Johann Heinrich Fuchs
Johann Heinrich Fuchs was born in Hessen-Kassel was among the first settlers who arrived in the Volga region in 1766/67. It is not known where he received his theological training.
From 1767 to 1770 Pastor Fuchs served the colony of Messer. Between 1767 and 1769 he also became the first pastor to serve the newly founded colony of Norka. Pastors were in very short supply during the early years of settlement and generally served several colonies.
The following excerpt about Pastor Fuchs is taken from Geschichte der Reformirten Kirche in Russland:
From 1767 to 1770 Pastor Fuchs served the colony of Messer. Between 1767 and 1769 he also became the first pastor to serve the newly founded colony of Norka. Pastors were in very short supply during the early years of settlement and generally served several colonies.
The following excerpt about Pastor Fuchs is taken from Geschichte der Reformirten Kirche in Russland:
"Right from the start Norka enjoyed a wooden church, a parsonage and a schoolhouse. In the beginning a Pastor Fuchs sometimes came to the colonies, where he dispensed Holy Communion, but since the community was unable to make a firm offer to hire him, he took the place of a Reformed preacher in Jaroslaw."
In 1769, Johann Georg Herwig became the first resident pastor of the Norka parish.
Pastor Fuchs also served the Reformed colony of Pobochnaya (Nebendorf) about 1771 and also served as pastor in Saratov. In 1772, he began serving the German Reformed congregation in the Russian town of Jaroslavl'. That same year, Pastor Fuchs traveled to St. Petersburg to conduct the confirmation examination for two daughters of the Fock family. In 1782, Pastor Fuchs returned to the Volga German colonies. In 1797 he was working in the Russian town of Tver. It is interesting to note that both Jaroslavl' and Tver were towns that Pastor Fuchs may have traveled through with the colonists on their way to the lower Volga in 1766/67. It's likely that he became acquainted at that time with the clergy in those locations. Pastor Fuchs again returned to the Volga and served the colony of Riebensdorf (Voronezh Province) from 1798 to 1801.
In 1802, Pastor Fuchs died in Moscow during a fundraising trip.
In 1802, Pastor Fuchs died in Moscow during a fundraising trip.
Sources
Amburger, Erik. Die Pastoren Der Evangelischen Kirchen Russlands Vom Ende Des 16. Jahrhunderts Bis 1937: Ein Biographisches Lexikon. Lüneburg: Inst. Nordostdt. Kulturwerk, 1998. 320. Print.
Dalton, Hermann. Geschichte Der Reformirten Kirche in Russland: Kirchenhistorische Studie. Trans. William Pickelhaupt. Gotha: R. Besser, 1865. Print. Translation prepared for Steven Schreiber in July 2011.
Schnurr, Joseph. Die Kirchen Und Das Religiöse Leben Der Rußlanddeutschen. Stuttgart: AER-Verl., 1978. 136. Print.
Pobochnaya Village Coordinators Report for American Historical Society of Germans from Russia, 2008.
Dalton, Hermann. Geschichte Der Reformirten Kirche in Russland: Kirchenhistorische Studie. Trans. William Pickelhaupt. Gotha: R. Besser, 1865. Print. Translation prepared for Steven Schreiber in July 2011.
Schnurr, Joseph. Die Kirchen Und Das Religiöse Leben Der Rußlanddeutschen. Stuttgart: AER-Verl., 1978. 136. Print.
Pobochnaya Village Coordinators Report for American Historical Society of Germans from Russia, 2008.
Last updated August 6, 2020.