© Mennonite Heritage Centre, Winnipeg, Manitoba (Last updated July 18, 2006)

Historical note

David D. Janzen (1881-1970) was born June 23, 1881 in Andreasfeld, South Russia to David Janzen and Anna Albrecht. He had seven siblings. His parents moved to Marienort, Memrik where the family acquired a farm. Here David D. Janzen was baptized and joined the Mennonite church. During World War One and the subsequent Russian Revolution Janzen lost both parents and one brother.

In 1923 David Janzen married widow Katarina Schroeder (1887-1969) nee Enns who was born January 3, 1887 on the Gruenteich estate in South Russia, daughter of Heinrich Enns and Katharina Siemens. She had been married to Gerhard G. Schroeder who was killed, along with his brother Peter, on November 8, 1918, leaving 4 children. Katarina had moved to the Memrik Colony in 1920 to live with her mother. Here she met David Janzen.

In 1925 the David, Katarina, and her children (Gerhard, Heinrich, Peter and Johann Schroeder) left Russia for Canada and settled in Rosenort, near Gretna, Manitoba where David D. Janzen worked as a farm laborer. They had two children born to them in Canada -- David in 1925 and Jacob in 1928. In Canada the family was part of the Blumenorter Mennonite Church.

Scope and content note

This fonds consists of diaries written by David Janzen after having lived in Canada for over 20 years. Janzen writes about daily activities in the family and on the farm. The diaries start in 1947 and continue until 1966, four years before his death. At the back of some of the journals are addresses of friends and relatives and newspaper clippings of interest to Janzen at the time (i.e health matters, how to deal with insects, etc.)

Index terms

Creators

1. 1947-1949
2. 1949.
3. 1950.
4. 1950.
5. 1951-1952.
6. 1952-1955.
7. 1955-1956.
8. 1956.
9. 1957-1960.
10. 1960-1961.
11. 1962-1963.
12. 1963-1964.
13. 1965-1966.
14. David Janzen and Katarina Janzen obituaries.