History > Migration to Portland
Migration to Portland
The earliest groups of Volga German immigrants arrived in the United States in 1875 settling primarily in Rush and Barton counties in Kansas and Franklin, Clay and Hitchcock counties in Nebraska.
Birds eye view of Portland in 1879, two years before the arrival of the first Volga Germans. Albina is shown at the far left of the map on the east side of the river. Library of Congress Catalog Number 75694937.
The Kansas Colony
The Kansas group included the Rothe, Grün, Ochs, Litzenberg, Batt and Weitz families who had arrived together in New York on December 30, 1875 aboard the steamship Montreal. These families were from the Volga German colonies of Frank, Brunnental and Rosenfeld (both daughter colonies of Norka), and, Neu-Yagodnaya Polyana, Schönfeld and Schöntal (all three were daughter colonies of Yagodnaya Polyana).
After several years of crop failures, drought, tornados and severe electrical storms which they had not experienced in Russia, some members of the Kansas colony looked for better opportunities in the Pacific Northwest.
The Nebraska settlers also suffered from drought and locusts and they endured three years of wheat crop failure. Their cattle were starving from lack of food and water on the range. Members of this group wrote about the heavy and enduring winds that were "unendurable" and the terrible conditions living in dugouts or sod houses. If that weren't enough, the Nebraska group found that their settlement was located near the Great Western Cattle Trail which was used to move long drives of cattle from Texas to northeastern markets. During the drives, fields and gardens of the Volga German settlers were overrun by the cattle. Some members of this group had considered moving to the Pacific Northwest as early as 1880. The group in Culbertson, Nebraska wrote to Oregon Railway and Navigation Company (OR&NC) in San Francisco expressing their interest in moving 160 families to the "Washington Territory." Their letter was forwarded to Henry Villard who owned the OR&NC at the time.
After several years of crop failures, drought, tornados and severe electrical storms which they had not experienced in Russia, some members of the Kansas colony looked for better opportunities in the Pacific Northwest.
The Nebraska settlers also suffered from drought and locusts and they endured three years of wheat crop failure. Their cattle were starving from lack of food and water on the range. Members of this group wrote about the heavy and enduring winds that were "unendurable" and the terrible conditions living in dugouts or sod houses. If that weren't enough, the Nebraska group found that their settlement was located near the Great Western Cattle Trail which was used to move long drives of cattle from Texas to northeastern markets. During the drives, fields and gardens of the Volga German settlers were overrun by the cattle. Some members of this group had considered moving to the Pacific Northwest as early as 1880. The group in Culbertson, Nebraska wrote to Oregon Railway and Navigation Company (OR&NC) in San Francisco expressing their interest in moving 160 families to the "Washington Territory." Their letter was forwarded to Henry Villard who owned the OR&NC at the time.
Henry Villard, a German immigrant to the United States, was a pivotal figure in the growth and development of the Pacific Northwest and the settlement of Volga Germans in the region. Villard was designated as "Oregon Commissioner of Immigration" in November of 1874 and set up offices in Boston, Omaha and Topeka that worked in cooperation with the Northwest Immigration Bureau in Portland. Villard established the Oregon Improvement Company (OIC). Villard promoted Thomas R. Tannatt, a former advisor to President Abraham Lincoln, to serve as general agent of the OIC and notable Portlanders C.H. Lewis, Henry Failing, C.J. Smith, J.N. Dolph and C.H. Prescott were appointed as directors. In October 1880, the OIC purchased 150,000 acres in the heart of the Palouse country of Washington. Two of Villard's transportation companies, the OR&NC and the Northern Pacific Railroad, were principally responsible for the migration of the first Volga German settlers in the Pacific Northwest.
Henry Villard
Men returning from railway survey work in the Pacific Northwest spoke to the settlers in the Midwest about the beautiful country and fertile land they had seen. Transportation companies such as the Union Pacific, Northern Pacific and the OR&NC soon provided favorable advertisements in German language newspapers of the lush regions of the "Great Columbia Plain" and formed associations to offer reduced rates for those who wished to travel westward during the winter months. These companies hoped to profit from providing passenger services, tapping the immigrants as a labor source for the construction of their railroads and as a market to sell their acreage. As the Oregon country developed, the railroads planned to benefit from the movement of people and commodities.
Freed from their five-year commitment under the Homestead Act, and tempted with the promise of good farmland and jobs, many Volga Germans in Kansas and Nebraska looked favorably to the Pacific Northwest.
Freed from their five-year commitment under the Homestead Act, and tempted with the promise of good farmland and jobs, many Volga Germans in Kansas and Nebraska looked favorably to the Pacific Northwest.
A group from the Kansas colony was the first to depart from the Midwest in 1881. The families of Georg Heinrich Grün (George H. Green), Peter Ochs, Philipp Hergert, Adam Hergert and Heinrich Scheuerman were among this group.
At the time, a contiguous rail line to Portland had not been completed. As a result, the Kansas group traveled on the Union Pacific Railroad to San Francisco. From San Francisco the party sailed north aboard one of Villard's Oregon Steamship Company vessels which touted service "every five days". The ship crossed the treacherous Columbia River bar and continued upriver to the confluence with the Willamette River and their final destination at the Oregon Railway and Navigation Company docks located near Front and D St. (now NW Naito Parkway and Davis). In late 1881, the Kansas contingent became the first Volga Germans to arrive in Portland.
At the time, a contiguous rail line to Portland had not been completed. As a result, the Kansas group traveled on the Union Pacific Railroad to San Francisco. From San Francisco the party sailed north aboard one of Villard's Oregon Steamship Company vessels which touted service "every five days". The ship crossed the treacherous Columbia River bar and continued upriver to the confluence with the Willamette River and their final destination at the Oregon Railway and Navigation Company docks located near Front and D St. (now NW Naito Parkway and Davis). In late 1881, the Kansas contingent became the first Volga Germans to arrive in Portland.
The first Volga Germans to arrive in Portland from San Francisco possibly sailed on the "Steamer Oregon" (or a similar vessel) which was launched in 1878 and owned by the Oregon Railway and Navigation Company in 1881. Source: Photo of the "Steamer Oregon" in 1900 from a brochure titled "Seattle and the Orient" edited and compiled by Alfred D. Bowen. The photo is uncredited and in the public domain.
Shortly after their arrival, the Kansas group boarded a ferry which carried them across the Willamette River to East Portland, at that time an independent city. According to the 1882 Portland City Directory, it appears that the majority of the Kansas households stayed at the Oriental Hotel which was located near a ferry landing on the south-side of J Street between First and Second (now SE Oak Street and SE 2nd Avenue). According to an 1878 advertisement published in The Oregonian, the hotel featured 12 sleeping rooms, a large sitting area, a dining room and kitchen.
The heads of the Volga German households were listed in the 1882 Portland City Directory as residents of the Oriental Hotel. This list of hotel residents was probably compiled sometime in late 1881. The names represent the heads of household who occupied nearly all of the hotel's 12 sleeping rooms.
Some families, such as the Peter Ochs household, reportedly lived in houseboats or houses built atop pilings over the Willamette River. If so, they were not listed in the City Directory in 1882.
The heads of the Volga German households were listed in the 1882 Portland City Directory as residents of the Oriental Hotel. This list of hotel residents was probably compiled sometime in late 1881. The names represent the heads of household who occupied nearly all of the hotel's 12 sleeping rooms.
- George Batt (listed as Bart)
- Henry Green (listed as Geine)
- John Helm
- Adam Hergert (listed as Herget)
- George Kleweno (listed as Kleaveno)
- John Kleweno (listed as Kleaveno)
- Philip Kleweno (listed as Kleaveno)
- John Ochs
- Adam Ruhl (listed as Ruhr)
- Conrad Schierman
- Henry Schierman
- John Schierman
- John Weigandt (listed as Viegand)
Some families, such as the Peter Ochs household, reportedly lived in houseboats or houses built atop pilings over the Willamette River. If so, they were not listed in the City Directory in 1882.
Excerpt from the 1879 map of Portland showing the exact location of the Oriental Hotel which is one of the buildings circled in red. Source: Library of Congress Catalog Number 75694937.
The men went to work on the construction of the Albina fill project for the OR&NC which began in March 1882. Others worked at a nearby lumber mill (probably the Albina Steam Saw Mill). The east Willamette waterfront was undergoing rapid industrial development at this time. The OR&NC opened a gigantic 900 foot ocean shipping dock in 1882. In 1883, William S. Ladd incorporated the Portland Flouring Mills. The seven story mill was located near the rail yards and docks and became the largest in the Northwest.
Despite the abundance of work opportunities, the original intent of the Kansas group was to find prime farmland. To their disappointment, they soon discovered that much of the available land around Portland was heavily forested and unsuitable for this purpose. They were directed by officials of the Portland office of the OIC to consider settlement on land they had recently purchased in the Palouse country of Eastern Washington. Two scouts from the group, Phillip Green (the son of George H. Green) and Peter Ochs (both conversant in English), were selected to view the area near the present day town of Endicott. Thomas Tannatt hoped to sell them an entire township. Green and Ochs secured passes on the Union Pacific Railroad and traveled to Almota on the Snake River. From there, they went north to Colfax and on to the present site of Endicott which was undeveloped grassland at the time.
Green and Ochs observed that the land in this area was fertile and would make a very suitable home. They quickly returned to Portland in late summer to organize their families and friends for the move to the Palouse Country.
On a beautiful day in late September 1882, a group including members of the Green, Ochs, Litzenberger and Batt families departed from East Portland aboard mule drawn covered wagons. The weather on the Emigrant Road turned wet, snowy and cold as they traveled to Walla Walla. On October 12th the party arrived at the settlement site and pitched their tents and began establishing their homesteads.
Others members of the party departed from East Portland a few weeks later, traveling by rail to to the terminus at Texas Ferry (now Ripiria, Washington) on the Snake River. This party was met by the group that had arrived earlier and by OIC teams who transported the new arrivals and their belongings to the settlement area. Some of the settlers lived in dugouts during the long cold winter months. Some said it rained inside as well as outside - only a little longer inside.
It isn't clear how many people from the Kansas group remained in Portland at the end of 1882 and into early 1883. However, a newspaper article published in the March 9, 1883 edition of The Oregonian provides some evidence that at least part of the group remained at the Oriental Hotel in East Portland. The article describes a fire at the hotel which had occurred the day before. It was noted that "through the exertions of the Russians who occupy the building, who rushed to the rescue with buckets of water, (the fire) did not spread beyond. The East Portland fire department will please take notice that no further danger is feared and their services will not be needed. The Russians are ahead on 'first water' so far for the year 1883." Despite this report, no members of the Kansas party are found in the 1883 East Portland City Directory.
Later documents show that several households that were part of the Kansas group, including Philipp Hergert, Adam Hergert and Heinrich Scheuermann, remained in Oregon where they found good farmland west of Portland near Cornelius. These families settled with other German immigrants and established the community of Blooming, Oregon. This community founded St. Peter's Lutheran Church.
George Henry Green, moved to Silverton, Oregon where he purchased 100 acres. George established a store on his property and initially named it Green’s Station, later changing the name to Switzerland. George Henry would later return to Portland.
Despite the abundance of work opportunities, the original intent of the Kansas group was to find prime farmland. To their disappointment, they soon discovered that much of the available land around Portland was heavily forested and unsuitable for this purpose. They were directed by officials of the Portland office of the OIC to consider settlement on land they had recently purchased in the Palouse country of Eastern Washington. Two scouts from the group, Phillip Green (the son of George H. Green) and Peter Ochs (both conversant in English), were selected to view the area near the present day town of Endicott. Thomas Tannatt hoped to sell them an entire township. Green and Ochs secured passes on the Union Pacific Railroad and traveled to Almota on the Snake River. From there, they went north to Colfax and on to the present site of Endicott which was undeveloped grassland at the time.
Green and Ochs observed that the land in this area was fertile and would make a very suitable home. They quickly returned to Portland in late summer to organize their families and friends for the move to the Palouse Country.
On a beautiful day in late September 1882, a group including members of the Green, Ochs, Litzenberger and Batt families departed from East Portland aboard mule drawn covered wagons. The weather on the Emigrant Road turned wet, snowy and cold as they traveled to Walla Walla. On October 12th the party arrived at the settlement site and pitched their tents and began establishing their homesteads.
Others members of the party departed from East Portland a few weeks later, traveling by rail to to the terminus at Texas Ferry (now Ripiria, Washington) on the Snake River. This party was met by the group that had arrived earlier and by OIC teams who transported the new arrivals and their belongings to the settlement area. Some of the settlers lived in dugouts during the long cold winter months. Some said it rained inside as well as outside - only a little longer inside.
It isn't clear how many people from the Kansas group remained in Portland at the end of 1882 and into early 1883. However, a newspaper article published in the March 9, 1883 edition of The Oregonian provides some evidence that at least part of the group remained at the Oriental Hotel in East Portland. The article describes a fire at the hotel which had occurred the day before. It was noted that "through the exertions of the Russians who occupy the building, who rushed to the rescue with buckets of water, (the fire) did not spread beyond. The East Portland fire department will please take notice that no further danger is feared and their services will not be needed. The Russians are ahead on 'first water' so far for the year 1883." Despite this report, no members of the Kansas party are found in the 1883 East Portland City Directory.
Later documents show that several households that were part of the Kansas group, including Philipp Hergert, Adam Hergert and Heinrich Scheuermann, remained in Oregon where they found good farmland west of Portland near Cornelius. These families settled with other German immigrants and established the community of Blooming, Oregon. This community founded St. Peter's Lutheran Church.
George Henry Green, moved to Silverton, Oregon where he purchased 100 acres. George established a store on his property and initially named it Green’s Station, later changing the name to Switzerland. George Henry would later return to Portland.
The Nebraska Colony
Although the Nebraska colony had received a favorable response from the railroad officials in 1880, they delayed their decision to migrate to the Northwest until 1882. On March 17th, a caravan of 40 covered wagons, 28 of which belonged to Volga German families, began traveling west on the Oregon Trail along the Platte River. This was far less than the 160 families who reported interest in 1880. There were 16 Volga German families from the colonies of Frank, Kolb, Messer, Norka and Walter in the party, which also included families of English origin. The Volga German families known to have been part of this group include: Amen, Bastron, Bauer, Dewald, Kanzler, Kembel, Kiehn, Michel, Miller, Oestreich, Rosenoff, Schäfer, Schoessler, Theil, Wagner, and Wolsborn. The Thiel family alone had 4 wagons. Also traveling with the group was the Reverend F. Frucht.
Johann Frederich Rosenoff from the Volga German colony of Kolb was chosen as the leader of the group. Johann Heinrich Oestreich and Georg Heinrich Kanzler were selected to serve as scouts who were responsible to locate water and pasture land for the animals. The group never traveled on Sundays, choosing to draw their wagons in a circle with lookouts posted as an elder read the church services in German. The Reverend Heinrich Franz Michel, born in the German colony of Messer, Russia, served as minister to the party.
Upon arrival in North Platte, the party hired Union Pacific Railroad flatcars to transport them across the Rocky Mountains. All of the wagons, animals, supplies and people were loaded onto the railcars which traveled to the end of the line at the Ogden, Utah station. The functional two-story wooden frame station was built in 1869 on a mud flat along the banks of the Weber River. In Ogden, the men worked to earn money for the next stage of their journey to Walla Walla, Washington.
Johann Frederich Rosenoff from the Volga German colony of Kolb was chosen as the leader of the group. Johann Heinrich Oestreich and Georg Heinrich Kanzler were selected to serve as scouts who were responsible to locate water and pasture land for the animals. The group never traveled on Sundays, choosing to draw their wagons in a circle with lookouts posted as an elder read the church services in German. The Reverend Heinrich Franz Michel, born in the German colony of Messer, Russia, served as minister to the party.
Upon arrival in North Platte, the party hired Union Pacific Railroad flatcars to transport them across the Rocky Mountains. All of the wagons, animals, supplies and people were loaded onto the railcars which traveled to the end of the line at the Ogden, Utah station. The functional two-story wooden frame station was built in 1869 on a mud flat along the banks of the Weber River. In Ogden, the men worked to earn money for the next stage of their journey to Walla Walla, Washington.
Ogden, Utah in 1874. Source: National Archives of the United States. The image is in the public domain.
On May 20, 1882, the pioneers departed from Ogden and traveled on the California Trail to its junction with the Oregon Trail near the Snake River headwaters. In American Falls, Idaho the men were given temporary work constructing a new section of rail that would eventually pass through Boise, Idaho, Pleasant Valley, Oregon (arrived June 28, 1882), Baker City, Oregon and Pendleton, Oregon. In each of these frontier towns, work was found enabling them to earn money that was used to replenish supplies. The party reached Baker City on July 3, 1882, just in time for a Fourth of July celebration. When the party arrived in Pendleton, Oregon, most of the members decided to go on to Walla Walla, Washington where they arrived on July 15th. Another second part of the Nebraska group arrived in Walla Walla on August 20th. A handful of families remained in Baker City. This group may have wintered in Baker City, although other accounts state that they joined the others in Walla Walla in April of 1883.
While in Walla Walla, the families met Ritzville founder Phillip Ritz, who encouraged them to consider his settlement. At the time the town consisted of a railroad depot, a storage shed, and about 60 people. Some of the pioneers chose to stay in Walla Walla while others moved to Ritzville in the spring of 1883. Here they found jobs and purchased homesteads. A metal wagon trail sculpture in Ritzville commemorates their pioneering journey.
While in Walla Walla, the families met Ritzville founder Phillip Ritz, who encouraged them to consider his settlement. At the time the town consisted of a railroad depot, a storage shed, and about 60 people. Some of the pioneers chose to stay in Walla Walla while others moved to Ritzville in the spring of 1883. Here they found jobs and purchased homesteads. A metal wagon trail sculpture in Ritzville commemorates their pioneering journey.
Wagon Train sculpture in Ritzville designed and constructed by Lamar Thiel, a descendant of one of the pioneer families.
The Volga German immigrants found Adams County's semi-arid climate and ecology well-suited to raising wheat, which many had cultivated in Russia. Like other settlers there intent on planting crops, the Rosenoff party began digging up and burning sagebrush by hand. The families settled on the western and northwestern edges of town.
When the Nebraska caravan arrived in Pendleton in the summer of 1882, a small number of families made the decision to follow the Columbia River west to Portland. This party continued their journey by covered wagon. Henry Villard's Northern Pacific Railroad did not complete its transcontinental line terminating in East Portland, until September 11, 1883. The last section of the line utilized the OR&NC system on the south side of the Columbia River from Wallula Junction. The first trains began running from East Portland to Walla Walla in November.
When the Nebraska caravan arrived in Pendleton in the summer of 1882, a small number of families made the decision to follow the Columbia River west to Portland. This party continued their journey by covered wagon. Henry Villard's Northern Pacific Railroad did not complete its transcontinental line terminating in East Portland, until September 11, 1883. The last section of the line utilized the OR&NC system on the south side of the Columbia River from Wallula Junction. The first trains began running from East Portland to Walla Walla in November.
Rand, McNally & Co. map showing the Northern Pacific Railroad, Union Pacific Railroad and the Oregon Railway and Navigation Company rail and ocean transportation routes in 1882. Source: Library of Congress Geography and Map Division Washington, D.C. 20540-4650 USA. Catalog number: 98688748.
It was late summer or early fall of 1882 when the small splinter group from the Nebraska party arrived in Portland. Only two Volga German households have been discovered in the 1883 Portland City Directory. The Ludwig and Emma Yost family along with the Johannes and Anna Maria Schnell family were living in the township of Albina near the intersection of Woods Street and Page Street (now approximately N. Albina Avenue and N. Page Street).
The triumphal completion of the transcontinental railroad to Portland in September 1883 opened the door for further migration. However, only a small number Volga German pioneers initially followed the first two groups and settled in Portland between 1883 and 1889. During this time period, those arriving by train disembarked at Portland's first passenger depot, a humble wood structure building in East Portland, located near the east end of today's Steel Bridge.
Stereographic photo of the earliest train station built in East Portland, at the foot of Cedar Street, in the summer of 1883 at a cost $5,000. Union Station, located on the west bank of the Willamette River, opened in 1896. Source: Library of Congress (LCCN Permalink
https://lccn.loc.gov/2018652458).
The majority of Volga Germans that settled in Portland in the years from 1883 until 1889 were from the colony of Norka, Russia. Those households included:
Many of these households were interconnected by a network of family relationships.
- Heinrich and Anna Catharina Bauer
- George and Anna Betz
- Constantin and Maria Christina Brill
- Johannes and Sophia Brill
- Carl Jacob and Catharina Früauf
- Peter and Elizabeth Gerlach
- Johann Jörg
- Johann Friedrich and Christina Jörg
- Henry and Eva Maier
- Conrad and Anna Maria Schnell
- Johannes and Anna Maria Schnell
- Heinrich and Elizabeth Schreiber
- Conrad and Sophia Schwartz
- Adam and Katharina Schwindt
- David and Katharina Schwindt
- Ludwig and Anna Elizabeth Spady
- Johann Wilhelm and Elisabeth Trüber
Many of these households were interconnected by a network of family relationships.
Letters were written to family members and friends living in Russia and the Midwest encouraging them to come to Portland where jobs and housing were readily available. As a result, larger groups of Volga Germans arrived in Portland between 1890 and 1895,
Richard Sallet states that a group of Catholic Volga Germans from the colonies of Köhler and Semenovka arrived in Portland in 1892.
One of the early settlers, Gottfried Geist from Kraft, Russia, provided a colorful recollection of the early settlement during an oral interview conducted by Wanda Schwabauer:
"There was a large group in the early days. Some people lived down on the Willamette River in houseboats. Flooding wiped them out and they moved to the Albina area along Union Avenue. Mr. Geist said he would live anywhere but San Francisco."
Mr. Geist was likely referring to the great flood of 1894 which devastated the Portland area and Willamette Valley.
The Volga Germans were not the first Germans to arrive in Portland. Germans were one of the largest foreign born ethnic groups in Portland. By 1870, it was estimated that 30 percent of Portland's business owners were Germans. Among these were many prominent citizens including Henry Villard, Henry Weinhard, Frank Dekum, Jacob Kamm, Henry Saxer, and Louis Nicolai. Two men of German-Jewish descent, Bernard Goldsmith and Philip Wasserman served as mayor of Portland between 1869 and 1873. Despite sharing elements of language and culture, the Volga Germans were viewed by immigrants from the German empire and other ethnic groups as "Russians". As they had done in Russia, the Volga Germans formed their own community with a shared language, culture and religious beliefs.
There were many factors that influenced the first Volga Germans to settle in Albina rather than other parts of Portland. At the time, Albina was essentially a company town, the company being the Oregon Railway and Navigation Company which owned the extensive Albina railroad yards car shops and docks along the east side of the Willamette River where the Kansas group likely disembarked after their voyage from San Francisco in 1881. The Northern Pacific Railroad, which was completed two years after the first Volga Germans arrived, terminated their passenger service in East Portland. At the time, access to Portland on the west side of the river was by ferry only. Much of the productive farmland in the Portland area had already been claimed in prior decades leaving the Volga Germans to seek work in the city. Land in the newly developing Albina area (which did not become a city until 1887) was relatively inexpensive to purchase and it was very close to the railway workshops where many early immigrants found employment. Given that Albina was a very lightly populated area in the early 1880's (143 people in 1880), most people were able to build homes and live together as they had in Russia. Living in close proximity allowed the Volga Germans to maintain their language, culture and identity in a new land. The establishment of churches and businesses to serve the community was also made easier given the compact nature of the settlement. This group of pioneers in Portland would grow to over 500 families by 1920.
There were many factors that influenced the first Volga Germans to settle in Albina rather than other parts of Portland. At the time, Albina was essentially a company town, the company being the Oregon Railway and Navigation Company which owned the extensive Albina railroad yards car shops and docks along the east side of the Willamette River where the Kansas group likely disembarked after their voyage from San Francisco in 1881. The Northern Pacific Railroad, which was completed two years after the first Volga Germans arrived, terminated their passenger service in East Portland. At the time, access to Portland on the west side of the river was by ferry only. Much of the productive farmland in the Portland area had already been claimed in prior decades leaving the Volga Germans to seek work in the city. Land in the newly developing Albina area (which did not become a city until 1887) was relatively inexpensive to purchase and it was very close to the railway workshops where many early immigrants found employment. Given that Albina was a very lightly populated area in the early 1880's (143 people in 1880), most people were able to build homes and live together as they had in Russia. Living in close proximity allowed the Volga Germans to maintain their language, culture and identity in a new land. The establishment of churches and businesses to serve the community was also made easier given the compact nature of the settlement. This group of pioneers in Portland would grow to over 500 families by 1920.
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Last updated January 17, 2022