By: Henry Bender, August 23, 1913"The reason why German colonists from Russia emigrated was because they were so severely oppressed by the Russian government, and the rules and ordinances of that government did not please them. Throughout the Russian empire lay much prairie land which was not farmed and which the colonists could not use because they could not buy it, and had not the means to buy 2000 or 3000 acres when an acre cost 30 to 40 rubles. [A salary of 20 rubles per month was being paid in 1932.] Therefore the colonists were precluded from ever in a lifetime owning a homestead. But had Russia had such a constitution as the U.S. I believe that scarcely one colonist would have emigrated to America.
From 5 to 6 acres was all the land that a male person in Russia could own and if he wanted more land he must rent it cash in advance for $4 to $5 per acre American money value. You can see by this what their prospect and outlook was.
For these reason a number of families of the colony Potschinnaja called by the Germans, Kratzka, near the Volga River in the province of Saratov in the year 1876, decided to emigrate. These are the heads of families who emigrated to America.
George Bender, Adam Bender, Heinrich Bender, G. Heinrich Bender, Jacob Berschauer, Heinrich Berschauer, Jacob Blehm, Friedrich Deines, Peter Deines, G. Jacob Deines, George Dietz, Adam Dietz, Jacob Dietz, Jacob Krug, J. Jacob Krug Jr., Heinrich Krug, Adam Mai, Jacob Maier, Jacob Michaelis, Heinrich Michaelis, and Friedrich Schwein. The total number of members in the colony was 72 souls. As committee and leaders of the company; George Bender, Jacob Krug Sr. and Adam Dietz were elected. In the year 1876 on the 12th day of July the above named persons left their home colony and went by rail to Saratov, where on July 14, they took further passage by rail for Hamburg in Germany. When they arrived in Hamburg the ship on which they wished to go had already been on it's way for several hours, so they had to remain some time until they could take the ship, Fresiz, from Hamburg to New York.
At the latter port they landed on August 10. After a few days stay there, they departed for Kansas City. There land agents from Nebraska met them and persuaded them to see first the state of Nebraska to which they consented. The condition, agreeable to them, was that they should be given free railroad transportation thither. When they arrived in Lincoln, Nebraska, they were given an immigrant house, and then the committee traveled over the state viewing the land. After an absence of four weeks, the committee returned and reported that Nebraska did not please them. They did not find what they wanted. The reason the committee was not pleased with Nebraska was that most of the colonists were of limited means, and many of them had to borrow money already on the journey, and a location was desired where sufficient free land for homesteads and timber claims was available.
As they wished to find a colony such as they did not discover in Nebraska they decided to look over the state of Kansas and accordingly went to Lawrence, Kansas, where all of them again occupied an immigrant house. Adam Roedelheimer, who was then land agent, traveled with the committee and showed them the land where they finally decided to settle eleven miles south of Russell. There on October 5, 1876, the colony all arrived in Russell, Russell County, Kansas, transportation free. It was a great satisfaction to see here the flowing water, the springs and the timber. And each one could secure 80 acres of homestead and 160 acres of timber claim free. At that time, far and wide, all the region was open prairie, and as the weather was fairly cold, the women and children lived in Russell until the men had made shelters for them.
At first dugouts were made and these were covered with limbs of trees, grass and earth, and the families dwelt in them. One night a heavy rain came and the dugouts (simlinka) filled with water so that families with children had to remain all night under the open sky. After this they built sod houses and covered them with lumber and sod. Such a house had two windows about two feet by 16 inches in size. There was no ceiling, no floor, no carpet, no linoleum, no rugs, but only mother earth. The houses of the colonists were built in a row along the bank of the creek (Landon Creek).
Meantime the committee went to Kansas City to buy wagons, plows and household furniture. When these supplies came to Russell, each family bought a yoke of oxen to haul their furniture out to the colony. Those who had no money borrowed from George Bender and Jacob Krug without interest. As there was no feed or fodder, the cattle ranged on the prairie the entire winter. As all provisions were so dear the cheapest flour was used by most of the people. Of meat there was very little to be had.
Despite the privations the colony was cheerful and content. If they could have gotten work they would have accepted 25 cents a day, but unfortunately for the first three years no work was to be had. George Bender and Jacob Krug bought eighty acres of growing wheat form the poorer colonists, paying $5 an acre for it, and received therefrom 1200 bushels in 1877, from which they had wheat for seed and enough for flour for a year. Thus the colony lived for two years until they were obliged by the homestead law to out each upon his own tract of land. Even if this was hard for them at first, they were later glad that it was required.
The second troop of colonists came in December 1876; the third in the month of February 1878 from Eckheim in the province of Samare; the forth troop in November 1878. The last coming from the same colony as the first. [Kratzke] Thereafter, little by little, more and more came so that now there four school districts in this settlement in which there is not one single pupil of English speaking ancestry, and therefore our children can not learn the English language. There are many who cannot ask for bread in the English language.
In spite of all hardships, no one ever heard a complaint or a wish for Russia or to abandon the United States. The greatest foe that the colonists had to contend with in the earlier years was prairie fire. Those colonists who have for this long period been in this country and have accumulated nothing have themselves to blame, for there are some who when they have a little property, at once go beyond their strength and spring so high, that falling back, they are so often unable again in their lifetime to rise.
I, for myself, would rather be a poor laborer in the United States, than a rich man under the Russian Czar. Three cheers for the United States!"
Author: Henry Bender
Henry Bender, (one of the first colony, son of George Bender Sr.) Russell, Kansas August 23, 1913Paper translated out of the original German by: J. C. Ruppenthal, January 1, 1914