A Visit to the Former Mennonite Villages in the Netzebruch

 

A Visit to the Former Mennonite Villages in the Netzebruch

Mennonite Hollanders established homes in the Netzebruch – the Netze River lowlands – in the mid-18^th century.  At the time, the area was just across the western Polish border into Brandenburg which was controlled by the Kingdom of Prussia.  The Prussian government sought to transform the area into productive farmland by constructing canals to drain the marshy areas as well as importing skilled agriculturalists.  Groningen Old Flemish Mennonites from Jeziorki, Schönsee, and Przechówko established the villages of Brenkenhofswalde and Franzthal, in the mid-1760s.  Brenkenhofswalde, in particular, became an important village in the Old Flemish Mennonite community, and leaders from this village went on to influence Mennonite culture in many ways.

Netzebruch area, circled in red, c100 miles west of the Vistula River valley (1750)[1]

The history of these villages seems to be often neglected perhaps because the settlements were isolated and Mennonites only lived here for slightly less than a century.  More than 100 miles west from the Vistula River, the village grouping was well out of the way from other Polish-Prussian Mennonite settlements.  Basic histories of the villages appear at GAMEO or the Mennonite Lexicon while Mennonite historians such as B.H. Unruh or Herbert Wiebe or Erich Ratzlaff also tell us the fundamentals.  Recently, modern Mennonite researchers such as Adalbert Goertz, Glenn Penner, John D. Richert, or Bob Buller, have begun fleshing out a few more details.

 

Netzebruch, 1803, edited by the author to include outlines of villages Brenkenhofswalde and Franzthal with the Petri Canal (Gilly)[2]

 

The prospect of migrating to Brandenburg was initially explored by Jeziorki Mennonites who were unhappy with their lease, the terms of which had been modified in the early 1760s.  In 1764, delegates from Jeziorki went to Berlin to seek new opportunities and it was there that Franz Balthasar Schonberg von Brenkenhoff invited the Mennonites to the Netzebruch.[3] 

Beginning in the mid-1760s, the Prussians undertook a massive project to reclaim the marshes surrounding the Warthe (Pol: Warte) and Netze (Pol: Noteć) Rivers east from Kustrin (Kostrzyn nad Odrą) to Driesen (Drezdenko).  Colonel Isaak Jacob von Petri formulated the engineering but wanted far too much money for the execution of the project.  Brenkenhoff was then given charge and delivered results for far less than von Petri had estimated.  With all the new land that was reclaimed – some of it wonderfully fertile silt – new colonists needed to be placed.  By the mid-1770s, Brenkenhoff had settled new colonists in 19 completely new villages within the Netzebruch.  Connected to this reclamation project was the 1772-75 Bromberg (Bydgoszcz) Canal project which effectively connected the Oder (at Kustrin) to the Vistula (at Bromberg) via the Netze and Warthe Rivers.[4]

Brenkenhoff’s cost-cutting measures may have had ramifications at least in certain aspects.  For instance, in the Warthebruch near Landsberg (Gorzów Wielkopolski), Brenkenhoff was accused of providing shoddily and hastily built houses for incoming colonists.  Could the same have been true in the Netzebruch?  Could this be why no Mennonite-era structures still stand in Brenkenhofswalde/Franzthal today?  Likely, no, Die Siedlungsentwicklung im Oberen-_und Unteren indicates the Mennonites were provided wood with which they built their own houses.[5] 

The Warthebruch and Neztebruch in 1725, before the 1760s reclamation project[6]

The Warthebruch and Neztebruch in 1816, after completion of von Brenkenhof’s reclamation project.  For instance, note the change in the mouth of the Warthe where it flows into the Oder and the presence of the canal west of Driesen[7]

The Mennonites’ move took place in 1765, at least partially financed by brethren in the Dutch lowlands.  16 families/95 persons settled in Brenkenhofswalde while 19 families/97 persons settled in Franzthal.  Until 1771, neither settlement was taxed.  In 1787 there were 266 Mennonites living in Brenkenhofswalde and Franzthal together.[8]  John D. Richert’s lists compile a total of 742 Mennonites who lived in all the villages (Brenkenhofswalde-Franzthal-Neu Dessau-Rotes Haus) from 1765 until 1834.[9]  During their time in the Netzebruch, these Mennonites’ cattle, dairy, and linen goods, were considered premium products for the area.[10]

I’ve personally been involved with the research of my own Ratzlaff genealogy through Volhynia back to Przechówko for many years.  Working closely with European friends, by 2020 we’d become active in restoring the cemetery at Przechówko, Poland, while in Ukraine, before the 2022 Russian invasion, we’d identified several Hollander houses still standing in the Ostrog area.  Given the close relationship between the Netzebruch villages and both Volhynia and Jeziorki – the lot of them daughters to Przechówko – an excursion to Brenkenhofswalde and Franzthal became inevitable. 

Before the trip, there were indications that no Mennonite structures still stood.  Listings of Mennonite buildings at the Catalog of Monuments of Dutch Colonization in Poland[11] included nothing in the Netzebruch.  Further, Zabytek.pl (Monuments)[12], administered by the National Institute of [Polish] Cultural Heritage, surveyed both villages in decades past, noting the oldest and most significant buildings and none were from the Mennonite era.  Mennonites presumably would have built housebarns similar to those found at Przechówko or Jeziorki but perhaps nothing like that still existed.

In 1805, after the Mennonites had resided in the Netzebruch for just short of half a century, strikingly accurate maps were produced, showing not only the plots of land, but also the canals and houses and churches too.  One can very easily super-impose the maps over a current satellite view and see that 18^th century village outlines still exist.  Further, many current structures seem to sit at exactly the same spots where Mennonite buildings did.  Brenkenhofswalde (today = Błotnica) seems to have been heavily re-laid at some point with only the current church and maybe a house or two occupying similar ground as Mennonite structures.  However, in Franzthal (today = Głęboczek) the whole row of houses, as well as the church, seem to sit almost exactly where they did two centuries ago during the Mennonite era.

Brenkenhofwalde and Franzthal; 1805[13]

 

In late August, 2023, I set off for the villages with well-known Polish linguist, Professor Dr. Tomasz Wicherkiewicz, and we spent a day exploring.  Driving west from Przechówko, one encounters all manner of wonders along the beautiful countryside including large orchards, dense forests, and many roadside monuments recognizing the early-autumn harvest season.  Tomasz pointed out to me that the areas into which we were traveling were economically depressed but from the road perhaps this was not obvious.  Areas such as these in western Poland have passed back and forth between German and Polish control.  Numerous red brick German buildings can be seen in the towns and villages but today’s Poles may generally not be too keen on remembering the German chapters of the history.

Arriving in Stare Kurowo (Alt Carbe), the seat of the local gmina government, we met Mayor Magdalena (Magda) Szydełko who would be our guide through Błotnica and Głęboczek; villages both built in the lowlands just off the Noteć River.  Interestingly, both these modern-day Polish names derive from watery terms: błot is a Polish word for mud, głębo- a term for deep (as in: deep water or deep mud).

Stare Kurowo itself stands along the ancient road running from Strzelce Krajeńskie (Friedeberg) to Wieleń (Filehne).  The road in this area travels almost parallel to a railway line which was constructed in the 1840s, some years after the Mennonites left the area.  Both skirt the south edge of the highland.  South of the road and railway, the land slopes downhill toward the Noteć, forming the Netzebruch; the Netzebruch lowlands comprise the area between the road and the river.  It’s a featureless plane gently sloping towards the south which would obviously become quickly inundated with floodwaters if not for the canals.  It was here in the lowlands where we found the villages Błotnica and Głęboczek.

Both villages are almost completely flat east to west, and the ground gently slopes downward from north to south.  At the Stare Kurowo road, the elevation is almost 33 meters above sea level.  By the northern tip of Błotnica the ground has dropped to 28 meters, only 3 or 4 meters above the level of the Noteć.  From the western edge of Błotnica, through Głęboczek, the fluctuation of elevation is only around 1 meter up or down, holding steady between 26 – 24 meters; again, the elevation at the Noteć is 24 meters.  Incidentally, at Brenkenhofswalde – literally “Brenkenhoff’s Forest” – there is no forest.  Likewise, at Franzthal – literally “Franz’s [Brenkenhoff’s] Valley” – there is no valley.

Magda already pointed out to us that we would notice the “shaky” nature of the ground.  The term “shaky” lost a bit in translation but we did indeed notice her point very quickly.  “Unstable” or “unsteady” might be better terms.  Thesaurus.com lists “jelly-like” as a synonym for shaky and indeed this might be a very good term to express Magda’s thought.  In many places in these villages we witnessed moments when the ground, due to its marshy nature, indeed felt “jelly-like” beneath the feet.

The local clay is yellow and therefore many buildings are built of yellow bricks.  Notably, buildings often bear testament to the unstable nature of the ground.  Walls in many places were heavily reinforced and even still, many had developed cracks when the foundation sagged under one side or another.  Larger barns were further reinforced with wall anchors.  Floors buckled and caved as the ground had shifted.  Clearly, the construction of stable structures in the lowlands was a challenge and perhaps buildings didn’t grow to be as old as they might in other environments.  Perhaps this was a reason why no 200-year-old Mennonite buildings still exist in the area when a fair number still do along the Vistula.  

The entire area seemed to be very lush and green.  While there were few large trees, many varieties of bushes and shrubs were everywhere with weeds, grasses, and vines, seemingly covering everything.  A couple standouts for me were hazelnut trees, which were common, as well as many apple trees.  In fact, wandering around the villages we were able to simply walk by apple trees and pick and eat ripe fruit.   

The layout of Głęboczek in particular struck me a bit odd because there was no road passing through the middle of the village where the houses stood.  The road ran along the southern perimeter, but the houses are generally aligned along a central canal.  Thus, houses have long lanes to the south out to the road.  Błotnica was originally set up in the same way but now a road has been built through the middle of the village and most houses have been rebuilt along that road.

Błotnica, Głęboczek, and environs

 

The Noteć River flows south and east of the villages, arcing to pass Głęboczek immediately to the east.  The Petri Canal, built about the time when the Mennonites arrived in the area, runs through both villages.  The canal is neither wide nor deep but provided crucial drainage for both villages (the original village houses were built along the Petri).  Today it is not well-maintained, and Magda pointed out that the neglect has had detrimental effects.

Petri Canal, Głęboczek, lot #26

 

Houses:

Magda was generally unconcerned with Błotnica since she knew we were looking for buildings which might stretch back to the early years of the 19^th century.  Błotnica #18 is one of the oldest houses in the village; this was Brenkenhofswalde lot #11.  The house is one of the oldest in the village but stands in a completely different spot to the Mennonite house from the 1805 map.  The brick walls are buckled and patched because of the unstable nature of the ground.

In Głęboczek, however, many older houses still stand, and many stand in the same spots where Mennonite houses stood.  We visited Głęboczek #23 (equivalent to Franzthal #9), Głęboczek #21 (the more westerly of the two Franzthal #11s), Głęboczek #26/Franzthal #5, and Głęboczek #4/Franzthal #13.  All these buildings stand in the same spots where Mennonite houses stood but none are housebarns.  Construction was wattle and daub and the framing timbers were joined with mortise and tenon joints held secure with wooden pegs.  These buildings were probably built during the mid- to late-19^th century, in the generation immediately following the Mennonite exodus.

Głęboczek #23

 

According to Zabytek, #21 was apparently the most notable old house in the village in 1987.  Again, the house lacks some essential Mennonite characteristics: it’s not a housebarn nor does it have a centrally located kitchen (czarna kuchnia).  A row of willow trees stands immediately east of the house which could have been planted by Mennonites but the structure itself is almost certainly not Mennonite-built.

Głęboczek #26/Franzthal #5 is actually the lot where my 6^th great grandfather Ratzlaff lived so this was a particularly interesting spot for me.  The barn here apparently stands in almost the same location as the Mennonite housebarn from the 1805 map.  This structure was fairly typical for these villages and we saw a lot of similar barns.  The house here is large and in good condition but different to the other houses in that it has a second story.  It’s also wattle and daub construction held together with pegs.  The house faces east and the barn faces south so the yard was a tidy square.  Magda was good friends with the occupants, and they were very happy to show us even inside the house.  The Petri Canal passed just behind (north of) the barn and the farmyards were situated along this canal.  A pathway likely led along the edge of the canal in former days.  In order to reach the church, a few lots to the east, a walk along the canal would have been the most direct method.

Głęboczek #26/Franzthal #5

 

Churches:

The Brenkenhofswalde Mennonite church was built in 1778.  It was located off the row of village houses in the tip-top northeast corner of the village.  It stood about 25 meters due south from today’s Błotnica  church.  Today’s building, a fairly typical late-19th century Lutheran style brick building was built at the end of the 19th century and consecrated as a Catholic church in 1946.  Today it is the Catholic Church of St. Michael the Archangel but is not used due to the poor condition of the roof. 

Błotnica  church (left); Głęboczek church (right)

 

The Franzthal Mennonite church was built in 1787 and stood, apparently, at the same spot where today’s Głęboczek church stands, immediately north of the canal.  The Mennonite building survived until the interwar period.  Today’s building is still in use, but it strikes me as in very poor repair.  The floor is badly buckling and caving due to the unstable nature of the ground upon which it stands.  It’s a brick building, covered with lime mortar, and was consecrated as a Catholic church (Church of St. Barbara) in 1946.  The adjacent school building is built on a brick foundation.  Both church and school were likely built by the Lutherans in the mid-19^th century.

We don’t know how the Mennonite churches would have looked but they would likely have been similar to other Vistula-area Mennonite churches from the early 19^th century.  For instance, these folks were in close communion with their brethren in Przechówko, Schönsee, Sady, etc., so their church buildings could have looked similar.  Given the population of Mennonites in these villages, churches would have needed to accommodate around 150 people each.[14]  These Netzebruch Mennonites had close ties to brethren in the Dutch Lowlands and generous Dutch Mennonites contributed funds toward the building of both churches.

Cemeteries:

On the 1805 map of Brenkenhofwalde, we see a small field immediately north from the church building which indicates the cemetery.  If we trust the map, the space could be measured at approximately 1800 square meters.  Today, this is roughly the space occupied by the St. Michael the Archangel church building and yard.  No gravemarkers can be seen here today.

Brenkenhofswalde cemetery area (left) with corresponding (red) area marked for modern-day Błotnica  (right)

Documents at Zabytek.pl indicate the old Franzthal cemetery was at the churchyard.[15]  The cemetery encompasses an area of approximately 1500 square meters with the church building occupying the southwest corner of the space.  Again, no gravemarkers can be seen here today.

Original Franzthal cemetery (left) and with corresponding (red) area marked for modern-day Głęboczek (right)

 

Apparently, at some point after the Mennonites left, burial places were moved to new locations, up on higher ground and out of these lowlands.  Magda took us to the nearby cemeteries which likely served the Lutheran population of the villages during the 19th century.  Both of these were located north from the churchyards, fairly close to the Stare Kurowo road.  Both lie in ruins, heavily overgrown by weeds and bushes.  The Błotnica  cemetery contained many gravestone remnants but no obviously legible inscriptions.  In the Głęboczek cemetery, however, we found several gravestones bearing German names.  Some of these names we even know belonged to Lutheran families who bought out the Mennonites when they vacated in 1830s.

Conclusions

Political events such as the Partitions of Poland and the Napoleonic expansions created an environment which spelled an end to the Mennonites’ time in the Netzebruch.  A quick listing of important events can explain:

·         1813: the Prussian government passed a military conscription law which required all males to register for military duty.

·         16 May 1830: the Mennonite Edict of 1789 took effect in West Prussia. This edict gave Mennonites a choice between military service or paying an extra tax/accepting the loss of some civil rights, including the right to buy land.  Mennonites filed an entreaty with King Frederick William III to restore the terms of their original charter, but the king denied the appeal.[16]

·         Summer 1832: 40 Netzebruch families petitioned the Russian government for permission to immigrate.  Permission was granted in autumn, 1833.

·         Summer of 1834: 28 Mennonite families as well as 10 Lutheran families, left for Russia.[17]

Some of the Netzebruch Mennonites began to move into Volyn by the first decade or two of the 19th century, while the balance liquidated by 1834 in favor of the Molotschna.  Many who moved to Molotchna helped to establish Gnadenfeld and indeed, the ex-Brenkenhofswalde Mennonites became very influential Molotschna-wide, especially in religious and educational matters.

---

[1] Heirs, Homann, Map of Poland – Geographicus, 1750.

[2] Gilly, Spezialkarte von Suedpreussen; Biblioteka Cyfrowa Uniwersytetu Łódzkiego; 1803.

[3] Buller, Bob, “Bullertime” Mennonites in Neumark 1 and 1a: https://bullertime.blogspot.com/2016/06/mennonites-in-neumark-1.html accessed 29 March 2025.

[4] Engelien and Henning, History of the City of Landsberg on the Warta, Landsberg a.d. Warthe, 1857, Pp 200-209. Also see, Henderson, W.O., Studies in the Economic Policy of Frederick the Great, Frank Cass & Co, 1963, Pp 82-3.

[5] Mantau, Rudolf, Die Siedlungsentwicklung im Oberen- und Unteren Netzebruch. 1935/36, p56.

[6] Seutter, 1725, Brandenburgicus Pomeraniae

[7] Fadden, 1816, Map of the Central States of Europe Situate between France and Russia

[8] Hege, Christian. "Netzebruch (Poland)." Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. 1957. Web. 29 Mar 2025. https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Netzebruch_(Poland)&oldid=144474.

[9] The late John D. Richert compiled these lists c2023 and gave copy of his notes which remain unpublished at this time.

[10] Berlin, 22 March 1779; “The Mennonites in West Prussia Deserve Special Attention”, Augsburgische Ordinari Postzeitung von Staats-, helehrten, historisch- u. okonomischen Neuigkeiten.

[11] http://holland.org.pl/art.php?kat=art&dzial=polska&id=12_1&lang=en, accessed 29 March 2025.

[12] https://zabytek.pl/en/mapa, , accessed 29 March 2025.

[13] Maps of Mennonite Villages in Neumark, Brandenburg, Prussia, 1805; Mennonite Library and Archives; https://mla.bethelks.edu/metadata/neumark_maps.php; 21 March 2025

[14] Hege, Christian. "Netzebruch (Poland)." Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. 1957. Web. 29 Mar 2025. https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Netzebruch_(Poland)&oldid=144474.

[15] https://zabytek.pl/en/obiekty/cmentarz-ewangelicki-prz-683112, accessed 29 March 2025.

[16] Klassen, Peter J, Mennonites in Early Modern Poland and Prussia, Johns Hopkins Univ Press, Baltimore, 2009. P 87.

[17] Jantzen, Mark. 2010. Mennonite German Soldiers: Nation, Religion, and Family in the Prussian East, 1772–1880. Notre Dame, IN: University of Notre Dame Press. P 117.