Re: Krausch -- Fredonia homesteaders 1903
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In reply to:
Re: Krausch -- Fredonia homesteaders 1903
Leslie Slape 11/30/01
I did some genetic research into the Elko Krausch line and have discovered that the family is very likely Jewish, as the male line is haplogroup E1b1b1-m35.1. I found that Elko is a Yiddish nickname for Ilya, the Russian version of Elijah. I also found that Krausch is a common Jewish name in Galicia, western Ukraine. Elko Krausch lived in a different part of Ukraine, Kherson, but it strengthens the possibility of the family NOT being Volga Germans as we have always assumed. Finally, I found that the year they left Russia for America, 1903, was a year of terrible pogroms in Ukraine. A good reason to leave! My aunt said that my grandfather (Elko's son) was sometimes asked if he were Jewish, and he always said, "No! We're Russian!"My aunt thought his reaction was over the top and noticed that his lips always trembled after he said it.