Two Rau brothers arrived together from Lübeck at the port of Oranienbaum on 15 August 1766 aboard a snow-brig named Drei Gebrüder (Three Brothers) under the command of Skipper Ludwig Münzenberg. Both settled in the Volga German colony of Leitsinger.
(1) The baptism of Johannes Rauh, son of Georg & Barbara Rau of Köttmannsdorf, on 18 June 1735 in is recorded on the parish register of the Catholic church in Sassanfahrt.
The baptisms of 5 children born to Johannes Rauhe [sic] are recorded in the parish register of Sassenfahrt: (1) Johannes Balthasar, born 2 July 1758, died 24 October 1760; (2) Wilhelm Conrad, baptized 13 November 1759; (3) Barbara, baptized 20 December 1761; (4) Michael, baptized 6 April 1764; and (5) Barbara [again], baptized 25 April 1766.
Johann Rau, a farmer, his wife Margaretha, and children (Wilhelm, age 11; Barbara, age 7; Michael, age 5; Barbara [again], age ¾) arrived in Oranienbaum.
Johann Rausch [sic], his wife Margaretha, and children (Wilhelm, age 11; Barbara, age 7; Michael, age 5) are recorded on the list of colonists being transported from St. Petersburg to Saratov in 1767.
Johann Rauch [sic], his wife Margaretha, and children (Wilhelm, age 11; Barbara, age 7; Michael, age 5; Kaspar, age ¼) are recorded on the 1767 census of Leitsinger in Household No. 38. They had settled in Leitsinger on 19 August 1767.
Following the destruction of Leitsinger, the Johannes Rau family resettled to the colony of Neu-Kolonie.
They are recorded on the 1798 census of Neu-Kolonie in Households No. Nk32 and Nk44.
Michael Rau, adopted son of Johannes Rau, is recorded on the 1811 census of Neu-Kolonie in Household No. 42 along with a note that he relocated to the colony of Hölzel in 1809.
Michael Rau from Keller [sic] is recorded on the 1811 census of Hölzel in Household No. 21 along with a note that he had arrived in Hölzel from Keller in 1809.
In 1814, David Rau, son of Wilhelm Rau, moved from Neu-Kolonie to Seelmann.
In 1826, Michael Rau (born 1797-1798) moved from Neu-Kolonie to Seelmann.
The Oranienbaum passenger list records that Johann Rau came from the German region of Bamberg.
(2) The baptism of Georg Balthasar Rau, son of Georg & Barbara Rauh of Köttmannsdorf, is recorded on 8 October 1738 in the parish register of St. Sigismund Catholic Church in Seußling (just south of Sassanfahrt).
The marriage of Balthasar Rauhe, son of Georg Rauhe of Sassanfahrt, to Margaretha Bett, daughter of Johannes Bett of Strullendorf, is recorded on 23 July 1764 in the parish register of St. Sigismund Catholic Church in Seußling.
The baptism of Eva Rauh, daughter of Balthasar & Margaretha Rauh of Köttmannsdorf, is recorded on 29 August 1765 in the parish register of St. Sigismund Catholic Church in Seußling.
Balthasar Rau, a farmer, his wife Margaretha, and daughter Eva Margaretha (age 1) arrived in Oranienbaum.
Balthasar Rausch [sic], his wife Magdalena [sic], and daughter Eva Margretha (age 1½) are recorded on the list of colonists being transported from St. Petersburg to Saratov in 1767.
Balthasar Rauch [sic] and his wife Margaretha are recorded on the 1767 census of Leitsinger in Household No. 40. They had arrived in Leitsinger on 19 August 1767.
Descendants of Balthasar Rau are believed to be recorded on the 1798 census in Household No. Nk15.
The 1767 census records that both Balthasar and Johann Rauch came from the German village of Sassanfahrt in the Bamberg region.
- 1811 Hölzel Census (Household No. 21).
- 1811 Neu-Kolonie Census (Household No. 42).
- 1834 Neu-Kolonie Census (Household No. 60).
- 1834 Seelmann Census (Household No. 82).
- Idt, Andreas and Georg Rauschenbach. Auswanderung deutscher Kolonisten nach Russland im Jahre 1766 (Moscow: Idt & Rauschenbach, 2019): 33.
- Idt, Andreas and Georg Rauschenbach. Deutsche Kolonisten im Jahr 1766 in Oranienbaum und in den Siedlungsorten: Die Kuhlberg-Listen (Moscow: Idt & Rauschenbach, 2024): 725, 726.
- Mai, Brent Alan. 1798 Census of the German Colonies along the Volga: Economy, Population, and Agriculture (Lincoln, NE: American Historical Society of Germans from Russia, 1999): Nk15, Nk32, Nk44.
- Parish register of Sassenfahrt.
- Parish register of St. Sigismund Catholic Church in Seußling.
- Pleve, Igor. Einwanderung in das Wolgagebiet, 1764-1767 Band 3 (Göttingen: Der Göttinger Arbeitskreis, 2005): 69.
- Pleve, Igor. Lists of Colonists to Russia in 1766: Reports by Ivan Kulberg (Saratov: Saratov State Technical University, 2010): #5799, #5802.
- Rauschenbach, Georg. Deutsche Kolonisten auf dem Weg von St. Petersburg nach Saratow: Transportlisten von 1766-1767 (Moscow: G.V. Rauschenbach, 2017): #6507-6511, 6514-6516.
Brent Mai
Irma Sabelfeld
Jorgelina Fischer
Anonymous2
Immigrated to the following locations
Entry from the parish register of Sassanfahrt recording the baptism of Johannes Rauh on 18 June 1735.
Source: Jorgelina Fischer.
Entry from the parish register of Sassanfahrt recording the baptism of Wilhelm Conrad Rauhe on 13 November 1759.
Source: Irma Sabelfeld.
Entry from the parish register of St. Sigismund Catholic Church in Seußling recording the birth of Georg Balthasar Rau on 8 October 1738.
Source: Anonymous2.
Entry from the parish register of St. Sigismund Catholic Church in Seußling recording the marriage of Balthasar Rauhe & Margaretha Bett on 23 July 1764.
Source: Anonymous2.
Entry from the parish register of St. Sigismund Catholic Church in Seußling recording the baptism of Eva Rauh on 29 August 1765.
Source: Anonymous2.