The Brauns of Osterwick Mr. and Mrs. Jakob Braun FOREWORD The purpose of this writing has been to lift a small corner of the veil from the conditions under which the Jakob Braun family and their descendents have come during the past century. This has been accomplished quite inadequately. There are too many areas left unanswered. Three types of information have been employed for this purpose: I. genealogical tables; 2. brief biographical sketches; 3. editorial contributions from all who responded to the invitations. A liberal sprinkling of photographs has been added for emphasis. Information has been gleaned from the small number of family records, diaries, journals, documents, school registers, church records, newspapers and personal letters available. The passing of the first, the second and the oldest members of the third generations has greatly curtailed the information obtainable on the harrowing experiences, but now very interesting information, on the pioneering years. The paucity of such material may be due to numerous factors, the least of which would likely not be the hesitancy of people to do some writing. Moreover what was written, was too often not -preserved. This was regretfully demonstrated by the church secretary who consigned the old church register to the flames when a new one had to be purchased. Since whole families so frequently migrated from the old world to the new, there was likely less cause for letter-writing, removing an important reason for recording family joys and sorrows. More time and money for research may unearth further pertinent material on our family. If this present effort should produce that result it will not have been in vain. This is not to say that more thorough interpretation of what's available now would not help to round out the story. Recognition of and acknowledgement for help given is due many. The mem hers of the planning committee involved in the Braun Family Reunion at the Stanley Centennial Park August I, 1971, all deserve special mention for their helpful suggestions, advice and encouragement that they individually and collectively provided during the two years this volume has been in preparation. Their willingness to attend meetings, to host meetings and to perform numerous chores was always much appreciated. The willingness of all family members to complete questionnaires on family data and to provide pictures alone made it possible to proceed with the preparation of this family history, incomplete as it is. · One apology: There probably never has been a family register where every branch and twig was given the same space and prominence. Maybe it would be unfair to do so. The differences in the information received here have made it quite impossible to devote equal attention to ••• 111 all. Briefly stated these contributions varied from excellent to nil. Some famities provided pictures, statistical details and stories because they had heard of the project from relatives. Others provided the statistics and in a few cases even after personal contacts, letters and telephone calls provided neither. The mass of material in this volume indicates that generally the responses have been adequate. Particularly appreciated have been the many helpful suggestions on matters to be included so as to make the account as complete as· possible. Here I gratefully acknowledge especially the kind encourag­ ment and criticism of Mr. Peter J. Brown, Winnipeg, and of Mr. Frank Brown, Winkler, for the submission of much invaluable information and rare original documents including the ""round" letter invitation to Grandfather Jakob Braun's funeral. I want to thank Mr. Peter Warkentin of Haskett for having preserved all these years a copy of the financial statement of our grandfather's estate. Then I am also deeply indebted to Mr. and Mrs. Martin Wiebe of the Village of Blumenfeld, the present custodians of the Osterwick Old Colony Church register, for making this source of family history available to me. The aim here has been to be factual, to emphasize the positive and to ferret out all the facts. For anything that does not measure up to this principle, I apologize. Peter Brown, October I, 1972. iv CHAPTER I IN TRAVAIL The Chinese have a saying that a journey of a thousand miles has to start with one step. The story of the Jakob Braun and Maria Fast family began long before 1834. Genealogically the origin will likely remain obscure. Spiritually and emotionally it began with the beliefs of the early Anabaptists, known in the Lowlands of Europe as the ~~Doopsgesinde." The members of this movement believed in adult baptism upon confession of their faith in Jesus Christ, non-participation in military activities and affirmation in legal proceedings. Menno Simons of Witmarsum left the Catholic Church in 1536 and became the leader of this group. In 1545 the followers of Simons in the Netherlands were nicknamed Mennonites in derision by their opponents and it has become the official name of the religious sect. The severe persecution of this sect by the established church in Switzerland, led to the virtual extinction of the movement in most of the cantons of that country. Many found safety in flight. Some found refuge with their fellow-believers in the low coastal regions of Holland where there was comparative safety from the Duke of Alva's men. The preponderance of Dutch and Low German names among the Mennonites that fled eastward across northern Europe to the Vistula River Basin shows that these people are generally speaking of north European stock. That the name HMennonite" has stuck with them merely shows that Menno Simons was a good organizer. It proves once again that one man with a strong enough conviction can really make a difference. Their refusal to render military service in Holland as well as their general material well-being presently aroused the displeasure and actual envy of their Dutch compatriots which led to their expulsion by the Dutch authorities. Their knowledge of and skill in diking and draining low lying lands acquired in the Netherlands now enabled them to change the Vistula basin lands of East Prussia into a veritable gardenland. The rapid increase in prosperity of immigrants has a tendency to arouse discon­ tent among the natives who have never learned to maximize the natural resources of their possessions. The newcomers gradually acquire an ever larger stake in their new surroundings and thereby incur the displeasure of the former owners. Add to this the short memories that national leaders have about privileges granted prospective desirable immigrants by previous governments and we have the real root causes of the Mennonites becoming suspect neighbors who may be persecuted with immunity. 1 Upon receipt of a generous offer from Tsarina Catherine I I in I 786 a large movement was soon underway from the harsher Danzig region into the much warmer and very fertile lands north of the Black Sea along the Dnieper River in South Russia. Here the Dutch and Low German Mennonites had an opportunity to live according to the principles of their faith in almost complete segregation. The frugality and industry of the Mennonites' industry and farming-know-how applied to the natural productivity of this region converted the area into one of the major bread baskets of the Czar's domain. The freedom from the wastages of wars coupled with the fecundity of a well-fed rural population soon saw the Mennonites of South Russia inhabiting a large portion of this very fruitful region. Scores of well-l;:1id-out villages soon dotted the landscape. Substantial dwellings lined the village streets. Large barns connected by a breeze-way to the living quarters occupied the backyards and housed good livestock. Roads joined the villages and elementary schools provided both secular and religious instruction. Indeed, the Mennonite brotherhood literally functioned as an indepen­ dent state and contributed substantially to the economic development of Russia. Cheap labor was available and the colony prospered. This cheap labor supply soon saw the Mennonites in managerial positions as employers. The old maxim that one man cannot make many rich but that many men can make one man rich was demonstrated again and again. This could have only one result. The Russian laborer was unschooled. He was the meniai hired hand. He did not share in the general affluence. A ''Landlose" class appeared in the Mennonite group. This was the situation in 1872 when the Imperial Russian government decided to withdraw the special privileges granted the Mennonites a hundred years previously. With the threat of military service, the cancellation of freedom in the education of their children, the expectation that the German language would have to give way to the Russian, and concern, apprehension, fear and dread gripped the people. Accommodation or persecution became the hard choice of the prosperous Mennonite settlement. Their prosperity had once more focused attention upon them. Neither their neighbors, the government nor the Czar favored the continuation of these special privileges that had drawn them away from Prussia four generations previously. They had had to make this choice in S'Yitzerland, in Holland, and in the Danzig delta region. Where could they go now? We humans are so prone to take full credit onto ourselves when the hard decisions we have to make turn out well. It would be in order for us to wait upon the Lord and consider how divine guidance has directed all the events in a situation so that everything turns out advantageously. The prospect of finding a large tract of land suitable for settlement seemed quite 2 remote. There did not seem to be any liklehood of finding such land in Eurasia. The North American Indians were reported to be "Menschen­ fresser", which made North America undesirable.