[Ger-Poland-Volhynia] Migrations of Our Germans

[Jerry Frank]

Some of them did migrate back, in particular to East Prussia.  Others 
went to work for the industry that was also sprouting right where 
they were - the sugar plants in Kutno, the cloth production 
facilities in Lodz and Zyrardow, etc.  But for many others, farming 
was in their blood and the opportunity for cheap homestead land in 
central North America was more attractive than working in industry.


Jerry Frank - Calgary, Alberta
FranklySpeaking at shaw.ca





At 07:26 AM 19/04/2006, Mike McHenry wrote:
>I recently read a history of Germany 1845-1945 by Holborn. Germany had
>rapidly industrialized in the latter part of the 19th century and up to WWI.
>Unemployment was low and some cases labor shortages. Why didn't our Germans
>migrate back to Germany?
>
>                                         Mike
>
>-----Original Message-----
>From: ger-poland-volhynia-bounces at eclipse.sggee.org
>[mailto:ger-poland-volhynia-bounces at eclipse.sggee.org] On Behalf Of Jerry
>Frank
>Sent: Wednesday, April 19, 2006 8:02 AM
>To: marlo; gpvjem; rlyster at telusplanet.net
>Cc: ger-poland-volhynia at eclipse.sggee.org
>Subject: Re: [Ger-Poland-Volhynia] Migrations of people--Germans to Wohlynia
>
>At 03:47 PM 17/04/2006, marlo wrote:
> >Would you be able to help us understand why my husbands maternal
> >grandparents
> >moved from the area of Lubben Kreis Rummesburg in Pommern to Volhynia in
> >1871 and than left to come to US in 1888?
> >My mother-in-law was born in Volhynia and was only 6 years old when they
> >emigrated and she only said they came to US because they would have been
> >killed if they had stayed there in Volhynia
> >or Russia as she referred to the area?  I
> >don't know what profession her father was but they went directly to Berrien
> >County MI
> >and became fruit farmers.
> >Any help?    Margaret
>
>
>The Gartzes, Girschewskis, Ottos, Gitersonkes, some Schultzes and
>others indeed migrated from Rummelsburg to Volhynia and then later to
>Manitoba and Berrien County, MI.  I have less detailed information
>about circumstances in that region but I would suggest that the
>reasons were probably similar to that for those from Russian
>Poland.  They wanted to better their lot in life and that opportunity
>appeared to be available in Volhynia.  Other Volhynian Germans not
>from Pomerania also went to these same places.
>
>There may have been some fear of staying in Russia c.1888 and
>certainly freedoms were already being eroded but I'm not sure that
>the fear of death in the 1888 time frame was a strong reason for
>migrating.  Many Germans continued to remain after that in Volhynia
>without facing death.  Others first went to Manitoba, didn't like the
>cold, so they moved on to Berrien County.  Again, the move to North
>America was motivated first by the eroding freedoms (for example the
>enforcement of using Russian in the schools instead of German,
>inability of the Germans to own their land, and conscription into the
>Russian army) and secondly the opportunities in North America.  They
>were drawn to the prairies of both Canada and the States by cheap
>homestead land.  I'm not sure what specifically brought them to Berrien
>County.
>
>
>
>
>Jerry Frank - Calgary, Alberta
>FranklySpeaking at shaw.ca