How do Origins in Russia define us? Colonia Baron and San Jose, La Pampa, Argentina

San Jose Church

As many of you know, I visited Argentina last November.  When we traveled to the German from Russia villages in La Pampa, Dr. Elio Krank and his lovely wife, Roxana Appelhanz, were our hosts and guides.  They shared their heritage and opened their home in Colonia Baron to us. Dr. Krank spoke German and Spanish, and Roxana spoke both of those languages plus English. Needless to say, if you have heard my sporadic German or Spanish, despite all of my pre-planning with Pimsleur language program, I was grateful for their patience and understanding of my poor attempts at Spanish. 

La Pampa was settled by many Black Sea and Volga Germans from Russia. Part of every research trip includes a visit to the local cemetery.  One of my favorites was the cemetery at San Jose.

San Jose Cemetery

As a life member of the American Historical Society of Germans from Russia and the German Russian Heritage society, I understand the differences between Black Sea and Volga. Depending on perspective,  there can be some major gulfs and some true bonding between these groups who immigrated to Russia. The Volga Germans responded to Catherine the Great’s Manifesto II over 250 years ago.  The Black Sea Germans responded to Alexander II re-issue of the manifesto in 1803. That is the first difference but not the last.

When I entered the cemetery, Dr. Krank explained that the Volga Germans were buried on the left and the Black Sea settlers were buried on the right.  I am familiar with Catholics and  Lutherans being buried in separate cemeteries.  It was a first for me to see one cemetery with a walkway down the center, and family lots split by origin in Russia.

Volga Germans buried on the left, Black sea Germans on the right.

Head stone for Cristina Hollmann geb. Sauer   Gebohren in Jahr 1879 bei vollmer, Russland

While I learned much during my time with the Kranks, I look forward to reading Dr. Krank's book Colonia San José, El Atrio del Paraíso. Written in Spanish, it is my next step to working toward fluency in the language. Estudio mucho, pero apendir un poco. Maybe I can change that.

South America Here I Come!

Today I experienced a South American adventure. My vacation was over weeks ago, but does that have to stop me from having an adventure this weekend?

It began with an email from the Volga German Roots web list. Gerardo Waimann of Buenos Aires, Argentina, a descendant of Volga Germans from Russia, sent us the following message:

“Dear members of the list:

Under the auspices of the German Embassy in Argentina, the Provincia Bank has published 3 magazines (of tourism and history) about the 3 Catholic colonies of the district of Coronel Suarez: Santa Trinidad (also named Colony I), San Jose (Colony II) and Santa Maria (Colony III).

The digital edition of these 3 publications can be downloaded (at no cost) with a click from the following URLs:
*Santa Trinidad
* San Jose
* Santa Maria
Another possibility to download them (in two steps, a little more complicated for non-speakers of Spanish) is from the Volga German website of Raul Wagner:
Santa Trinidad:
San Jose and Santa Maria:

Best regards to all the VG cousins in the northern hemisphere.”

Coronel Suarez was one of the many places I visited in Argentina in 2008. When I saw this email and checked out the links, I knew I had some more exploration to do. I settled into my chair and decided to turn on television and relax next to my dog, Harrison, while I read the magazines.



As I turned on PBS , I saw Bob Ross finish a painting. I checked the next PBS channel. I normally do not watch or know what is on television Saturday morning, but I wanted some background noise as I read my email and kept company with my dog Harrison who rested in his crate. He had a hectic week as he underwent surgery, a Femoral Head Ostectomy also known as FOH.

One of the things I didn’t mention about my vacation was the Harrison incident. During a routine nail clipping, the technician called and told me Harrison had sprained his ankle. When I picked him up from the appointment, he was noticeably limping and in pain.
Since I was unable to get him to my vet on Saturday, we had to wait until Monday to have radiograms.

The ultimate diagnosis was hip dysplasia and arthritis, a chronic condition. Harrison is only ten months old so the doctor recommended a specialist review his x-rays to determine if surgery was needed.

No matter what happened when his nails were trimmed, the provider mishandled the communication and situation. They did ultimately offer to pay for my vet visit. The check has not arrived in my mailbox but I have not lost hope of receiving it. Corporate America is slow to move on reimbursements.

On Tuesday, three anxious weeks later, the specialist contacted us. The verdict was surgery. I was nervous when I dropped him off for surgery yet Dr. Drager increased my comfort level. Now that Harrison has been back home for two days, I am still nervous. So, as I watch Harrison slowly heal, I am thrilled to have a South American adventure.

From Travelscope to Rudy Maxa’s World to the Seasoned Traveler and Passport to Adventure, my mind soared across the countries. Their excursions in Argentina from Buenos Aires to Mendoza and from Chile to Peru inspired me.

As I watched some of the brief histories, I wondered why we do not learn more of about South America in school. Why do we focus on European and North American history? Didn’t the Spanish, French and English explorers settle in the southern hemisphere, too? Why does the United States act as if they were the only country to import slaves? Why can’t North Americans instinctively draw a relatively accurate map of the countries in South America? Why don’t we know our southern neighbors better? For that matter, why don’t we understand Canada better? When I traveled to Argentina, one of my fellow tourists said, “I always thought Canada was one of the United States.” I laughed until I realized she was serious.

When I see wonderful shows like those on PBS today, I understand how much I need to learn despite my knowledge of Canada as a country composed of provinces and separate from the United States. During Harrison’s recuperation over the next six to eight weeks, I will have ample opportunity to continue to explore the South American continent from the comfort of my chair. And to dream of that next trip. I have my eye on the wine country of Mendoza.

July 4, 2011 - Independence and Intrigue

My grandfather, Fred Herzog, was born on July 4, 1882 in Reinwald, Russia. He gained his independence on April 9, 1907 when he arrived in Philadelphia aboard the Haverford. He traveled alone and his destination was Wisconsin. Like many immigrants, he came to live with other German Russian families on Erie Ave. in Sheboygan.

He lived with the Reimer's who were also from Reinwald. In 1913, he married their youngest daughter, Sophie, who was widowed in 1912 and left with two small children. He accepted the children as his own which tells us much about his character. He and Sophie are in the picture above, one of the three photographs I have of him.

Fred was always a mystery to me. His death certificate shows his birthplace was in Reinwald, Russia and lists his parents as Casper Herzog and Marvin Kauger as does his obituary in The Sheboygan Press. Yet, I could never connect him directly to the 1857, 1850 or original settler's Censuses for Reinwald. There are plenty of Herzog's listed, I simply never got close enough to 1882 to build the complete line.

The ship’s manifest lists Fred’s birthplace as Haviza, Russia. I assumed this was a mistake, but one can never be certain with these records. I searched for Haviza and found nothing that matched. Could it have been a temporary place he stayed in Russia while he earned enough money to travel to America? Or, could it have an illegibly written version of Starista, the Russian name for Reinwald?

Fred died in 1941 when my mother was only fourteen. She was so young she never asked for details about his life in Russia. I do know she was his “little angel” as he called her that the last time he saw her when she was in her beautiful white confirmation dress.

On Saturday when I chatted on facebook.com with my friend Ale Müller of Argentina, he mentioned the village of Rosenfeld. Ale and I share family ties to Reinwald. We have known each other online since my trip to Argentina. Ale told me some of his family moved from Reinwald to the daughter colony Rosenfeld as families grew and needed to expand to new land. He shared a copy of the 1862 Rosenfeld census* with me. Could this census be my link back to the Herzog's in the 1857 census? I skimmed through the pages and saw Herzog's and Reimer's among the recognizable Sheboygan family names.

On page 7, there are three Herzog families listed as follows:


Household # 20

Name.............Relationship to Head of Household.....Age
Peter Herzog.......Head..........................30
Margaretha Wagner......Spouse............29
Magadelena ...........Daughter..................5
Anna Katherina......Daughter.................3
Christina..................Daughter................½
Georg Andreas.........Brother...................23
Margetha Enders.....Sister-in-law..........21
Kaspar......................Nephew.....................1

Household # 21
Name...................Relationship to Head of Household.....Age
Friedrich Herzog........Head....................43
Magdelena Gauger.....Spouse.................40
Karl..............................Son.......................21
Maria Elisabeth Gauger....Daughter-in-law......19
Jakob...........................Son........................18
Katharina....................Daughter...............13
Maria Katharina.........Daughter................7

Household # 22
Name...................Relationship to Head of Household.....Age
Kaspar Herzog............Head.............39
Christina Knaus..........Spouse..........37
Friedrich......................Son................19
Jakob...........................Son.................15
Katharina....................Daughter.......13
Gottlieb........................Son.................11
Martin..........................Son..................9
Maria Elisabeth..........Daughter.........7
Margaretha.................Daughter.........4
Kaspar.........................Son...................3

I focused on the two younger Kaspar boys, ages 1 and 3, who would perhaps be the one to have fathered a child born in 1882 since they would have been 21 and 23 years old respectively. Kasper Herzog, age 39, would be 59 years of age in 1882, which certainly makes him a possibility but not the most likely candidate.

I also noticed there is a pattern of Herzogs marrying Gauger women. By the way, Gauger, when written in Russian, begins with a K. Am I on to something here?

Well, it is back to the Reinwald Censuses for a comparison of the Rosenfeld household numbers to the Herzog household numbers. The intrigue continues and my research begins anew. Today in honor of my grandfather’s birthday, I will celebrate the friendship of people like Ale who keep the momentum of family research flowing. I will celebrate Independence and thank my grandfather for coming to America. And, I wish my grandfather a blessed anniversary of his birth wherever it actually took place.



*1862 Census of Rosenfeld am Nachoi in the District of Samara, Russia, Dated January 10, 1862. Translated by Brent Mai, Concordia University, Portland, Oregon.

Reinwald Research Update from Lincoln, Nebraska

Since Monday I have been at the 41st International Convention of the American Historical Society of Germans from Russia in Lincoln, Nebraska.

As newsletter editor for the convention, I recorded the daily activities for print and blog distribution. You can link to the blog and get complete access to the convention workshops at http://ahsgrlincolnnebraska.blogspot.com/

I did get to the research library and bookstore here and will have much more to investigate when I return home. The biggest plus of this convention? I actually met others with Reinwald as their ancestral village and, naturally, they had ties to Sheboygan, Wisconsin. We may be able to build a better information base with this group.

More pictures to come after the banquet tonight.

Happy Memorial Day...

It's been a few weeks since my last update because all of my efforts were directed to put the finishing touches on my latest book. More details on the book on later updates, however it is now at the printer and I have a sense of relief I have not experienced in months. How glorious that I can reflect and relax on Memorial Day.

My Memorial Day updates are some of my favorites over the past two years. Its always been a day of remembrance and gratitude. I am grateful to have finished my book and to remember the joy of retracing my steps in Argentina...just one of my many paths in retracing my ancestry.

I also try to learn something new every Memorial Day. In the past, I focused on World War II and my Dad and Uncle's service in the Navy and Marines respectively. Yet, Memorial Day began after the Civil War. And I never understood why, when I moved from Wisconsin to Tennessee, the people I lived with in Nashville, never took too kindly to the holiday. That was, until I read David Holzel's Ten Facts About Memorial Day. Here is the link to his mental_floss column and I am sure you will learn something about Memorial Day as I did.
http://www.cnn.com/2009/LIVING/05/25/mf.holiday.memorial.day/

So, I relax and recoup today. Then I start the next journey which is to Medicine Hat, Alberta. I want to savor my plans for the trip, do as much research ahead of time, and look forward to reuniting with many friends.

Have a wonderful Memorial Day and may your memories be graced with the gratitude which comes from age and wisdom. Enjoy.

Asociacion Argentina de Descendientes de Alemanes Del Volga

Yes, it's 2009 and I continue to have more to share about Argentina. How did we do so much in two weeks? Two overnight bus trips certainly maximized our travel time. Part of the fun of writing about Argentina is uploading a few of the many pictures I shot yet there are so many more. El Argentino(the newspaper of Gualeguaychu, provincia of Entre Rios) wrote about our visit in their November 13 edition.




Our evening with the local asociacion included conversation, music and barocks. The president of the asociacion was Juan Hermann and I sat at a table with his father Juan. Juan's family immigrated to Argentina from the wiesenseite of the Volga but did not know the specific village. He recited his family tree through his grandparents. Since my grandmother was a Herrmann from Marienthal I wanted to find a connection. I have yet to locate the piece of paper we used to write down with his grandparent's names and hope to find it soon.





Before our visit to the asociation, we toured a yerba matte store. The idea was to buy a yerba matte gourd and sample some of Argentina's best fare. I saw gourds made of every size and color and even some created from the hooves of cattle.



When Judy sampled some of what Tim purchased, she said it tasted like dirt. I hadn't planned to sample the mate but when I did, I thought it was much better than dirt. I love herbal teas and will have to buy some instant yerba mate to see if I can acquire the taste.



Of course, I didn't have to work hard to acquire a taste for Malbec. For more information on malbec, visit any of the following sites:
http://www.wineweekly.com/wine-basics/wine-grapes/wine-grape-malbec/
http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art34670.asp
http://www.easy-wine.net/malbec-wine.htm

Thanks to Edith for the lovely picture of the group enjoying Malbec on the balcony of the Aguay Hotel (http://www.hotelaguay.com.ar/en/aguay-inicio.htmover)looking the river in Gualeguaychu.







I continue to listen to my DVDs and CDs to master the Spanish language. In the meantime, I added the Google Translate option directly to my blog. There is much more to come on Argentina especially as I pull information together for the Journal publication. Tomorrow, focus on our bus experience.