THE BURGENLAND BUNCH NEWS - No. 55
DEDICATED TO AUSTRIAN-HUNGARIAN BURGENLAND FAMILY HISTORY
(issued biweekly by Gerald Berghold)
April 15, 1999
(all rights reserved)

It's almost the year 2000... where are your Great-G-Grandparents?

This first section of the 3-section newsletter concerns notice of First OZ
Queries in Print, an LDS Test Site On-line, data on the Middle Burgenland
Villages of Salmannsdorf and Redlschlag, More on Farmer Terms, Immigrants of
the Enclave of New Paltz, NY, Burgenland B&B Web Site, a List of 1870
Burgenland Teachers and a New Hianzen Kalendar.


FIRST OZ QUERIES IN PRINT (from Albert Schuch)

The queries # 1 to # 3 were printed in the OZ on 7 April, following a short
introductory article entitled: "Was wurde eigentlich aus ..." Translation:
What ever became of ...our relatives in America? This question probably has
been raised in many a Burgenland family, for with the dying of the emigrants'
generation contact ceased to exist in many cases - if it even lasted that
long.

Also in America more and more descendants of emigrants start to wonder what
became of their relatives back in the "old country". From now on the OZ will
publish addresses of Americans who are looking for their relatives in
Burgenland. If you think you have found a relation, don't hesitate to write!
If possible, in English. (Contact Albert Schuch if you wish to have a query
printed in a future edition of the Oberwart Zeitung-subscriptions can also be
arranged if desired).


LDS TEST WEB SITE IS ON LINE (courtesy Margaret Kaiser)

A long awaited LDS site is now online in a test version. URL is
http://www.familysearch.org

Ed. Note: I recently visited this site and tried some ancestors in the search
engine. I wanted to see if the LDS had added my genealogical data to their
Ancestral File (previously sent to them). I'm happy to report that the test
was positive. I don't know how many Burgenland descendants have sent material
to the LDS for their files, but I'd certainly check it out. There are some
other things available at the site like a list of Family History Center
Addresses, the IGI File and the Social Security Death Index. As mentioned
previously, this will be a tremendous resource, so visit the test site
frequently and register with them. Apparently the LDS wants to ascertain how
much interest there is in having their material online. While it may be years
before microfilm data will be available online (if ever), having the LDS
indices online will be a plus.

In using their search engine, try different spellings of names. Like all
computer search engines, it looks for perfect matches. I entered a Berghold
marriage combination and got no match. When I entered just the husband
(spelled as entered to the file) I got a match. Try foreign language name
variations as well as US ones.


VILLAGE DATA FROM MIDDLE BURGENLAND (from Albert Schuch)

Taken from Josef LOIBERSBECK: "Um Pilgersdorf und Kogl" (translated extracts
from: Volk und Heimat, 1961, # 8 - # 15/16) [including: this issue
Salmannsdorf, Redlschlag, later issues Kogl, Lebenbrunn, Steinbach.] These
may have been sent directly to some of our older members.

SALMANNSDORF (V+H 11-12/1961) southwest of Bubendorf; first mentioned in 1390
as "Salamonfalu"; was also rented out to lord SPEIDL (like Bubendorf);
inhabitants also became Lutherans (and later returned to Catholic faith), as
was ordered by the domain owners... In 1661 "Solmersdorf" was inhabited by 30
farmers (among these were: 7 STIFTER, 4 HEILING, 1 HOFER, 1 HETLINGER, 1
FLEISCHHACKER) and 2 "Söllner". In 1720 there were only 21 inhabitants. A
chapel (St. Oswald) is thought to have been erected in the 18th century. In
1866 the community bought large forests from the owner of the "Herrschaft"
(domain) Bernstein (Edward Egan, from Ireland). In 1875 the church was built,
replacing the old chapel. A school is said to have existed since 1812, the
name of the first (remembered) teacher is given as BERDAL. Later on a man
named JESTEL from Lockenhaus was teacher, who moved on to Oberkohlstätten.
Around 1879 Anton POPP was teacher, also from Lockenhaus. His successors were
Kasimir KREN (till 1908) and Elisabeth KORENICH (1909-1922). Her married name
was THOM, and she left for Tschurndorf. In 1921 fights between Austrian
police and Hungarian "Freischärler" (rebels, guerillas) caused a few
casualties (dead and wounded). Teacher 1922-31 was Anton PRETSCH from Wiener
Neustadt (Lower Austria), 1936-52 Josef THURNER from Langeck, from 1957
Rudolf FATALIN from Pilgersdorf. In 1956 a new school house was built.
FATALIN left for Bubendorf, was followed by Johan BAYER from Donnerskirchen.
In 1888 the road to Gerisdorf was built ... electricity in 1951. Statistical
data: 1833: 36 houses, 298 inhabitants; 1842: 285 inh.; 1863: 228 inh.; 1896:
36 houses, 205 inh.; 1900: 36 houses (these were all wooden houses!), 210
inh.; 1910: 39 houses, 221 inh.; 1923: 194 inh.; 1934: 180 inh.; 1951: 42
houses, 166 inh. (144 of these worked in the agricultural sector.
Salmannsdorf belongs to the parish Pilgersdorf.

REDLSCHLAG (V+H 12/1961)
A rather long walk, uphill through large quiet forests leads (from
Salmannsdorf) to the 'mountain' village Redlschlag. (This 'magic' place turns
the historian Loibersbeck into a poet: Quote: "No other village in this region
lies so high and so close to the sky, like this romantic village, surrounded
by even higher hilltops. Standing here one gets the feeling of being cut of
from the rest of the world." Unquote) In a document of 1388, R. is called
"Rodulslah", in 1392 "Rüdelslag". The first settlers are thought to have
been German farmers from Styria or Lower Austria, who may have settled here
in the 12th or 13th century. R. always was a part of the domain Bernstein, it
is a mainly Protestant village. The domain Bernstein was owned by the noble
family Kanizsay until around 1445, when it came under the rule of the king
and emperor Friedrich III (of Hapsburg). He gave it (around) 1486 to the
family von Königsberg. The von Königsberg were Lutherans, they sold the
Bernstein domain to the Batthyány in 1644. At this time the Batthyány had
already returned to the Catholic faith, but the inhabitants of R. (like most
of the domain Bernstein) remained Protestants. An Urbar of 1569 lists 13
farmers in "Rietlesschlag": 3 SCHWARZ, 2 BUCHER, 3 PU(E)RCHER, 1 PIRGER, 1
KELLNER, 1 POSCH, 1 ENGELMAIR, 1 PEILSTEINER. In 1720 the village was
inhabited by 26 farmers and 1 Söllner, 5 houses are reported as being
burned. Names of Catholic inhabitants of R. from the church records of the
Catholic parish Bernstein from 1740 onwards: HUMMEL, PANNER, PIRGER, PRIGLER,
ROSNER, PRIGER, EKAMP; Lutherans: SCHMIDT, PUHR, SCHRANZ, PEHM, ULREICH,
KAPPEL, KAINZ, PRATSCHER, BRENNER, HOLZER etc.

After the law of tolerance of 1781 a Catholic church, parish and school was
established in Bernstein. The Catholics of R. became part of the (new) parish
Kogl in 1807. A (Protestant) school was established in R. in 1813. First
Teacher was Johann PRATSCHER from Redlschlag; 1828-1873 Johann ULREICH from
Dreihütten; in 1836 a new school house was built. The inhabitants of
Redlschlag kind of bought themselves free from the domain Bernstein in 1846.
They paid 16,900 Gulden, which meant did not have to pay further taxes to or
work for the domain owner. Teacher 1874-1902 was Franz POLSTER from
Jormannsdorf. In 1889 the school house was enlarged. Teacher 1916-1938 was
Matthias KARNER from Willersdorf, now (1961) Karl LEITNER from Rechnitz is
teacher. In the 19th century and in the 1920s a small mining business was
established in R. (copper ores). Statistical data: 1833: 52 houses, 298 inh.;
1863: 424 inh.; 1896: 68 houses, 439 inh.; 1900: 71 houses, 474 inh. (384
Protestants, 91 Catholics); 1910: 71 houses, 475 inh.; 1923: 466 inh.; 1934:
468 inh.; 1951: 96 houses, 481 inh. (282 employed in the agricultural
sector); 1960: 107 houses.


NEW BOOK (from Joe Jarfas)

I also wanted to let you know that I found a new edition of a place name
dictionary by György Lelkes. This is the second, expanded and corrected
edition printed by Talma Publishing in Baja, Hungary 1998 (ISBN 963 85683 13)
and covers the Hungarian portion of the A-H Empire. Cost is $40 with shipping
(if I remember correctly?) Ed. Note: I'm trying to find out how to order this
book. Will advise when known.


MORE ON HUNGARIAN-GERMAN TERMS FOR FARMER
(from Joe Jarfas & Albert Schuch)

(Ed. Note: Joe was born and raised in Hungary and frequently helps us
translate Hungarian. His comments concerning subject matter in the March 31
newsletter follow.) He writes: "I planned to write to you (BB) for quite a
while, but I am not nearly so well organized like you; takes me a while to
find the time and collect the information. But your latest discussions about
those Hungarian expressions prompted me to add my two cent's worth.

For the listing it mainly relies on the 1910 census and the in 1913 printed
"A Magyar Szent Korona Országainak helységnévtára 1913" titled volume (place
names of the Countries of the Hungarian Holy Crown 1913) but consulted
previous publications as well. The names listed include Latin, German,
Polish, Slovak, Slovene, Croatian, Ukrainian names as well, if they existed.
Also notes variations of the names as well as combined or separated places.
Seem to be quite comprehensive, but of course I did not have too much time to
check it for accuracy.

A few weeks ago I received a 1718 document, almost all in Latin, about the
genealogical proof of a family who lost its nobility and wanted to get it
back. The document actually goes back to 1610 when this particular family
received nobility from Matthias II of Hungary. Since there was a possibility
that a 'Jarfhas' name was mentioned as a relative for this guy in his
genealogical proof, the Hungarian Archives gave us a copy. The researcher in
Hungary sent it to me for translation help which was not easy. I recruited a
friend from Vienna, Austria (who copied and translated the bulk of it) and a
couple of people from the Internet, including one from the LOC. (Library of
Congress) who happened to be of Czech origin. To make a long story short,
with all sorts of experts looking over the original handwritten manuscript
the jury is still out as to the capital letter of the 'Jarfhas' name. (I can
send a .jpg copy if you like, but because I scanned them in (six pages) with
extreme magnification even a page's .jpg compressed file takes .5 MB!!) The
opinions split between P an G with a few thrown in for J. The fact is with
all other capital letters clearly interpreted from the meaning of the words
it does not resemble neither of them. Sent the transcript and translation
back and waiting for my fellow genealogists' opinion.

Now lets take up (or continue) the discussion about those Hungarian
expressions: Földm(ű)ves-földművel; jobbágy s zsellér. I have to say,
ahead of time, that I do not have historical interpretations about those
words. I am relying on the official single language dictionary of the
Hungarian Language of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences which was printed in
the 1960's. Many expressions were 'colored' by the communist ideology of the
time so some of them have to be looked at with that knowledge in mind. Both
zsellér and jobbágy comes to us from pre-1848 times so they are strictly
feudal expressions. Zsellér refers to persons who owned less than an eight of
a sessio or none. But they were free people and could move from place to
place if they wanted to (in most cases). They remind me of the sharecroppers
of the South - after slavery was abolished.

Jobbágy was characterized by receiving parcels of land from the (large)
landowner for which he had to pay from the yearly produce, other services or
both. Had his own house (given to him by the landowner) but he was not free
to move; no civil rights for these (as we would say nowadays) and the
landowner could be the Church as well. Taxing was so crushing on these that
most of the time they sank deeper and deeper into debt. By the way, some of
these, I imagine depending on family size, could work even a whole sessio of
land. But they never owned any.

Földműves is in a different category altogether. It refers to an occupation
as well as (normally) small landowners who owned animals (horses, cows and
swine) and worked the land for a living (not too many in pre-1848 times).
Technically any Nádasdy might be considered such if he grabbed the plow
handles behind a pair of oxen and tried to see how he could maneuver it!:-)
But anybody working on land or cultivating it is considered földműves - to
this day. So zsellér and jobbágy were also földműves, though jobbágy was not
always working in the fields. He might have tended animals for example. But I
suspect the expression came into vogue after 1848. Paraszt is also related to
this thread: today it is a (somewhat) derogatory expression denoting an
uneducated, ill mannered person. Back then (but most likely near the end of
the 19th century) it denoted a field worker without land; a farm hand.

By the way, Fritz's remark about nemtelen strictly means that it does not
belong to the nobility. (General) nobility in Hungarian is 'nemes'. Non-
nobility is 'nemtelen', therefore the large majority of the common folk were.

Bob Schatz is right: the post revolutionary arrangements, specifically the
1867 treaty eliminated those positions (conditions) from existing, therefore
the use of those words fall into disuse. But he mixes up the status of
zsellér and jobbágy (though I'm sure there were hazy areas between them).

One more small quibble before I end this long drawn expos: Your use of the
Bezirk, which is strictly a German term. We have some very good English
expressions for it in 'township' or 'district' which are subdivisions of a
county - as far as I know. In Burgenland and all over Hungary, each county:
Vas, Somogy, Sopron, etc. are subdivided into (járás [plural járások]) or
districts, or as they are called here in Pennsylvania in Wayne county (where
I live): townships (mine is Manchester). They consist of multiple communities
with one (designated) district government seat. The same thing holds true for
járás - and I believe these divisions preexisted 1848. (Since I'm not a
Professor of Hungarian or History [or even Herstory:-)] some nuances might
not hold water under historical scrutiny; but we have to get into deeper
water [I mean research] to fully uncover the truth.)"

Albert Schuch Adds: A Dictionary from 1912 says: jobbágy = der Lehensmann,
Untertan, Fronbauer, Untertan = alattvaló, jobbágy A Dictionary from 1881 (of
this one, I only own the German-Hungarn part) says the same for "Untertan"

In 1894 ethnologist J. R. BÜNKER wrote an article about types of farmhouses
in the Ödenburg area. He conducted his research in the villages that had once
belonged to the municipial domain of Ödenburg, namely in Wandorf, Agendorf,
Loipersbach, Klingenbach, Mürbisch, Wolfs, Kohlenhof und Harkau. Of these,
Klingenbach und Kohlenhof were Croatian villages, the others German. He writes:

The farmers count their property in "Achteln" (eights). (The size of one
eighth varies from village to village (ca. 3 - 7 Joch)). Only an owner of of
8 eights is allowed to call himself a FULL "Bauer" (farmer). Everyone with at
least an "Achtel" property is also a farmer, so there are 1/8-farmers,
3/8-farmers, 5/8-farmers etc. There are 3 groups of owners of property who
cannot call themselves farmers:

1) The "Hofstattler" own a house and land, but the size of the land is less
than an "Achtel". They also have, like the farmers, the right to use the
forests ("(Urbarial-)Wald") and pastures ("Hutweide") of the community.

2) The "Kleinhäusler" or "Söldner" own a house, but no land. Still they have,
like farmers and "Hofstattler", the right to use the forests and pastures.

3) The "Neuhäusler" own a house and nothing else, meaning they are not
entitled to usage of the common forests and pastures.

Note: Not listed here are those who do not own property at all, i.e. the
"subinquilini" or "Inwohner". In view of the above, I would translate
octavalista as 1/8-farmer.


ENCLAVE OF NEW PALTZ, NY (from Carol Johnson Tanczos)

(Ed. Note: Every time I think I know all of the enclaves settled by
Burgenland immigrants, a new one pops up. New member Carol Tanczos sends the
following.)

"....I am sorry it has taken me a few days to get back to you, the wealth of
information you have provided me is really overwhelming.... Anna Kresh has
also provided me with info on the Tanczos family in Kroatisch
Tschantschendorf (KT). Can you plese send me info on that town? (Thanks in
advance). Also, I have had time to go over my notes and the Malits were from
Hasendorf, the Richters and Eberhardts from Tobaj. Thank you for sending the
data that you did on Rauchwart. My brother-in-law is the Mayor of Rauchwart.

I am collecting info for you on the Burgenlanders here in New Paltz (NP).
The Racz family had a boarding house here in the late 50's early 60's. Josef
Racz was from ? and his wife was Valerie Raubold from Tobaj. Their daughter
Helen told me that her mother went back and forth to Burgenland with her
older brother and younger brother being born in Tobaj and her and her sister
born in New Jersey. Her parents bought the farm up here in 1942. Helen's
sister then married a Frank Pani from KT and her niece married Walter
Jandrisevits from KT. They came here in the middle 1960's about the time my
husband did in 1964. My husband first came to NP with his uncles to stay at
the boarding house during the summer on weekends. He moved up here with his
ex-wife (Inge Deutsch from Rosenberg) in 1968. Soon to follow him was his
sister-in-law and her husband Frank Kurta from Klein Murbisch and their
relatives the Joe Unger's and the Karl Gargers from Strem. Have you ever
heard of the Joe Unger Band? Joe Unger, Jr. is married to my husband's
cousin, the Former Gertrude Richter. His band plays at many Austrian &
German clubs in the Tri-State area. He always plays when Miss Burgenland is
crowned in NYC by the First Burgenlander Club. My Husband is a member of
that club and his brother, Erwin Tanczos is the Vice-President. We met Dr.
Walter Dujmovits at one of their functions a few years ago. Walter's uncle,
Rudolf Richter from Tobaj and his wife Emilie Bauman from Rauchwart moved up
here in 1988 from NYC. I'll have to get the year they came from Austria, I
know they went back and forth at least twice. Hans Neubauer from Strem and
the Domitrovits brothers, Joe and John also from Strem came in the late
60's. Joe owns the "Austrian Village" restaurant. Joe's wife is the former
Mary ann Hafner from Gerersdorf and Hans' wife is the former Susie Baer from
Harmisch. Another Burgenlander was John Wagner who owned another retaurant
here and has since died. My friend Linda Heidenwolf Riefmuller is from
Moschendorf.....Before this job I worked at the Huguenot Historical Society
compiling genealogies on the founding families of New Paltz. New Paltz was
founded by a group of Huguenot families and their original stone houses are a
National Historic Site. If you would like to visit their website their
address is www.hhs.newpaltz.org.


WEB SITE SHOWS BURGENLAND B&B'S - "Zimmer Frei" (Albert Schuch)

Let me add a few bits of information I gathered from reading our local papers
at home: I remember someone from the membership asking about where to stay
while on holiday in Burgenland. The website
http://www.burgenland.farmholidays.com/ is said to list 70 (out of 130)
farmers in Burgenland who provide rooms for tourists. The website (sorry, I
didn't check it out yet) also should include photos and prices.

I also read that the basketball team of Güssing has an American coach (Paul
McCann) and two American players, brothers Alwin and John Mobley from
Rochester, NY. So today, the Americans emigrate to Güssing ...?


BURGENLAND TEACHERS IN THE DISTRICT OF RECHNITZ 1870 (Albert Schuch)

A booklet entitled "Bericht ber den katholischen Lehrerverein des Distriktes
Rechnitz in der Dizese Steinamanger 1870" (published in 1870) gives some
information about the Catholic Teachers' Society of the Rechnitz district,
founded on 20th May 1869 in Grosspetersdorf.

Following are the names of the members. I shortened their titles. Villages
names are shown as spelled in this booklet ("Podersdorf" for "Badersdorf" etc.).

Katholischer Lehrerverein des Distriktes Rechnitz ... 1870:
Prsident: Erzpriester Franz ILLS, Vicepräses: Lehrer Franz HORVÄTH
1. Schriftführer: Oberlehrer Anton JANDL, 2. Schriftführer: Lehrer Franz FRITZ
Bibliothekar: Kaplan Emerich IRITZER, Kassier: Lehrer Andreas TEMEL
Kontrolor: Lehrer Franz HAMETLER, Protektor: Stefan KRANCZ, Abt
und Domherr in Steinamanger.

Ordentliche Mitglieder:
1. Franz ILLS, Erzpriester und Pfarrer (P), 2. Anton JANDL, Oberlehrer (OL)
in Groß-Petersdorf, 3. Johann REHLING, Schullehrer (SL) in Miedlingsdorf, 4.
Franz HAMETLER, SL in Klein-Petersdorf, 5. Emerich IRITZER, Kaplan (K) in
Groß-Petersdorf 6. Johann Nep. v. LELOVITS, P in Jabing, 7. Andreas TEMEL,
Lehrer (L) in Jabing 8. Paul SZEISZER, P in Schlaining, 9. Franz HORVÄTH, L
in Schlaining, 10. Alois HENGGE, P in Mischendorf, 11. Anton PÖZMÄN, L in
Mischendorf, 12. Georg TITZ, L in Kodeziken 13. Josef SPRANG, L in Rohrbach,
14. Josef SCHWARZ, L in Kroatdorf, 15. Anton BIRKLER, P in Kirch-Fidisch, 16.
Josef BERGER, L in Kirch-Fidisch, 17. Josef PATZELT, L in Kho-Fidisch, 18.
Johann PERNITZ, L in Podersdorf, 19. Franz FRITZ, L in Hannersdorf, 20.
Alexander DÜKKER, L in Burg, 21. Franz LINDENMAYER, P in Hannersdorf, 22.
Andreas BARILITS, P in Schandorf, 23. Demeter SZUCSICH, L in Schandorf, 24.
Georg FRIDECZKY, P in Groß-Naring, 25. Nikolaus DREISZKER, L in Groß-Naring,
26. Mathias SZINKOVICH, L in Ober-Schilding, 27. Franz SCHMAL, L in Rechnitz,
28. Johann FRISCH, Unterlehrer (UL) in Rechnitz, 29. Josef DREISZKER, L in
Schachendorf, 30. Anton PLOHOVITS, L in Dürnbach 31. Stefan BEERY, P in
Dürnbach, 32. Georg PLANKY, K in Dürnbach, 33. Anton MARTON, L in Hodisz, 34.
Franz GLUDOVSZ, L in Zuberbach, 35. Franz BÜRKOVITS, P in Weiden 36. Franz
KOSZ, L in Weiden, 37. Michael RAFFEL, L in Neumarkt, 38. Johann MILITICH, P
in Neumarkt, 39. Anton JAHUTKA, SL in Oberdorf, 40. Franz GRAF, SL in
Olbendorf

Auerordentliche Mitglieder:
1. Johann KOPSZ, Abt und Domherr in Steinamanger, 2. Karl Graf Batthyány von
Schlaining, 3. Johann ZAGLITSCH, Marktrichter in Groß-Petersdorf, 4. Alois
SCHWEITZER, Kaufmann in Groß-Petersdorf, 5. Stefan KEGLEVICH, Kaufmann in
Groß-Petersdorf, 6. Anton PAPP, Landesgeschworener von Mischendorf, 7. Josef
POLAG, von Kodezicken, 8. Johann HALWAX, von Mischendorf, 9. Johann HAAS, von
Mischendorf, 10. Paul OSWALD, von Rohrbach, 11. Adam PLANK von Bachselten,
12. Franz WALTER von Mischendorf, 13. Johann SAURER von Jabing, 14. Mathias
TOMISZER von Jabing, 15. Franz HERITS von Jabing


NEW HIANZEN KALENDER

The HIANZEN-KALENDER can be ordered from: Burgenländisch-Hianzische
Gesellschaft ("Hianzenverein"), Gottlieb August Wimmer-Platz 1/EG 4, Postfach
31 A-7432 Oberschützen, Austria-or per FAX: 0043 33 53 6160 0043 = Austria

The Burgenländisch-Hianzische Gesellschaft ("Hianzenverein") offers all
interested people the HIANZEN-KALENDER 1999, price ATS 100,-, about $9,-. If
you want more information please write. With best greetings from the HIANZEN
in Burgenland, Austria Mag. Herbert Pesenhofer

(Newsletter continues as no. 55A).

THE BURGENLAND BUNCH NEWS - No. 55A
DEDICATED TO AUSTRIAN-HUNGARIAN BURGENLAND FAMILY HISTORY
(issued biweekly by Gerald Berghold)
April 15, 1999
(all rights reserved)

This second section of the 3-section newsletter is the first installment of
The Teklits Translation of "Volk an der Grenze ..." (People on the Border),
the history of the Croatians in Burgenland, written by Johann Dobrovich. It
is our intention to bring you most of this book in serial form in subsequent
issues of the newsletter. The first 3 chapters are included in this issue.


PEOPLE ON THE BORDER by Johann Dobrovich
translated by Frank Teklits (with assistance of Albert and Inge Schuch)
and distributed to BB members via email by permission of the publishers.

Editor's Foreword

When the Burgenland Bunch was started in 1997, the purpose was to provide an
organization wherein Burgenland researchers could correspond with one another
for mutual help and assistance. While the subject of Family History was
paramount, broader issues of history, geography and culture could also be
addressed. The organization and its newsletter would thus provide a media for
questions and answers and a place where topics could be discussed and
literature distributed. Our experience over the last 28 months has not
changed that purpose, but our effort has progressed far beyond expectations.
Our original eight members have now grown to over 300, our archives are
bursting at the seams and unlike many genealogical archives, ours contain
much original research of which we can be justly proud.

The Burgenland, being first an Hungarian province and later an Austrian one,
it follows that the literature pertaining to that region is generally found
in languages other than English. Some members have utilized their translating
skills to bring us English extracts of the available foreign literature.
Rarely published in English, some is now becoming available to English
readers for the first time. Burgenland Editor Albert Schuch, Austrian Editor
Fritz Königshofer and others have been assiduous in their searches for
material in Austro-Hungarian archives and libraries. Their findings and
subsequent translations have provided much of this new material. This has
enabled the Burgenland Bunch (BB) to share in pioneering effort in the field
of Burgenland Family History. Now Croatian Editor Frank Teklits joins that
group of translators and brings us a definitive history of Croatians in
Burgenland from a recognized authority.

Family history is more than a compilation of our ancestors. To be meaningful
it must include their origins, migrations, religious history and culture.
Their "total story" as it were. Frequently lost or unavailable without
intensive search, such information, when found, is invaluable. We now have
one "total story" of the Croatians in the Burgenland. I hope similar material
will become available for all ethnic Burgenland groups.

Frank Teklits has devoted much time and effort in translating this work,
without thoughts of compensation. It is a labor of love and does honor to his
ancestors. His acknowledgments specify the sources to which he has turned for
help. I feel we can rely on the exactness of translation. He has kept us
advised of his progress from the beginning and many of the answers to his
questions have been thoroughly discussed within the BB and have already found
their way into the newsletters as articles and definitions of archaic terms.

I am full of admiration for Frank's efforts and the help extended to him by
other members. His translation joins the urbar, visitation, village data and
early newspaper translations as part of BB original research. My thanks join
his, especially to the Burgenländischen Landesarchiv for their permission to
publish this translation. Gerry Berghold

Acknowledgments by Frank Teklits

My personal thanks to the various contributors, and supporting individuals.
In any successful endeavor there are many contributors that deserve
recognition for their contributions. In the translation of the text "Volk an
der Grenze ..." (People on the Border) by Johann Dobrovich, special thanks
are in order to the Burganlndischen Landesregierung Landesarchiv und
Landesbibliothek and Dr. Felix Tobler for their permission to make this
translated text available via the Internet to the members of the Burgenland
Bunch.

Special thanks are also in order for the constant support & contributions
made by Albert Schuch, without whose inputs, this effort would never have
been completed. Inge Schuch also deserves thanks for her significant input in
the translation of many of the later chapters when Albert was called to serve
his country. Thanks are in order to John Lavendoski for providing the
original text of Dr. Dobrovich's work from which the kernel of a thought to
translate came about. Thanks are also due my cousin Stephen (Mooney) Frisch
for his challenging statements concerning a probable Croatian ancestry that
led directly to my commitment to translate Dr. Dobrovich's text. Last but not
least, a very special thanks to my wife for her patience, understanding and
support during many long days and nights of work.

Introduction - Frank Teklits

Dr. Dobrovich's text "Volk an der Grenze", which is volume 47 within the
series."Burgenland Research" (Burgenländische Forschungen), was released and
published by the Provincial Archive of Burgenland in 1963. The book is based
on the migration of the Croatians and is the result of two decades of
research by the author on the reasons for the Croatians leaving their
original homeland and migrating into the Province of Burgenland. The text
begins with the earliest origins of Croatia, and progressively walks the
reader through the tragedies of the Ottoman Wars and into the new Croatian
homeland in the various Districts and villages of Burgenland. The author's
findings are the result of researching numerous Urbars (Land Registration
Records), Visitations (ecclesiastical inspections) throughout Burgenland, and
other historical sources. A chapter is devoted to the three Croatian dialects
used within Burgenland and areas of Croatia where these same dialects are
still used today. Based on these dialects, the author draws some conclusions
of various Burgenland regions or villages deemed likely to be the
descendants of Croatians and from which areas they stem. There are 8 chapters
devoted to either specific Districts of Burgenland or Regions of the
Province. The Chapters on the Districts of Güssing, Oberwart, Oberpullendorf,
Neusiedl, and Northern Burgenland provide extensive coverage of the various
Domains & associated villages. Throughout the book, Dr. Dobrovich has
sprinkled determinations that allude to areas within Croatia that may have
been the original homeland of the Croats who migrated to specific villages in
Burgenland.

A Village Register was compiled by the author and contains well over 600
different names of Burgenland villages, Croatian names for many of the
Burgenland villages, as well as for other names. Each village and or city is
referenced to a specific page(s) within the text for the ease of finding the
text associated with a village.

The BB staff has decided to make the text available via the Internet as a
part of the biweekly BB newsletter. The staff's thoughts are to make the
various Chapters on the Districts of Burgenland available initially to the
membership, and gradually to include all of the chapters in the text. It is
also planned to provide to the membership, via the newsletter, a separate
listing of each village named in the BB Homepage and whatever information, if
any, is provided in the translated text for the specific locale. This effort
will be completed on an alphabetical basis over a period of time.

Burgenland Research Paper # 47 - Released by the Provincial Archive of
Burgenland - People at the Border - Destiny and Mission
On the History of the Burgenland Croats - by Johann Dobrovich

Table of Contents

Foreward
Chapter 1:  The Indo-Europeans
Chapter 2:  The Slavs as a Separate Indo-European Language Group
Chapter 3:  The Beginning of the Croatian Historical Writing and The
            Migration into the South
Chapter 4:  Theories about the Prehistoric Period of the Croats
Chapter 5:  The First Centuries in the New Homeland
Chapter 6:  The First Form of a Croatian Nation in the South
Chapter 7:  The National Structure of the Croatian Countries to the year 1500
Chapter 8:  The Turkish Storm
Chapter 9:  The Bogumiles in Bosnia and Herzegovina
Chapter 10: The Conquest of Bosnia and Herzegovina by the Turks
Chapter 11: Strength and Organization of the Turkish Political System
Chapter 12: The Decline of Croatia from the 15th Century Until the End of the
            16th Century
Chapter 13: Serbian Islands in Croatian Lands
Chapter 14: The Weakness of Christian Occident
Chapter 15: Ban Peter Bereslavic
Chapter 16: Soliman II
Chapter 17: Burgenland Settlements Before the Immigration of the Croatians
Chapter 18: The Croatians in Battle with the Turks
Chapter 19: Immigration of the Croatians into today's Burgenland and into
            Neighboring Lands
Chapter 20: The Croatian Dialects in Burgenland
Chapter 21: The Last Immigration of the Croatians
Chapter 22: The Croatians in Particular Districts of Burgenland
Chapter 23: The District of Jennersdorf
Chapter 24: The District of Güssing
Chapter 25: The Croatians of St. Nikolaus
Chapter 26: The District of Oberwart
Chapter 27: The District of Oberpullendorf & the adjacent Parts of Hungary
Chapter 28: Northern Burgenland and the Western Lake Neusiedl
Chapter 29: The District of Neusiedl
Chapter 30: Services Owed to the Landlords
Chapter 31: The Religions of the Croatians in the 16th and 17th Centuries
Chapter 32: Epilogue
Village Register

Foreword

Before World War I, and the two peace treaties of Saint Germain (Sept. 10,
1919) and Trianon (June 4, 1920) that returned Burgenland back to Austria,
our home was to most people a book with seven seals. Since this time, many
lapses have been made up. The Burgenländisches Landesarchiv (Provincial
Archive of Burgenland), das Volksbildungswerk (The Society for Education of
the People) and admirers of Burgenland's parts, already wrote a small library
concerned with the history of our home. For as long as the native history of
our country was neglected, the local Croats knew only fragments of their past
also. Adolf Mohl claims in a history book written in the Hungarian language
published in 1915, "A horvátok bevándorlása 1533-ban" (The immigration of the
Croats in 1533) that the first Croats come into the small Lower Austrian
village of Schönau in 1533. Only a few educators knew of his work that
initiated the historiography of the Burgenland Croats. Martin Mersic, the
priest in Baumgarten found a document in the archives of the City of Ödenburg
in 1929 that testifies that Croats were already living in Baumgarten and
Siegendorf in 1528. The same priest put an entry into the 1931 cultural
society yearbook of the Croatians according to which, a list of the
"Weinzehent" (a tax amounting to 1/10th of the annual wine production) can be
found in the Ödenburg city archives for some small villages around Ödenburg
and Güns. This list contains the names of former Croatian wine growers who
have come from their old home country and in 1557 paid the "Weinzehent" in
Gross Warasdorf, Klein Warasdorf, Nikitsch, Kroatisch Minihof, Nebersdorf,
Unterpullendorf, Grossmutschen, Drassburg, Klein Andre, and Amhagan. Shortly
afterwards we read several articles written by Martin Mersic Sr., and Martin
Mersic Jr., Ignaz Horvath, Branimir Tukavac, and Vjekoslav Marhold, in the
Croatian newspaper Hörvatske Novine, in the Croat calendar, and in the annuals
of the Croatian cultural association. These writings describe one or other
events from the past of the Burgenland Croats. Vjekoslav Marhold wrote an
article for Ernst Loger's book "Local history and Geography of the Mattersburg
District in Burgenland" pages 111-113 where he says: "One can presume that the
migration of the Burgenland Croats had started in the year 1522."

In 1934 the Croatian historian, Mate Ujevic, published a book in 1934
entitled "Gradiscanski Hörvati" (The Burgenland Croats). In the chapter
"Povjesna Pozadina" (Historical Background) M. Ujevic explains why the
ancestors of our Croats left their old homes, as well as where and when they
settled down. Josef Breu's dissertation "Die Kroatenansiedlung in
südostdeutschen Grenzraum" - "The Croat Settlements in the southeastern
German border area", is by far the best work that was written on this topic
by a non-Croatian author. His treatise best appreciates the historical
importance of this National Migration in a scientific way. The segment of his
work that is dedicated to the colonization of the Burgenland Croats must be
regarded as especially valuable as he studied the related German, Hungarian
and Croatian literature. He also explored the Urbare (Land Registration
Records) of the former Domains in Burgenland, archives of the Hofkammer
(Imperial Treasury), as well as the Visitationen (ecclesiastical inspections)
of the Gyor (Raab) diocese from the time of the immigration of the Burgenland
Croats into their present home. We must mention Eugen Biricz's dissertation,
"Geschichte der Einwanderung der Burgenländischen Kroaten" (History of the
Immigration of the Burgenland Croats), which was written in 1949. Among other
things, Biricz refers to the fact that at the time of danger, a significant
number of the upper and lesser Croatian nobility left their homes and settled
in Austria and Hungary. The Burgenland Croats had a desire to know the history
of their ancestors for a long time. In order to satisfy this wish, the author
of this treatise collected the necessary documentation for over two decades,
and studied the existing literature Austrian, Hungarian and Croatia in this
relationship. He also explored the Urbare (Land Registration Records) of the
former Domains in Burgenland, as well as the Visitations (ecclesiastical
inspections) of the Gyor diocese from the time of the immigration of the
Burgenland Croats into their present home. With this preparation and with the
assistance of the Burgenland central government, the author published his Croatian
treatise "Iz stare domovine u nepoznatu novu" (From the old into an unknown new
Homeland) in 1952. The interest in this edition was great and in four weeks all
copies were out of print. Before the publication of the aforementioned treatise,
Mr. Bögl, who at that time was Landesrat (a member of the provincial government),
desired that the author also publish his work in the German language. This
was the case because the German population of the country also desired to
know the history of the Burgenland Croats. We note with joy that large parts
of the German population took an interest in the Croatian population and in
their fate. And that is understandable since Croatia was a pillar of the
Danube monarchy through the centuries. The Burgenland Croats have lived in
harmony with their fellow German citizens for more than four hundred years.
They shared a common fate with them in times of war and in peace. To better
understand the history of the Burgenland Croats and their way of thinking it
is of benefit to brush on the past of their old homeland. As an introduction
one might mention that the emergence of the Croats in the Balkans was of
significant importance to the future existence of the East Roman Empire. As a
result of the destruction of the barbaric Avar Empire by the Croats in the
area of the present day Yugoslavia, the encircled Byzantines were freed of a
dangerous opponent. This allowed them to put up a successful resistance to
the advance of the Arabs. As the Turkish half-moon threatened also to
inundate the Christian Western civilization, " The Croats formed a 350 year
long living bayonet fence at the military border, against which waves of
Turkish armies often broke through "These apt words of a prominent German
historian are a positive recognition of the painful sufferings and sacrifices
of the Croatian people in the fight with the half-moon (Turkish crescent) for
the Western Christian civilization. Johann Dobrovich

The Indo Europeans
Chapter I

Linguistic comparisons have long revealed the existence of a relationship
between the Slavs, Germans, Romans, Greeks, Thracians, Illyrians, Celts,
Balts, and Indians. From this we conclude that they are united by a common
descent from an ancient people whose language is called Indo-European. The
question as to where we are to look for the homeland of these ancient people
has been discussed many times before, however, up to now without a
satisfactory answer. Due to philological, archaeological and anthropological
facts, we are of the opinion that the home of the Indo-Europeans lies in the
northern part of central Europe and the Scandinavian countries. Others assume
that the cradle of the Indo-Europeans lies somewhere in Mid Asia, in present
day Turkestan, or Armenia. They think that before the linguistic and
consanguineous unity that lasted for many centuries was lost, the inhabitants
of this area settled elsewhere. Furthermore, they assume that the Indian
branch migrated southeastwards, all others however westwards, except for the
Armenians and Iranians who remained in their original country. Others search
for the original homeland of the Indo-Europeans in the central Danube area.
Of course these are only more or less astute speculations; they have not led
to a reliable and generally acceptable outcome. The Indo-Europeans already
lived in communities in the early Stone Ages, and their civilization stood on
relatively high level. Their emigration from an ancient homeland, and the
origin of the new nations caused by the immigration is dated at the beginning
of the Bronze Age (between 1600 and 1000 BC). Why and how it came thereto,
research has still not been able to clarify. The only thing known for sure is
that the linguistic differences between the Indo-European tribes were minor
at the time of their separation and they went their rhetorical ways with the
passage of time.

The Slavs as a Separate Indo-European Language Group
Chapter II

The Slavs as an Indo-European language group probably had as their oldest
residence a fertile East European area located between the Weichsel
(Vistula), Dnieper, and Desna rivers, and the western Dvina and the
Carpathians mountains. Their neighbors were the Germanic peoples to the west,
the Balts (Lithuanians, Latvians, and Prussians) to the north, the Finns to
the northeast, and the Thracians to the southeast. We identify three different
branches with the present day Slavs, depending on their place of residence:
Western Slavs: (Czechs, Slovaks, Poles, and Lausatian Serbs), Eastern Slavs:
(Russians, Ukrainians), Southern Slavs: (Slovenes, Croats, Serbs, and
Bulgarians). While the other Indo- European tribes split more and more, the
Slavs continued to stay in their old homeland for a long time, where they
still spoke a common language in 200 AD.

The Beginning of the Croatian Historical Writing and The Migration into the
South Chapter III

The writing of Croatian history begins with a treatise by the Byzantine
Emperor, Constantine Porphyrogenet. He wrote an extensive report of the
immigration of Croats into the Balkan Peninsula between the years 948 and
952. In Chapter 30 of his work, "Die administrando imperio" he writes, "Those
who research how Slavic people took Dalmatia away from us can gather it from
this report." Constantine tells of Saloniki being conquered by the Avars in
614 and continues: " when the Avars saw that this was a beautiful country,
they settled there. At that time the Croats lived beyond Bavaria where the
White Croatians now live. However, a part of the people separated themselves,
namely five brothers, Klukas, Lovelos, Kosentizis, Muhlo, & Hrobatos with
their sisters, Tuga, & Buga. They came with their people to Dalmatia between
634 and 640 AD, and found the country governed by the Avars. After years of
fighting, the Avars were overcome, a part of them were massacred, and the
remainder subjugated. Ever since that time, the Croatians ruled over this
land. They found a few more Avars there, and one could see in them that they
are Avars. Furthermore, the remaining Croats stayed with the Franconians and
were called white Croats. They had their own rulers. They became subjects of
Otto, the great king of the Franks and Saxons".

Constantine Porphyrogenet writes that a part split off of the Croatians who
had come to Dalmatia, and conquered Illyria (note8) and Pannonia (note(9).
These Croatians had their own sovereign who maintained friendly relationships
with the rulers of the Dalmatian Croats.

The answer to the question why a part of the Croats left their northern homes
(in Galicia, Bohemia, and Moravia) gives us the history of the Byzantine
Empire from 574 to 624. The Avars were deadly enemies of the Byzantine Empire.
They lived off robbery and warfare, and plundering oppulent Konstantinopel
must have been desirable for them. Additionally, since the hostile Persians
threatened the Byzantine Emperors, the Byzantines were forced to pay 80,000
to 200,000 gold coins annually as tribute to the Avar ruler Hagan beginning
in the year 574. Nevertheless the Avars were not satisfied with that. They
conquered one town after the other, and jointly beleaguered even
Konstantinopel itself with the Persians in 626. The Byzantines barely managed
to save the capital of the Empire. Then King Herakles, an able diplomat and a
brave Army leader, sought and found assistance from the White Croatians (note
7). They managed to break the power of the Avars between 630 and 640 in the
area of today's Dalmatia, Bosnia, Montenegro, and Herzegovina. Thereupon the
White Croatians left these primitive countries and conquered the countries
known today as Croatia and Slavonia. In Chapter 31, the imperial author
repeats the above statement with a variation, that the Croats had come to
Dalmatia by the decree of the Byzantine Emperor, who assigned the devastated
and deserted country to them as their domicile.

Archdeacon Thomas, the historical writer from the city of Spalato (Split),
describes the arrival of the Croats in the following way in the second half
of the 13th century: From the area of Poland, which was called Lingones,
Totila came with seven or eight tribes (septem vel octo tribus nobilium).
They regarded the country where the Croats now live as a favorable abode, and
received it on the desire of the Prince of the country since it had few
inhabitants. Thereupon they subjected the natives by force, suppressed them
and forced them into their service. The Croats mixed with the original
population over a period of time, and finally became a people with a uniform
way of life, customs, and language. Both sources that describe the arrival of
the Croats concur on the major points. According to either author, the
Croatians were organized into seven or eight tribes that conquered the land
and subjugated the natives that included the Avars, the former rulers of the
country.

note:7 Dalmatia comprises today's Bosnia Herzegovina, Montenegro, &
Dalmatia. White Croatia was situated in today's Galicia, Bohemia and Moravia.
note:8 Illyria was originally the eastern coastland by the Adriatic Sea.

note:9 Pannonia was a Roman province in the central Danube Region (which
included present Burgenland)

The imperial author, living 300 years closer to the immigration of the
Croats, has more details. He knew the name of the Croatian leaders, describes
the liquidation of the Avars by the Croats, and refers to the early expansion
into the territory of the Balkans and the Danube. He knew that the country
that the Croats conquered was already called Croatia at this time. Archdeacon
Thomas, who described the events of the arrival of the Croats through a space
of 600 years, calls our attention to an important sociological occurrence:
The Croatian tribes intermingled with the subjugated natives to become a
nation with the same customs and speech.

Up to 1864 nobody doubted the statements of Emperor Constantine Porphyrogenet
and Archdeacon Thomas. First Racki, Jagic, and a few others denied the above
statement. The best Croatian history writers, among them Glumpowicz, Grot,
Nodilo, Klate, Niederle, Zupanic, Westberg, and in the more recent times
Hauptmann, Rus, Segvic, and Sakat proved that the crux of the statements of
the Emperor Constantine and the Archdeacon Thomas are correct. Their views,
based on Croat tradition and their description of historical facts, e.g. of
political and social structures, are correct. The arrival of the Croats in
the South was an invasion by horsemen who disassociated themselves from
Greater Croatia, who successfully fought the Avars and eventually defeated
them. This undertaking served the goals of Byzantine politics that was to
have one barbarian nation conquered by another.

As a politically organized nation, the Croats soon understood the importance
of Christianity and Rome. The Christianization of the Croats already began
after 640, and around 680 they signed a treaty of historical importance with
the Pope. Viseslav, the first Croatian Ruler, was baptized around 800. The
Popes guided the conversion of the Croats and they sent priests to Croatia
and Dalmatia to teach and baptize the people. From the time of the immigration
of the Croats into their present homeland up until the present time, the
Croats never attacked other countries to conquer them. They have only
defended their homeland. This characteristic defined the treaty (of the
Croats) with the Pope, the Holy Agatho, who reigned between 678 and 681. The
Byzantine Emperor Constantine Porphyrogenet speaks of the present Treaty:"The
baptized Croatians will not fight outside of their homeland with strangers,
because the Pope, who sent them priests, and had them baptized during the
reign of the Roman King Herakles gave them certain prophecies and
regulations. The baptized Croats had a signed contract in which they vowed to
Saint Peter, steadfastly and for forever to neither invade nor fight a
foreign country, that they would live in peace with all those who wished to
make a similar vow to the Pope. Should however another people break into the
Croat homeland and fight them, God will lead the Croats to war and protect
them, and that the follower of Christ, Saint Peter, will grant them victory."
(to be continued as BB Newsletter 56A)

-this newsletter continues as no. 55B

THE BURGENLAND BUNCH NEWS - No. 55B
DEDICATED TO AUSTRIAN-HUNGARIAN BURGENLAND FAMILY HISTORY
(issued biweekly by Gerald Berghold)
April 15, 1999
(all rights reserved)

This third section of the 3-section newsletter contains An Invitation to the
Second Annual Midwest BB Picnic, Some Questions and Answers from WorldGenWeb
Postings, Another Name For Pamhagan, Another Kotz Generation and Jewish
Cemeteries in Burgenland.


SECOND ANNUAL MIDWEST BURGENLAND PICNIC (from Susan M. Peters)

Hi Everyone, Mark your calendars! Hap Anderson has made the reservations for
the picnic at Wabun Park, adjacent to Minnehaha Park, in Minneapolis,
Minnesota for the Midwest chapter of the Burgenland Bunch. Same place as last
year. We have reserved both sides of the pavilion. For this email list I
used the membership list emailed in January, plus the membership changes and
additions in the subsequent B-Bunch newsletters. I chose the people living
near Minnesota and others who mentioned Minnesota in their family research
lists. Please feel free to invite any other family and friends you may wish
to. Here are the essentials:

Date: Sunday, August 8, 1999, Time: 10:00 AM - 3:00 PM
Where: Wabun Park (adjacent to Minnehaha Park), Minneapolis, MN

We hope to see everyone there and renew and make new friendships and
cousins!!! More details later! Thanks, Hap and Susan


WORLD GEN WEB POSTINGS - G. Berghold

Since I edit this newsletter as well as host WorldGenWeb-Burgenland (see
signature at end of this newsletter section for URL), it would be impossible
for me to answer every WGW query. I am therefore very pleased that some of
our BB members are reading these queries and posting answers. A great way to
share our data. On occasion I'll publish some of the more interesting ones. I
suggest that all BB members read the WGW postings-you never know when one
will give you a contact. Many are made by non-members. All queries and
answers are archived and can found at WGW-Burgenland. To reply to these
postings or communicate with the senders you must respond using the WGW
bulletin board (unless email addresses are given). Do not contact the BB
newsletter as we do not have non-member email addresses.

Burgenland Province-Austria Queries
A new message, "Lorenz, Kappel/ Neunkirchen area," was posted by Mari Lorenz
on Fri, 26 Feb 1999. The message reads as follows:

"Would like any info on Kappel family of Neunkirchen, also Lorenz family of
Neunkirchen.

A new message, "Kappel surname," was posted by Gerry Stifter on Sat, 27 Feb
1999 It is a response to "Kappel/Burgenland," posted by Mari Lorenz on Fri,
26 Feb 1999. The message reads as follows:

"Mari, my gr gr grandmother was Maria Kappel. She married Michael Stifter.
Their daughter Agnes was born about 1826 in Salmansdorf, Burgenland Austria.
She married Joseph Stifter 21 November 1843 in Pilgersdorf, Burgenland. Their
son Paul, my grandfather emigrated to America in 1868. Don't have any other
information about Kappels, although Kappels settled in my home town (Winsted,
MN)"

A new message, "Kappel," was posted by Fritz Königshofer on Fri, 26 Feb 1999
It is a response to "Lorenz, Kappel/ Neunkirchen area," posted by Mari Lorenz
on Fri, 26 Feb 1999

The message reads as follows:
"The Kappels seem to be concentrated in the Middle to Southern Burgenland. I
have come across Kappels in the records of Rechnitz. However, a check of the
Austrian phone directory (www.etb.at; use "Erweiterte Suche," then Burgenland
as "Bundesland" and Kappel as name) immediately makes clear that there are
too many Kappels spread out there in order to draw conclusions for your own
ancestry. However, the concentration of the name in the villages of
Redlschlag and Steinbach, close to the border with Lower Austria, easily
suggests a possible migration to or from the Neunkirchen and/or so-called
Bucklige Welt ("humpy world") area.

Neunkirchen is in Lower Austria, and you should post your query also on the
board for that province, the name of which in German is Niedersterreich."

A new message, "ECKHARDT / ERNST," was posted by Janet Cobb on Fri, 19 Mar 1999
The message reads as follows:

"Paul Eckhardt and his wife, Elisabeth Ernst, moved to Kortvelyes, Hungary
(now Pama, Austria) before 1826. Parish register gives previous origin as
"Margarethon". In the general vicinity of Kortvelyes I find St. Margit to the
south and Margarethen am Moos about 20 miles west. Neither place has pre-1826
records available for search. Any suggestions on how to trace this family
back further? Their surnames are not found in the 1700s Moson County Tax
Lists (in any county)."

A new message, "Margarethen," was posted by Fritz Königshofer on Fri, 19 Mar
1999 It is a response to "ECKHARDT / ERNST," posted by Janet Cobb on Fri, 19
Mar 1999. The message reads as follows:

"Probably the Szentmargit you found is the one near Eisenstadt, formerly
Margita in county Sopron? The records dating back to 1826/28 are probably the
duplicates which have also been filmed by LDS. The original records in the
parishes or, alternatively, at the diocesan archives in Eisenstadt, reach
back further, normally to the beginning of the recording in the parish.
However, these records can only be studied on location. A good source of
information for you might be the volumes of the so-called Landestopographie
of the Burgenland, provided you can read German. Unfortunately, the volume of
most interest for you dealing with the Neusiedl district is out of print, and
you could only access it at a library. The volumes on the districts
Eisenstadt and Mattersburg can be ordered from the Landesarchiv Burgenland,
Europaplatz 1, 7000 Eisenstadt, Austria."

A new message, "Assistance needed to find records," was posted by Norman
Gludovatz on Thu, 25 Mar 1999. The message reads as follows:

"I am at a standstill in my research, and I realize that I must go back in my
research and get some primary documentation. But I am unsure how to do it. So
help if you can. I live in Canada, and I am researching my family who were
from the province of Burgenland. So here are my questions:

#1-I want to get a birth certificate and a marriage certificate of my
Grandfather. He was born and married in Klingenbach. His birth was in 1900,
and marriage in 1926. This information is not covered by the LDS - FHC
microfilming. Where do I get this information from, and how?
#2-I want to get a death certificate for my Great Grandfather.... I do not
have a date of death....However it would be after 1929... I really want to
find the death certificate so that it may tell me his date and place of
birth. I believe that he died in Klingenbach as well. Where do I get this
information from, and how? Any suggestion on how I may find this information.
Do I need to be in Austria to get the information? Can I write for the
information, and to whom do I write?

A new message, "Klingenbach records," was posted by Fritz Konigshofer on Fri,
26 Mar 1999 It is a response to "Assistance needed to find records," posted
by Norman Gludovatz on Thu, 25 Mar 1999. The message reads as follows:

"Please see Albert's village data.
Accordingly, the civil records for Klingenbach should be under Schattendorf,
and normally should be available from LDS (check the Salt Lake City Library
fiche catalog for Austria, Burgenland, Schattendorf). If LDS has these
records, then they cover the period from October 1895 till end of 1920, and
thus should contain the birth record of your grandfather, and possibly of his
siblings. When you receive the film, look for records with the village
address Kelenpatak, the Hungarian name for Klingenbach. A typical Hungarian
civil birth record of 1900 would contain the names, ages, birth places, and
religion of both parents and some other information.

A new message, "Thek," was posted by Fritz Königshofer on Sat, 19 Dec 1998.
It is a response to "THEK," posted by Ing. Richard Thek on Mon, 13 Jul 1998.
The message reads as follows:

"The Thek could be the noble family Tk, also spelled Thk, Tiek and similar,
from Jabing in Southern Burgenland. The Hungarian name of the village was
Jobbagy. The village is located near Grosspetersdorf. Tk descendents
obviously were present in other parts of Hungary as well, e.g. Kassa (now
Kosice in Slovakia)."

A new message, "HORVATH, STERZ, KAPOSI, JURKOVITS," was posted by Laszlo
B. APATHY, III on Sat, 26 Dec 1998. The message reads as follows:

Laszlo B. APATHY, III
AAA - Apati/Apathy Ancestral Association (sk Trsasga) (1995)
(de NagyTot & Woldorf/Dombos, Transylvania, Hungary, Nov. 1609)
191 Selma Ave., Englewood, FLorida 34223-3830 USA; Tel: 941-474-4774
NEW 1999

A new message, "Schuetter & Friesl," was posted by Bill Schuetter on Sat,
26 Dec 1998 The message reads as follows:

Researching Schuetter (Schütter) and Friesl
names from Pinkafeld. Alexander Schütter, my grandfather (Sept. 6, 1897 to
Nov 18, 1960, Chicago) and his parents, Alois and Anna (Gratzl) Schütter.
Anna's parents were Georg Anton Gratzl (Dec. 31, 1821 - ?) and Clara Gyacky
(Aug 16, 1811 - Jan 11, 1858).

My Grandmother, Gisela Friesl (Apr. 27, 1900 to Nov. 13, 1998, Chicago) and
her parents, Andreas Friesl, Jr. (Mar. 22, 1871 to May 29, 1955) and Maria
(Friesl) Friesl (Dec. 8, 1868 to Dec. 16, 1946). Other names include Prl and
Luisperbeck. Link: Schuetter & Schafer Family Home Page. URL:
http://www.familytreemaker.com/users/s/c/h/Bill-Schuetter/

A new message, "Keglovitz Posting," was posted by Bill Schuetter on Sat, 26
Dec 1998 It is a response to "KEGLOVITZ(S), REDL (RAEDEL),CSEKITS," posted
by Betty Godfrey on Sat, 18 Jul 1998. The message reads as follows:

"I have a
Catherina Keglovics (spelling could be different) in my family tree. Married
to a Stefan Gyacky (this is all mainly in Burgenland, then part of Hungary),
they had a son named "Pil" (1789 - 1831), who married Maria Luisperbeck (1786
- 1854). Pil and Maria had a daughter named Clara (1811 - 1858), who, in
1840, married Georg Anton Gratzl (1821 - ?). They had a daughter, Anna, who
married Alois Schütter. Anna died in 1936, after having had 14 children in
Pinkafeld, among them my grandfather, Alexander Schuetter (Schütter) (1897 -
1960 in Chicago).

A new message, "Schütter/Gratzl Marriage," was posted by Fritz Königshofer on
Sun, 27 Dec 1998 It is a response to "Schuetter & Friesl," posted by Bill
Schuetter on Sat, 26 Dec 1998 The message reads as follows:

"My own notes from the r-c records of Unterwart
(Als r) list the marriage of Schütter Alajos [= Alois], 23, a flower miller
from Szalonak (Altschlaining), with Gratzl Anna, 18, the daughter of Gratzl
Antal [= Anton], living at Unterwart no. 17. The marriage took place in
Unterwart on October 10, 1880. These data would be at variance with your tree
as currently drawn, both regarding the date of birth of Alois Schütter as
well as the identity of Anna Gratzl's parents. I will write to you directly
to discuss the situation and provide you with further information from my
notes.

The birth village name you currently have for Alois Schütter is likely
Kemeten (rather than Kement), a village southwest of Oberwart. Altschlaining
lies eastnortheast of Oberwart. One of the other names you mention should
rather be spelled Luibersbeck or Loibersbeck."

A new message, "Flamisch, Groller, Fischl, Jost(Yost), etc.," was posted by
Fritz Königshofer on Sun, 14 Mar 1999 It is a response to "LOEFFLER, DULD,
PUMMER, FLAMISCH, YOST, REICHL, ZWILLINGER, ZEGLOWITSCH, WEBER, PFEIFFER,
FISCHL," posted by Bob Loeffler on Sat, 02 May 1998. The message reads as
follows:

"Flamisch, Grller, Fischl, Jost (americanized to Yost) are names present in
the Lafnitz and Raab valley in southern Burgenland and nearby Hungary. The
name Weber also exists there, but this is a very common German name (meaning
weaver) and spread virtually everywhere in German speaking lands. Weber
belongs to the common and widespread names, like Steiner, Unger, Mayer, etc.,
which virtually escape any geographical focus."

A new message, "Krabal and Finc(e)," was posted by Fritz Königshofer on Sun,
20 Dec 1998 It is a response to "RE: KRABAL and FINC surname search," posted
by Chrystie on Sun, 20 Dec 1998 The message reads as follows:

"The Czech name of Bohemia is Czechy, therefore Czech and Bohemian mean the
same thing. However, the second element in your hearsay, Slovenian, does not
fit. This should likely mean "Slav" or the alternatives "Slavic" or
"Slavonian." The latter term was used as a general adjective describing Slavs
(to which the Czechs also belong), or for a particular region of Croatia. In
your context, it would seem to be the former. Since in the Austro-Hungarian
Monarchy, Bohemia belonged to the Austrian half of the empire, it is quite
possible that your ancestors were Austrian citizens. With the little you
know, I would say that your ancestors most likely originated from Bohemia
(the Western part of today's Czech Republic; the other part being Moravia).
One of your next steps could be to establish the language origin of the name
Hrabal, and whether Fince or Vince was indeed used as a name in Bohemia. Make
a try with the family name fiches for Bohemia (or Czechoslovakia) at LDS.


PAMHAGEN-BAUMHACKEN SAME VILLAGE (from Judy Eggert-James Weinzatl-Albert Schuch)

<< Albert: Can you help us out here, is Pamhagen and Baumhacken the
same village? >>

Answer: Yes, definitely. This village was first mentioned in a document of
1268 when it was called "Pomog". The name changed through the centuries. A
few examples: Pomaken (1431); Pomogy seu Pamhaken (1696; "seu" is Latin for
"also (known as)"); Baumhacken (1786).

The original meaning of the name is in dispute. It has been argued that the
name is derived from the ancient Slawic word "Pomedje" (i.e. "on the
border"), but there are other theories. "Baumhacken" is of course German and
your translation (Tree Cutting) is correct. It often happened that German
settlers kind of "Germanized" an already existing village name.


ANOTHER GENERATION AND AN ANCESTRAL NAME RESURFACES

Ed. Note: Nephew Daryl Kotz and wife Karen just had their first child, a girl
named Emma Catherine, born 27 Mar. 1999. A new bud on their branch of the
Kotz-Berghold tree. The Kotz name is an old PA-German one and Daryl tells of
the following interesting coincidence. Will some future genealogist be
confused?

Daryl writes: "Just as a side note...my wife and I spent the last three
months trying to pick out a name for a girl. We finally chose Emma Catherine
about a week before she was born. After we brought Emma Catherine home from
the hospital I was cleaning out my desk when I found the genealogy of my
father's side of the family. His cousin has been researching the Kotzes for
some time. I was looking through the lineage and lo and behold, I found that
on March 24, 1865 Emma Catherine Kotz was born. She was George Kotz's (my
Great Grandfather) sister. She lived to be 95 years old. What a pleasant
surprise that was! And here we thought we were being original. Actually now
that we have this information we think it makes it extra special.


JEWISH CEMETERIES IN BURGENLAND (from Albert Schuch)

The book "Jdische Friedhfe in Wien, Niedersterreich und Burgenland" (=
Jewish cemeteries in Vienna, Lower Austria and Burgenland), edited in 1992 by
Club Niedersterreich, ISBN 3-7039-0016-4, 148 pages, includes an article by
Shalom FRIED: "Das Erbe der "Schewa Kehiloth". Auf den Spuren jdischen
Lebens im Burgenland" (= The heritage of the Seven Communities. Tracing
Jewish life in Burgenland). Also included are photos of the following Jewish
cemeteries in Burgenland: Eisenstadt, Kittsee, Frauenkirchen, Deutschkreutz,
Lackenbach, Kobersdorf, Rechnitz, Oberwart, Mattersburg, Stadtschlaining,
Sauerbrunn.

Author Shalom FRIED, born in Israel in 1946, is founder and president of the
"Weltverein der Burgenländischen Juden und ihrer Nachkommen, Austria". (World
Society of Burgenland Jews and their descendants, Austria)


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