Steinbach Estate

Mennonite Genealogy with Michael Penner

Steinbach Estate and Its Owners

The Steinbach Estate was founded in about 1812 by Klaas Wiens (1768-1821), the first Oberschulze (chief official) of the Molotschna Colony. Klaas began the endeavor as a sheep ranch on land leased from the Tsarist crown. One of the farmhands, a Peter Daniel Schmidt (1789-1856), formerly from what is now in southwestern Germany, married Klaas’ daughter Anna Wiens on August 18, 1814. Tsar Alexander I visited the estate in 1825 and was so impressed that he granted the Steinbach estate owners 500 dessiatines in perpetuity. Peter Daniel Schmidt (also called Peter Schmidt I) continued the development of the estate, passing away on May 12, 1856.

Peter Daniel Schmidt’s children intermarried among the wealthiest Mennonites in Russia, giving rise to influential connections. The Schmidt’s also intermarried among themselves (such as first cousins marrying each other). Below are some of the connections:

· Peter Daniel Schmidt’s daughter, Anna Schmidt (1828-1912) inherited land in the Crimea and married Jakob Dick (1824-1894), wealthy owner of the one of the Apanlee estates and the Rosenhof-Brodsky estate.

Peter Daniel Schmidt (1789-1856), son of the Steinbach Estate founder. This remarkably old image is among the oldest surviving Russian Mennonite photos.

Source: a descendant living near Winnipeg, Manitoba.

House of Jakob J. Dick (1852-1921) and Maria Peter Schmidt (1857-1919) in Steinbach, Molotschna.

Source: David Sudermann

Nicolai Heinrich Schmidt (1861-1930), grandson of Peter Daniel Schmidt.

Source: a descendant living near Winnipeg, Manitoba.

Peter Schmidt III (1860-1910).

Source: The Mennonite Brotherhood in Russia, English translation.

Jacob Dick II (1852-1921) and Maria Schmidt (1857-1919), daughter of Peter Schmidt II.

Source: a descendant living near Winnipeg, Manitoba.

Justina Dick (1870-1959), daughter of Jacob Dick I. She married Nicolai P. Schmidt (1863-1913), son of Peter Schmidt II.

Source: a descendant living near Winnipeg, Manitoba.

Nicolai P. Schmidt (1863-1913), son of Peter Schmidt II.

Source: a descendant living near Winnipeg, Manitoba.

Peter Schmidt II (1817-1876), son of Peter Daniel Schmidt.

Source: a descendant living near Winnipeg, Manitoba.

Jakob Dick I (1824-1894) who married Anna Schmidt (1828-1912), daughter of Peter Daniel Schmidt.

Source: a descendant living near Winnipeg, Manitoba.

Anna Schmidt (1828-1912), daughter of Peter Daniel Schmidt married Jakob Dick I.

Source: a descendant living near Winnipeg, Manitoba.

Maria Martens (1821-1895), wife of Peter Schmidt II.

Source: a descendant living near Winnipeg, Manitoba.

· Peter Daniel Schmidt’s son, Peter Schmidt II (1817-1876), later became owner of the Steinbach estate and also served as chairman of the Molotschna Mennonite Agricultural Association from 1850 until 1869. He married Maria Martens (1821-1895), daughter of one of the wealthiest Mennonite landowners before 1850, Wilhelm Aron Martens (1781-1845). Wilhelm’s massive holdings included estates at Neu-Taschtschenak and Meerfeld.

· Peter Schmidt II’s daughter, Katharina Schmidt (1866-1919) married her first cousin David Jakob Dick (1861-1919), son of the Anna Schmidt and Jakob Dick listed above. David inherited the Apanlee estate.

· Peter Schmidt II’s daughter, Maria Schmidt (1857-1919) married her first cousin Jakob J. Dick (1852-1921). The couple owned a mansion on the Steinbach estate and a starch factory in Halbstadt.

· Peter Schmidt II’s son, Peter Schmidt III (1860-1910), later shared ownership of the estate. He was a great benefactor to various Mennonite causes and influential in the formation of the Allianz Gemeinde. He married Anna Schmidt (1866-1949), almost certainly a close relative.

Click here for the story of the Steinbach estate and its owners as told by descendant Jacob Dick.

Photos of the Steinbach estate, then and now.

Connections between the David Regehrs and the Steinbach Schmidts

My interest in the Steinbach Schmidts was piqued by their intermarriage to the offspring of my great-great-great-grandfather, David Regehr. Here are the connections I am aware of:

· David Regehr’s daughter, Maria Regehr (1864-1901) married Peter Schmidt I’s grandson, Nikolai Heinrich Schmidt (1861-1930). After Maria died, another of David Regehr’s daughters, Helena Regehr (1876-1912) married Nikolai.

· David Regehr’s granddaughter, Anna Wiens (1893-1988) married Peter Schmidt II’s great-grandson, Jacob Heinrich Dick (1881-1965).

· David Regehr’s grandson, Abram Wiens (1894-1971) married Peter Schmidt II’s granddaughter, Lydia Schmidt (1899-1970).

· David Regehr’s granddaughter, Margaretha Wiens (1898-1994) married Peter Schmidt II’s grandson, Peter Nicolai Schmidt (1896-1992).

· David Regehr’s grandson, Johann Schmidt (1893-1965) married Peter Schmidt II’s granddaughter, Martha Schmidt (1905-1987).

Research notes:

A biography of Klaas Wiens (1768-1821) can be found in Mennonite Estates in Imperial Russia, by Helmut Huebert, p. 317-9.

A biography of Anna Schmidt’s (1828-1912) son David Jakob Dick (1861-1919) can be found in Mennonite Estates in Imperial Russia, by Helmut Huebert, p. 296-303.

A biography of Wilhelm Aron Martens (1781-1845) can be found in Mennonite Estates in Imperial Russia, by Helmut Huebert, p. 305-7.

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