Emails from distant cousins are very exciting–and they seem to come when I declare I am taking a break to bolster the research and polish the writing I already have. I am not complaining, though. I want to thank Janet Hill for taking the time to send documents and photographs to do with her great-grandfather (my great-grandmother’s brother), Christian Kirsch, who was tragically killed at his work at the Winnipeg CPR railway yards in 1924. Her emails have encouraged me to come back to my History of Martha book project. My son was born five months ago and I have missed sneaking away to write.
Rozyszcze Baptist church, date unknown. Courtesy of In the Midst of Wolves. Here is a news article about the state of it in 2017, including a recent photo.
Among the documents emailed to me was a clipping of an obituary in German, possibly from the German Baptist newspaper, Der Sendbote. I was surprised to find small details that give insight about the Kirsch family’s conversion from Lutherans to Baptists in Volhynia. According to the obituary, Christian was baptized in 1882, at the age of twenty-two, by Brother Friedrich Albrecht and was a member of the Rozyszcze (also Rozhyshche) congregation. Donald Miller, in his “Volhynian Baptist Churches and Pastors, 1864-1940,” lists Johann Albrecht as being the first pastor for Rozyszcze from 1882 (he was not yet the pastor when Christian was baptized) to his expulsion from Volhynia in 1889. I am not certain Friedrich Albrecht and Johann Albrecht are the same man, but perhaps his name was Johann Friedrich or the name was remembered incorrectly. In any case, Johann Albrecht was the pastor in Rozyszcze at the time of Christian’s baptism. His expulsion marked a turning point for many Baptist families in the area, including Christian’s sister, Julia Rempel, whose family immigrated to Winnipeg first, in 1890.
“With the expulsion of [Pastor Johann Albrecht], the [Rozyszcze] church also lost the right to gather for worship in its prayer chapel. When the church was locked, a second chapel was built in another village, but the authorities again denied its use of the building. The desire for religious freedom in part prompted some of the colonists to immigrate to the United States, Canada, and Brazil.” – In the Midst of Wolves by Donald Miller[1]
Courtesy of Janet Hill. Newspaper source unknown.
Obituary – Mr. Christian Kirsch died
Mr. Christian Kirsch, as previously reported, died in an accident on Friday, August 8. He was born December 21, 1860, in Florentynow, Poland. He grew up in Volhynia, Russia. He was baptized by Brother Friedrich Albrecht in 1882 and was a member of the Baptist congregation in Rozyszcze. In Russia, he was married by Pastor F. A. Mueller [Friedrich A. Mueller[2]], who lives in Alberta, to Justina Holland. In 1893, they moved to Winnipeg. Their children are Martha Kirsch, Mina [Minnie] Weiss, Ida Zink, and Gustav Kirsch, all living in Portland, Oregon. His first wife died before him. He married Mrs. Emilie Beetz (born Reichert), who had three children with her first husband. Her daughter, Anna, died four years ago. Mrs. Claude Fluent [Julia] lives in the United States and John Adolph lives in Edmonton.
Christian was a faithful member of the local German Baptist church for over thirty years. He was a deacon from March 30, 1894, and church treasurer from January 5, 1900.
The deceased leaves behind his grieving wife, four children, two stepchildren, eleven grandchildren, and four step-grandchildren.
Other family members include Mrs. Julia Rempel, Mrs. Martha Kelm in Winnipeg, two brothers Daniel and Karl Kirsch in Ebenezer, Saskatchewan, and two half-sisters in Poland.
Courtesy of Janet Hill. Newspaper source unknown.
At the funeral service held on Wednesday, August 13, at the German Baptist Church [McDermot Avenue Baptist Church], at which Pastor J. L. Lehpoldt [John Leypoldt[3]] officiated, many relatives were present in addition to his grieving wife and her two children, Gustav and Martha Kirsch from Portland, his brother Daniel from Ebenezer, and his stepson [John] Adolph Beetz and his wife from Edmonton.
Pastor Lehpoldt spoke of Christian: “He was a burning, shining light.” He described the faithful man as quiet, earnest, dutiful, and pious. He bore his name Christian with full right, for he was truly a Christian.
The funeral was very well attended. Many of Christian’s colleagues were present, and Pastor Lehpoldt addressed them in English.
Below are links to previous blog posts about Christian Kirsch, as well as posts that discuss Baptists in Volhynia and the migration to North America. For more detailed research about Baptists in Volhynia, I recommend In the Midst of Wolves (website as well as book, both by Donald Miller).
Kelm History Blog 