52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks - 2019 Week 1 Prompt - First

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks

2019

Week 1

Prompt – First

First Great-Grandfather Andreas Krikau to Fifth Great- Grandfather Johann Georg Krikau

In fall of 2006 I took a free library course on genealogy. Up to that time I dabbled in family history learning more of what I didn't know. Which was more than I knew. At that time I was most interested in finding out more of my maternal grandmother. Maria Katherina McLaughlin nee Krikau. She was more commonly called Mary. Mary was born in Warenburg, Russia on June 8, 1903. She died in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan on August 8, 1989. I had lost all chance of learning her story by the time I was interested in it. Further my mother had died a few years before her.

That only left my Uncle Wallace in Ontario as the only living Krikau from that Krikau line. I wrote a letter to him asking him for any family history he might know. He gave me an address of John and Barbara Krikau of Chicago who would be my first cousin once removed and Uncle Wally knew he was collecting Krikau family history.

He was the first relative that I contacted in the name of genealogy. For a first endeavor in my genealogy collaboration I struck gold. His response was swift and kind. John and his two cousins had paid for research to be done to develop the Krikau line back to early 1760's. That is totally amazing to me. That is almost 300 years ago. Cousin John gladly sent on his work for me to have and share. I was overwhelmed by his generosity.

From this work, the progenitor of the Krickau family was listed.

Progenitor for Krikau Family As Found in My Cousin's Research

The first Krickau that has been verified by documents in the Krickau family is my 5^th great-grandfather – Johan Goerg Krickau. He was born in 1718 or 1723 in Wolfenhausen, Limburg-Weilburg, Hessen, Germany.  He is considered the first because that is as far back as researchers have found documentation on a Krickau. However recently I have made contact through Ancestry with a Krickau from Germany who lives near Wolfenhausen and claims to have found parents for Johan Goerg Krikau. This needs to be verified.

This Johan Goerg Krickau (Krikau) was among the first settlers that left the war ravaged Germany seeking better land and opportunity in Russia at the invite of Catherine the Great and her Manifesto.

In the Volga German Website, Dr. Brent Mai who has written extensively on the subject of Volga Germans and translated to English many original documents from the colonies in Russia has written up the following.

Krickau Write Up By Dr. Brent Mai

Thus Johan Goerg Krickau was married twice. The first time is to a women as of now, not known. From this union, Johann Adam Krickau was born and he would be my 4 times great-grandfather.

As mention above Johann Goerg 's first wife died and he remarried widow Maria Katharina Gilau who had several children from her first marriage. I presume that one son was born to Maria and Johann Goerg because of the birth date of a Johann Krikau listed under Maria Katharina's children was born after their 1767 arrival to Russia.   The blended family is not new to men and women of the time. Marriage was a convenience for men left with small children and widows left without means to support themselves.

It is comforting and reassuring that Dr. Brent Mai and the researcher paid by my cousins came upon the same information regarding our first documented Krickau ancestors. 

Wendy

1) Goerg and Georg are the same person.

2) I know my grandmother as Krikau without the "c". Krickau is how it is found in German / Russian    documents.