ramsei

Gerhard A. Wiebe (1873–1942)

22 Jun 1873 – 17 Jun 1942, born at Lysanderhöh, died at Beatrice (Nebraska)

Christopher’s great-grandfather · ancestor no. 10 · generation 4
Evidence: identity documented · link to parents documented

Family

Life and evidence

Born at Lysanderhöh, Am Trakt, on the Volga, eldest child of Aron J. Wiebe and Maria Fieguth, ‘who were from Prussia’. Baptized Pentecost 1889 by Elder Johann Quiring. Arrived at Beatrice, Nebraska, 4 July 1894 with his stepbrother (and cousin) Johann A. Bergmann; his parents and siblings followed about two years later and went on to Paso Robles; Gerhard returned to Beatrice. Married Anna Gertrude Claassen 1 Dec 1898; two sons and five daughters, including Anna. Killed in a haying accident, 17 June 1942.

More from The Mennonite (July 1942) and Mennonite Life (April 1950)

  • Came to America in 1894 “to be true to the principle of non-resistance”.
  • Children named in his obituary: Anna (Christopher’s grandmother) and Edgar, at home; Arthur J.; Mrs. Louis A. Penner; Mrs. Henry D. Hirschler; Mrs. Orlando Harms; and Mrs. Cornelius Krahn, wife of the Mennonite historian who edited Mennonite Life and the Mennonite Encyclopedia. Survived also by a brother, Henry A. Wiebe, a sister, Mrs. Erhard H. Schroeder, and stepbrother John A. Bergmann, all of Paso Robles.
  • The farm three miles north of Beatrice: he raised pedigreed collies, White Wyandotte chickens, then Poland China hogs. In 1932 son Arthur J. Wiebe began bottling milk from ten Guernseys: Wiebe’s Dairy, over 50 cows by 1950, with no Sunday deliveries.
    Source: Internet Archive full-text sweep (2026-10-31).

Where they lived

In their lifetime

Pedigree

%%{init: {"flowchart": {"useMaxWidth": true}}}%%
flowchart RL
  n28714112["Anton Fieguth (1772–1844)"]
  n23837591["Gerhard A. Wiebe (1873–1942)"]
  n69728369["Maria Fieguth (1847–1890)"]
  n32302127["Catharine Epp (1826–1886)"]
  n76779922["Anna Entz (c.1820)"]
  n91399190["Jacob Wiebe (c.1815)"]
  n82836410["Maria Wiens (1788–1872)"]
  n54584388["Aron J. Wiebe (1845–1922)"]
  n47643998["Gerhard Fieguth (1823–1896)"]
  n23837591 --> n54584388
  n54584388 --> n91399190
  n54584388 --> n76779922
  n23837591 --> n69728369
  n69728369 --> n47643998
  n47643998 --> n28714112
  n47643998 --> n82836410
  n69728369 --> n32302127
  class n28714112,n23837591,n69728369,n32302127,n76779922,n91399190,n82836410,n54584388,n47643998 internal-link;

Sources

Crossing in 1894 (see the resolution below) — 2026-10-31 (Claude)

NARA’s AAD index has a Gerhard Wiebe on the Trave (Bremen–Southampton), arriving New York 29 June 1894 (manifest 43170, Russian Empire file), destination Nebraska. That is five days before Gerhard reached Beatrice (4 July 1894), but the index gives this man’s age as 50 and occupation “merchant”, not 21. Either the index misread the age, or an older Gerhard Wiebe bound for Nebraska travelled on the same ship (Gerhard came with stepbrother Johann A. Bergmann). The manifest image (NARA microfilm M237) should settle it; the AAD server began refusing requests before the rest of the manifest could be listed.
His parents and siblings followed on the same ship two years later: see Aron J. Wiebe (1845–1922).

  • Revisit NARA AAD slowly (one query at a time, ~10 s apart; stop at the first 403): list everyone on manifest 43170 (Trave, 29 Jun 1894) in both the Russian-Empire and German files to find Gerhard (21) and Johann A. Bergmann; and look for Johann Claassen’s 1881 arrival task/ai

Arrival at Beatrice reported, 19 July 1894 — added 2026-10-31 by Claude

Christlicher Bundesbote (1894), correspondent at Beatrice, Neb., 19 July: “Early this month fellow believers from Russia arrived here safely from Saratow and Samara, namely Johannes Bergmann and Gerhard Wiebe from the former [the Am Trakt colony, Saratov province] and Rev. Hermann Wiebe and Gerhard Wiebe with family from the latter [Alt-Samara]. They intend to settle here.”

This resolves the Trave puzzle: there were two Gerhard Wiebes bound for Beatrice in July 1894. The 50-year-old “merchant” with family on the Trave (NARA manifest 43170, arr. New York 29 June 1894) fits the Samara Gerhard; Christopher’s Gerhard (21) came from Saratov with his stepbrother Johann A. Bergmann, matching his obituary (arrived 4 July 1894). That he sailed on the same Trave is likely but still unconfirmed by the manifest. See Church papers - Christlicher Bundesbote and Mennonitische Rundschau (1880s-1920s).

Narratives and research

Research log

  • 2026-11-01: context: History of Gage County (1918) p. 671 biography of the OTHER Gerhard Wiebe of Beatrice: born May 1844 near Danzig, son of John and Margaret (Hamm) Wiebe, who moved to Russia in 1872; clerk in Berlin; went to Samara 1869; came to Beatrice 1894; dry goods; married 1873 Margaret Claassen (d. 1890 in Russia). This identifies the second Gerhard Wiebe of the 1894 reports; not Christopher’s ancestor

Record compiled 31 October 2026.

About this research

Supporting documentation is linked throughout. This project is an exercise in AI-assisted research and development, and I haven’t manually verified every link or conclusion. All transcriptions and translations of Swiss parish records were made with AI, and their accuracy should be treated accordingly.

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