My father's ancestor was born in Blieskastel, Germany in 1742 (1743). His name was Peter Kinderknecht. He was of the Catholic faith and a farmer. Blieskastel is situated in southeast Saarland, close to the French border. In the past, the town had been ruled by both countries - sometimes under France and sometimes under Germany. Presently, it is a German town. I do not have the route of their migration to the Volga, but I know that they first settled in the colony of Louis (Ostrogovka) on the fourteenth of June, 1766, and later moved to Mariental in 1788. My mother's ancestor, Dr. Thomas Weigele, was born in Passau, Bavaria in 1738. He had been serving as a doctor in the Seven Years War. As far back as he could remember, his ancestors, most of them tradesmen, had to give up their work and serve in the army, where pay was poor, and prospects for the future grim. He was already thirty years old, and was sick of the destruction of the war. On his way home one night, he overheard discussions on the streetcorner about the manifesto issued by Catherine. He obtained a copy from a Russian agent, and after reading it, decided to leave Germany. He went to headquarters,signed papers for his release from the military, sold his belongings, paid his taxes, and went to Regensburg to register with the commissioners as an emigrant. It is not known whether he was leaving family behind, or if some traveled with him. A very well written article on Catherine The Great and the history of Russia at that time, is located on the Walter village web site. THE ROUTE The journey eventually took him to Lubeck, the port of embarkation. Their route included the towns of Giessen, Marburg, Kassel, Herzfeld, Bebra, Goettinger, Heldeshum, Celle, and Hamburg. Buying food from the villages along the way became a difficult task, due to the large crowd of immigrants traveling. While waiting for the ships, the immigrants had to live in shanties and barracks, that were furnished for them. The accommodations were so unsanitary, and drafty, that many fell ill and died. While Dr. Weigele was busy tending the sick, he met a young women (Barbara Berglin) who was volunteering as a nurse. She became his wife in Lubeck, while spending the winter there at the port. In April of the next year, they were able to began their voyage to the Volga. A son was born to them near the city of Kostrama, Russia, where they were stranded again due to severe weather. The doctor contracted a contagious disease, as did his wife while trying to nurse him. Both died and are buried at Kostrama. Their small son was accepted by an elderly couple and taken along to the Volga. The Overland Journey The overland journey was long and arduous. Women and children had to ride in wagons piled high with baggage, while most of the men had to walk along beside them. The land was a wild frontier. On the west side of the Volga (bergseite) the banks rose steeply to a wooded range of hills with many deep gorges, and was a favorite hiding place for robber bands and runaway serf's. While on the meadowside (weisenseite), the steppe sloped gently toward the river, was crisscrossed by many small rivers, and with grass that grew almost as high as their horses. Here nomad tribes of Kirghiz and Kalmucks roamed, plundering, robbing, killing, and kidnapping. One cannot imagine, uprooting your family and leaving for a country where you knew neither the language nor the dangers you might encounter in this new land. It was a blessing that so many immigrated at the same time so as to have some support and encouragement when the loneliness and longing for their homeland crept into their thoughts.