Lincoln, Lancaster Co., Nebraska
The first Volga German colonists to arrive in Lincoln came from Balzer in 1874. They were soon joined by hundreds of others. The largest of these immigrant groups came from Frank, Beideck, Huck, Balzer, and Kukkus.
They first settled in southwest Lincoln in the flood plains of Salt Creek, a neighborhood that became known as the South Bottoms. Development of the North Bottoms neighborhood began in 1888 as immigrants sought to live nearer the roundhouse of the Burlington Northern Railroad where many were employed. By 1915, there were 6,500 people living in these two enclaves. Sallet reports that by 1924, this number had grown to over 9,000.
Particularly for those Volga German families immigrating from Protestant colonies, Lincoln was a stopping point before moving on to other parts of North America. Today, Lincoln remains as one of the cities in North America with the highest concentration of descendants of Volga Germans. The headquarters of the American Historical Society of Germans from Russia, founded in 1968, is located in Lincoln.
The following Volga German families settled in and around Lincoln, Nebraska:
Achtziger
Adler
Alles from Walter
Alt
Amen from Frank
Amend from Walter
Arndt from Norka
Axt from Jost
Bahm from Kutter
Bangert from Dietel
Barthule from Balzer
Barthuli from Balzer
Barthuly from Neu-Balzer
Bastron
Batt
Bauer from Balzer
Baum from Kukkus
Beck
Becker from Balzer
Behrends
Behm from Dönhof
Beideck from Beideck
Beltz from Kukkus
Benner from Walter
Bernhardt
Betz
Block
Blum
Bohl from Huck
Borgens from Frank
Braun
Brecht from Schöntal
Brehm
Brenning from Kutter
Bretthauer
Bridegam from Kolb
Brotzman from Huck
Brungardt from Herzog
Bruntz from Merkel
Burbach from Norka
Buxmann
Dahlinger from Rosenberg
Dahmer from Beideck
David from Dietel
Debus from Kukkus
Decker from Balzer
Deer from Michaelsdorf (North Caucasus)
Deines from Kratzke & Norka
Deis from Laub
Dellos from Laub
Dellos / Dallas from Jost
Derr
Dick from Norka
Dinges
Ditter from Frank
Dorn from Walter
Dreith from Beideck
Eberle from Mariental
Eckhardt from Frank
Ehrhardt from Shcherbakovka
Eirich from Schwed
Eisenach from Frank
Eitel
Erb
Eurich from Balzer
Fabrizius from Kratzke
Fahrenbruch from Frank
Felsing from Kukkus
Feuerstein / Fierstein from Norka
Filbert from Schilling
Fink
Fischer
Flath / Floth from Frank
Fox / Fuchs from Hussenbach
Frank
Friehauf from Norka
Frick from Frank
Frickel from Kautz
Fritzler from Grimm
Froscheiser from Beideck
Gabel from Norka
Geist
George from Beideck
Gerlach from Norka
Gettmann from Walter
Giebelhaus from Norka
Gies from Walter
Glantz from Norka
Gradwohl from Kautz
Graf from Schilling
Grasmick from Balzer
Grauberger from Dietel
Green from Norka
Grenemeier from Beideck
Groth
Gruenemeier from Beideck
Gruenwald
Habberman from Balzer
Hagel from Norka
Hagelgantz from Kutter
Hahler from Jost
Hahn from Kaneau
Hanhardt from Kutter
Hardt from Balzer
Hardung
Harmony from Kautz
Harres from Schilling
Harris from Schilling
Hart from Kautz
Heckel from Jost
Heft from Balzer
Hegel from Norka
Heidenreich
Heil from Balzer
Heimbigner from Frank
Heimbuch from Balzer
Hein from Frank
Heinrich
Heiser / Heuser from Norka
Heitzenreder from Frank
Helzer from Norka
Hergenreder from Kukkus
Hergert
Herrmann
Herstein
Herzog from Balzer & Kutter
Herzog from Kukkus
Hettinger from Dietel
Hettinger from Dönhof
Hiegel from Norka
Hill
Hinkel from Norka
Hoch
Hoff
Hofferber from Frank
Hoffmann
Hohnstein from Norka
Holmgren from Karras (Caucasus)
Horst from Kolb
Huber from Balzer
Huck from Huck
Ils
Jackel / Yakel from Balzer
Jacobs from Pfeifer
Johannes from Kukkus
Jordan
Kahler from Beideck
Kahm from Balzer
Kaiser from Balzer
Kalbin from Balzer
Kaltenberger from Grimm
Kanzler from Kolb
Karle from Straub
Karst from Holstein
Kaufman from Frank
Kautz from Merkel
Kechter from Walter
Kehm from Balzer
Keiser from Norka
Keller
Kildaw from Norka
Kindsvater from Dietel
Kisling from Warenburg
Kisselman from Balzer
Kissler from Frank
Klamm from Warenburg
Klaus
Klein from Balzer
Klein from Kautz
Klemm from Kukkus
Klippert
Knaub from Balzer & Kautz
Knopf
Koch
Kohler from Balzer
Kolb from Laub
Korell
Krening
Krieger
Krumm from Kukkus
Kukas / Kukes from Kukkus
Lapp
Laubhan from Shcherbakovka
Lebsack from Frank
Lehl from Norka
Leikam from Laub
Lenz
Leonhardt
Less
Lesser from Frank
Lich
Lind
Lissmann from Dönhof
Lofink
Loos from Norka
Mahr from Walter
Mai
Margheim
Marker from Hussenbach
Maser from Kukkus
Maul from Norka
Maul from Schilling
Mauter from Schilling
Meininger
Melcher from Hussenbach
Meng
Michael / Michel
Miller from Balzer
Miller from Norka
Miller from Stahl am Tarlyk
Mohr from Beideck
Nagel from Norka
Neubauer from Kautz
Niederhaus from Huck
Nolde
Nuss
Obermiller from Brunnental
Olberg from Kukkus
Ostermiller from Beideck
Ostwald from Kautz
Pauley from Norka
Pfannenstiel from Ober-Monjou
Pfeif from Frank
Pfeifer from Herzog
Pfenning from Norka
Pitsch from Dietel
Popp from Balzer
Propp
Rebensdorf
Rehn
Reich from Norka
Reichel from Dietel
Reichert from Dietel
Reider / Reiter from Kautz
Reifschneider from Kukkus
Reinhardt
Reinick from Frank
Reitz from Kukkus
Riedel
Riffel from Galka
Ring from Dietel
Robertus from Balzer
Rodau from Stahl am Tarlyk
Rohleder from Rohleder
Rohn
Rohr from Mariental
Rohrig from Balzer
Rosenthal from Kukkus
Ross from Norka
Rotenberger from Neu-Hussenbach
Roth from Balzer
Rudolph from Jost
Rutt
Sack
Salzmann
Sauer from Norka
Sauermilch from Enders
Schadt from Schilling
Schafer
Scharton from Straub
Scheck from Balzer
Scheideman from Norka
Scheidt
Scheuermann
Schild from Merkel
Schilling
Schlegel
Schleicher from Norka
Schleining from Norka
Schilling from Hussenbach
Schilreff from Langenfeld
Schmidt from Pfeifer
Schmunk
Schneider from Balzer
Schneidmiller
Schnell from Norka
Schoessler from Walter
Schreiber from Norka
Schreiner from Kautz
Schultz
Schumann
Schwabauer from Balzer
Schwartz from Norka
Schwartzkopf from Dönhof
Schwindt from Norka
Seibel
Sekinger
Sell
Sinner from Kukkus
Sitzman from Frank
Spadt from Balzer
Spady from Norka
Spahn from Norka
Specht from Merkel
Spomer from Beideck
Staab from Katharinenstadt
Staley from Kautz
Stegman from Pfeifer
Steinbrecher from Dönhof
Steinbrecker from Dönhof
Steinmetz from Dietel
Steinmiller from Frank
Sterkel from Norka
Stettinger from Bauer
Stoeher from Balzer
Strackbein from Schilling
Stramel from Kamenka
Strassheim
Strauch from Beideck
Strecker
Stroh from Frank Khutor
Stumpf
Thiel
Traudt from Norka
Tripple from Warenburg
Trubelhorn
Trupp
Ulrich
Unrein from Ober-Monjou
Urbach from Balzer
Vogel from Wiesenmüller
Voltz from Balzer
VonFeldt from Herzog
Wacker / Walker
Wagenleitner from Warenburg
Wagner from Frank
Walter(s)
Wamboldt from Dietel
Wassenmiller
Weber from Balzer
Wegelin from Merkel
Weidenkeller from Norka
Weigandt from Huck
Weil from Beideck
Weisgerber from Huck
Weisheim from Balzer
Weitzel from Rosenberg
Wekesser from Anton
Wertz
Wiederspahn
Wilhelm
Willmann
Wink
Wolsborn from Frank
Worster / Wurster from Balzer
Worster from Konstantinovka
Wuckert from Balzer
Wurst
Yaeger from Norka
Yokel from Balzer
Yost from Norka
Young
Younger from Schilling
Zieg from Balzer
Zeiler
Zier from Dietel
Zimmermann
Zitterkopf from Huck
Zitzenstock from Lauwe
Zitzmann from Frank
- Kinbacher, Kurt E. "Life in the Russian Bottoms: Community Building and Identity Transformation among Germans from Russia in Lincoln, Nebraska, 1876 to 1926." Journal of American Ethnic History 26:2 (Winter 2007): 27-57.
- Sallet, Richard. Russian-German Settlement in the United States (Fargo, ND: North Dakota Institute for Regional Studies, 1974): 43-44.
- Fairview Cemetery (findagrave.com)
- Lincoln Memorial Park (findagrave.com)
- Wyuka Cemetery (findagrave.com)
- Wyuka Cemetery (gravestones.org)
- Lincoln, Nebraska (Wikipedia)
Map of Lincoln showing Volga German Settlement Areas.
Source: Ezra Zeitler via Kurt Kinbacher.