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People > Founders > ​​​​​​​​​​​Hölzer

Hölzer Families

Four Hölzer men settled in the colony of Norka in 1767. Three of the men are brothers and the fourth is possibly related. All four men are from Oberzell (Sinntal) which was part of the Principality of Hessen at the time.

The three siblings are the sons of Just Höltzer (1712-1760) and Elisabeth Graußhaar (1716-1758). Just and Elisabeth were married on 17 July 1738 in Oberzell. The three boys were born and baptized in Oberzell.

  • Johann Conrad, baptized 8 October 1745
  • Johannes, baptized 1 February 1748
  • Johann Adam, baptized 18 February 1750

The three brothers departed from home and traveled with a group of colonists that sailed from the port city of Lübeck aboard the Russian sailing ship "Slon" (Elephant) and arrived in Oranienbaum, Russia (now Lomonosov) on 19 July 1766.

While traveling to the settlement area, Johann Conrad married Charlotta (surname unknown). They are listed as Household No. 88 in the 1767 Census. They later had at least 6 children, all born in Norka.

Johannes married Anna Barbara (surname unknown) during transport to the colonies. They are listed in the 1767 Census as Household No. 137. They had one child, a daughter. Anna Barbara died sometime after her daughters birth. Johannes married a second time to Catharina Elisabeth Prester who was previously married to Jacob Gudon. They moved to Schaffhausen in 1786 and had at least 4 children.

Johann Adam is shown in the 1767 Census living in the household of Johannes Dinges (Households No. 164 and 164a). Johann Adam married Anna Gertrude Wilhelm about 1768 and they had at least 8 children, all born in Norka.

The fourth Hölzer that settled in Norka is another Johannes. He was born about 1740 and married Elisabeth Külthau in Oberzell on 9 February 1764. They sailed from Lübeck aboard the ship "Strelna" and arrived in Oranienbaum on 28 July 1766. Johannes is listed in the 1767 Census as Household No. 5 along with a wife named Anna Maria. It seems that Elisabeth died en route and Johannes remarried. Johannes and Anna Maria have a son, Johann Georg, who is two weeks old at the time of the census. Also living in their household is a single male, Just Köhler, age 18. Johannes Hölzer is listed as the "Beisitzer" (an administrator) of the colony. Johannes died before 1790. His widow, Anna Maria, and son Johann Georg, moved to the colony of Anton that year. In 1796, Johann Georg moved to the colony of Dinkel. 

Sources

Research by Maggie Hein and Steve Schreiber posted on the The Volga Germans website on 12 June 2022 and used with permission.

Parish records of Mottgers (including Oberzell, Schwarzenfels, Weichersbach, and Züntersbach) on Archion.de

Idt, Andreas and Rauschenbach, Georg. Auswanderung deutsche Kolonisten nach Russland im Jahre 1766 (Second edition). Moscow: 2019. pgs. 29 and 33.

Pleve, Igor. Lists of Colonists to Russia in 1766: Reports by Ivan Kulberg (Saratov: Saratov State Technical University, 2010) pgs. 265 and 316. 

Pleve, Igor. Einwanderung in das Wolgagebiet, 1764-1767 Band 3 (Göttingen: Nordost-Institute, 2005) pgs. 228, 252, 265, 273.

Rye, Richard, translator. 1775 and 1798 Census of Norka (Lincoln, NE: American Historical Society of Germans from Russia, 1995). 1775 Households: 13, 14, 16 and 129.

Mai, Brent Alan. 1798 Census of the German Colonies along the Volga: Economy, Population, and Agriculture Volumes 1 and 2. (Lincoln, NE: American Historical Society of Germans from Russia, 1999) Households: Nr014, Nr016, Nr020, Nr100, Sh41, Mv1930 and Dn35, Mv1952, Mv2022.
Last updated June 14, 2022
Copyright © 2002-2023 Steven H. Schreiber
  • Home
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    • Notable Norkans
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  • 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