Preservings 11 (1997) - Plett Foundation

light on why Father had not written at all of
the year on the land. She was silent a while
and then said: “I believe the reason must be
that his life here was too difficult. He simply
could not bring himself to even write about
it.”
And then she proceeded to tell how it was
in the beginning, how strange and unfamiliar
the ‘Auswanderer’ felt in their new country.
There were homesteads to build where nothing
had existed before, and the land had to be
wrestled from the steaming, dark, impenetrable
forests by sheer force of sweat and
unrelenting labour. To this day one can see
reflected in the faces and work-thickened
hands of those early immigrants the tremendous
hardships that go with the pioneering of
a new land. Even now, years later, when the
hard work is done by labour saving machinery,
they sit in a stillness that attests to a bonedeep
weariness that no amount of rest will ever
fully cease.
Conclusion.
My respect and admiration grew apace,
when I realised the full scope of the immense
effort that has been expended to establish this
well-ordered colony with its neat farm yards,
its planted gardens, its sleek cattle, its vast
hectares of golden wheat, its quiet, understated
prosperity.
Canada is my home, a land that I love, but
for two weeks one October, I was in a place
that, had fate and circumstances been otherwise,
might very well have been my home.
How would my life be then, I wonder.
Descendants.
The descendants of Ben S. and Aganetha
Wiebe include Aganetha’s son Rev. Ed Wiebe
(son of Jakob S. Wiebe), Steinbach, formerly
chicken farmer in Grunthal, well-known as a
director of the Steinbach Credit Union for many
years. The extended Wiebe family includes Dr.
Cornelius W. Wiebe, Winkler, and Dr. Bernie
Wiebe, Menno Simons College, Winnipeg.
About the Author.
Anne Funk is married to Henry Funk,
owner of Sandy Ridge Construction and President
of the Grunthal Credit Union Ltd. Anne
is a homemaker and writer-producer of Low
German dramas. Her brilliant stage productions
have been played in numerous venues in
Southern Manitoba, Winnipeg and elsewhere
and have been enjoyed by thousands.
The S. S. Volandam, the ship in which 1700 immigrants
made the journey from Quebec, Canada, to Buenos
Aires.
Preservings
The railway station where the immigrants arrived in July 1948. The station is still used occasionally.
Historical Historical Note.
Note.
Bernhardt S. Wiebe (1913-71) was the son
of Jakob Wiebe (1886-1954) born in the Altona
area. Jakob was married to Susanna
Schellenberg, daughter of John Schellenberg
and Elisabeth Warkentin. The family moved
to the Grunthal area in 1930.
Jakob Wiebe was the son of Bernd Wiebe
(1854-1916) and Katharina Friesen (1858-
1938), daughter of Johann Friesen (1833-60)
and Katharina Falk, who later married his
cousin Abraham Friesen (b. 1831) BGB B137:
Gnadenfeld 1881, BGB 140, 369. Katharina
Friesen (1858-1938) was a cousin to David
W. Friesen (1879-1951) founder of the “D. W.
Friesen” printing firm in Altona. David’s sister,
Helena (1884-1960) was the grandfather
of John F., Cornelius F., and Diedrich F.
Friesen, poultry farmers in the Grunthal area:
see article by Henry Schapansky, “Bergthaler/
Chortitzer Friesens,” elsewhere in this newsletter.
Bernd Wiebe was the son of Bernd Wiebe
(1821-97) BGBA137, who lived in Heuboden,
Bergthal Colony, and came to Canada in 1876.
The “Brot Schuld Registers” of the Bergthaler
Gemeinde ER show a Bernd Wiebe son of Peter
resident in Hochfeld, E.R., around 1876:
Preservings, No. 8, June 1996, Part Two, page
42. Bernd Wiebe (1821-97) is listed in
Wiedenfeld, WR, in the 1881 census, BGB
274,375. In his Journal for July 20, 1896,
Chortitzer Aeltester David Stoesz has recorded
that “uncle Bernhard Wiebe left here
[Bergthal, ER] after a 3 day visit.” On November
15, 1896, Stoesz noted that he “went
to the Bernd Wiebes, Weidenfeld, for the
night”—Historical Sketches, pages 454-5.
David Stoesz was married to Maria Wiebe (b.
1842), daughter of Heinrich Wiebe (1806-65)
BGB A 119. The wedding invitation letter for
Maria and David Stoesz dated November 25,
60
1862, invited Bernhard Wiebe, Heuboden, also
the village where the bride’s parents lived—
Bergthal Colony, page 42.
Bernd Wiebe (1854-1916) is listed in the
1881 census in Gnadenfeld, WR, BGB 154-
370, the same village where his mother and
step-father had settled. Bernd and Katharina
Wiebe farmed all their lives in the Altona area
and are buried on a farmyard near Rosenfeld,
1 miles west on the west side of Highway 14.
Additional information about the Wiebe family
is found in Herman Rempel, “Bernhard
Wiebe and Descendants Book.”
Bernhardt S. Wiebe (1913-71) married
Aganetha Braun (1913-54), widow of his
brother Jakob. Aganetha was the daughter of
Jakob Braun (1885-1921) of the village of
Gnadenfeld, a cousin to Jakob Braun III, referred
to in the article “The House of Jakob,”
by Ernest Braun elsewhere in this newsletter.
In a letter of October 10, 1997, Henry
Schapansky writes, “Bernhard Wiebe
(25.7.1821) m. 1844 Kornelia Wiebe
(4.9.1824). This is probably a difficult family
to trace. There dosn’t appear to be any primary
documents, as far as I know. My best
guess would be:
Bernhard Wiebe (1821-96) was the son of
Jakob Wiebe (b. 1784) and Maria Rempel?
(b. 1788) of Mariendorf, Old Colony. Kornelia
Wiebe (1824-95) was the daughter of Heinrich
Wiebe (b. 1782) and Anna Hiebert ? (b. 1783)
of Rosenthal, Old Colony. All of this needs
some kind of corroboration.”
Coming in the next issue.
Article by Henry Schapansky
on the Bergthaler/Chortitzer
Wiebe families.