Elaine Frank Davison Germans from Russia collection, 1900-2000

Overview of the Collection

Creator
Davison, Elaine Frank
Title
Elaine Frank Davison Germans from Russia collection
Dates
1900-2000 (inclusive)
1970-2000 (bulk)
Quantity
8 linear feet, (8 boxes)
Collection Number
WCMss.020
Summary
This collection contains interviews on cassette tapes, publications, research files, and family correspondence pertaining to Germans from Russia created by a genealogist from Walla Walla, Washington.
Repository
Whitman College and Northwest Archives
Whitman College and Northwest Archives
Penrose Library, Room 130
345 Boyer Avenue
Walla Walla, WA
99362
Telephone: 5095275922
Fax: 5095264785
archives@whitman.edu
Access Restrictions

Collection is open for research.

Languages
English
Sponsor
Funding for encoding this finding aid was provided through a grant awarded by the National Endowment for the Humanities.

Biographical NoteReturn to Top

Elaine Frank Davison was born in Walla Walla, Washington on August 23, 1929 to Johann Conrad and Maria Catherine Frank, Germans from Russia who immigrated to the United States in 1905. She was the youngest of eight children. Her interest in the stories of the Volga Germans was piqued by her father's stories of his homeland. Upon his death in 1959, she took up genealogical research. Ultimately, she became responsible for recovering and preserving the history of her family's home village of Kautz / Werschinka. Davison spent her childhood in Walla Walla. After graduating from high school, she worked for the Pacific Telephone and Telegraph company. In 1949, she married George Hite Davison, and the couple moved to Spokane, Washington. They had four children: James Hite, Loralee, Julie Ann, and Karla Elaine. Elaine returned to work in 1960 at Sacred Heart Hospital in Spokane. The family returned to Walla Walla in 1963, where Elaine began working as a medical transcriptionist.

A self-taught researcher and writer, Davison self-published books about the village, entitled "Unsere Leute von Kautz" (Our People from Kautz). Her "Kautz Project" required numerous oral history interviews, as many of the relevant genealogical records remain in Germany and Russia. In 1990, Davison and her work were featured in "Making a Difference: A Centennial Celebration of Washington Women, Volume II," a curriculum handbook created by the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction.

Elaine Frank Davison died on March 17, 2001.

Content DescriptionReturn to Top

The collection, which consists of Elaine Frank Davison's research files and publications, is divided into six series: Sound Recordings, Publications by Elaine Davison, Genealogical Research, Correspondence, Obituaries, and Miscellaneous. It is a rich source of information for both genealogists and researchers interested in the immigration and ethnic history of Eastern Washington.

Administrative InformationReturn to Top

Acquisition Information

Donated to the Whitman College and Northwest Archives by Julie Davison Loiacono in January 2003. The accession number is retro-0015.

Separated Materials

"Laurel's Story: A Montana Heritage" by Elsie P. Johnston (1979) and issues of "Der Kirchenbote / The Christian Messenger" from the 1950s-1970s were transferred to the Acquisitions Department of Penrose Library.

Detailed Description of the CollectionReturn to Top

1:  Sound Recordings, 1973-1997Return to Top

3 linear feet, (3 boxes)

The Sound Recording Series consists of 262 cassette tapes of interviews and lectures relating to Davison's research on Germans from Russia. An inventory of the Sound Recordings Series is available in Box 1 of the collection.

Container(s) Description Dates
Box
1
Cassette Tapes, 1-95
1975-1995, undated
2
Cassette Tapes, 96-185
1973-1997, undated
3
Cassette Tapes, 186-262
1973-1998

2:  Publications by Elaine Davison, 1978-1998Return to Top

0.2 linear feet, (7 folders)

The Publications by Elaine Davison Series includes eight volumes of Unsere Leute von Kautz, a compilation of photocopies marriage license returns for Germans from Russia in Walla Walla County, 1891-1912, and the text of a speech delivered in 1998.

Container(s) Description Dates
Box Folder
4 1-5
"Unsere Leute von Kautz"
1978-1989
4 6
"Early Marriage License returns of Germans from Russia in Walla Walla County, Washington, 1891-1912"
1998
4 7
"Realizing My Dream"
1998

3:  Genealogical Research Files, 1900-2000Return to Top

2.5 linear feet, (approximately 3 boxes)

The Genealogical Research Series contains research files on specific families in Washington and Montana, publications (most issued by various historical societies), and reprinted censuses from various German colonies in the Volga region. Many of the materials about the Rempel family were written by Arthur B. Rempel, a member of Whitman College faculty from 1938-1975.

Container(s) Description Dates
Box Folder
4 8-10
American Historical Society of Germans from Russia Newsletter
1971-1997
4 11
"Hussenback Review"
1997-1998
4 12
"Jeruslan Nachrichten"
1994-1997
4 13
Ragas Report
1997-1999, undated
4 14
Descriptions of the Saratov Colonies of Oleshna / Dietel, Grechinaua Luka / Walter, Karamyshevka / Bauer, and Yelshanka / Husaren in 1798
1995-1996
4 15
Descriptions of the Saratov Colonies of Yagodnaya Polyana, Pamyatnaya / Rothammel, and Linevo Ozero / Hussenbach
1996
4 16
"Deutsches Namenlexikon"
1972
4 17
HEMEЦКИE КОЛОНИИ НА ВОЛГЕ
1998
4 18
"Logan County, Colorado Cemetery Survey"
1984
4 19
"Yellowstone County Montana Cemeteries" Vol. 1
1984
4 20
"Yellowstone County Montana Cemeteries" Vol. 2
1985
5 1
"Beyond the Gates: A Tribute to those Uprooted Emigrants from Merkel, Russia and neighboring colonies Whose Insight Sought Freedom in Foreign Lands. A Memorial to Those Who Stayed Behind."
2000
5 2
"Sod 'N Seed 'N Tumbleweed: A History of the Huntley Project"
1977
5 3
"Usere Leute von Walter" Number 2
1978
5 4
Index to Place Names Found in "from Catherine to Khrushchev"
1986
5 5
"Long Meadows", by Minnie Hite Moody
1941
5 6
"Too Far to Go Back: Wagons West and the Germans from Russia"
1992
5 7
Goly Karamysh / Balzer 1775 and 1798 Census Revisions
1995
5 8
Norka 1811 Census Revision
1996
5 9
Neu-Hussenback 1857/1858 Census
1997
5 10
Norka / Weigand 1775 and 1798 Censuses
1995
5 11
Kolb 1798-1858 Censuses
undated
5 12
Pobochnaya 1772 and 1798 documents
1995
5 13
Gololobovka / Dönhof 1775 and 1798 Censuses
undated
5 14
Splavnukha / Huck 1775 and 1798 Censuses
1995
5 15
Popovka / Kutter 1775 and 1798 Censuses
undated
5 16
Ust-Zolikha / Messer 1775 and 1798 Censuses
1995
5 17
Susly / Herzog 1798 documents
1995
5 18
Lesnoy Karamysh / Grimm 1775 and 1798 Censuses
undated
5 19
Frank Family: Lineages Report
1995
5 20
Frank, John David and Elizabeth Family Record
undated
5 21
Frank Family Reunion Invitation
[1982]
5 22
Frank, John George Family Tree
1987
5 23
Frank, Carl G. Life Story
undated
5 24
Frank, Alexander Experiences of
1977
5 25
Frank Family, Biography of
1977
5 26
Frank Family Genealogy / Christ Lutheran Church Records
1978
5 27
Frank, Johann Conrad Family File
undated
5 28
Interviews with Wilhelm "William" Frank, "Uncle Bill"
1977
5 29
Interview with Uncle Bill
1979
6 1
Statuten- und Protokollbuch der Evang. St. Paulsgemeinde in Walla Walla, Wash, 1907 (photocopy)
1977
6 2
"Some Experiences of My Life" by Emil Weissner, Sr.
1995
6 3
Notes from Trip to USSR and Volga Colonies
1991
6 4
Mary Gally
undated
6 5
Miller Family Tree
1980
6 6
Rempel Trilogy
1993
6 7
"The Story of Greta" by Arthur G. Rempel
1996
6 8
"Memories" by Arthur G. Rempel
1993
6 9
Rempel, Miscellaneous
1993
6 10
Apropos to H. G. Rempel's Diary
undated
6 11
"My Trip to America: the Diary of Evangeline G. Rempel, 1922-1923"
1964
6 12
A Family in Exile at a Labor camp
1995
6 13
George Steinmetz Families
1900-1985

4:  Correspondence, 1913-1982Return to Top

0.2 linear feet, (8 folders)

The Correspondence Series contains letters in English, Russian, and German exchanged among Elaine Frank Davison and various family members. Many of the letters in German and Russian are translated.

Container(s) Description Dates
Box Folder
6 14
Correspondence from Siberia (Dines Frank / Amalia Frank)
1913-1979
6 16-17
Correspondence from Siberia, Copies and Translations
1975-1982
6 18
Correspondence from Russia to William Frank
1969-1980
6 19
Correspondence from Dinis Frank to William Frank
1969-1982
6 20
Correspondence to Katharine Benzel
undated
6 21-22
Miscellaneous Correspondence
1974-1982

5:  Obituaries, 1920-1997Return to Top

2 linear feet, (2 boxes)

The Obituaries Series consist primarily of photocopies of newspaper obituaries of Volga Germans from Russia who resided in Walla Walla, Washington; Yakima, Washington; Laurel, Montana; and Billings, Montana.

Container(s) Description Dates
Box
7
Obituaries A-J
1920-1997
8
Obituaries K-Z
1920-1997

6:  Miscellaneous, 1981-1998Return to Top

0.1 linear feet, (4 folders)

Miscellaneous items in the collection include photographs and a photo album, maps of Russia, and a clipping file.

Container(s) Description Dates
Box Folder
6 23
Maps
undated
6 24
Album
1981
6 25
Photographs
1991
6 26
Clippings
1990-1998

Names and SubjectsReturn to Top

Personal Names

  • Rempel, Arthur G. (Arthur Gustav)

Family Names

  • Frank family
  • Rempel family