THE KUKKUS FAMILIES DATABASE
Search
Johannes Felsing b. 1876 Kukkus and family including his mother, Katharina Margaretha Baum b. 1846 Kukkus. Photo approx 1905, Lincoln, Nb.
Welcome to the Kukkus Families Database
NEW: 10/24/2009 A listing of the names of the heads of households in kukkus in 1923, as it appeared on 4 Jan 1923 in "Die Welt Post". This list includes 387 head of household names and a total population of over 2300 people. Translation by Hugh Lichtenwald. Click on 'Histories' above to read this document.
NEW: 4/20/2009 Photos taken in Kukkus in 1995 by Edward Herzog. Plus a photo of the old Reifschneider house in Kukkus provided by Paul F Herzog. Click on 'Albums' above, then Reifschneider-Herzog Photos to view these.
NEW: 2/15/2009 The German version and an English translation of the history of the Isheim family, as written by Pastor Erbes of Kukkus in the early 1900's, detailing family events from original Kukkus settler Johann Adam Isheim to Johannes Isheim and family who immigrated to the USA. Click on 'Histories' above to read these interesting documents.
NEW: 1/2/2009 Translated letters from Kukkus residents dated 1921 to 1922. Very interesting details about the Russian famine of 1921-1922. Click on 'Histories' above to read the letters.
This is my website for Kukkus, Russia families. Kukkus was first settled on 26 Jun 1767 by a group of approximately 181 settlers from Germany.
This database attempts to follow the genealogy of those settlers and their descendants along with later settlers who moved into Kukkus. Through census records, surname charts, records available from the AHSGR and from other resources I have attempted to reconstruct the family lines of those settlers down to the present day. Of course, this is a work in progress and I have a very long way to go. But the process is started. Enter a name in the search box or click the 'surnames' button to just browse.
This database is put together with information from the following sources:
- Einwanderung in Das Wolgagebeit by Dr. Igor Pleve.
- 1798 Census of Kukkus Russia.
- 1834 Census of Kukkus Russia.
- 1857 Census of Kukkus Russia.
- Various Surname charts compiled by Dr. Igor Pleve including the following surnames; Baum, Busick, Debus, Felsing, Heinrich, Hergenroeder, Johannes, Krumm, Maser, Reitz, Reifschneider and Weigandt.
- Extensive genealogies compiled by researchers such as Gene Lehman, Derek Sturges, Kathy Brehm LaPella and others.
- Information obtained from the American Historical Society of Germans from Russia (AHSGR)
- Various family records.
- Many other sources as listed under Sources.
I have tried to use a simplified common sense approach to names. Many of the records used were originally written in Russian by Russians who were gathering information from a German speaking population. The errors caused by misunderstanding, language changes over many years, and translation difficulties have produced many errors and many variations of surnames. I am trying to use what I believe is a proper German spelling of the names involved even if the record in question has the name spelled differently. For the reason of consistency I am spelling names today perhaps differently from the way they were spelled a few hundred years ago.
There are many possible duplicated names. The German people used a small pool of names in naming their children, resulting in many people having the same name. This of course creates great confusion. I will merge two people into one record only when I am certain that both records refer to the same person. In many cases I am not certain and therefore duplication exists. Having said that I am certain that I have made mistakes. An email to me pointing out any mistakes will be greatly appreciated.
If you want more information on Kukkus or on any of the other Volga German Settlements visit both the American Historical Society of Germans from Russia Website and the Center for Volga German Studies Website which have links included below. In addition to a voluminous amount of on-line information available, you can also order not only much of the same reference materials I have used to prepare this website but numerous other materials covering the entire gamut of Volga German studies. A partial list of materials and where to order follows:
- 1767 First Settler List – Einwanderung in Das Wolgagebiet, v.2 by Igor Pleve AHSGR
- 1798 Kukkus Census – AHSGR
- 1834 Kukkus Census– Brent Mai bmai@cu-portland.edu
- 1850 Kukkus Census – Brent Mai (translation in process-not available, yet)
- 1857 Kukkus Census– Beth Mueller-Rohn Davenport volgadeutsch@yahoo.com
- Various Surname Charts – See AHSGR for details.
If you are interested in a login id and password to be able to use the full functionality of this database, please use the contact us button on this page letting us know who you are and your interest in this genealogy. Everyone who has an interest is welcome.