NORKA
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People > Stories > Memoirs of Johann Georg Schleuning​

Memoirs of Johann Georg Schleuning

Important dates in the life of Johann Georg Schleuning:
​

Johann-Georg Schleuning was born June 17, 1912 in Norka. He was confirmed on June 6, 1927. In 1936, he was married to Maria (they had no children). In 1937, his father Georg and older brother Andrey were arrested. Up to the summer of 1941 he worked in a collective farm. In 1941, he was deported to Altai territory, and was forced to serve in the Worker's Army (Trudarmee). In 1942 he was sent to the labor camp near the city of Kopeisk, in the Chelyabinsk area. In May, 1943 he began work in a coal mine. In 1946 he was released from the labor camp and in August, 1947 he married Minna Kemmel. In 1962 he became a pensioner. In April, 1992 he emigrated to Germany.

About Norka:

In the village there was a big pond. From the pond, a pipe carried water to the village. In each wide street there were water wells that were closed by heavy covers.

In the village there were two churches. One church was used only in the summer. In the winter, it was closed as there was no heating. Near to the main church stood a tower with three bells.

In the church there was also a school. Our house was constructed from bricks and covered with a metal sheet roof and was located near the church. The small children slept six together in one bed. Before the Revolution, my father worked for a weaving company owned by Paramonov.

In the 1930's, the government started to create collective farms. Before our property was collectivized, we had 6 bulls, 4 horses, 2 cows, some pigs and sheep. After collectivization, there was only one cow and a pig.

In 1930's, the church was closed. The church was then used as the state grain warehouse.

Between 1935 and 1937, many men in Norka were arrested. My father Georg was arrested because he read a prayer at the wedding of his daughter, Каtharina Elizabeth and Johann Schlidt (Schlitt). Someone told the NKVD (Soviet secret police) about the prayer and he was arrested in 1937 and along with my brother Andrey. Father did not return from prison, but my brother survived. Andrey now lives in Hanover, Germany.

In 1941, we were deported from Norka to the Altai territory. The family was large. My grandfather, his wife Maria, grandfather's sister-in-law Katherina Schleuning, her three children: Georg, Heinrich, Natalia and grandfather's sister Amalija and her son Klaus.​​

Source

Written by Inga Harder, the granddaughter of Johann Georg Schleuning and used with her permission. Translated by Alexander Schreiber, Moscow.
Last updated April 22, 2016.
Copyright © 2002-2023 Steven H. Schreiber
  • Home
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    • Notable Norkans
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    • 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