THE BURGENLAND BUNCH NEWS - No. 21
(issued bi-weekly by Gerald Berghold)
October 15, 1997
(all rights reserved)

This edition of the newsletter contains articles on Emperor Franz Joseph,
Village of St. Andrä, Progress with Austrian Links, Sources of Croatian
Dictionaries, A 1955 Reverse Visit, Burgenland Bunch Procedures, Using the
Diocesan Archives in Eisenstadt, and the Start of a New and Important
Historical Village Series.


DID YOUR ANCESTOR MEET EMPEROR FRANZ JOSEPH? (from Albert Schuch)

If he was "Richter" (Burgermeister) of a "Gemeinde" (District) in the
"Komitat Wieselburg" ("Moson (var)megye") in 1856, chances are good: On 18
Sept. 1856 the emperor traveled through Hungary. Coming from Schönbrunn, he
crossed the Austrian-Hungarian border at Wimpassing, then passed through
Hornstein, Müllendorf, Kleinhöflein, Eisenstadt, Purbach, Breitenbrunn and
Winden (where he crossed the border between Sopron megye (Komitat Ödenburg)
and Moson megye). Finally he arrived in Halbturn castle. After dinner he
appeared at a big "Volksfest" (folk festival), where all the "Richters" of
Moson Megye were introduced to him. Because Halbturn had repeatedly suffered
from fires (the most recent one having broken out earlier in 1856), the
Emperor donated a large sum of money to the community (source: "Pressburger
Zeitung" 22 Sept. 1856).


CONCERNING THE FIRST SETTLERS OF SANKT ANDRÄ (Northern Burgenland)

In 1702, the people of Sankt Andrä (in the Seewinkel) wrote a letter to the
"Hofkammer" (the imperial court treasury) because the Hofkammer owned the
domain Ungarisch-Altenburg (Magyarovar), of which, Sankt Andrä was a part. In
1696 the village of St. Andrä, which had been deserted for more than 200
years, had been given to them by Adam Xaverius SCHAD, administrator of the
Magyarovar domain. They had been granted a tax-free status for 6 years, which
shows that they were "foreigners" (citizens of Austria-Hungary would usually
get only 3 years tax-free status; this tax-free status for settlers was due
to a law passed in 1689). The village, which consisted of 28 farmers and 18
Söllners (plus their families); asked in their letter that their tax-free
status be prolonged. The Hofkammer did reduce part of their taxes, but not
all, for another 3 years.

The book "Die Österreichische Monarchie in Wort und Bild" - the Austrian
Monarchy in Words and Pictures (called "Kronprinzenwerk"), vol. IV, Hungary,
p. 452, says: "The inhabitants of these villages (Zanegg, St. Johann, St.
Peter, Andau), as well as of St. Andrä (Szent Andras), are said to have
settled here after the last Turkish war; they are said to have come from
Salzburg, and they are mostly called 'Heidebauern' (meadow farmers)...." The
Magyarovar domain had promised to give the settlers 42 "Joch" (one Joch =
0.575 Hectare), or about 55 acres in all, of farming land for each farm, plus
plenty of pasture land. They couldn't keep their promise because Count
(later Prince) Esterhazy claimed half of the same land for his domain
Frauenkirchen (which included the villages Frauenkirchen, Apetlon, Illmitz,
Pamhagen, Tadten, Wallern), so the farmers received only about 21-23 Joch.

In 1715 St. Andrä was inhabited by 52 farmers and 16 Söllners (57 Germans,
7 Croats, 4 Hungarians); in 1720 by 60 farmers and 22 Söllners (74 Germans,
6 Croats, 2 Hungarians). (source: Friedrich LOTZ: "Zur Siedlungsgeschichte
der Gemeinde St. Andrä", in: Burgenländische Heimatblätter 1962, p. 88-91)


CROATIAN DICTIONARY QUESTION (from Sue Straw)

<< Do you know of a source for a Croatian/English dictionary? >>

GJB: I've been checking around without much luck. What you want is a
"Serbo-Croatian" dictionary. I have a Berlitz phrase book that I used on
visits to Croatia (former Yugoslavia). You probably can order one from
Walden's Books. You might talk to Frank Teklits who I think has one. John
Lavendoski or Anna Kresh might also know.

Frank Teklits: Your best bet is to take a look at URL www.bucknell.edu,
which is the finest Home Page for on line dictionaries on the Net. I looked
at it, and suggest that once you're on the page, scroll down to South Slavic
Languages which may have one or two that may possibly aid you. I don't have a
Croatian dictionary, but after I'm through translating a genealogical book
about the Migration of the Croats into Burgenland, I'll be on the lookout for
one also. I'll need one to translate a book which is written about my Dad's
village in Hungary which dates back to 1221.

(Anna Kresh) I came across a Serbo-Croatian and Slovene dictionary online on
the Internet. Hope this web site helps...
http://www.fedworld.gov/fbis/src/srcindex.html


QUESTION RE PROCEDURES FROM NEW MEMBER

Questions similar to these have been asked by many new members. You may be
interested in how things work and what happens behind the scenes of the
BB.(GJB)

<< I just found the listings of individual surnames and villages, and mine
aren't there. Do you do updates periodically, or is there something else I
need to do to be listed there? >>

Just be patient, takes a few days. There are only two of us, homepage editor
Hap Anderson in the mid-west and me in northern Virginia. A number of files
are involved and sometimes we wait until we have a number of changes before
updating.

>>Have you listed this (Homepage) on something like the surnames.german
usenet? I'm really new at this, so I may not have the name right, but I
imagine you understand. I would have found your site sooner if you had been
listed there. Or maybe the soc. genealogy. german list? Do many people in
Austria actually look at this? Or is this mostly for people in the US?<<

Answer:
Why look under German? That's like looking under English for Virginia because
Virginians speak English. This is one of the reasons why I formed the BB.
There is much confusion among genealogists re the terms "Germany" and
"Germanic" and too few people researching Austrian areas exclusively. Austria
is not Germany, never was part of Germany (except for WWII occupation), and
should not be lumped with German genealogy just because of the language
connection. Too confusing. Burgenland settlers came from Germanic areas and
Austria (as early as the 11th Century when it was part of Hungary) and they
still speak German (which alone has many dialects) but that's as far as it
goes since Germany was first formed in 1868. To further confuse things,
Austrian Burgenland was formed from the Hungarian Megye (counties) of Vas,
Moson and Sopron in 1921. Thoroughly confused? Stick with us, read the
newsletters and it will all become clear. To research genealogy in the
Burgenland requires familiarity with area history.

Our homepage is linked to many other ethnic homepages via www and the
internet. You can see the links by searching the homepage. Most search
engines will find us if you search on Austria or Burgenland, sometimes,
Hungary, rarely German or Germany. People in Austria do see our homepage. Our
three current Austrian members joined after seeing it. We are also actively
contacting and linking Austrian sites, including government, provincial,
newspaper and city homepages. I'm happy you found us even if it took a little
surfing!. Gerry Berghold


PROGRESS WITH AUSTRIAN LINKS

Albert Schuch advises that we have two more solid links with Burgenland
homepages. Both OZ (Oberwart Zeitung) and the Rudersdorf Bankerlsitzler now
carry our homepage address.

Albert writes: I have checked for the "Burgenland Bunch" link on the
OZ-homepage. I am very pleased that they have put it in the "Burgenland
links" section. (You can reach the OZ-link-page by clicking on the
"outta space"-button.)

Also received a nice reply from Peter Sattler, editor of the Rudersdorf "Bankerlsitzer".
Following is his reply:
Subject: Bankerlsitzer;
freue mich sehr ber ihre reaktion, bin leider auf dem e-mailsektor noch
etwas schwerfllig und absturzgefhrdet usw. werde walter dujmovits ein
exemplar meiner zeitung schicken und bitten die internetadressen zu
verffentlichen. Peter Sattler, 7571 Rudersdorf, Hauptstrasse 27

I am very pleased with his reply. If I am interpreting it correctly, he is
going to ask Mr. Dujmovits to publish the internet addresses of both the
BB-Bunch home page and the "Bankerlsitzer" in the B.G, newsletter.


A 1955 REVERSE VISIT (BURGENLAND TO THE UNITED STATES)

Most trip reports concern US visitors to the Burgenland. This one deals with
a Burgenländer visit to the US. You'll notice that times have changed
significantly. Many of the ethnic organizations are no longer with us (how
unfortunate), the need for "sick & death beneficial societies" has declined
with the growth of health care insurance and many US center city Burgenland
neighborhood "villages" are no more. Like the song says "1955 was a very good
year". I was a young man starting a family in Allentown, living in a third
floor walk-up in Allentown, over Fiedler's Cafe, just a short distance from
the Hungarian Club and the Burgenland "Liederkranz", where "Krankengasse"
dues were collected weekly. I was enrolled at Lehigh University (remember the
Beethoven "Männerchor" and the Allentown Lehigh Organization, Frank
Teklits?), many Burgenland immigrants were still with us, Horlacher's and
Neuweiler's were still brewing beer and we were trying to "drink it all up"
and life on the "GI Bill" was good. This article really brings back some
memories:

Dr. Norbert RIEDL visited Burgenländers in America in 1955. Excerpts from his
report for "Volk und Heimat" Nr. 10 / 1956 (translated):
I found strong Burgenländer settlement in the cities New York, Chicago,
Buffalo, Philadelphia, Passaic, Allentown, Hamilton, Cleveland and St. Paul.

In most of these cities they have their own associations, mostly
"Krankenuntersttzungsvereine" (supporting members in case of illness). Since
some of them have many members, I tried to establish contact with them first.
In New York I was able to meet the chairmen and secretaries of three
associations: Johann BOISITZ from Punitz, Josef TANCSICS from Güssing, Johann
HUBER from Grosspetersdorf, Alois LANG from Mogersdorf, Franz AUGUSTIN from
Vienna, Josef LEYRER from Rettenbach, Josef KNABEL from Grosspetersdorf and
Johann BAUMANN from Deutsch-Schtzen. I talked to them and we drank a few
glasses of wine. They were dressed the American way, but their language,
their habit, even their faces were "Burgenländisch". They invited me to a
"Mai-Fest" organized by the "Brotherhood of the Burgenlander Sick and Death
Benefit Society in New York". Two weeks later I was in Chicago, where I first
visited Hans Leo REICH. He comes from Vienna and heads the daily Viennese
radio hour broadcast by a Chicago station. He gave me the address of a Mr.
HIMPELMANN, a "Donauschwabe". Mr. HIMPELMANN gave me addresses of a few
Burgenländers. Thus I met Mr. UNGER, who is the president of a Burgenländer
association, and Mr. SCHIPITS. We drank beer and schnapps and had a nice
conversation. Mr. UNGER was born in Kohfidisch, he emigrated in 1923. At this
time the association "Eichenstamm" still existed, with members mostly from
the Eisenburger Komitat (Vas megye).

The "Eichenstamm" society dominated Northern Chicago, while the
"ErsterBurgenländischer Krankenuntersttzungsverein" operated mainly in
southern Chigaco. Later on, a third Burgenländer society was established in
western Chicago. Mr. UNGER told me that at least 1000 Burgenländer families
were living between 39th and 59th street, and that this area was called
"Klein-Burgenland" by them. He remembers the times when young Burgenländers
used to walk the streets in warm summer nights, singing Burgenland folk
songs. Back in these times (in the 1920's) the traditional feasts were
celebrated and the Burgenländer societies had many members ...(translated by
Albert Schuch).


PATER (FATHER) GRATIAN ANTON LESER, O. F. M. (1873-1949);
BURGENLAND HISTORIAN PAR EXCELLENCE

If my translated information is correct, Father Gratian Leser was a member of
the Franciscan community at the cloister in Güssing and its Father Superior
for many years. Among other jobs he served as Curate of the Parish of
Güssing, Cloister Librarian and authority on local history. In 1948 he was
declared an honored citizen (Ehrenbürger) of Stadtgemeinde Güssing. He
had a profound interest in the southern Burgenland and translated much
pertinent material from original Latin and Hungarian sources.

He was a writer of skill and erudition. His translations and articles (in
German) found their way into the local newspapers (1920's & 30's) as well as
scholarly publications. His articles concerning surrounding villages are
often parts of local Gemeindeamt archives. They are real gems of
genealogical data, as they frequently mention family names during the periods
before extant church records. I was lucky to find one concerning
Heiligenkreuz which carried the names of three Bergholds and proved my family
was living in Poppendorf as early as 1693. Albert Schuch has now found a
source of Father Leser's articles. He writes:

>> A series entitled "Das Güssinger Land" started in the bi-weekly (now
quarterly) "Volk und Heimat" in 1956. This is a shortened version of all
articles Father Gratian Leser wrote for the "Güssinger Zeitung" 1921-1932 on
the history of Southern Burgenland. I intend to send excerpts of it, by-and-by
(as I find the time), in which I will shorten it further and focus on the
mentioned surnames (ed. note: in viewing these surnames, be alert to possible
archaic spellings, otherwise you could miss one of your names). Later on, I
want to do the same with articles by Josef Loibersbck. These cover central
and northern Burgenland.<<

Albert then forwarded the first of what I hope will be many articles:

1) SANKT NIKOLAUS bei Güssing (SN)
In 1545 twenty Croatian refugees (with their families) settled in SN, coming
from Slavonia: Blasius MYSYAK, Peter HORWATH, Marcus ROGOSAR, Jakob DAMBSYCS,
Nikolaus DOECH, Blasius STANSICS, Martin NAY, Peter ROBEK, Matthias HINGWALA,
Matthias KISS, Peter MEDEYCZ, Georg PAULIKOVICS, Johann GERGASCHICS, Matheus
BELKOVICH, Johann BERKJICS, Barnabas TOTH, Matthäus KEHEN, Georg TOOTH. In
1598 (there were) only 10 houses, most of them destroyed in 1605 (during the
Bocskay-rebellion). In 1631 Thomas NERIB was "Richter", in 1640 Jakob
JALSATICS. Vineyards were destroyed in 1890 (Phyloxera-vineyard louse).

The St. Nikolaus church had already been in existence in 1545. It became the
Croatian church for the whole Güssing area, was also used by the Croatians
of Gross- and Klein-Mürbisch, Krottendorf, Hasendorf, Punitz and Kroatisch
Tschantschendorf. The St. Jakobus church in Güssing was the German church,
whereas the Hungarians used the Augustiner church in Güssing (later to be
replaced by todays Franziskaner church). 1580-1633, the St. Nikolaus priests
were Lutherans, from 1649 onwards they were (Catholic) Franziskaner monks
from Güssing.

The old church was situated in the center of the cemetery (still used). After
a fire in 1897, the remaining walls were torn down, and a new church was built
at a different place.

In 1759 school teacher Martin WERNER died, he was 56 years old and said to
have been born in "Stomfa". Successors were: Josef LIZICZKI from St. Johann
near Malaczka (at least 1759-66), Johann JELENCSICS (died 1771, 45 y old),
Johann KAUS (died 1773, 49 y old), Johann SCHIK from Neusiedl near Kukmirn
(1773-80), Josef GANGL (1792), Karl EBNER (died 1795, 48 years old), Franz
KAISER (1802), Stefan BERCZKOVICS from Deutsch Tschantschendorf (1812-32),
Andreas HEKENATZ (1832-36), Josef VLASICH (1838-39), Georg SCHLESAK from
Poschendorf (1840-69), Gabriel DÖKKER (1870-74; died 1774, 29 y old),
Ferdinand BERGER (1875-95), Paul HARMUTH (1896-1902), Josef KAPPEL (1902-06),
Georg LANDSMAN (1906-10), Franz ZOTTER from Königsdorf (1910-23; had been
teacher in Stadtschlaining 1904-08, and in Zahling 1908-10), Franz ZÜGER
(1923-27), Alfred HERDIN from Vienna (1927-) (translated excerpt from the
series "Das Güssinger Land" by Josef Karl HOMMA in "Volk und Heimat"
12-14/1956, which is a shortened version of Father Gratian LESER's articles
in the "Güssinger Zeitung" 36-40/1928)-----(to be continued)


USING THE DIOCESAN ARCHIVES IN EISENSTADT (CAPITAL OF BURGENLAND)

I have been to the Dizesanarchiv in Eisenstadt last Tuesday, having made an
appointment by phone a week earlier. The archivarian, Dr. Hans Peter Zelfel,
turned out to be a very friendly person. As I wrote earlier, space is very
limited in the archive. There is nothing you could call a "users room", there
is only one room for the archivarian and one for his secretary - the latter
also containing two tables for guests / users. I searched the Matriken
(registers) of Potzneusiedl (northern Burgenland) and just as I had hoped, I
found several English leather workers (for my doctorate). I was also able to
look up a missing ancestor for John Lavendoski in the Sankt Kathrein Matriken
after telling Dr. Zelfel that I needed some information for a friend in
America. He had no objections. It didn't cost anything.

I cannot say if this was just a special favour or if this is the usual
policy. Before they bring you the books, you have to fill out and sign a
paper saying that you will not use information gathered there for commercial
purposes etc. ...(from Albert Schuch).


END OF NEWSLETTER-EDITED & DISTRIBUTED BY GERALD J. BERGHOLD