About this Dutch Anabaptist Cultural Group
More about this site
The Fast Brothers ca 1900
History and Genealogy of Netherlandic Mennonites
This site explores the history and genealogy of Netherlandic Mennonites from their origins in the lowland countries of Europe through their migration to settlements in Tsarist Russia and eventual destinations in Western Canada. Where possible the perspectives and experiences of my own ancestors are cast against the historical backdrop.
Historical Biography and Genealogy
Mennonite Schapansky Ancestry (1640-1925)
Tracing the Mennonite Schapansky family back to its Lutheran roots
Friedrichstadt: Remonstrants and Mennonites (1621)
A Danish Duke builds a new town in the 17th century, financed by Dutch Remonstrant investors, and settled by Dutch Mennonite craftsmen
Schroeder and Huebert
![]()
The Mennonite Settlers in Chortitza
The story of the Dutch Mennonites who settled in Chortitza in the late eighteenth century and the early nineteenth century
The Deputies vs. Elder David Epp (1789-1798)
The scandalous conflict between Deputies Bartsch and Hoeppner and Elder David Epp in the first decade of the Chortitza Settlement
Evaluating Claims Made for the Ancestry of David Doerksen (1740)
Evaluating genealogical claims for David Doerksen found on public genealogy websites
Were the Mennonite Van Dijcks related to the New Amsterdam Op den Dycks? (1560)
Evaluating genealogical claims about the ancestry of Philipp van Dijck (1564)
Stadtmuseum Kaliningrad
![]()
The Maraun Family in the Administrative Records of the Teutonic Order (1512-1523)
A record of events experienced by the Maraun family in the early sixteenth century
A Mennonite Dynasty in Danzig (1580-1700)
Family ties among elite Mennonite families in the early days
The Fast - Toews - Heese Economic Dynasty (1765-1917)
The business activities and marital alliances of this group of entrepreneurial families
Do the Mennonite Schapanskys Have Aristocratic Roots? (1556-1731)
Assessing the possibility that this Mennonite family has aristocratic ancestry
Teichroeb Family Books: Historical Context (1789-1944)
Four generations of family records in Russia
Anna Teichroeb and Gerhard Giesbrecht (1882-1943)
What happened to the Mennonites who stayed in Russia after the Revolution?
Eastern Settlement - The Johann Bartsch Story (1757-1821)
Deputy Johann Bartsch and the first Mennonite settlement in Russia
Alexander Roslin - Kunsthistorisches Museum
![]()
Eastern Vision - The Peter Epp Story (1725-1789)
The Mennonite Migration from Danzig to Russia
The Search for the Ancestors of Johann Fast (1852-1920)
Finding 150 years of history
The De Veers Go To Russia (1795-1803)
A concise summary of the De Veers who emigrated to Russia during the Mennonite Migration
De Veer: Five Centuries of History (1556-1822)
Michael Calmeyer's original research published in 1929
Jan Luyken
![]()
Jacob Harnasveger: 16th Century Anabaptist Reformer (1480-1563)
The life and times of a radical reformer
Teichroeb Ancestry: Poland - Russia - Canada (1740-1925)
The history of a family is the history of Europe
George C. Bryson
![]()
The Lehn Diaries: Historical Context (1679-1919)
Historical anecdotes drawn from the pages of a multi-generational diary
Moving to Canada
Life on the Prairies
The Disappearance of Jake Fast (1935)
The unsolved mystery of Jake's disappearance during the Great Depression
Isaac "Fisher" Fast - the Hermit of Gabriel's Crossing (1884-1964)
The life and times of Fisher Fast
Marjorie Fast and Peter Teichroeb Part 1: Marjorie's Story (1935)
Growing up on the Prairies...log cabins, fancy dresses and mosquitos
Marjorie Fast and Peter Teichroeb Part 2: Peter's Story (1929)
Farming life...nice pitchfork you have there
Marjorie Fast and Peter Teichroeb Part 3: The School Years (1930s-1950s)
Peter and Marjorie get an education
Marjorie Fast and Peter Teichroeb Part 4: The Depression and the War Years (1929-1945)
Freight trains and war planes
