| This page is dedicated in loving memory to my Great Great Grandparents, Gerhardt and Anna Eva Unrein, who had a dream for freedom and a vision on how to realize that dream. They had faith that they were making the correct decision for their family. Little did they know that their decision to come to America on August 6, 1878, would affect so many generations. Their journey to America not only gave them their immediate freedom, but it also gave their children's children children the freedom that we all take for granted today. Our dreams--like Gerhardt and Anna Eva's-- are not always easy to achieve, but they are worth pursing! The decisions we make (or don't make) today will have a major affect on generations to come. The History of the Unrein's to America The Gerhardt Unrein family settled in Munjor, Kansas in 1881. They traveled from Obermonjou, Russia, to Hamburg, Germany by train then boarded the Ship "Bahia" to America. According to the Passenger Lists that were created by Gwen Pritzkau (work paper No. 9, dated October 1972, page 62) where the Unrein's that made that trip: Great Great Grandfather Gerhardt "Hangerd" Unrein (39), Anna Eva Boes-Unrein (38), Lucia (17), Johannes (12), Phillip (8), Joseph (6) and Nicklaus. The ship sailed to Rio Dejenero, Brazil and the family stayed there for approximately two years. The story that I have been told is that the Brazilians needed people for farming and made a financial deal with the captain of the Bahia to bring the people to Rio instead of New York. The Unrein family lived in Obermonjou, Russia for several generations, approximately 100 years. They had come from Germany originally because Czarina Catherine of Russia asked the Germans who were willing to work cultivating the land in certain regions of Russia. Most of that land had hidden depths of all kinds of precious metals and ores, plus the land had rich soil for the growing of wheat and other grains. Today, the Germans that migrated to Russia are referred to as the " Germans from Russia". Catherine promised the Germans many things: Free land to farm, religious freedom, freedom to speak their home country language, initially wouldn't have to pay taxes, they could govern their own their own settlements and would not have to serve in the Russian Army. These promises were exchanged for the German's well known agricultural skills. As I mentioned earlier, the land was raw, rugged uncultivated land but what was not told to the Germans was that the settlements were subject to bloody raids by wild mountain tribesman that lived in the region. The situation was a formidable undertaking. What Gerhardt and his wife Anna couldn't know was that there was much unrest among the German Russians by the time they were born. Their families had come to the Volga Valley with the great hopes and promises of tools and assistance, most of which never materialized. Instead, many Germans where cheated out of what little money they brought with them. In spite of the bitter times, the Germans made first class, very productive farms and communities from the land that was allotted to them. Their Russian neighbors became jealous and later Czars wanted to throw out the inherited guarantees and "Russianize" them. A new law conscripting young German men into the Russian military was passed, which meant six years without furlongs to be with family. They could no longer practice their own religion. There was no more land allocated for the expanding families. Continued raids on the settlements were devastating. The mountain men would enter the settlements, rape the women, kill the men and children and take what ever they could ride away with. There was talk among the Germans Russians of leaving and going to the new country, America, where land was given to farm on the Midwest Plains. Five explorers were chosen: Nickolas Shamme of Graf, Peter Leiker of Obermonjou, Joseph Ritter of Lucern, Peter Stoeck |
The Unrein Family Tree
Updated August 2, 2002 |
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Richard Stewart Unrein, Jr. 1625 SW Shadow Wood Drive West Linn, OR 97068 United States 503-638-8864 rich@unrein.com |
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