Ratzlaffs of Przechowko VI

I’ll probably never know for sure exactly who my Ratzlaff ancestors were beyond Heinrich Ratzlaff.  I feel confident, though, that Heinrich’s forefathers were members of the Przechowko congregation.  And going through all the Ratzlaffs in the congregation, it looks like the following are the best candidates to be either Heinrich himself or Heinrich’s father:

1)      Jacob 47895

2)      Heinrich 47690

3)      Heinrich 47889

4)      Heinrich 47904

5)      Peter 47768

6)      Heinrich 198648

The numbers associated with the names are the identification numbers from the GRANDMA database, and from GRANDMA we learn the following about these Ratzlaffs:

1)      Jacob 47895, was born in 1812 in Klein Konopat, Prussia, son of Peter and Catarina (Arnten) Ratzlaff.  We don’t know if Jacob 47895 had any siblings, if he became married, or when he died.  Klein Konopat (Little Konopat) was the eastern an area of Konopat (also called Deutsch Konopat).  According to GAMEO http://www.gameo.org/encyclopedia/contents/konopat_kuyavian_pomeranian_voivodeship_poland/?searchterm=konopat the entire village migrated to the Molotschna Colony in the first quarter of the 19^th century.  GRANDMA lists no futher information for this Ratzlaff family after Jacob’s birth in 1812 which leads me to believe that the family became distanced from Przechowko shortly after that date.  Either they stayed in Prussia or became associated with a different Mennonite congregation.  Although my ancestor Heinrich’s name may have been Jacob, given the current information I don’t really feel that Jacob 47895 is the right man.

2)      Heinrich 47690 was born in 1810 to Adam and Ancke (Wedel) Ratzlaff in the village of Przechowko and he had an older brother named Peter.  Similarly to Jacob 47895, the Przechowko Churchbook apparently loses track of this family after Heinrich’s birth and we know nothing further about this family including whether or not Heinrich had any children.

3)      Heinrich 47889 was born in 1803 to Peter and Ancke (Schmidt) Ratzlaff in the village of Jeziorken.  Jeziorken was another village associated with the Przechowko congregation that was situated 12 miles to the northwest.  Heinrich 47889 had 3 siblings, but apparently no further information is known about any of them.  Also, it’s unknown whether this Heinrich married or not, or what his date of death was.  GAMEO indicates that the villagers from Jeziorken, being somewhat removed from Przechowko, began moving to the Neumark villages in the late 18^th century and later some went to Deutsch Wymysle.  This makes Heinrich 47889 a very good candidate to be my ancestor, Heinrich Ratzlaff.  His name, date and location apparently are all viable.

4)      Heinrich 47904 was born in 1797 to Tobias and Ancke (Ratzlaff) Ratzlaff in the village of Deutsch Konopat.  We don’t know any other specifics about this Heinrich, but apparently the family moved to Deutsche Wymysle at some point as some of his younger siblings were born in that village.  Deutsche Wymysle was located farther up the Vistula River, somewhat northwest of Warsaw; much closer in proximity to Volhynia than was Przechowko.  Mennonites from Wymysle are known to have moved to Volhynia and the Molotschna Colony from time to time in the 19^th century.  The data for this family in GRANDMA is a bit sketchy so I don’t know if this Heinrich had any children or not, but the possibility remains that this man could by my Heinrich Ratzlaff ancestor.

5)      Peter 47768 was born in 1727 and was the son of Peter and Sarcke (Schmidt) Ratzlaff.  Peter married Liscke Unrau in Brenkenhoffswalde and died in 1789.  Peter had numerous siblings but we don’t know anything further about Liscke or when she died.  We don’t know anything about their children; we can’t be sure they even had any children.  But Peter lived to be 62 years old and was married so it’s probable some children were born to the couple.  My ancestor Heinrich was probably born in the neighborhood of 1800 in the Neumark villages.  If Peter 47768 was his father, the location of residence is right, but the time period may be just a little off as Peter 47768 died in 1789.  Peter 47768 is a good candidate to be my Heinrich’s father, but the pieces don’t quite fit perfectly.

6)      Heinrich 198648.  This Heinrich is still the Ratzlaff who I feel is most likely my Heinrich Ratzlaff ancestor.  This Heinrich was an uncle to the Andreas Ratzlaff who travelled to Montreal with my great grandfather Jacob Ratzlaff aboard the SS Polaria in 1893.  Andreas as well as some of his siblings had ties to Volhynia although they lived in the Molotschna Colony by the late 1800s.  GRANDMA tells us nothing about this Heinrich except that he was born in 1798 to Johann and Sarcke (Voth) Ratzlaff.

The first two, Jacob 47895 and Heinrich 47690, both have correct names and dates, but I don’t know if either man had any children.  Also, neither of them necessarily lived in the correct locations.  They remain possibilities because of what I don’t know about them moreso than because of what I do know.

The second two, Heinrich 47889 and Heinrich 47904, also have the correct names and dates.  I also don’t know anything about whether they had children or not.  However, both of these Ratzlaffs were from more outlying areas (Jeziorken and Wymysle, respectively) and I feel it’s more likely that villagers from these outlying areas ended up in Volhynia.

The last two, Peter 47768 and Heinrich 198648, both lived in the proper location during the correct time period and these are the only two that are possibilities because of what I do know rather than what I don’t know.  I do know that Peter 47768 lived in Neumark during the correct time period and that he was married.  If he was married, he probably had children and one of these might have been my Heinrich.  I also do know that Heinrich 198648’s family lived in Neumark and that he was uncle to Ratzlaffs who I know lived in Volhynia.  GRANDMA doesn’t list a wife or children for this Heinrich; nevertheless since their was some sort of connection between his nephew and my Heinrich I feel that Heinrich 198648 and my Heinrich may be one and the same.

Ratzlaffs of Przechowko V

Finally, the eldest grandson of the original Ratzlaff, Berent 32092, was born in 1660 and died in 1717:

		Hans 131766, married in Neumark, unknown dates	Hans 132130, unknown dates, no spouse or children listed	lived in Neumark
		Berent 33034, died Terespolno, Prussia	Hans 47721, may have converted to Lutheranism died without Mennonite affiliation	not likely
			Jacob 193793 1748-c1765
Berent 32092	Berent 33029		Johann 193794  b1756, no children listed	not likely
			Jacob 112574  b1765, no chldren listed	not likely
		Johann 33033, b 02/01/1726 Neumark, d 11/07/1805 Driesen
			Andreas 193799 1775-1842, died in Prussia, no children listed	not likely
			Bernhard 193801 1782-1822, died in Poland	Benjamin 103905, 1824-1901, immigrated 1874
			Tobias 896561 1788-1863, died in the Mototschna, no children listed	not likely
			Peter 193804 1793-1800, died in Driesen
			Abraham 214896 1795-1848, died in Molotschna
			Heinrich  198648 b1798, no children listed	could this be the father of Jacob b1842?
				Johann 57435, 1821-1899, b Volhynia, immigrated 1874
				Benjamin 67624, 1824-1900, b in Volhynia, grew up in Molotschna, emigrated 1878
			Heinrich Hans 47861 1784-1848. died in the Molotschna (may have lived in Fuerstenau, Molotschna) married 1820 Volhynia
				Abraham 67626, 1828-1893, born in Volhynia, emigrated 1874
				Tobias 67627, 1831-1874, b Volhynia, married in Heinrichsdorf, emigrated 1874
				Andreas 67628, b 1833, married to Maria Janzen, born in Antonovka, Volhynia, emigrated to Molotschna 1837	did this Andreas and his wife travel aboard the Polaria with OUR Jacob in 1893?

Several of Berent’s descendants are possible candidates to be my Heinrich’s or Jacob’s ancestor.  And we can see from the Przechowko Churchbook data that two of Berent 32092’s grandson’s lived in the Neumark villages; Hans 131766 and Johann 33033.  Hans 132130 was probably born in the Neumark, but he has no children listed.  Hans 47721 isn’t likely as he converted to Lutheranism and we know Heinrich and Jacob were Mennonites.  The sons of Johann 33033 - Johann 193794, Jacob 112574 and Andreas 193799 - are all possibilities but none have any children listed in the GRANDMA database.  Tobias died in the Molotschna Colony so he’s not likely.

Heinrich 198648 deserves some serious consideration though.  This Heinrich has the correct name, he’s born in the correct time frame (b 1798), and he was probably born in the right location (his father died in the Neumark village of Driesen).  Heinrich 198648 really seems to check all the right boxes.

Furthermore, GRANDMA lists that Heinrich 198648 had a brother named Heinrich Hans 47861.  Heinrich Hans ultimately died in the Molotschna Colony, but he had 5 sons who were all born in Volhynia.  Furthermore, the youngest son, Andreas 67628, is probably the man who travelled with my great great grandfather Jacob Ratzlaff aboard the SS Polaria in 1893.  Why was Jacob travelling with this man?  Could they have been cousins?

It’s troubling that the sons of Johann 33033 are born in such a wide time frame.  Johann 33033 would have been 72 years old when Heinrich 198648 was born.  But I guess that’s not impossible.  GRANDMA and a genealogy called “Retzlaff Roots from the Scroll” by Evangeline Neuschwander both list this data and the representative historians apparently feel comfortable with the data.  It’s also troubling that Johann 33033 would have two sons with such similar names (Heinrich and Heinrich Hans).  Nevertheless, I feel Heinrich 198648 is a very good candidate to be my Ratzlaff ancestor.

Ratzlaffs of Przechowko IV

The next grandson of the original Ratzlaff was Hans 36105, who was born in 1661.  Hans’ family was very prolific and he had no fewer than 45 male descendants who need to be considered:

			Berent (Jung) 35955	female child (Trincke) buried in Heinrichsdorf
				Andreas 47887, no children listed, b 1790	dates aren't right
			Peter 47729
				Heinrich 47889, no chldren listed, b 1803	names and dates are correct
		Berent 40862
			Hinrich 47730, no children listed, b 1767
	Jeorgen 47724		Andreas 47731,  b 1774, no children listed
			Peter 47874, no children listed
		Peter 34307
			Berent 47875, no children listed
		Abraham 315454, c1733, female child only
			Hans 47733, 1769-1792, no children or spouse listed
	Berent 33846		Berent 47734, 1755-1817, died in Dorposch	Peter 47776, b 1785	Behrend, b c1805-1821, d in Dorposch
			Peter 47737, 1763-1789, no spouse or children listed
		Hans 333849, 1727-1788				Adam 281097, c1836-c1867, b Antonovka. Children were also born in Antonovka, but all emigrated in 1874
				Andreas 43193, 1799-1873, died Deutsch Wymyschle	dates not right.  Had many children, but some children didn't leave Prussia. Son Andreas 47701 (b 1822) had children born in Antonovka
			Hinrich 43190, 1768-1851	Heinrich, 1797-1806
				Behrend 43194, b 1805, no children listed	not likely, dates aren't right
					David, 59864, died young
					Daniel, 56928, died young
					Heinrich 59679, b 1829, born Wonsosz bei Gombin, Prussia	date's not right, would have been 13 when OUR Jacob was born
				Jacob 47848, b 1802, Deutsch Konopat	Jakob 31500, b 1833
					Peter 59680, b 1835
			Jacob 47739		Benjamin 59682, b 1842
					Andreas 11826, b 1845	this family may not have left Prussia.  Andreas' daughter died in Prussia in 1937
Hans 36105
				Jacob 34432, 1795-1795
		Peter 47768, 1727-1789, lived in Brenkenhofswalde, no children listed
	Peter 34062			Heinrich 47904, b 1797 in Deutsch Konopat, no children listed	dates and name are correct
		Tobias 42307, 1735-1782	Tobias 47899, 1759-1831, died in Deutsch Wionczemin, Prussia
				Tobias 47906, 1793-1795
		Andres 107095, died young? No children listed			Tobias 980261, b 1818 in Deutsch Wymyschle, no children listed	not likely, dates not right
				Peter 59666, 1789-1870, d Kicin Poland	Peter 111638, 1823-1894, d Kicin	3 male children, names/dates not right
		Hans 32137, 1755-1759			Benjamin 59668, b 1825 in Deutsch Wymyschle	no children listed
					Jakob 59669, b 1830 Deutsch Wymyschle. Immigrated 1884	this branch never came to Russia before going to the US
		Hinrich 47806, 1732-1768	Andreas 31965, 1763-1767
			Peter 47866, 1771-1807, died in Przechowka, spouse but no children listed, died at age 36	not likely; probably no children as he died at 36 but still lived in Przechowka
		Hans 47805, 1727-1778
			Hans 47865, born 1777, no children or spouse listed	not likely
		Andreas 47698, no male children
					Benjamin 51509, b c1824, born in Molotschna	not likely, dates not right, lived in Molotschna
				Peter 47677, b 1777, Prussia	Peter 51510, b c1825, born in Molotschna	not likely, dates not right, lived in Molotschna
	Hans 32907				Henrich 106582, b c1834, born in Molotschna	not likely, dates not right, lived in Molotschna
				Benjamin 106938, 1791-1791
			Adam 47674, b 1750, married in Klein Konopat
					Andreas 61680, d 1832 in Molotschna
		Peter 47673			Adam 47694, b 1810 Klein Konopat, no children or spouse listed
				Adam 4327, b 1783, married in Deutsch Konopat
					Jacob 4329, d 1829
					Benjamin 4332, b c1829 in Molotschna, no children or spouse listed
					Peter 4331, b c1821, born in Molotschna (same as 28065??). No children or spouse listed
					Heinrich 4330, 1820-1864, born and died in Molotschna	Heinrich 4345, b 1848 Molotschna. Emigrated 1874
			Peter 47869, joined Prussian Army
			Hans 47870, joined the Hussars in 1786

Although there are a lot of them here, more than half can be eliminated because they died young with no children, or they moved to the Molotschna Colony.  Possible are those who have no children listed in the Churchbook: Andreas 47887, Hinrich 17730, Andreas 47731, Peter 47874, Berent 47875, Peter 47866, and Hans 47865.  Although neither GRANDMA nor the Churchbook list any children for these Ratzlaffs, it doesn’t mean they didn’t have any.  No real strong possibilities here, though, as geographically none of these are right either.

Heinrich 59679 is interesting in that he was born in Gambin, Prussia, instead of the Przechowko area.  Gambin is a little west of Warsaw, Poland, so this is closer to Volhynia geographically.  Heinrich was born in 1829 though, so he wouldn’t be able to be our Jacob’s (born 1842) father.  Not likely.

Peter 47768 is the first Ratzlaff so far who the Churchbook indicates as having lived in the Neumark village of Brenkenhoffswalde.  Based on the dates and location, Peter is a real possibility to be my ancestor Heinrich’s father.

Also in this tree are the likely candidates of Heinrich 47889 and Heinrich 47904.  Both of these Heinrichs were born in the correct window of time and have no children listed, meaning 1) they died young or were unmarried, or 2) they moved out of the Przechowko area and lost touch with the mother church, as must have happened with my ancestor Heinrich.  No location is listed at all for Heinrich 47889.  Heinrich 47904 was born in Deutsch Konopat which was farther up the Vistula River valley from Przechowko. 

The descendants of Hans 36105 Ratzlaff yield at least 3 real possibilities to be my line of Ratzlaffs: Peter 47768, Heinrich 47889 and Heinrich 47904.

A special note regarding Hans 36105 Ratzlaff’s descendants: Among these Ratzlaffs is a family who is documented as living in the Karolswalde villages.  Andreas 43193 had a grandson named Adam 281097 who was born in Antonovka and lived there until emigration to America in 1874.  Indeed, this family can be found in the Tobias Unruh baptism records discussed earlier.  GRANDMA lists this Adam’s family very thoroughly though; all names, dates, and locations seem to be complete.  With this thorough of a record I don’t feel it’s likely that an additional son, my ancestor Heinrich, was left off.  It’s possible that Heinrich was Andreas 43193’s son, but I don’t find it very likely given the level of completion of the data for Andreas 43193’s family in GRANDMA.

Also of note here is that Berent (Jung) 35955, had a daughter named Trincke who was buried in Heinrichsdorf (which was located in Volhynian Russia).  No dates are given for Berent 35955 but he must not be altogether discounted.