The first group of Volga Germans to immigrate to Fresno left the colonies of Straub and Stahl am Tarlyk on 8 May 1887. They arrived at the old Southern Pacific Depot in Fresno on 19 June 1887. This first group was comprised of 31 men, women, and children. It consisted of the following families: Andreas, Berg, Kerner, Karle, Metzler, Mehling, Nillmaier, and Steitz. The second and third waves of Volga German arrivals in Fresno brought the following families: Bopp, Bitter, Diel, Gleim, Hartwig, Heinze, Hubert, Lieder, Roth, Scheerer, and Schwabenland.
Over the years, immigrants also arrived from Anton, Bangert, Gnadendorf, Jost, Kautz, Kukkus, Laub, Lauwe, Neu-Schilling, Shcherbakovka, Stahl am Karaman, and Warenburg. By 1891, the number of Volga Germans living in Fresno reached 167; by 1899 it was 734; and by 1908, it had reached 3,000. By 1920, the Volga German population in and around Fresno had grown to 8,000. The Volga German population by 1970 reached over 100,000, and it is estimated today that there are at least 250,000 Volga German descendants in the Fresno metropolitan area.
The first Volga German settlers to arrive in Sanger, southwest of Fresno, came from the colonies of Dreispitz and Shcherbakovka.
The original Volga German neighborhood in Fresno was bounded by Church, Mono, G, and Fruit Streets.
Cross Church
St. Paul's Lutheran
Third Congregational
Wartburg Lutheran Church
Zion Congregational Church
The following Volga German families settled in and around Fresno, California:
Adolph from Warenburg
Alles from Walter
Amen from Frank
Andersen from Dinkel
Andreas / Andrews from Warenburg
Arnbrister from Galka
Arndt from Warenburg
Arnst from Reinhard & Warenburg
Aschenbrener from Gnadendorf
Axt from Jost
Bathauer from Dobrinka
Bauer from Frank
Baum from Kukkus
Becker from Kukkus
Befort from Ober-Monjou
Befus from Katharinental
Behm from Dönhof
Beiden from Dinkel
Biehl from Gnadendorf
Beier / Biar / Bier from Warenburg
Bender
Benzel from Kolb
Benzler from Dinkel
Berg
Bessinger from Stahl am Tarlyk
Bichner from Laub
Bischel from Jost
Bister
Bitter from Lauwe
Blehm from Straßburg
Boos from Warenburg
Bopp from Straub
Borgart from Schwed
Borgdorf from Stahl am Tarlyk
Borgens from Frank
Borger from Warenburg
Bos(s)ler from Straub
Brack from Pobochnaya
Brase from Jost
Brehm
Bretzer / Pretzer from Laub
Brumm from Schilling
Burgdorf from Stahl am Tarlyk
Busch from Laub
Buseck / Busick from Kukkus
Buxmann from Wiesenmüller
Christian from Dinkel
Constance / Constanz from Warenburg
Dahlinger from Kraft
Damm / Dunn from Schilling
Dauer from Jost
Debus from Kukkus
Deibert from Dinkel
Deines
Deis from Laub
Demler from Laub
Dermer from Straub
Desch from Pfeifer
Die(h)l from Straub
Diener from Warenburg
Dottai from Urbach
Dreiling from Herzog
Eberlein from Laub
Eckhardt from Frank
Eckhardt from Lauwe
Ehrlich from Shcherbakovka
Eichmann from Gnadentau & Schwab
Eirich from Friedenberg
Eisner from Warenburg
Eitel
Engel
Engelmann from Kolb & Kukkus
Eurich from Kukkus
Fatius from Kukkus
Feuerstein from Brunnental
Fiebig
Fischer from Warenburg
Fleck / Flach from Jost & Warenburg
Flohr from Merkel
Floth from Frank
Foos from Dietel
Forschauer from Kukkus
Frank from Kautz
Frantz from Laub
Freis
Friedrich from Laub
Fries from Hussenbach
Frisch from Warenburg
Fritzler
Fuchs
Funkner from Warenburg
Gammel from Bangert
Ganshorn from Anton
Gaus from Fischer
Gerber
Gerhardt from Warenburg
Geringer / Goeringer from Lauwe
Gettman from Frank
Gleim from Gnadenflur & Hoffental
Glock from Straub
Glockhamer from Kautz
Göbel (Gabel) from Warenburg
Gortie
Gossman from Urbach
Götz from Kukkus
Graf from Schilling
Grasmick from Lauwe
Grass from Stahl am Tarlyk
Groman from Dinkel
Gross
Groth
Haas
Hart from Laub
Hartman
Hardwig / Hartwig
Heinrich from Kukkus
Heintz from Bangert
Heinze
Helmuth from Stahl am Tarlyk
Helzer
Henkel
Hepner
Hergenreder from Kukkus
Herman
Herstein from Kukkus
Herzog from Kukkus
Hettinger
Hieronymus from Straub & Warenburg
Hilzer from Norka
Hintergardt from Stephan
Hoff from Frank
Holstein
Hölz from Warenburg
Hoppe
Horch from Stahl am Tarlyk & Warenburg
Horn from Laub
Horst from Gnadendorf
Huber
Hubert
Isheim from Kukkus
Jacoby from Laub
Jede
Johannes from Kukkus
Jost (Yost) from Warenburg
Kaehler
Kaiser / Keiser
Karle from Straub
Karst
Kemmerer
Kerber from Stahl am Tarlyk
Kern from Norka
Kerner from Lauwe
Kindsvater
Kinzel from Warenburg
Kisling from Warenburg
Kissler from Frank
Kister from Warenburg
Klamm from Warenburg
Klaus from Ober-Monjou
Klein
Klemm from Kukkus
Kohl
Kraft from Straub
Kramer
Kraus
Krell from Stahl am Tarlyk
Krumm from Kukkus
Kuhn
Kuntzman
Kruse from Laub
Laikam from Laub
Lambel from Straub
Laub from Laub
Laubhan from Shcherbakovka
Legleiter from Liebental
Legler from Dinkel
Lehman from Stahl am Tarlyk
Leiker from Ober-Monjou
Leisle from Warenburg
Lenhart from Frank
Lieder
Lindgren from Stahl am Tarlyk
Lock(e)
Loeb from Bangert
Lofink from Warenburg
Lung from Straub
Mahling / Mehling
Markus from Lauwe
Martin
Maser from Kukkus
Maul from Schilling
Meier
Meisner from Lauwe
Merk from Laub
Metzger from Warenburg
Metzler from Laub & Straub
Miller from Kukkus & Warenburg
Mohn from Moor
Morasch from Lauwe
Nein from Schilling
Neuhard from Kukkus
Nickel
Nielsen from Stahl am Tarlyk
Nillmaier / Nilmeier from Stahl am Tarlyk
Oehlschlaeger from Straub
Ohlberg from Kukkus
Pfister from Urbach
Pinnecker from Wiesenmüller
Preuss (Price) from Lauwe
Pretzer from Laub
Quindt from Dobrinka
Quisnar from Jost
Rau
Rebensdorf from Dinkel
Rein from Konstantinovka
Reisig from Shcherbakovka
Reiter from Kautz
Reitz from Bangert & Kukkus
Ressler from Laub
Ries from Dinkel & Warenburg
Rodau from Stahl am Tarlyk
Rommel from Hussenbach
Rosenberger from Nieder-Monjou
Rosental from Kukkus
Roth
Rothermel from Straub
Rube / Ruby from Lauwe
Rudolph from Straub
Ruh
Saalfeld from Konstantinovka
Salwasser from Stahl am Tarlyk
Sauermilch from Gnadendorf
Scha(e)f(f)er
Scharton from Straub
Scheerer / Scherer
Scheibel
Scheideman from Norka
Scheidt from Stahl am Tarlyk
Schiebelhut from Stahl am Tarlyk
Schiffmann from Warenburg
Schledewitz from Jost
Schlotthauer from Dobrinka
Schmall from Stahl am Tarlyk
Schmidt / Smith
Schneider from Kukkus & Straub
Schroeder
Schultz
Schwabenland from Straub
Schwartz
Schwengel from Warenburg
Schwindt from Dreispitz
Seher from Straub
Seib (Sipe) from Stahl am Tarlyk
Seibert from Warenburg
Seifert
Seilbach from Hussenbach
Simon from Karlsruhe (North Caucasus)
Simon from Laub
Sinner from Stahl am Tarlyk
Sittner
Sitzenstock / Zitzenstock from Lauwe
Sommer
Spaet / Spate from Bangert
Spomer from Stahl am Tarlyk
Starkel
Steinhauer from Warenburg
Steinmetz from Brunnental
Steitz from Straub
Stenger from Stahl am Tarlyk
Stier from Jost
Stiglitz from Lauwe
Stuckert from Wiesenmüller
Stumpf from Warenburg
Traudt from Norka
Trippel from Warenburg
Utz from Neu-Weimar
Wagenleitner from Warenburg
Wagner
Wasmuth
Weber from Laub
Wehrwein
Weigand from Kukkus
Weisbrod / Wiesbrod from Straub
Werner from Warenburg
Wiederkehr from Laub
Will / Wills from Lauwe & Straub
Winter
Wolfe
Wollert
Worster from Balzer
Wulf from Dinkel
Yeager from Norka
Zisch from Dinkel
Zitterkopf from Huck
- Challenger, Tom. Hunting for forgotten history; Old US 99 in Fresno (8 September 2017). [Online]
- Germantown, Fresno (Fresno, CA: City of Fresno, Planning and Development Department, 2006). (online link)
- Koch, Fred C. The Volga Germans: In Russia and the Americas, from 1763 to the Present (University Park: Pennsylvania State University Press, 1977): 215.
- "The Religious History of the Germans-Russians in the USA." California District Council Report (Fall 2003): 6-7. (online link)
- Biola, California (Wikipedia)
- Fresno, California (Wikipedia)
- Parlier, California (Wikipedia)
Area of Fresno where "Germantown" used to be.
Source: Architectural Resources Group.
Area of Fresno where "Germantown" used to be.
Source: Architectural Resources Group.
St. Joseph Catholic Church in Fresno (1882).
Corner of L Street & Old Mill Ditch in Fresno (1884).
Source: San Juaquin Valley Library System.
Fresno in 1888 (looking northwest on J Street (now Fulton Street).
Southern Pacific Railway Depot in Fresno.
Source: E.P. Charlton & Co.