the settlers did not rely exclusively on social pressure. Drunkenness and gambling were severely punished. Mostly by whips and lashes. Minor offense were punished by making the culprits stand in front of the church so the whole congregation could pass by and heap abuse on the wrongdoer. For Example, a woman who stole some straw had part of it tied on her back while she was forced to parade down the street so that all could see her.

The villages had to be kept clean. Streets were swept at least once a week. If someone as much as swept watermelon seeds into the street, the owner of the place received five to ten lashes, each suitably humiliating and painful. He in turn would punish the guilty members of his family. They were brought up to be docile and law abiding. The habits of cleanliness and orderliness formed in the colonies were brought to America by these immigrants. Lashes were a common form of punishment for the older members of the family the younger ones were probably punished less severely. Church going was expected, if you were absent you would also receive disciplinary action. The habitual troublemaker was actually banned from the community and sent on their way.

So went life on the Volga, up to the year 1874 when again a migration of intense proportions took place. It was in this migration that our ancestor Johann Friedrich Mohr decided to take his family to a distant land to seek out a new home. Mingled in the swelling streams of immigration from Russia to the United States in the early 1880’s was a strain of people whom officials generally classified along with other nationals from that country as Russians. But they were not Russians. Despite the fact that their country of origin was Russia, where four and five generations of their people had been born and reared, few save those who had served in the tsars military forces had any grasp of the Russian language. Though these immigrants antecedents had lived deep inside Russia since the mid-1760’s, their ancestry was wholly German and their language was developed out of the eighteenth-century German dialects with Hessian predominating. These non-Russians had be-come a markedly growing segment of Russia’s contribution to Americas melting pot since 1874. From 1890 onward, their movement became a surge that ended with the outbreak of World War I.

THOSE WHO REMAINED BEHIND

What happened to those German-Russians who chose to stay in their adopted homeland along the Volga River. Do we have any information about them? As we continue I hope to answer these questions and as I have done some research into what information others are revealing about these people, I want to pass it onto you the reader of this book.

The Bolshevik revolution of November 1917 and its aftermath that included the devastating famine of 1921-1922 exacted a staggering toll of victims from among the Volga Germans. Some saw it as a compensation for the terrible suffering when Lenin, in line with his policies toward minorities, agreed shortly before his death in 1924 to the establishment of the Volga German Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic. The Volga German settlements, along with a number of Russian towns and villages, formed this enclave within the new Soviet state. Then under Stalin, the ruthless collectivization of agriculture and the consequent purge of uncooperative Kulaks as well as unreliable intellectuals again meant persecution and death for many Volga Germans in the 1930’s.

Beideck Lutheran Church where Johann Friedrich Mohr lived. Probably built after the Mohr family left Russia. Photo courtesy of Steve Schreiber, taken May 2001.
When the communist regime came into power, Joseph Stalin wanted to wipe out Christianity.  He destroyed most of these beautiful German-Russian Churches. Using dynamite to blow off the steeples and converting the churches into granaries or in this case, a recreational hall.  Others he completely leveled to the ground.
 

World War II brought a tragic end to this German community whose forefathers were the indomitable pioneers of the lower Volga region. Following the German invasion of the Soviet Union, the Soviet government in August of 1941 summarily abolished the Volga German Autonomous Republic. On very short notice the Soviet regime brutally deported the Volga Germans (as well as the German population of the Crimea, Ukraine, and Caucasus) and scattered them over the wide spaces of Siberia and Central Asia. Families were frequently divided, and the fate of many of these hapless victims was a slave labor camp or forced labor in mines like KOLYMA, white sea fisheries, or virgin forests in subarctic regions.

The Ukrainian Germans were the first to be exiled to Siberia. In his book "Delivered", Waldemar Jesske tells of when he was a small boy, he with his family were forced out of their home on a moments notice to be herded like cattle on foot to their exile. Reaching a train station they traveled to Saratov and over the Volga River where they stopped. The Volga Germans had not yet been ordered to leave, but they knew what was ahead for the Ukrainians and gave them extra clothing and blankets to prepare them for the harsh trip to Siberia. Even though his family died, he survived to tell his story.

How many German-Russians were sent into the harsh Siberian wilderness, we will never really know, it is estimated that the figure is more than 400,000. Remember that in the 1920s around half of the Volga German population died of starvation when Stalin took all of their Wheat grain away from them. Around 100,000 escaped to Germany right after the war.

Some Germans escaped from Russia even around the turn of the century. Alexander Butherus, who married Mary Mohr daughter of J.B. Mohr, hid in a hay wagon while he was taken across the border to another country. Many young Germans had to do this to escape the military. This being one of the reasons for families leaving Russia in the late 1800s.

Life in Siberia and Central Asia was very hard, but it was said of the German-Russians, they are like willow branches you stick them in the ground and they will grow and thrive. The German has a history of survival.

Eugene Irving Mohr was researching possible ancestors on his mother's side, the Arnbrechts. He received a letter that was written to a Johannes Arnbrecht in Oklahoma, from a brother in Sofkas, Siberia, Russia, a possible relative; “Dear Brother John, I want you to know that we are all alive. My health is not the best but life goes on. I have lived through much and have suffered much. If I wrote every detail of our experiences it would fill a book that no one would question. Isn't it better not to talk about it.”

The wartime disabilities and restrictions on the deported Germans was ended by an official decree in 1955 which, nevertheless, still forbade their return to their Volga homeland. A decree of 1964 granted them political rehabilitation and admitted that the accusations against them of aiding Hitler’s invasion in 1941 were untrue, but in spite of this, they could not return to their former homes.

Since World War II, not surprisingly, assimilation has contributed further to the diminishment of the Volga German population and its influence. In some communities, though, such as Tashkent, Karaganda, Tselinograd, and a few others, the present generation of Volga Germans, together with Germans from other parts of European Russia, have made courageous efforts to revive and maintain the essence of their cultural heritage, their language, and their religion. The Soviet governments census for the year 1956 listed the number of Germans still living in the U.S.S.R. as 1,615,000, and the 1970 census results showed a German population of 1,846,000.

THE GERMANS IN RUSSIA TODAY

What do we know of the Germans living in Russia today? A news release from Bonn, Germany, on September 24, 1991, stated that the chairman of Russia's Ethnic Minority Committee, has said that the Russian Government is seriously considering the re-establishment of the former Volga German Autonomous Republic. This would be a wonderful thing for the German-Russians. Many are already returning to the area from which they were exiled many years previously. However the Russian population that moved into their homes and onto their land when they were exiled, are not so excited about this news, and are protesting this decision.

Now that the borders are easier to cross many Germans are trying to emigrate to Germany, but this is creating problems for the German Government that is already being flooded by immigrants. This is one reason that the German Government is trying to get the Russian Government to reestablish the Volga German Autonomous Republic.

The life of the German-Russian is still not an easy one, but neither is it easy for any other Russian, especially one living in Siberia and Central Asia. Most younger German-Russians, unlike their parents, have been assimilated into the Russian culture. Many have taken Russian names to be more Russian.

It is interesting to note that many of the Volga German Colonies are still in existence. Many are in bad disrepair but there is still life in many of them.
In June of 1992, the American Historical Society for Germans from Russia, sponsored a tour into the Volga area. Many of old German colonies were visited and some of the travelers even found relatives there still. The village of Beideck, the ancestral village of the Mohr family was also visited. Martha Greenemeier reported that she got to walk in and through it. The old Lutheran church still stands. It is being used as a recreation hall. The steeple is missing, as are most churches in Russia due to Stalin's campaign of terror against religion. “The old cemetery was in ruins, there were no gravestones, just small hillocks where the graves were”. There was a store and other homes most in bad disrepair.

Due to the move to democracy, it is now possible to travel into Russia. Many whose roots are from the Volga German Autonomous Republic, have returned to visit their ancestral villages.

A professor from Saratov, Dr. Igor Pleve, has been doing extensive research into the old German colonies along the Volga. His research has been in gathering information on the different people who lived in each village and gathering genealogical information. This due to the great interest among many people around the world who have ties to this area. This research is going to take many years of going through documents stored in various locations. Some in Saratov, Engels and even in Moscow.

Fortunately he has had success with many colonies, however there are some that have had much information destroyed. Beideck is one of the villages that he is having difficulty in finding information. At the time of the Colonies the records were kept by the church in each colony, but when the churches were desecrated and plundered during the Russian revolution, many records were destroyed.

Fortunately for the Mohr family, Dr. Igor Pleve and his wife have completed research on the Mohr family.  I had obtained his services to do research and he had completed it.  He has given me information that I would not have ever been able to find on my own. I am making this information available to anyone who would like to receive it.  I am offering it for $35.00.  This includes two charts and working papers.  Shipping and handling are included. Just address me at my email address tw.mohr@verizon.net and I will give you the address where you should send me your check along with your mailing information.

RESOURCE MATERIAL

In compiling this history of the German-Russians, I used various sources. They are listed below, and for those who are interested in this history I would recommend them highly.

The Volga Germans, by Fred C. Koch.
Wir Wollen Deutsche Bleiben, The Story of the Volga Germans, by George J. Walters.
The Czar's Germans, by Hattie Plum Williams.
The German Colonies on the Lower Volga, by Gottlieb Beratz.
The German-Russians, by Karl Stumpp

I would also recommend that those who have an interest in their German-Russian heritage should join the American Historical Society of Germans From Russia, 631 D Street, Lincoln, Nebraska 68502-1199 Phone: 402-474-3363. The yearly dues are very reasonable, and with your support, you are helping in the research of our German-Russian Heritage as well as receive a quarterly magazine full of much valuable and interesting information. Members can obtain the books listed above as well as many other books and historical maps of the German Colonies from the organization.

T H E C O M P I L E R S

Eugene Irving Mohr (son of John Henry Mohr and Sarah Arnbrecht) is the grandson of Philipp Mohr and great grandson of Friedrich Mohr. He was born on 29 September 1903 in a sod house near Rush Center, Rush County, Kansas, the second of nine children. When he was about three years old, the family moved to the Rush County Farm (Poor Farm) where John H. Mohr was manager. When Irving was about five years old the family moved to a farm of 320 acres four miles east of Bison, Rush County, Kansas. On this farm, belonging to Irving’s grandfather, Philipp Mohr, the family resided for about twelve years. Helping at the tender age of eight years with the plowing, Irving learned to take care of all kinds of farm work with the passing of the years.

Irving attended the Shaffer, Kansas, Church School for grades one through nine. Grades ten through twelve were taken at Enterprise Academy, Enterprise, Kansas. After attending Union College, Lincoln, Nebraska, for four years, he received the Bachelor of Arts degree in May 1926. In 1943 he received the Master of Science degree and in 1950 the Doctor of Philosophy degree with a major in Physics and a minor in Mathematics from the University of Southern California.

On 18 May 1926 Irving married Marjorie Olson. On 1 October 1926 they sailed from New York, arriving at Buenos Aires, Argentina on 24 October 1926. A few days later they went to Diamante, Entre Rios, Argentina by river boat and from there to River Plate College (Colegio Adventista del Plata) at Puiggari, Entre Rios, Argentina. They remained at the college, except for an intervening furlough, until March 1940. While at River Plate College, Irving taught classes in science and mathematics and was school librarian.

The Rush County Farm (Poor Farm) where Irving lived for two years as a young child. His father John Henry was the manager.

From September 1940 to June 1943, Irving taught classes in science and mathematics at Glendale Union Academy, Glendale, California. From September 1943 to May 1949, he was chairman of the Department of Science and Mathematics at Southwestern Junior College (now South-western Adventist College), Keene, Texas. In the spring of 1950, Irving flew to Los Angeles for the oral examination on his doctoral research, and at the June 1950 Commencement at the University of Southern California, he was granted the degree of Doctor of Philosophy with a major in Physics and a minor in Mathematics. From September 1949 to June 1954 he was chairman of the Physics Department at Southern Missionary College, Collegedale, Tennessee. The next 18 years, from September 1954 to September 1972, Irving was chairman of the Department of Mathematics and Physics at Columbia Union College, Takoma Park, Maryland. It might be interesting to note that during his spare time and during the summer months, Irving was also during research at the Goddard Space Flight Center in the field of space science and was associated there as a research consultant to A. W. McCulloch and JH. T. McLean of the Earth Observations Branch.

After teaching for 46 years, Irving retired in September 1972. Leaving their residence in Takoma Park, Maryland, Irving and his wife, Marjorie, lived in and toured the country by trailer. Traveling south to seek warmer climate they toured Florida, and then headed west along the Gulf Coast toward California and the Pacific Northwest. After eight months of travel they retired in Loma Linda, California in order to be near their five grandchildren. During 1974-1978 Irving compiled the introductory section of the family history by use of books on the Volga Germans, libraries, archives, census records, Rush County, Kansas, land records, recollections of Mohr family members, etc. In addition, he helped in the task of obtaining information on many of the descendants of Friedrich Mohr with the cooperation of a number of Mohr family members.

After a most fruitful life of service to his church and community, and after a most valiant fight against illness, Irving passed away in Loma Linda, California at the age of 88 years. He was laid to rest at a small graveside service in the Covina Hills Cemetery in Covina Hills, California.

Vernon Paul Mohr (son of Adam Alexander Mohr and Ruth Mahurin) is the grandson of Georg (Johann) Konrad Mohr and great grandson of Friedrich Mohr. He was born on July 13, 1913 on a 60 acre farm 13 miles south of Nekoma, Kansas (actually it was just over the line in Pawnee County, Kansas). When he was about 5 1/2 years of age, the family moved to Enterprise, Kansas here his father became farm manager of Enterprise Academy. After his first year in school the family moved to Wichita, Kansas here he attended grades 2 and 3 while his mother, Ruth, finished her nurses training at the Kansas Sanitarium and Hospital. The family returned to Enterprise and he attended the 4th grade. The family moved again to Wichita here he attended grades 5 through 9. Late in 1929 the Sanitarium, then known as Wichita Sanitarium and Hospital, closed down. Most of the Sanitarium employees then moved to Denver, Colorado to open Porter Sanitarium and Hospital. Vernon’s mother, Ruth, was the first Superintendent of Nurses (Seventh-day Adventist Encyclopedia, page 1006) while he attended Campion Academy for grades 10-12, graduating in 1933. Beginning January 1934 he attended Union College, Lincoln, Nebraska for one year. After that, interrupted by work programs and sickness, he attended Union College until he had completed 2 years of college work. Living and working in Boulder, Colorado, he started work on Mechanical Engineering at the University of Colorado.

On September 8, 1942 Vernon married Alpha Lebraska, who had just received her R.N. degree in Nursing, the day before, from Boulder Sanitarium. In 1944, after he had completed 2 years of Mechanical Engineering he was drafted into the Army. October 3, 1944 he was given a medical discharged from the Army after being a patient at Fitzsimons Army General Hospital, Denver, Colorado for five months. He returned to Boulder and tried to continue his work as a machinist. That was not successful so he asked the Veterans Administration to help him get more college work. They helped him with one year at the University of Colorado and one year at Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado where he received the Bachelor of Education degree (Summer 1954) and the Master of Education degree (Summer 1954) with a major in Trade and Industrial Education and a minor in Industrial Arts. In 1955, Vernon and Alpha with their three small children moved to Las Vegas, Nevada where he taught Metal Shop at Las Vegas High School.

About 1939 or 1940 he started collecting information on the Mohr Family History Information on the Beltz, Schneider, Seltmann, Wagner, and many other families were obtained also. As the magnitude of the project increased and the securing of detail information decreased, interest also decreased and the stack of papers became dormant.

In 1974 Eugene Irving Mohr put his shoulder to the wheel and started the big machine rolling again. He calculated, being a mathematician, that the problem could be worked out. Believe it. It was a problem. He has done a tremendous job and is to be congratulated, He has spent hundreds of hours, traveled thousands of miles, written hundreds of letters and spent thousands of dollars.

Theodore (Ted) Wayne Mohr is the son of Willis Carl Mohr and Jessie Wilhelmine (Kunze) Mohr, grandson of Emmanuel Manuel Mohr, great grandson of Johann Balthasar Mohr and great great grandson of Johann Friedrich Mohr. He was born on November 15, 1942 at Great Bend, Kansas. He grew up on a farm 3.5 miles south and 1 mile west of Otis, Kansas, that at one time belonged to his great grandfather Henry Sell.

Ted attended the Shaffer Church School for grades one through eight. Grades nine through twelve were taken at Enterprise Academy, Enterprise, Kansas. It was at Enterprise Academy that Ted met June Lackey who he married on July 22, 1962. After attending Union College, Lincoln, Nebraska for two years, he went to work full time at the Union College Press as the offset department foreman. After working there for 6 years, Ted went to work at the Pacific Press Publishing Association in Mountain View, California. Ted and June have three children and two grandchildren. Rick and Tamara who were born in Lincoln, Nebraska and Daniel who was born in Mountain View, California.

After working at the Pacific Press Publishing Association as an lithographic cameraman, and later working as a departmental director at the Loma Linda University Press, Ted and his wife June accepted a mission call to work at the Venezuelan Vocational Academy in Nirgua, Venezuela. There Ted was the director of the academy press as well as taught graphic arts.

Ted and his family later returned to Loma Linda. He accepted the position as director of the Print and Copy department at the Southeastern California Conference of Seventh-day Adventists in Riverside, California. He worked there for 24 years and retired in May 2009.

It was around the year 1990, as Ted was going through the large “black book” of the Mohr family written by Eugene Irving Mohr, that he decided to improve on the size and contents of the book by adding pictures and updating the genealogical section by soliciting information from as many descendants of Johann Friedrich Mohr as possible. So taking his ideas and plans and a prototype of the new book to Irving Mohr, Ted obtained further ideas and suggestions and support from Irving Mohr for the new project. Irving was happy to know that someone else was interested in finding a way to get this history into all the hands of those descendants of Johann Friedrich Mohr who were interested. Being a printer and having the tools and equipment at his disposal, Ted forged ahead on this big project and experienced much of the frustrations as well as enjoyment that both Vernon and Irving had experienced in the development of this immense project.