Preservings 11 (1997) - Plett Foundation

Preservings
Peter Neufeld (1821-1922): Centenarian
Peter D. Neufeld (1821-1922), Schönthal, Bergthal Colony, Imperial Russia, to Ebenfeld, Manitoba - Centenarian; by Audrey
Toews, Box 991, Steinbach, Manitoba, R0A 2A0.
Introduction.
Peter Neufeld was born to Jacob Neufeld
(1792-1870) and wife Maria P. Doerksen
(1798-1877) on February 16, 1821 in the
Chortitza Colony, South Russia, BGB A 66.
The Jakob Neufeld family first lived in
Rosenthal, Chortitza Colony, and later in
Schönwiese, before moving to the Bergthal
Colony in 1837.
Peter had one older brother, Jacob born
in 1818. Two more brothers and three sisters
followed; Katarina in 1823, Abraham in
1830, Maria in 1833, Elisabeth in 1837, and
Johann in 1840. It is interesting to note that
at a time when so many women died in childbirth,
both Peter’s parents reached old age.
In fact, Peter’s mother, Maria, came to
Canada as well, arriving in Quebec on the
S.S. Peruvian on July 13, 1875. She travelled
with her daughter Elisabeth, the Cornelius
Neufeld family.
Bergthal Colony 1833-76.
According to The Bergthal Colony by Wm.
Schroeder of Winnipeg, the Chortitza Colony
in South Russia was becoming crowded by
the early 1830s. The first group of Mennonite
settlers having arrived there in 1788.
With an increase in the population and a law
that stated that lands could not be divided, it
soon became necessary for the group to find
new lands. In 1833 this became possible
when the Chortitza Colony was able to purchase
a parcel of land in an area 20 miles
northwest of Mariupol.
The year 1833 resulted in the worst crop
failure that the Chortitza Colony had experienced
in Russia and therefore the people were
in no rush to migrate. Also they did not want
to make the same mistakes that had happened
during the previous migration. Only families
belonging to the Flemish congregation and
not the Frisian were encouraged to go and
they made sure that there was a minister to
accompany them.
Peter was 16 at the time when his parents
moved to the Bergthal colony in 1837. His
parents were 44 and 39 and his youngest sibling,
Maria, was almost 4. The group had
moved into a beautiful area: the landscape
was relatively level, but a high hill to the
north and the Bodena Valley in which the first
group settled, inspired them to call the new
colony and its main village, Bergthal, literally
“mountain valley’. The people were industrious
and by 1845, Johann Cornies reported
that Bergthal had 401 apple trees, 400
pear trees, 197 plum trees, 295 cherry trees
and 36 apricot trees besides numerous other
shade trees—the village of Bergthal had a
total of 3,982 trees.
Peter D. Neufeld age 78 with his second wife, Anna Hildebrand, age 63, circa 1899, first published by Klaas J.
B. Reimer, “[Peter Neufeld] boxed article, no title,” Steinbach Post, March 30, 1965. All photographs for this
article except as indicated are courtesy of Audrey Toews, Box 991, Steinbach, Manitoba, R0A 2A0.
Peter Neufeld (1821-1922).
Peter D. Neufeld was baptized on the confession
of his faith on May 31, 1843 at the
age of 22.
He was the third child in the family to
wed when he married Susanna N. Bergen on
June 11, 1844. He was 23 and she was almost
19. Life was not without its hardships
for this couple. Their first three children died
at 6 months, 2 days, and 1 1/2 years respectively.
The same year that their third child
died, Peter’s youngest brother, Johann, 8
years old, also died. Other children of Peter
and Susanna Neufeld’s were Jacob, born in
1851, Heinrich and his twin brother Peter
64
were born in 1853, Peter died at the age of 8
years. Abraham was born in 1856, Johann,
born in 1859 did not live. Susanna was born
in 1860, Maria in 1863. In the year 1866,
Peter and Susanna again had a set of twin
boys, Peter and Johann. Johann lived only 10
days. Katarina, the youngest, was born in
1869.
Peter D. Neufeld was known as a successful
entrepreneur in Bergthal and “operated a
store and inn (Schenke) and later owned a
Wirtschaft in Schönthal. He evidently owned
cattle since he had considerable knowledge
of the treatment of cattle ailments common
to herds in Russia”—John Dyck, “Kleefeld,”