NORKA
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    • Pugachev Raid 1774
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    • Norka 1811
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    • Norka 1834
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Community > Health

Health

Until 1914, when the first medical and dental clinic was opened, Norka lacked professional doctors and relied on folk medicine and midwifery.  Although some of these practices now seem strange to us, a few have been shown to be effective. Johannes Preisendorf, notes in his "Chronicle of Norka" that Mrs. Elisabeth Hergenräter (Hergenroder) lived to be 100 years old, without ever being ill. 

Between 1784 and 1831 Rev. Johannes Baptista Cattaneo inoculated over 8,000 children against smallpox in the Norka parish.

Typhus and cholera were pandemics that frequently threatened Norka.
​
In 1848, a severe cholera epidemic raged in Norka and claimed many victims before it was controlled in 1849. In Russia, an estimated 3 million people died from the disease during this time.

Norka was again devastated by cholera in 1856, prompting some to move to daughter colonies on the east side of the Volga River.

Cholera struck again in 1868-1869 and in 1908-1910, claiming more lives. 

The famine of 1921-1924 brought with it both typhus in the summer and cholera during the winters. The same cycle reoccurred during the famine of the early 1930s. 

From 1934 onward, there was Feldscher (a type of field medic) in the colony. 
Former Norka Hospital
In 2007, the former Norka outpatient clinic (built in 1914) was repurposed as Russian Orthodox Church. Source: VK.com (2010)
Interior of former Norka hospital
Interior of the former Norka hospital and dental office which was converted to a Russian Orthodox Church in 2007. Source: VK.com (2010)

Sources

Cattaneo, Johann B. Eine Reise Durch Deutschland Und Russland, Seinen Freunden Beschrieben Von J.B. Cattaneo Aus Bünden, Gegenwaertigen Pfarrer Einer Reformierten Deutschen Colonie Zu Norka an Der Saratofischen Statthalterschaft an Der Wolga in Der Russischen Tartarei in Asien. Chur, Switzerland: 1787. Print.

Henze, Charlotte E. Disease, Health Care and Government in Late Imperial Russia: Life and Death on the Volga, 1823 - 1914. London: Routledge, 2011. Print.

Preisendorf, Johannes. "Auszüge aus der Chronik der Kolonie Norka an der Wolga." Der Kirchenbote. Date Unknown.
Last updated February 23, 2022.
Copyright © 2002-2023 Steven H. Schreiber
  • Home
    • About
    • Reviews
    • Contact
  • People
    • Founders
    • Personal Histories
    • Notable Norkans
    • Stories
    • Photo Identification
    • Photo Gallery
  • Community
    • Village Life
    • Entertainment
    • Agriculture
    • Climate
    • Homesites
    • Geographical Description
    • Government
    • Social Structure
    • Health
    • Education
    • A Land of Ethnic Diversity
    • Cottage Industries >
      • Sarpinka
      • Mills
    • Language
    • Population
    • Military Service
    • Crime and Punishment
  • History
    • Timeline
    • Origins of the Colonists
    • Catherine's Manifesto 1763
    • Why go to Russia?
    • Recruitment 1766
    • Planning 1764-1766
    • Marriages Prior To Emigration 1766
    • Voyage to Russia 1766 >
      • Ship Transport 1766
    • Journey 1766-1767
    • Founding of Norka 1767
    • Early Years 1767-1769
    • Norka 1769
    • Pallas Report 1773
    • Pugachev Raid 1774
    • Norka 1775
    • Norka 1798
    • Norka 1811
    • Napoleons Soldiers
    • Norka 1834
    • Daughter Colonies 1850s >
      • Neu-Norka
      • Oberdorf
      • Brunnental
      • Rosenfeld (am Jeruslan)
      • Neu Hussenbach (Gaschon)
    • Privileges Lost 1871-1874
    • Immigration 1875-1924 >
      • To the United States >
        • Colorado
        • Ft Collins Colorado
        • Globeville Colorado
        • Mason City, Iowa
        • Culbertson, Nebraska
        • Lincoln, Nebraska
        • Sutton, Nebraska
        • Burlington, Oklahoma
        • Weatherford, Oklahoma
        • Canby, Oregon
        • Portland, Oregon
      • To Canada >
        • Duffield, Alberta
        • Ponoka, Alberta
        • Spruce Grove, Alberta
        • Stony Plain, Alberta
        • Vegreville, Alberta
        • Arcola, Saskatchewan
      • To Germany
      • To South America
    • Famine 1891-1892
    • Norka 1898
    • War & Turnoil 1904-1906
    • World War 1914-1918
    • Revolution & War 1917-1922
    • Soviet Rule 1918-1941
    • Famine 1921-1924
    • Famine 1932-1933
    • The Great Terror 1936-1938
    • Deportation 1941
    • Repression 1941-1956
    • Cultural Loss 1957-2006
    • A Culture in Peril
    • Recent Times
  • Traditions
    • Food and Drink
    • Clothing
    • Holidays >
      • New Year
      • Fastnacht
      • Lent
      • Easter
      • Ascension Day
      • Pentecost
      • Founder's Day
      • Harvest Festival
      • Jahrmarkt
      • Christmas
      • Anniversaries & Birthdays
    • Crafts
    • Games
    • Folk Medicine
    • Superstitions
    • Nicknames
    • Folk Music
    • Church Music
    • Prayers
    • Baptism
    • Confirmation
    • Communion
    • Weddings
    • Funerals and Burials
  • Religion
    • Planning and History >
      • Norka Reformed Church 1767-1864
      • 1909 Norka Parish Report
    • Pastors >
      • Johann Heinrich Fuchs
      • Johann Georg Herwig
      • Johannes Baptista Cattaneo
      • Lukas Cattaneo
      • Emanuel Grunauer
      • Friedrich Börner
      • Christian Gottlieb Hegele
      • Christoph H Bonwetsch
      • Gottlieb N Bonwetsch
      • Wilhelm Staerkel
      • Woldemar Sibbul
      • David Weigum
      • Friedrich Alexander Wacker
      • Emil Pfeiffer
    • Church Practices >
      • Parochial Certificates
    • Church Buildings
    • Church Organs
    • Bell Tower
    • Brethren Movement
  • Resources
    • Family Research
    • Research Resources >
      • Arrival Records 1766
      • Descendant Charts
      • German EWZ Records
      • Soviet Gulag Records
    • Maps
    • Glossary
    • Bibliography
    • Periodicals >
      • Die Welt-Post Letters
    • Related Links