THE VOLGA GERMANS IN PORTLAND
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History > Emigration from Russia

Emigration from Russia

In 1871, many of the privileges that had been guaranteed to the Volga German colonists by Catherine the Great's Manifesto were withdrawn by decree of the Czar. In 1874, the exemption from military service that was promised in perpetuity was stripped from the colonists. For many Volga Germans, military conscription was the last straw. The strong push to Russify the ethnic Germans combined with increasing land shortages at home and reports of plentiful farmland in America caused many to seriously consider emigration.
Title page of the Russian passport held by the Heinrich Döring family from Norka. The Döring family immigrated to the United States in November 1903. Courtesy of Steve Schreiber.
Title page of the Russian passport held by the Heinrich Döring family from Norka. The Döring family immigrated to the United States in November 1903 and settled in Portland. They later changed the spelling of their family name to Derring. Courtesy of Steve Schreiber.
Starting with a trickle of immigrants in 1875, thousands would depart for America in the following decades. Those who settled in America wrote to their family and friends in Russia, encouraging them to immigrate. Periodic famines in the Volga region, early signs of an impending revolution in Russia, lack of sufficient farmland and a desire for greater educational opportunities also spurred the movement of many to America. This mass migration was slowed by World War I and then halted by the Russian Revolution and Civil War beginning in 1917.

It is estimated that about 25 percent of the Volga Germans emigrated, primarily to North and South America. Those who remained in Russia would suffer war, famines and deportation to Siberia and Central Asia. 

Sources

Haynes, Emma Schwabenland. Emma's Thesis - The German-Russians on the Volga and in the United States. AHSGR Central California Chapter. 1996. Print.

Koch, Fred C. The Volga Germans: In Russia and the Americas, from 1763 to the Present. University Park: Pennsylvania State University Press, 1977. 192-94. Print.

Scheuerman, Richard D., and Clifford E. Trafzer. The Volga Germans: Pioneers of the Northwest. Moscow, ID: University of Idaho, 1980. Print.
Last updated March 2, 2018.
Copyright © 1998-2023 Steven H. Schreiber
  • Home
    • About This Website
    • Reviews
  • History
    • Historical Timeline
    • Migration to Russia
    • Emigration from Russia
    • Settlement in America
    • Migration to Portland
    • Little Russia
    • A Short History of Albina
    • World War I
    • The Volga Relief Society >
      • Portland Volga Relief Society Subscribers 1921
    • World War II
    • Assimilation and Dispersion
  • Beliefs
    • Churches >
      • Albina Seventh-day Adventist Church
      • First United Mennonite Baptist Church
      • Ebenezer German Congregational Church
      • Free Evangelical Brethren Church >
        • German Evangelical Congregational Brethren Church
      • Second German Baptist Church
      • St. Pauls Evangelical and Reformed Church
      • Second German Congregational Church >
        • Evangelical Congregational Church
      • Zion German Congregational Church >
        • Rivercrest Community Church
    • Pastors
    • The Brethren
    • Denominations >
      • German Reformed Church
      • German Evangelical Synod of North America
      • Evangelical and Reformed Church
      • German Congregational Church
      • Seventh-day Adventists
      • United Church of Christ
  • People
    • Our People
    • Notables
    • Pioneers 1881-1892
    • Stories
    • Photographs
    • Help Identify These People
  • Community
    • Characteristics
    • Businesses >
      • Bakeries Retailers and Services
      • Garbage Haulers
      • Grocery and Meat Markets
      • Restaurants >
        • Helsers on Alberta
        • McCormick & Schmicks
        • Wildwood
      • Saloons and Taverns
      • Suppliers and Manufacturers
    • Employers
    • Education
    • Sports
    • Maps
    • Documentary
  • Traditions
    • Foods
    • Folk Medicine
    • Expressions
    • Weddings
    • Holidays
    • Folk Music
    • Funerals and Burial Sites
  • Resources
    • Family Research
    • Books and Video
    • Works Cited