From: fr@compu.com (Fred Rump from home)
Newsgroups: soc.roots
Subject: Re: Schulte (was Greetings,)
Date: 27 Sep 92 19:16:04 GMT
Organization: CompuData Inc.

"(RESIDENT BUM)" <DASCHULTE@TINY.COMPUTING.CSBSJU.EDU> writes:

>----------------------------------------------------------
>Husband's Name:  Gerhard Henry SCHULTE
>----------------------------------------------------------
>Born: 1804; Place: Duchy Of Oldenberg
I would say: Steinfeld/Oldenburg/GER


>According to the passenger lists, the Schulte family said they were from
>Steinfeld, a village in the Duchy of Oldenburg, located about five miles south
>of Dinklage.

These people more than likely were part of the great exodus of Damme. The 
population around the middle of the 19th century was around 460 people. The 
soil was poor and as the name indicates, the fields were full of rock. It's 
records were first kept in the parish registers in 1662 and are extant. The 
village itself celebrated it's 750th anniversary in 1937. Not much growth 
since the beginning. Folks would obviously rather leave. Steinfeld must have 
inhabited mostly peat diggers as it is almost surrounded by moors. The area 
was used to hide concentration and POW camps during the Nazi era because of
its relative isolation from civilization.  There are several memorials along
the roadsides along with well maintained cemeteries to commemorate the people
of various nationalities who died there.  The local population was often
harassed because they would help the unfortunate prisoners and those who
survived have come back to erect their own memorials to thank them in turn.

Just a little background.  I'll be in Lohne, about a mile up the road from
Steinfeld, in about two weeks. 

And while I'm at it - Steinfeld, Holdorf, Damme, Neuenkirchen were all part of 
the AMT DAMME or the Department of Damme. Johannes Ostendorf did some research 
on the emmigration of this Amt and found that during the period 1831 to 1880 a 
total of 6319 people left to go to America.  I would suspect that near to half
of the population left for a better shot at life for their children.

As an example of the mass migration, it may be mentioned that HAPAG and the 
North-German Lloyd alone (sail & steam ship agencies) took 73,265 people out 
of Bremen in 1868, 61,245 of them to America. The organizations paid dividents 
of 20% to their stockholders as the made lots and lots of money from the 
traffic. They were also paid bounties by the various states if they would 
bring the people there. They obviously did a lot of recruiting and advertising 
in areas where people were very poor. They promised gold and folks came a 
running.

> The overland journey to Brake, a small city on the Weser river
>twenty miles north of Bremen, was forty-five miles.  The "Gerhard" left Brake,
>and arrived in the port of New Orleans on 12 nov 1856.  (Germans to America -
>Lists of Passengers arriving at U. S. ports. Vol. 10, Jan 1856 - April 1857)

What this has to do with Steinfeld? Do you have information that these people 
first went to Brake instead of Bremen?

If you want a picture of the old Church where your folks came from let me know 
and I'll pick up a postcard or take a picture. How about a shot of their 
baptismal font? 

Fred

-- 
W. Fred Rump 	office:	   fred@COMPU.COM     'mans feet have grown/so big 
26 Warren St.   home: fred@icdi10.compu.com  that he/forgets his littleness'
Beverly, NJ. 08010                          		Don Marquis 
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