User:Hefferjd/sandbox

GERMANS FROM RUSSIA OUTLINE:

Origins
- An explanation of the particular origins of the Germans from Russia. Discussion of the two waves of migration, the first in the second half of the 18th century,and the second in the first half of the 19th.

FIRST MIGRATION TO RUSSIA:

- Discussion of the the Manifesto of Catherine the Great [why considered englightened?-how relates to her migration/settlement policies] in 1763, inviting colonists to settle in exchange for free land, freedom of worship, exemption from conscription into the Russian army, right to their own language schools. Settlement mainly in the region of the Volga River.

- After 1763 manifesto, 20,000 settled in 14 colonies on the lower Volga River, where 2/3 were Protestant and 1/3 were Catholic (Schlissel).

- Land grants of 30-65 dessiatines (Bartensperger).

SECOND MIGRATION TO RUSSIA:

- Discussion of the Directive of Alexander I in 1804, inviting colonists to the Black Sea region.

- Discussion of the land tenure system established.

ARTICLE STILL LACKS A PROPER DISCUSSION OF THE IMPLICATIONS OF THE MANIFESTO (1763) AND DIRECTIVE (1804)!!!

--> WHY DECIDED TO LEAVE?

- By the later part of the 19th century (1870s in particular), Czar Alexander II reversed many pro-immigration statues as tensions simmered regarding the status of German migrants. Many believed that the privileges the Russian government had bestowed had created a sort of German superiority.

- Russian wars and Conflicts: Many Germans were forced into the army during the Russo-Japanese War. Others left foreseeing the unrest that would culminate in the Revolution of 1917.

- American Railroad Companies advertised fervently in German areas of Russia. Many bought land from them once in USA.

- Land became more scarce as more Germans moved in, and the population naturally increased.

Once in United States
- Faced the dominant culture, often faced tremendous language barrier as they did not understand English, and had become scarcely intelligible to native Germans after years of language adaptation in Russia.

- Did not follow predominant migratory pattern of starting East and pushing West. Settled directly to the Great Plains (Dakotas- discussed in article). Formed into close-knit communities, where they found that farming in the subhumid regions of Russia had prepared them for agriculture in the Great Plains, plus the addition of new crops such as corn.

ARTICLE COULD USE MORE DISCUSSION ON REPERCUSSIONS OF MAINTAINING "GERMANNESS" IN THE SECOND DECADE OF THE 20th CENTURY.

-Despite many families having left Germany for Russia centuries earlier, the group faced tremendous discrimination during WWI and WWII as their 'Germanness' made them targets. This was intensified by their apparent success associated with the maintenance of many of their cultural characteristics.

Legacy
TO ADD TO INFORMATION ALREADY INCLUDED.

- Formation of heritage groups, journals, etc. relating to this small ethnic subsection of the Western migration story. Links to AHSGR (American Historical Society of Germans from Russia).

Comments
Hi James--This looks good. I know its challenging working around an active article and I hope Richard Jensen responds to you soon. I noticed that there's a separate article on the Volga Germans (in Russia) that seems to have some of the same material as yours, so you don't want to duplicate that (just link to it). You may want to ask Gabe what he suggests going forward. Do you feel like you have enough material to add? If not, you might want expand your topic to include those who settled in Canada, assuming you can find sources on that. If nothing else, it will make for a good reflection paper later in the semester!Docjay57 (talk) 16:03, 8 March 2013 (UTC)

Background
In addition to the large population of Volga Germans that settled on the American prairie, many also settled in the Canadian West. Beginning in the early 1870s, the Canadian Government had created promotional programs in Europe to entice settlers to the largely unsettled western areas, in what would become Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, and British Columbia. Public policy also served to attract immigration following the passage of the Land Act of 1872, which provided free grants of homesteads to those who settled on the Western Prairie. In the early twentieth century, many immigrants moved from the United States to Canada in search of inexpensive land, and still greater social autonomy. These German-American immigrants brought not only their experience working on the American plains, but had also accrued wealth, giving a much needed boost to the economy of the Western Provinces.

1875-1918
The Volga Germans that flocked to Canada in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries came from different religious backgrounds including Lutheran, Catholic, and Mennonite. It was this last group, named after leader Menno Simons, that constituted the largest portion of the immigrant population. In Russia they had proven the best organized, preparing scouting parties to investigate the prospect of immigration to Canada and the United States. These scouts had been reliant on the assistance of established Mennonite groups such as those found in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, and Ontario. In the period 1873-1879, Mennonites formed blocked settlements in Manitoba with a total of close to 7000 members. Most settled in Southern Manitoba in the richest part of the Red River Valley. These communities were centered around religious homogeneity, and insistence on the tenets of adult baptism, and the refusal to bear arms or swear an oath. Many Mennonites had been propelled to leave because of the introduction of extended conscription, put in place in 1874, but set to take effect in Russia in 1881.

Many Volga Germans emigrated from the United States to the Western Provinces in the period 1890-1909. They sought to escape rising land prices, and imposition of laws that began to encroach on their relative autonomy. Canada was seen as a new frontier, a place of vast land, but little settlement. These immigrants settled mainly in the colonies of St. Peter and St. Joseph, East and West of Saskatoon in Central Saskatchewan. In the 1890s, twelve Catholic families established Rastadt-Dorf, and another twenty-one settled Katherinetal. Additional settlements were begun in Davin, Kronau, and Speyer as well.

Between the World Wars
In the period between World War I and World War II, conditions in Russia worsened, especially following the Revolution and the Great Famine of 1921. Many Volga Germans sought to leave the USSR, but faced opposition from a government that did not wish to see so large a portion of its population leave. The Russian government imposed a fee for obtaining a passport, which lead to protests as many would-be immigrants flooded the streets of Moscow. Many Mennonites were eventually able to leave, and between the World Wars, over 20,000 left destined for Canada.

Beginning in the second decade of the twentieth century, and continuing until several years after the Second World War, the ethnic background of the Volga Germans made them pray to discrimination. By 1914, Germany had become Canada's enemy, and the Volga Germans were not immune despite many families having not set foot in Germany for hundreds of years. This period saw the suppression of many German cultural customs, including the suppression of their print media, and the closure of German schools. The Wartime Elections Act, passed in September of 1917, revoked the citizenship of any German naturalized after March, 1902. Many settlements were renamed to disguise their obvious German origin.

The 1920s period also saw the movement of Volga Germans within the Western Canada as well. Many pushed further west, settling in British Columbia. The area had the appeal of a warmer climate, an escape from the frigid prairie. Other Volga Germans were propelled by economic factors such as the Great Depression, which not only impoverished many, but also coincided with a tremendous drought ushering in crop failures. The economy of the Prairie Provinces, and much of Canada, was dependent on the success of wheat farming. Wheat had been a staple crop for the Volga Germans in Russia, and translated well to the climate of the Canadian West. Repeated crop failures meant a large influx of the German-Russian population into larger cities and towns, a fact that would contribute to the gradual decline of their culturally homogeneous communities. The prairie lands abutting the United States border experienced Dust Bowl conditions, which sent swarms of families to the coastal areas of British Columbia. Throughout the period following World War II, new immigrants joined their families in British Columbia, congregating in the Fraeser Valley, and Vancouver Island. The mid-twentieth century brought immigrants from South American regions, namely Argentina and Brazil, as they fought to maintain their cultural autonomy in increasingly nationalist areas, dominated by nationalist leaders like Juan Perón. Lutheran and Catholic Volga Germans were also significant migrants to Canada, but lacked the organization of their Mennonite brethren. Early on, these immigrants were more likely to settle in Saskatchewan, especially around the city of Regina. Despite their location near earlier Mennonite communities, settlements remained religiously homogenous.

Legacy
Throughout their history in the Canadian West, the Volga Germans have been able to maintain many of their cultural characteristics, including their dialect, proliferated through Saturday schools and Canadian policies that allowed for cultural freedom. These schools operated on Saturday mornings for around three hours, and became especially vital as the German language was no longer taught in the Canadian public school system after World War I. The Mennonites, unlike most Volga Germans, were able to maintain these schools even after World War II. The dialect of the Volga Germans was also maintained through the Church, especially in the Mennonite community.

Before the Volga Germans had left for North America they had been regarded as privileged colonists in Russia. When they arrived in the United States and Canada they found that they were treated the same as any other Eastern European migrant group. The Mennonites may be seen as an exception as they successfully used connections with their brethren in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, and Ontario. Through their hard work on the North American plains, they established themselves as a productive portion of Canadian and American society.