Re: This is the story of a Volga-German family named Krannawitter -- Family Tree Brick Walls

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Date Posted: 07:48:55 11/01/07 Thu
Author: Ron Flores
Subject: Re: This is the story of a Volga-German family named Krannawitter
In reply to: Wayne Riley 's message, "Re: This is the story of a Volga-German family named Krannawitter" on 07:40:07 11/01/07 Thu

On 18 June, 2002, the author received a letter from Jutta von Essen, an archivist for the Cathedral and Diocesan Archives at Mainz, Germany, in response to a request for research of the Kranewitter (sic) family. In the letter, she said that she had found an entry for the 28 OCTOBER, 1760, marriage between Johannes Kranewitter and Anna Elisabeth Sattler, recorded in the catholic parish register of Pfaffen-Wiesbach, a small town located about 20 miles north of Frankfurt in the German state of Hessen. The entry states that Johannes was the son of Martin Kranewitter, Deceased, and that Anna Elizabeth was the daughter of Johannes Anton Sattler from the nearby village of Kransberg. Other records in the Pfaffen-Wiesbach register indicate that Johannes Anton Sattler from the nearby village of Kransberg. Other records in the Pfaffen-Wiesbach register indicate that Johannes and Anna Elisabeth (Sattler) Kranewitter had three daughters, born between July of 1761 and JANUARY of 1766. After the birth announcement of the last daughters, there are no more references to this Kranewitter family-a fact that can be explained by their migration to Russia in the latter part of 1766. Other records suggest that Johannes had a brother named Georg Wilhelm Kranewitter, who married and remained in the Pfaffen-Wiesbach area. These and other facts, along with supporting evidence, are outlined on the following pages, leading to the conclusion that the original settler in the Volga German colony of Obermonjou, Russia, bearing the surname Kranewitter was Johannes Kranewitter of Pfaffen-Wiesbach, Hessen, Germany, and that his wife was Anna Elisabeth Sattler of nearby Kransberg. When they arrived at Obermonjou on 3 AUGUST, 1767, they were not listed with any children: apparently, the three daughters born in Pfaffen-Wiesbach had died before or during the trip from Germany to Russia. The town of Wertheim, Germany, which is the place of origin of the Leiker family of Obermonjou, lies two miles southwest of Pfannen-Wesbach. Other evidence indicates that the Leiker and Kranewitter families traveled in the same transport group to the Volga colonies. When the genealogical proof standard is applied to the data and evidence that are shown above and that are summarized on the following pages, it can be stated that beyond a reasonable doubt the German place of origin of Johannes and Elisabeth (Sattler) Kranewitter is the town of Pfaffen-Wiesbach. Family Group Sheet Husband: Martin Kranewitter Born: c. 1700 in: Died: before 1760 in: Pfaffen-Wiesbach, Hesen, Germany Pfaffen-Weisbach is located about 20 miles north of Frankfurt, Germany. Wife: Mrs. Martin (Katharina) Kranewitter Born: c. 1700 In the 10 MAY 1767 marriage contract, listed in the Pfaffenwiesbach, Germany, church register, for Georg Wilhelm Kranewitter and Eva Katharina Lauth, Georg Wilhelm�s parents were listed as �Martin,� Deceased and �Katharina(_). Child 1 Johannes Krannewitter Born: 1731 in: of Pfaffen-Wiesbach, Hessen, Germany Died: c. 1782 in: Obermonjou, Russia In: Russia Other: Moved to Russia In: 1766-1767 Occupation: Farmer, Baker Spouse: Anna Elisabeta (Elizabeth) Sattler BORN c. 1738 Married: 28 OCTOBER 1760 in: Pfaffen-Wiesbach, Hessen, Germany Johannes and Anna Elisabeta (Elisabeth) arrived in Obermonjou 3 AUGUST 1767. He listed his place of origin as Weisbach, Germany, and his occupation as baker. He stated that he was a Catholic. His youngest daughter Katherina was born in 1779. He was not listed in a register of Obermonjou residents compiled in 1785. Marriage of Johannes Kranewitter, son of Marton, and Anna Elisabeth Sattler, daughter of Johan Anton of Kransberg, was recorded at Pfaffen-Wesbach, Germany 28 OCTOBER. 1760. Child 2 Georg Wilhelm Kranewitter In: of Pfaffen-Wisbach, Hessen, Germany Spouse: Eva Katharina Lauth Married: 10 MAY 1767 In: Pfaffen-Wiesbach, Hessen, Germany Husband: Johannes Krannewitter Born: 1731 In: of Pfaffen-Wiesbach, Hessen, Germany Died: c. 1782 In: Obermonjou, Russia In: Russia Other: Moved to Russia In: 1766-1767 Occupation: farmer, baker Father: Martin Kranewitter Mother: Mrs. Martin (Katharina) Kranewitter Johannes and Anna Elisabeta arrived in Obermonjou 3 AUGUST, 1767. He is listed her place of origin as Wiesbach, Germany, and his occupation as baker. He stated that he was Catholic. His youngest daughter Katherina was born in 1779. He was not listed in the register of Obermonjou residents compiled in 1785. This would indicate that he died sometime between 1779 and 1785. Marriage of Johannes Kranewitter, son of Martin, and Anna Elisabeth Sattler, daughter of Johan Anton of Kransberg, was recorded at Pfaffen-Wiesbach, Germany 28 OCTOBERober 1760. Wife: Anna Elisabeta (Elisabeth) Sattler Married: 28 OCTOBER 1760 In: Pfaffen-Wiesbach, Hessen, Germany Born: c. 1738 In: of Kransberg, Hessen, Germany In: Obermonjou, Russia Father: Johannes Anton Sattler Mother: Mrs. Johannes Anton Sattler When Anna Elisabeta and Johannes arrived in Obermonjou in 1767, she stated she was 29, indicating that she had been born about 1738. In the 1798 census of Obermonjou, she stated that she was 57, indicating that her year of birth had been about 1741. After Johannes died, she married Johannes Neulist. She and Johannes Neulist had no children of their own but adopted Christian Minrad (Meinrad), an orphan from Solothurn (Wittmann). Paffen-Wiesbach, Germany, parish records list her father as �Johannes Anton Sattler�, Kransberg
Child 1 Maria Margaretha Kranewitter Born: 25 July 1761 In: Pfaffen-Wiesbach, Hessen, Germany Died: before 1767 In: Germany Maria was not listed with Johannes and Anna Kranewitter when they arrived at Obermonjou, Russia, indicating that she died before or during the trip from Germany to Russia.
Child 2 Katharina Kranewitter Born: 9 NOVEMBER 1763 In: Pfaffen-Wiesbach, Hessen, Germany Died: before 1767 In: Germany Katharina was not listed with Johannes and Anna Kranewitter when they arrived at Obermonjou, Russia, indicating that she had died before or during the trip from Germany to Russia.
Child 3 Eva Katharina Kranewitter Born: 15 JANUARY 1766 In: Pfaffen-Wiesbach, Hessen, Germany Died: before 1767 In: Germany Eva Katharina was not listed with Johannes and Anna when they arrived at Obermonjou, Russia, indicating that she had died before of during the trip from Germany to Russia Child 4 Margaretha Krannewitter Born: 1770 In: Obermonjou, Russia Spouse: Joseph Nurnberger BORN 1767 Child 5 Gerhard Krannewitter Born: 1770 In: Obermonjou, Russia Died: after 1850 In: Obermonjou, Russia Occupation: farmer Spouse: Dorotea Wagner BORN 1776 Married: Russia in: c. 1794 Gerhard was the only son of Johannes Kranewitter and Elisabeta Sattler. When the 1798 census of Obermonjou was recorded Gerhard and his wife Dorotea Wagner were residing at the house of her parents Friedrich Wagner, 70, of Paninskaya (Schonchen) and Barbara Dinkel, 69. Next door to them was the of (Anna) Elisabeta Sattler and her second husband Johannes Neulist. Child 6 Katherina Krannewitter Born: 1779 In: Russia When the census of Obermonjou was taken Katherina was living in the house of her mother Anna Elizabeta Sattler and her stepfather Johannes Neulist. Johannes Krannewitter and his wife Anna Elizabeta Sattler arrived in the Volga-German colony of Obermonjou, Russia on 3, AUGUST 1767, registered No. 63 on the recorded list of the first settlers. Weisbach (Germany) was designated as Johannes' place of origin. At the end of the year 1767, Johannes gave his age as 36, and Anna Elizabeta gave hers as 29. This would indicate that he had been born about 1731, and she about 1738. Johannes listed his religion as Catholic and his occupation as baker (Pleve 1998). The Catholic settlement of Obermonjou was established on the east side of the Volga River--about 40 miles northeast of Saratov--by 82 families on 5 MARCH 1767. It was named for Major Otto Friedrich de Monjou, a Frenchman who had been employed by representatives of the Russian empress Catherine the Great tot recruit people from Germany who would settle the relatively empty expanses along the lower Volga River (Koch 1977). One of these settlers was Johannes Krannewitter from Weisbach, Germany. German online telephone listings reveal six town s named Weisbach (Teleauskunft 1999). In order to ascertain which of these towns Johannes Krannewitter came from, the author needed to examine the historical records that might bear reference to him. The only German records that were kept and that would contain the needed genealogical information for the period in question--around 1720 to 1770--are Catholic parish records of baptisms and marriages. All of the parish and diocesan archives that contain data for these towns were contacted, and the researchers there investigated the files of these there from the early to the middle 1700s. Following is a description of the search. The Bezier (state) of Rheinland-Pfalz is the site of two towns called Weisbach, one of which is located about 10 miles northeast of the city of Zweibrucken. Diocesan records for that place have been kept since 1738, but registers there did not contain any references to individuals or families with the name Krannewitter or with any name spelled similarly (Mitsching 1998). The other town named Weisbach in Rheinland-Pfalz is located near the community of Bad Elms. It was designated on the online telephone listings but was not mentioned in Catholic parish records (Stenger 1999). There is a village called Weisbach near the town of Eppelborn in the state of Saarland In this village, which is situated about 10 miles north of Saarland, parish records contain no references to individuals named Krannewitter of anything similar (Pfarramt Eppelborn 1998). Three localities named Weisbach are located in the state of Bayern (Bavaria). A village called Wiesbach, which lies near the community of Ainring in Oberbayer (Upper Bavaria) had no parish records of families with the surname Krannewitter or anything similar (Pfister 1999). Another town called Weisbach, also Upper Bavaria, is located about 45 miles northeast of Munich. Researchers there would also find no parish records referring to families named Krannewitter or any similar spelling variant (Mai 1998). Diocesan researchers of the parish archives of the town just mentioned also examined the records for another village named Weisbach, which is about seven miles farther north. This village is situated in Niederbayern (Lower Bavaria) and lies just north of the line that SEPTEMBER rates Upper Bavaria from Lower Bavaria. Records for the parish includes the tiny hamlet of Weisbach, lower Bavaria, contain several references to families with surnames similar to Krannewitter living there at the time in question (Mai 1998). At least one of these families was living in the immediate area around Weisbach at the same time that Johannes Krannewitter was born (Mai 1998). Weisbach, Lower Bavaria, is situated in the extreme northwestern part of the Landkreis (County) of Eckenfelder and lies approximately 50 miles northeast of Munich. More precisely, it is located about one-mile west-southwest of the town of Obertrennbach and lies on the line between the county of Eckenfelder and the county of Vilsbiburg. Obertrennbach and Gangkofen, a town about three miles south, are the centers of the two Catholic parishes which contain references to Krannewitter families (Mai 1998; Hall 1978). No baptismal record for Johannes Krannewitter, born about 1731 as notes above, was uncovered by parish researchers. Gangkofen/Obertrennbach parish registers do, however, indicate that Adam Kronawitter (sic), an itinerant dragonet assigned to Mitterfels--a town about 40 miles to the north--and his wife Anna had a son named Michael Gronawitter (sic) (The surname was spelled differently in the same baptismal entry in the parish register.) who was baptized 3 MAY, 1731. The godfather was Michael Gruewinckler, a farmer from the village of Wettersdorf, which is located about one mile north of Weisbach across the line in the county of Vilsbiburg (Mai 1998). Michael Gronawitter, born 1731, would have been the same age as Johannes Krannewitter, who was 36 when he settled in Obermonjou, Russia, in 1767. Based on the fact that both men were the same age, the fact that men were from towns called Weisbach has records of families with surnames similar to Krannewitter, a hypothesis establishing a connection between these two individuals can be formulated: Perhaps the baptismal name of Johannes Krannewitter, the Russian immigrant, was Michael; and Johannes did not use his baptismal name in any of the civil documents recorded in Russia. These civil documents will be discussed in the next chapter. Records from Gangkofen list other baptisms of individuals with surnames similar to Krannewitter. Almost 20 years before the baptism of Michael Gronawitter, Anna Cronawetter (sic), daughter of Matthias Cronawetter and his wife Kunigunde--residents of Holzreit--was baptized on 12 DECEMBER, 1712. The godmother was Anna Aigner, wife of Christopher Aigner, a farmer from Holzreit (Mai 1998), Detailed maps of the Gangkofen/Obertrennbach area do not show a town named Holzreit (Hall 1978). Maria Barbara Kronewitter (sic), daughter of Adam Cronewitter (sic)-- a retired, itinerant dragonet--and his wife Anna, was baptized 3 SEPTEMBER 1714. The godmother was Barbara Veichtner, wife of Jakob Velchtner, resident of the town of Malling (Mai 1998). Malling is located about three-fourths of a mile west of Weisbach (Hall 1978). (Based on the similarity of names and occupation, it is presumed that Adam and Anna Cronewitter were also the parents of Michael Gronawitter-mentioned above--who was born 17 years later. Thirty-three years later, on 1 SEPTEMBER 1747, Martin Krunerwitter (sic), son of Sebastian Krunerwitter--a vagabond--and his wife Elisabeth, was baptized. The godfather was Martin Wiser, a merchant from Weisbach (Mai 1998). Adding to the strength of the hypothesis formulated above is the fact that the given names Adam, Michael, and Sebastian were repeated in the generations following Johannes Krannewitter, the Volga-German settler. The archive director of the Catholic records in the Regensburg bishoprics, which houses the Gangkofen/Obertrennbach registers, commented that due to the paucity of records for the Krannewitter families in the Weisbach area and due to the transitory nature of these families, further research would be difficult. Archivists also checked marriage records of the Gangkofen/Obertrennbach parishes and all the records of the several neighboring parishes; they failed to uncover any more references to Krannewitter families. The archive director recommended hiring a professional genealogist to uncover any more data (Mai 1998). In conclusion, it is significant that Gangkofen/Obertrennbach is the only Catholic parish in Germany, so far encountered by the author that includes both a town named Weisbach and records that refer to families with surnames that are spelling variants of Krannewitter. Regretfully, these records are isolated As already stated, archive directors examined records in the five other German towns named Weisbach but failed to located any surnames similar to Krannewitter. Lamentable is the fact that no baptismal, birth, or marriage records of an individual named Johannes Krannewitter were uncover Died It is hoped that further research will resolve the riddle of his place of origin. Until then, it must remain pure speculation that Weisbach, in the parish of Obertrennbach, in the counties of Eckenfelder and Vilsbiburg, Lowered Bavaria, is the place of origin of Johannes Krannewitter. The 1798 revision list, or census, of Obermonjou, Russia, revealed the identitities of Johannes and Anna Elizabeta (Sattler) Krannewitter's children and the approximate time of Johannes' death. The 1798 census of Obermonjou will be discussed at length in each chapter. Margareta Krannewitter, 30, was apparently the oldest child of Johannes and Anna Elisabeta, according to information reported in the 1798 census. In the census, Margareta--who had been born around 1768, probably in Obermonjou--was listed as the wife of Joseph Nurberger, 31. They were living at the house of Wilhelm Seib, 53, and his wife Anna Maria Hartman, 68. Josef was Anna Maria's son by her first husband Valentine Nurberger. Josef Nurnberger and Margareta Krannewitter were the parents of two daughters; Margareta, four and Katherina, one and one-half (Rye 1995). Gerhard Krannewiter, 28, born about 1770, probably in Obermonjou, was evidently the only son of Johannes Krannewitter and his wife Dorotea Wagner, 22, were residing at the house of Dorotea's parents Friedrich Wagner, 70, from Paninskaya (Schoenchen), and Barbara Dinkel, 69. Gerhard was working for his father-in-law, who was noted as being unable to work. Listed with Gerhard and Dorotea was a son, Nikolaus, three. Next door to them was the house of Johannes Neulist, 43, and his wife Anna Elisabeta Sattler, 57. (In the 1767 list of the first settlers of Obermonjou-- which will also be discussed in the next chapter--Anna Elizabeta reported that age was 29, indicated that she had been born about 1738. Therefore, when the 1798 census was enumerated, she would have been around 60. Residing with Johannes Neulist and Anna Elisabeta sattler was Katherina Krannewitter, 19, noted as Anna Elisabeta's daughter by her first husband Johannes Krannewitter. Also residing with them was Christian Minrad (Meinrad), four, an orphan from Solothurn (Wittman). Johannes Krannewitter's daughter Katherine had been born about 1779. In the register of debts for annual payment accrued by the residents of Obermonjou--recorded 3 SEPTEMBER 1785--the name Johannes Krannewitte was not listed (Rye 1995). This would indicate that he had died sometime between 1779 and 1785. Anna Elizabeta Sattler died after 1798. According to later Obermonjou census data, which will be detailed in the next chapter, Gerhard Krannewitter and Dorotea Wagner had four more sons: Franz Krannewitter, born in 1800, Peter Krannewitter, born in 1802, Sebastian Krannewitter, born in 1804, and Johannes Krannewitter, born in 1812. They also had two daughters: Margaretha born 1819, and Barbara born 1821 (Pleve 1998). Many descendants of these children migrated to North and South America, and many stayed in Russia. Johannes Krannawitter, BORN 1731, Wiesbach, Germany, Occupation: farmer, Baker, MARRIED c. 1766, Elisabeta Sattler, BORN 1738, Germany. Johannes died c. 1782, Obermonjou, Russia. Johannes and Anna Elisabeta arrived in Obermonjou 3 AUGUST, 1767. He listed his place of origin as Weisbach, Germany and his occupation as baker. He stated that he was a Catholic. His youngest daughter Katharina was born in 1779. He was not listed in the register of Obermonjou residents compiled in 1785. This would indicated that he died sometime between 1779 and 1785. Elizabeta: When Anna Elisabeth and Johannes arrived in Obermonjou in 1767, she states she was 29, indicating that she had been born about 1738. In the 1798 census of Obermonjou, she stated that she was 57, indicated that her year of birth had been about 1741. After Johannes died, she married Johannes Neulist. She and Johannes Neulist had not children of their own but adopted Christian Minrad (Meinrad), an orphan from Solothurn (Wittmann). Children Margareta Krannawitter BORN 1768. Gerhard Krannewitter, BORN 1770. Katherina Krannewitter, BORN 1770, Russia. When the 1798 census of Obermonjou was taken Katherina was living at

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