Zürichtal - 1848 Village History
Copyright 1996, Elli Wise

Notes: Please see the Introduction to the Village History Project for additional information.

ZÜRICHTAL (CRIMEA) (1)

a) Essay of the Zürichtal Pastor, Propst E. Kyber (2) under the title "the Colony Zürichtal" of 7 February 1848. Reprint (copy) of: Entertainment News for German Settlers in South Russia. The 3rd year publication No. 3, March 1848 with additions of divergence from the prepared report by J. Stach. It is from the former Welfare committee archives and a verbatim, now in the collection of George Leibbrandt.

Late in 1803, lead by Mr. Von Escher, forty Swiss families (about 200 people) gathered in Konstanz at Lake Bodensee (Lake Constance). From there they went by ship across the lake for several hours to Moersburg. Later they arrived in Ulm. After having stayed a couple of weeks in Vienna, they went on the Danube river to Pressburg, Hungary. From Pressburg their road brought them to Rosenberg in Upper Hungary were they spent the winter. Here, over 30 people died because of illnesses and helplessness. New comers arrived and together the trek left in 1804 and happily arrived in the Crimea. First they settled in the area of Feodosia on an estate belonging to General Schuez. (Karakoos) (3) In the same year, the crown acquired a Tartar village, about two miles away in the Dschailau region. On Easter 1805, the Swiss were settled there and named the region `Zürichtal,' since it reminded them of the valleys in their homeland. Von Escher and his sons, never did see it, since they had already left. Major von Escher died in 1830 at St. Petersburg.

Zürichtal is favored by nature in many ways. Lying at the northeastern foothills of the Taurien Mountains, where the creek Jendol (4) has its spring, it is at a distance of 2 Miles from the Armenian area of Alt-Crimea. It is 5 Miles from the district city Feodosia and at the same distance into the opposite direction from Karassubasar (5) and from the Sudak wine valley. From the east, a view of the village is covered by a long row of hills which entwine the creek. One steps into vineyards covering the hills, almost into the village, which then presents itself. From the west it lies uncovered and is visible for a long distance away. The village's red shingle roofs, stretching about a Werst long, give it the appearance of a small city. The homeland view of this village is a happy surprise to each German. Toward the north, it embraced by a wood of wild fruit trees, Elm trees, White and Silver poplars. To the south, the neighboring mountains unfold a picturesque lovely view of a Swiss region. Nearing the creek, one finds meadows and Gardens. The creek is of great use for watering but also causes great damage by flooding, on 20 Jun 1827. The creek also supports a mill, with two shifts, and its income is used to its best potential by the community. The village itself is parted in the middle by some of its main buildings - the small church, the parish- and school house and a few others. It is separated into so named lower and upper village and both have a fountain with fresh healthy water. Each landlord has a roomy yard, which he favorably can use to build barns. Toward the street, each yard is enclosed with a stone wall and here and there one can find young trees planted.

This is a small picture of Zürichtal's layout in the hopeful light of the presence! - Only here, at the bottom of the mountains, near the shade
providing woods, at a gurgling creek, a spring fed fountain, could the people from Zuerich find a second home. -

How did the first Zürichtal settlers fare 43 years ago? Ha, possibly not so good, as their descendants now do! The crown had given them a credit to build, yet it soon was used up and very few had understood to farm. At home, they had earned their living with spinning cotton and making silk. Too poor, to accommodate themselves accordingly -- some years, they did not have seed for crops -- without houses and barns, unfamiliar of the local language, they were deceived on top of this and also robbed.(6) The fathers looked with worry into the future. Regrets and fear grew in their hearts. They became very homesick. Parents had left children, children had left parents and siblings and they could not even write a letter to the homeland!(7) There was no suggestion of getting a decent preacher or a teacher. That is how comethat within a few years half of the emigrants lay in the cemetery. In spring of 1812 alone, almost 40 adults died of high fever; too poor to bury the dead with decency. Without a casket and no funeral possession, only wrapped in rags, they were handed over to the earth. This surely would have touched hearts in the far away Switzerland and they would have helped, had they only known of the misery of their fellow brothers in the Crimea. They would have loved to become a servant to the lost son in the fatherly house, could they only have gone back.(8)

Yet, praise the Lord, it got better! The youth grew up as a new generation. They learned the local language, got used to the customs and characteristics of the country. Lack of that knowledge often had forced the older generation to be deceived by the Russians or Tartars. Now it is not a rarity anymore for a Zürichtal citizen to speak the local language as fluent as their mother tongue. The poverty of the parents brought the prosperity to the children. Having grown up with abstinence and hardship, they learned to appreciate contentment and simplicity. Also, the number of almost extinct families was enhanced in 1810 already, by 25 new families from Molotschna, mainly of catholic belief.(9)

In 1822, when the first pastor, Heinrich Dietrich, arrived from Switzerland, a new epoch began to flourish for our colony Everything turned around: order, activities and prosperity. The small church was completed just before his arrival. Next to it now stands a nice parish house and a roomy school.(10)

Two small filial communities built a chapel to use for church services.(11) Dietrich, himself shone as a good example everywhere and condemned with a serious strength all the bad habits (12) that had crept in. He especially improved the church singing. Regretfully, he passed away much too soon, for his blessed accomplishments. He died in 1827, (13) at age 33 but the fruit of his work remained blessed until today.

Without him, Zürichtal would never have become what it is today - the most preferred colony in the Crimea. The old huts of the early settlers were replaced with new, nice houses. From poverty evolved prosperity. The main source of income is the wheat cultivation, which brings large profits. The stock of cattle is stately and the business activities continue to improve.(14) The wine cultivation and orchards are in still in need of improvement. Mishaps were not avoided either - in 1822 to 1825 there were grasshopper swarms, in 1833 and 1834, crops were rather poor.(15) Nevertheless, a bright future for the colony seems to be secured. The colony possesses plenty fertile land and had the opportunity to twice purchase bordering acreage at reasonable prices. There are 74 farmers who each have 40 Dessjatines of land. The village is filled with young and old citizens and the number of inhabitants of evangelical belief alone is at 400. Of the 400 there are only a few of the original settlers left.

After the death of the unforgettable Dietrich, Pastor Kylius from Baden served the parish for 3 and 1/2 year (16) until my arrival in August 1831.

Zürichtal, 7 February 1848
Probst E. Kyber
Pastor to Zürichtal

b) Addendum by the Zürichtal districts office of March 21, 1848 to the following report to the Welfare Committee of the Zürichtal community. Print of the carefully prepared verbatim by J. Stach of the Copy that is in the Leibbrandt collection from the former Archives of the Welfare committee.

To the respected Welfare committee of foreign settlers in South Russia. From the Zürichtal district office.

Report
In compliance to a circular request of January 19, 1862 received by the mayoral offices in this area by the respectable welfare committee. A historical description of the founding and the growth of their colonies was composed. The Zürichtal district office has received the essay from Zürichtal and is submitting it hereby to the respectful Welfare committee.

Principal mayor: Andreas Gross
Assistant: Friedrich Luetziger )1)
Zürichtal, 21 March 1848

c) Report about the village Zürichtal. Copy of the verbatim from the Georg Leibbrandt collection of the former Welfare committee archives.

According to the Entertainment Newsletter No. 3., in February of this year, Probst Kyber has submitted a description about the Immigration of the Swiss colonists. The essay is about their journey, their arrival in the Crimea; their settlement in the Tartar village Dschailau (2), its location, originalities, the beginning and current situation. We find it necessary, however, to fill in a few gaps left open.

Not all the Swiss emigrants, nor all that joined them during the journey, settled at the place of establishment. Three families settled in the city Feodosia and seven went to the colony Friedenstal. Several single trades' persons, who's trade had not taken hold yet in the Crimea, went into the interior of the emporium or back to the foreign countries. 49 settled in Zürichtal.

These 49 families mercifully received from the crown food money for over a year at 10 Kopek per adult and 5 per minor on credit each. On top of that they received 395 Rubel per farm to purchase cattle, farming equipment and to build a house.(3)

These advances, as small as they may appear to some, could have satisfied the needs in those days, for which they were intended, if other hindrances had not come about. Besides not knowing the local language, one has to consider the character of a Moslem nation (4) who so enviously must have looked at the newcomers and in some cases must have felt hurt. A few of the settlers had knowledge of farming and the things brought with them, generally could not be used here.(5) The authorities heading the colonies were not able to give advice about all the regulations and there were no others to do so. The 25 cane huts, left over from the Tartars, were not enough to house all the people, not even if they were crowding together. Some had to house in sheds in order to find some protection against the wind and sun. It was impossible to built houses that same year. Housing in the sheds was feasible while they were well and during the warm season. The summer passed quickly and even quicker, health was leaving. Chills and fevers bedded entire families and finally brought them to their graves. Standing close to the same demise, lots of them must have longed for spiritual food and comfort for themselves and their loved ones. They even had to do without that. Only once a year then, did pastor Biller come from Josephstal. It was so pitiful at his arrival that each house without any sick, no matter how miserable the looks, had to be used as a church. In the meantime, spiritual leaders of other confessions or even lay preachers, had performed spiritual services and the holy communions. In short, the colony Zürichtal was plagued with illnesses worse than any other. Could it be the fog that stays in the valley more than elsewhere, or could the swamp, now being channeled and used for gardens, be the culprit? One can't say with certainty.

That is how the first three years of settlement passed and only a few, who had come down with minor illnesses, managed to build their houses and to farm their land.

One cannot deny that there were such among others, in ignoring the warnings of the superiors. Not because of hatred against them, but because of illiteracy in agriculture, neglect was felt in activities. Still, the authorities could not leave it at citations alone but had to reach to mild requital.

Today looking back at those times, we have to be "touched and thankful for the monarchy's great patience, and acknowledge that they did not fail to carry the colonists along with fatherly endurance. Even when they were notified of the hopeless conditions of this colony, either by reports of the officials or through news from State representatives that traveled the colonies".

In 1810, even though the majority of the people had houses, rather simple ones, covered with reed thatch. **The census of people, the cattle count and cultivation had not risen much. It was mainly so, because of the above mentioned and a second cattle epidemic this year. For that reason much land was available and one could lease out fields, feed and grassland to neighbors. Each resident could farm as much land, raise as many cattle and feed as they cared to do. Several colonists from other colonies received the empty homes of the deceased families; 25 families who had to winter in 1809 in Jekaterinoslaw and Molotscha, most of them Catholics, were accepted as next-door-neighbor. The colony now had 74 landlords.(6)

With all the substandard conditions that existed then in the colony, the newcomers still had a few advantages. They found better housing, already were familiar with the local language and had other means to help themselves. Most of them were not spared from illnesses however.

A non correctable mistake (7) was made with this last increase of landlords. Not thinking of the consequences to have more than one confession, the expenditure of teaching by each party could be rather costly. We were specially guarded that the raging fever illness of 1812 did occur in the spring,** and not in the fall or winter. Lately the pest had grazed around our area, even in a tartar village only two Miles away from Zürichtal. This colony definitely would have been quarantined and the slow rising advancement would surely have taken a few steps backwards.

After this time frame though, a new era started to begin. The illnesses disappeared, the youth started to grow up to help and other problems started to mend itself. Cattle epidemics did not devastate its increasing stock. Cultivating of the land increased and God blessed its harvest. The almost departed need for religion started to waken in many hearts and before the end of the 1820's they started construction of the still existing church. This church had been christened by the former General superintendent Boettiger from Odessa in 1820, even before a spiritual leader was employed.

Even the 1830's could not disrupt the colony's ** advances. These years brought Grasshopper swarms to the Crimea and the surrounding region. The Tartars however suffered the most and had to employ themselves as servants and laborers to the Germans.

One already felt the scarcity of land during this time. They found themselves forced to graze the cattle on the land close by and to cultivate on strangers' fields. Now they became aware of the well-meaning and hopeful advice of the now departed Mr. Contaenius, the former oldest Judge of the Jekaternoslaw Tutil Comptoir. "Sell no land nor farms."(8) Especially coming to their welfare came the use of 1300 Desjatines from the bordering estate of Katokowski.(9) After a few years of leasing the land, it the was offered for purchase. Noticeably weak to undertake such, but the necessity of doing so and the agreement of the need to do so by the authorities, encouraged them. Knowing that the colony authorities always had the well-being of their subordinates in mind they went to beg for help and it was heard.

Their presentation, rewarded in such a manner by his Majesty, when the most merciful emporia lent them the sum to purchase the land. It was on a ten year term at the current lawful interest.

This was the foundation of Zürichtal's prosperity; without it they could not have been able to pay an additional 1500 Desjatines with their own means ten years later. Who deserves the credit for that? Not us, but the Lord, and his son and the immediate authorities over the settlers. Dear citizens of Zurichtal, who sooner or later may hear or read about this, please return such by your willingness in obedience. The good that our fathers were able to enjoy from the merciful regime of Russia, is even more an advantage for you. Make yourselves worthy of your current fatherland and that any future decisions the State makes for the welfare of it subordinates, will be to your advantage.

Colony Zürichtal 20 Mar 1848
Teacher: B. Fried. Pfeiffer (10)
Mayor: Anton Nuss
Assistant: Rudolf Dubs (11)

Footnotes to Zürichtal (a)

(1) Russian name: Dshajlaw

(2) Emil Kyber, born 12 July 1804 in Riga, attended the Mural private facility in Petersburg and then the dome school in Reval. From 1824 - 1831 he studied Theology and Philology in Dorpat were he also sat in on medical classes. In 1831, he was ordained in St. Petersburg as pastor for the Zürichtal community. He served there until 1858 finding great interest in the Crimea as a nature researcher. He did in 1873. He was a corresponding member of many organizations. Compare reports and news for the evangelical church in Russia. Vol. 63, Riga 1910, page 470f

(3) = Karagoz, at a distance of 18 Werst from Feodosija, compare Semenov-Tjan-Sanskij a. a. O. Vol. 14, page 800

(4) = Mokryi Endol (Indol)

(5) = Karasubazar

(6) addition to the original composition : "Some were even beat to death"

(7) addition to the original composition: "because they were such unhappy, careless, self centered and incapable people to engage appropriate inspectors pertaining to their situation" This sentence, which contains a critique from the official employed by the Russian authorities, most likely was stricken by the publisher of the `Entertainment news letter'.

(8) About the busy relations between Volga colonies and Switzerland compare M. Woltner: the Volga German Education system and the Russian school politics. Part 1, Leipzig 1937

(9) compare page 47, adds. 2

(10) The village school was founded in 1812, before there even was a spiritual leader. Catholic and Lutheran children alike visited this school together until the 1840 years. Compare School news for the German colonies in Russia. Monthly newsletter to support the school system and training of teachers.

(11) may be Heilbrunn and Sudak

(12) this sentence is missing in the original composition

(13) Dietrich, the Missionary student of Basel did not return to Basel as Th. Meyer insists on in information and news for the evangelical church in Russia. Vol. 63, Riga 1910, page 463.

(14) Remarks for the year 1825 by Rempel a. a. O. page 24

(15) Original composition: "The duties (taxes) increase yearly and mishaps - like 1822 -1825 the grasshopper swarms and in 1833and 1834 - poor harvest - don't stay away.' The mention of raising taxes (deliveries) again, was omitted.

(16) Christian Friedrich Kylius went to Neusatz in 1831, and died there in 1854. Compare information and News for the evangelical church in Russia. Vol. 63, 1910 page 467.

Footnotes to Zürichtal b) and c)

(1) On May 14, a Heinrich Luetziger undersigned as assistant in the Zürichtal regional office, compare page 51.

(2) Russian: Dshajlaw

(3) During the 1800's, of the German colonists that settled in new Russia, only half of the Mennonites received the allowed money proviso (compare Zapiski Odesskogo Obsestva Istorii I Drevnostej. Vol 2, 1848, page 661 - 663. They were awarded on February 20 a support of 10 i.e. 6 kopek during the journey and 10 i.e. 5 Kopek after their arrival until the first harvest and 300 Rubel to construct a farmstead. Compare I PSZ, Vol. 28, No. 21163, but higher amounts were paid then also.

(4) they mean the Moslem tartars

(5) On February 20, 1804, the Russian regime realized that Escher had recruited without choice

(6) 1857: 31 landlords (280 people) on 1912 Dessjatine land and 51 families (106 people) without land. Compare Klaus a. a. O. Insert 2, page 42

(7) The regulation of the Russian regime in the 1800's to separately settle individual confessions , was only regarded by the Mennonites at the beginning of the 19th century. The Mennonites occupied a distinguished status.

(8) Sale of land given by the Russian authorities was not permitted. Nevertheless, in German villages in the Crimea, often they could transfer farmsteads with permission of the community and its superior authorities. It was under the condition that the new landlord would take over the debts to the crown along with it. In this regard the available reports are very conclusive.

(9) = Kachowstoj?

(10) Bernhard Friedrich Pfeifer, born 23 September 1793 in Switzerland, died on 1 December 1875 in Zürichtal. He came with his parents to Russia in 1805. From 1812 - 1849 he was the village teacher and lay preacher. Also until 4 June 1871, he was community writer in Zürichtal. Compare Schoolnews for the German colonies in Russia. 1. Edition, Prishib 1912/13, Page 126f

(11) addition: (Duebs?)

as translated by Elli Wise 12/96
Coordinated with GRHS Village Research Clearing House
Coordinated with GRHS Translation Committee Chairman

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