Fresno, Fresno Co., California
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 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:
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
Bauer from Frank
Baum from Kukkus
Becker from Kukkus
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
Bitter from Lauwe
Blehm from Straßburg
Boos from Warenburg
Bopp from Straub
Borgart from Schwed
Borgdorf from Stahl am Tarlyk
Borger from Warenburg
Bos(s)ler from Straub
Brack from Pobochnaya
Brase from Jost
Brehm
Bretzer / Pretzer from Laub
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
Die(h)l from Straub
Diener from Warenburg
Eberlein from Laub
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
Feuerstein from Brunnental
Fiebig
Fischer from Warenburg
Fleck from Warenburg
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
Grasmick from Lauwe
Grass from Stahl am Tarlyk
Groman from Dinkel
Gross
Haas
Hart from Laub
Hartman
Hardwig / Hartwig
Heinrich from Kukkus
Heinze
Helmuth from Stahl am Tarlyk
Henkel
Hepner
Hergenreder from Kukkus
Herman
Herstein from Kukkus
Herzog from Kukkus
Hettinger
Hieronymus from Straub & Warenburg
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
Jost (Yost) from Warenburg
Kaehler
Kaiser / Keiser
Karle
Karst
Kemmerer
Kerber from Stahl am Tarlyk
Kerner from Lauwe
Kindsvater
Kinzel from Warenburg
Kisling from Warenburg
Kister from Warenburg
Klamm from Warenburg
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
Laubhan
Legler
Lehman from Stahl am Tarlyk
Leisle from Warenburg
Lieder
Lindgren from Stahl am Tarlyk
Lofink from Warenburg
Lung from Straub
Mahling / Mehling
Markus from Lauwe
Martin
Maser from Kukkus
Meier
Merk from Laub
Metzger from Warenburg
Metzler from Laub & Straub
Meisner from Lauwe
Miller from Kukkus & Warenburg
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
Preuss (Price) from Lauwe
Pretzer from Laub
Quindt
Quisnar from Jost
Rau
Rebensdorf from Dinkel
Rein
Reitz from Bangert & Kukkus
Ressler from Laub
Ries from Dinkel & Warenburg
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
Schiebelhut
Schmall from Stahl am Tarlyk
Schmidt / Smith
Schneider from Kukkus & Straub
Scheidt from Stahl am Tarlyk
Schiffmann from Warenburg
Schroeder
Schultz
Schwabenland from Straub
Schwartz
Schwengel from Warenburg
Seher from Straub
Seib (Sipe) from Stahl am Tarlyk
Seibert from Warenburg
Seifert
Simon from Laub
Sinner from Stahl am Tarlyk
Sittner
Sitzenstock from Lauwe
Sommer
Spaet / Spate from Bangert
Spomer from Stahl am Tarlyk
Starkel
Steinhauer from Warenburg
Steitz
Stenger from Stahl am Tarlyk
Stier from Jost
Stiglitz from Lauwe
Stuckert from Wiesenmüller
Stumpf from Warenburg
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
Will / Wills from Lauwe & Straub
Winter
Wolfe
Wollert
Wulf from Dinkel
Zisch from Dinkel
- 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)
- Fresno, California (wikipedia)
Pre-Volga Origin
Area of Fresno where "Germantown" used to be.
Source: Architectural Resources Group.
Area of Fresno where "Germantown" used to be.
Source: Architectural Resources Group.