Formal portrait of Anna and David Penner, a wealthy couple of Lindenau, Molotschna Colony, Ukraine. In 1891 they took Alida’s grandfather, Heinrich Unruh of Gnadental into their home as a foster child who could work for them. Heinrich was 11 years old at the time. His father had died two years earlier. His mother (Alida’s great-grandmother) and the three younger of Heinrich’s 10 siblings remained in Gnadental, some distance away. Heinrich probably did not see them often after coming to live with Anna and David Penner.
For this picture young Gerhard Neufeld Jr. pretends to be sitting in a boat, holding an oar. He was perhaps four years old here. See M2004E-7 for a later photo where he is with his whole family.
The Gerhard Neufeld family. The background of this photo is interesting with its view of the forest. See M2004E-6 for a picture of Gerhard when he was younger. On this photo he could be 7 years old. His sister Katja (Katie) stands behind him. Imprinted on the bottom right hand corner of this photo is the date 1904. In 1924 when Olga Enns was 7 years old, her family emigrated to Canada. But she was not allowed to come to Canada in July with the rest of her family. Her parents asked a different Neufeld family to look after 7 year old Olga and Gerhard Neufeld who by this time was in his late teens and an orphan. Gerhard and Olga arrived in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada in September 1924. Gerhard later married a daughter of Bishop (Ältester) Janzen of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada.
This photo of the Halbstaedter Musikverein (Halbstadt, Molotschna Colongy, Ukraine) was taken in Halbstadt circa 1908 and given to Alida Unruh’s grandmother, Frau Heinrich Unruh, on her birthday, January 14, 1914 by her brother David Schellenberg, a horn player who is wearing a light suit and is seated in the second row. This unique photo has survived two world wars and The Great Trek out of Russia in 1943.
This fonds consists of two ledger books recording income, expenses, payroll starting on October 6, 1911. The diary portion begins on the same day and usually makes brief mention of weather, farm activities and travel. The second ledger continues the pattern of the first however some diary portions are more detailed with information on the political unrest and lists of people who were murdered.
In addition to giving a firsthand account of everyday life before and during the Russian Revolution, it is the only known record that documents the operation of the Kuruschan Altenheim.
Heinrich Enns and Sara Enns on horseback. They were siblings of Olga Enns’ father, Gerhard Enns. Heinrich was an evangelist. Perhaps this photo was taken on his travels as an evangelist.
Family and friends pose outside in front of a house at Blumenort, Molotschna Colony. To the left of the center are the parents of Elvera, Lydia and Jakob Bergen. Elvera’s oldest sister Hedwig is on her mother’s lap. On the right is the Martin Duerksen family and their 5 children: Martin Duerksen is seated to the right of Jakob Bergen, his son Gerhard stands to his right. (This boy had health problems as a result of the measles and consequently the Canadian government would not let the family come to Canada.) To the right of her son Gerhard is Mathilda Duerksen, sister to Lydia and aunt of Elvera (Bergen) Goerz. To the right of Mathilda is their son Peter and seated in front of him at the small table are their daughters Anna (called Njuta) at the right and Lydia to the left. In the middle is Martha, youngest daughter of the Duerksens (she has a white bow in her hair). David Duerksen, unmarried, stands behind his brother Martin. The family at the left may be another Duerksen family with Lisa, Gerhard? and their child. Standing behind Lydia Bergen is Mariechen Duerksen with her husband.
The Peters Store owned by Peter Peters, maternal grandfather of Marg Boldt. Jewelry was sold here and the family was well off. The Brasol Colony was just north of the Molochna Colony.
