Mama and Me by Elaine Frank Davison... Being a first-generation born American and living in America is very important to me. But by the grace of God, and the courage of my parents, I would have been born in Russia, and would have been banished to Siberia in 1941 along with several of my relatives, with thousands of other Volga Germans who did not make it to this country. This is a story about my mother, whom I called MAMA. Mama was 45 years old when I was born, and I was 45 years old when she died. Mama and I came full circle. She never thought she would live to raise me, yet she lived long enough to do just that, and also to help me with my own four children. Mama was always there. Her hands were always busy, even when she was sitting and resting. She crocheted, darned socks, or patched clothes to relax. I miss her. Mama was born in a Volga German Reformed Lutheran village in Russia, 69 miles SW of Saratov, near the Volga River. This village was called by two names -- Kautz (the German name), and Werschinka (the Russian name). She was born Maria Catharina Knaub, January 5, 1885, to Johann Conrad Knaub and Maria Margaretha Gratwohl, their second child. In 1890, during a severe drought, the family, including grandparents, traveled by wagon to the southern part of Russia, Rostov, on the Linja, where the Cossacks and Armenians lived. She was 7 years old when her father and grandmother Knaub died of typhoid fever. She was 8 years old when her mother remarried a widower with children, Johannes Schleich. At age 13, her stepfather took his family to Huck (another Volga German village a days travel away from Kautz by wagon), taking her with them, but leaving her brother George with his Grandfather Philip Knaub in Kautz. She was confirmed in Huck at age 16, on Pentecostal Day, by Pastor Starkle. After her confirmation, her uncle Heinrich Gratwohl, and her brother George Knaub, came to Huck and kidnapped her and took her back to Kautz to live, where she spent long hours each day sitting on the weaving stool, weaving gingham for sale to the Russians during the long winter months, and worked in the fields in the summer. At first, she lived with her Grandfather Knaub, but he was too old to care for her, so she went to work for another family. This was the family of my father, Johann Conrad Frank. The custom of this village was for the family and a marriage broker to arrange the marriages, and so a marriage was arranged for my mother by her future in-laws, as she had no other family at that time. In Kautz, when a woman married, she left her family and went to live with her husbands family. My father and mother were married in Kautz on December 27, 1902. There were 9 couples married at the same time, by Pastor Johannes Friedrich Mollmann. Their first child, Johannes, was born in Kautz December 17, 1903, and baptized by Pastor Rusch in Kautz on December 26, 1903. This is supposed to be a story about Mama ... but, how can I tell about Mama without telling a little bit about Papa? He was also born in Kautz, July 14, 1884, to Johann Conrad Frank and Eva Catharina Schreiner. The people of Kautz were mainly farmers, but other trades were practiced during the long winter months to help make a living. Each son was taught a trade, and my father became an apprentice cabinet maker at the age of 14, after his religious schooling and confirmation on October 4, 1898. The women worked alongside the men in the fields, and during the winter they weaved gingham, while the men built wooden threshing machines. ------------------------------------------------------ Unsere Leute von Kautz Volume 9 page iii In November of 1904, the Russian Government was calling the young German men to serve in the Russian Army. My father was one of those young men. He was 20 years old, married, the father of one child, and he did not want to serve in the army of the Russian government. He was not alone. On the day he took his physical examination, which he passed, he went home and told his father that he was not going to serve in the Russian Army, and that there were a number of other men who believed the same way he did, and that they were going to leave Russia. His father (my Grandfather, also named Johann Conrad Frank, and who served as a Judge in the Government of Dietel) called the family together that night for a meeting to discuss the decision of his son. When he found there was no other recourse, members of the family gave my father what money they could spare, and wished him God speed on his journey to America. My father joined a group of 20 people who left Kautz in the middle of the night, leaving his family, including wife and baby, behind. After long winter months of traveling at night, on foot, and hiding during the daytime, suffering many hardships, the survivors of this group reached Bremen, Germany, and boarded the ship S.S. Brandenburg on April 4, 1905, which landed at Baltimore, Maryland U.S.A. on April 19, 1905. He was so ill, after nearly starving to death during the trip, as he was so seasick in steerage, that he was hospitalized for a time in Baltimore, Maryland, before continuing on his trip by train to Walla Walla. He finally arrived in Walla Walla, some time in May 1905, with his name and destination pinned to his lapel. He could not speak English. His brother-in-law, Henry Schneidmiller, had sent him the money for his train ticket to bring him to Walla Walla. Soon after, he made the acquaintance of Maximillian Baumeister, a prominent early German settler in Walla Walla, who made arrangements to send for my mother and brother. My mother and brother (Johannes) traveled by wagon to Saratov, Russia, with my fathers aunt (his fathers sister), Catharina Margaretha Frank Schreiner. They boarded a train which took them to Bremen, Germany, where they boarded the ship S.S. Breslau on October 19, 1905, and landed in Baltimore, Maryland on October 31, 1905. As I am writing this, I can picture my mother on that ship, her first day out. They traveled steerage. Mama was so very seasick on this voyage, that it was all she could do to care for her young son. She would not go into any details about this event in her life, except to state that she was so sick she lost her milk (she was still nursing her baby), and that they both almost starved to death. There were babies who died during this crossing, and were buried at sea, and Mama was afraid this was going to happen to Johannes. She described seeing the Statue of Liberty, and what a glorious moment that was for she, a young woman of 20, who had left the safety of her home in Russia for the unknown land where her husband had gone several months before. I questioned her about Ellis Island, and all she would tell me, with a sweet smile on her face, was somebody gave me a comb. My mother had a knack for blocking out the bad times in her life and only remembering the good in great detail. They boarded a train which brought them to Walla Walla in early November 1905. My brother Johannes never recovered from the malnutrition suffered on the trip to America, and died in Walla Walla May 24, 1906. He never walked. I never saw Johnny (as I called him), but we have a large photograph, which I have hanging in my genealogy room, and feel as though I knew him, as Mama never forgot him and told me about him. Volume 9 page iv After arriving in Walla Walla, my father worked at many laboring jobs, including the railroad, until a man by the name of Pete Kauffman secured a job for him at Whitehouse-Crawford Co., in the planing mill. As he learned English, life got better. They first lived in a rented house, where my brother Bill was born on September 4, 1906. By 1910, he had purchased the land and finished building his first home at 815 S. 3rd in Walla Walla. He first built a summerkitchen in the back of the property, where the family lived (and where my sister Rose was born on January 5, 1909) until the big house was finished. After they moved into the main house, my sister Bertha was born on November 3, 1910. Another son, named Albert, was born on October 16, 1913, but died on March 5, 1914. On June 2, 1914, Papa and Mama became Citizens of the United States of America. On December 17, 1914, another son, Albert, was born. By 1916, Papa was working as a foreman for Norman McCloud, a construction company. On July 18, 1917, another son David was born. In 1919, Papa bought a 10 acre farm at State Line (on the Washington-Oregon border), 7 miles from Walla Walla, where son George was born on December 7, 1921. In 1920, Papa and his brother William went into business with their cousin William Schreiner, Sr., and friend Dave Zier. During this time they built several homes for the German-Russian people in Walla Walla. About 1923, Papa went into business with Ernest Gross, as Gross and Frank. In 1924, he traded the farm for the old Seil house at 535 N. 6th, and moved back to town. In 1928, Papa started Conrad Frank and Co., where his sons, as well as nephews and cousins, learned the carpentry trade. On August 23, 1929, I was born. I was the 9th child of my parents, and the only one born in a hospital! The rest were all born at home. Papa used to tell me, in 1929 we had the depression, Walla Walla had a flood, and we got you! My parents were survivors. Really, their story is a success story, about an immigrant German-Russian family who came to America, and to the State of Washington in 1905, could not speak English, raised a family to be proud of, build a business which lasted from 1928 until it was closed in 1983 by my youngest brother George when he retired. There are many buildings in this area which serve as a monument to the Frank carpenters! My parents learned English from their children. Papa became a respected businessman, while each of us children took turns helping him with his bookwork through the years. During those early years, Mama did housework for the Mojonniers. As her family grew, when it was too difficult for her to go to the Mojonnier home at Stateline, they sent the laundry in by train, and my brother Bill would meet the train and bring the laundry home to Mama in his wagon. After Mama had washed it by hand in a large washtub with washboard, ironed and neatly folded everything, brother Bill would take the clean laundry back to the train depot at 6th and Main, and the laundry would travel back to Mojonnier Station by train. Mama went from scrubbing the clothes on the washboard, to a Maytag wringer washer, to an automatic clothes washer during her lifetime. She never really got used to the automatic, said her clothes werent as clean as they used to be! She scrubbed the kitchen floor every evening after the last child was in bed, and was the first one up in the morning. Mama worked hard all of her life, but was always happy and laughing about something. She did not dwell on the hurtful events in her life, thus it was hard to get complete events of her life story before she died. Mama taught herself to read, and could read anything printed, from the Bible to the newspaper, but never leaned to write anything in English. She could, however, write her name. She also told me about staying up all night praying, and listening to the radio, when Lindberg was crossing the Atlantic! My parents celebrated their Golden Wedding Anniversary on December 27, 1952 in Walla Walla, Washington. They raised their children well, with the loving, tender nurturing of our mother, along with the strong discipline of our father. We, their children, appreciate their courage to come to America, leaving all that they knew behind them, their ability to make a life for themselves and their family, to become proud citizens of America. They made us what we are. We are proud of our heritage. Volume 9 page v My father died suddenly at the age of 75 years on September 26, 1959 of a ruptured abdominal aneurysm. Mama died peacefully at age 89 years 11 months and 7 days from lung cancer, on December 12, 1974. Brother Bill died at the age of 59 years on November 14, 1965 of a stroke and brain tumor. Brother Dave died at the age of 67 years on April 27, 1984 as a result of complications from a stroke. In 1906, my father was able to help his brother George come to America with his family. In 1913, he was able to help his brother David come to America with his family, and also his parents and brother Wilhelm. During the intervening years, he also helped several cousins come to America. My father was a loyal American. I wont ever forget, during World War II, when I was in high school, and being saluted with the Heil Hitler salute, that I came home in tears and told my father that I didnt want to be German, nor did I want to be Russian. He said you are an American and dont forget that. My father taught all of us to respect the Flag of the United States, and to this day, I can picture my father with his hat in his hand over his heart every time the Flag passed. My parents voted in every election, as have all of us children. Prior to my fathers death in 1959, he had told me many stories about life in the old country, and hoped that someday I would write it all down. After his death in 1959, I started writing things down as I could remember them, and doing research on my family history. In 1977, I had enough information on my family to supply the members attending a Frank Family reunion in Walla Walla a copy of their family history. In 1977, I joined AHSGR (American Historical Society of Germans from Russia), headquartered in Lincoln, Nebraska, and in 1978 they asked if I would be the village coordinator for my parents village of Kautz, researching the descendants and documenting all information possible to obtain. Since that time, I have been working on this project, and have published 9 volumes of information of Unsere Leute von Kautz (Our people from Kautz). I have enough information compiled for 3 more volumes, and enough research information in my files (not compiled) for at least 5 more (of 130+ pages for each volume). Volume 9 page vi My project is at my own expense, and have received no monetary help from any organization. My research has become a combination of obsession and labor of love. Meeting the people while doing the research has been my greatest joy. I have found that every family with roots to the Village of Kautz are all related to each other, in one way or another, through the marriages. I have found thousands of relatives! My main goal has been to document our people, as there has been no written history about them, and no way to obtain any information from Russia. The only way I have learned about the people is by meeting the people who were born in Kautz, and/or their descendants, and getting their oral histories, copies of their Bible records, immigration records, church records, etc... Through the past 25+ years, I have met hundreds of people, and have, with the help of my Uncle Bill (my fathers youngest brother) gone beyond my first book of Unsere Leute von Kautz. Without his help, this would have been impossible! Uncle Bill (William Frank) died in Walla Walla on February 1, 1986, on his 89th birthday. I was elected to the International Board of Directors of AHSGR and served three years. I was also a member of the International Board of Trustees of AHSGR for one year. This was a great honor for me. I continue to collect obituaries of our German/Russian people for AHSGR. I served our local Blue Mountain Chapter of AHSGR as Genealogy Chairman for 12 years. I feel that by sharing some details of my family life here in the State of Washington, other German-Russian families can relate to this and know that their families are represented here in this story. The stories of all of the German-Russian immigrants are similar. Their belief in God, who brought them through all their tribulations; their hard work; and great pride in their large families, church, homes, and accomplishments. --Elaine passed away in 2001
Posted on: Fri, 28 Mar 2014 02:57:07 +0000
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