Immigration List

NEGenWeb Project
County Unknown

"I know the name, and some background"

Three brief lists are provided below. The first is ethnic groups, those that immigrated to Nebraska directly from the "old country" and settled in one community.

The second listing is for those groups that migrated from other states and localities. If you know your ancestors moved to Nebraska from within North America, take a look at the second list.

The third is religious groups.

Yes, the lists will be "improved" with time.

ETHNIC GROUPS

You will want to become familiar with the various terms that have been used by ethnic groups as their countries of origin changed over time. Many changed their response to census questions depending on what was happening "back home".

There are Swiss who became "Germans" and then were again "Swiss". We have "Moravia" given as birthplace, but changed (by that same family) to "Bohemia" on the next census & then to Czechoslovakia ten years later. The progression may read Germany, Prussia, Poland. There are enumerators that did not hear the difference between "Russia" and "Prussia". In at least one census, the enumerator of one township wrote "Australia" instead of "Austria".

The information handed down in your family about the ethnic group may be more reliable than what you find in any ONE census.

Check the responses on EVERY census for your family; on occasion the province will be named rather than the country.

Origin	Settlement
Austrians	Buffalo Co. - Pleasanton, NE (many surnames in common with those found in Butler and Polk County). Butler Co. - Bellwood, NE (about 1880, land promoter was Franz Mueller of Römerstadt, Mahren, Austria). Polk Co. - Island Pct, NE (these people are often referred to as residents of Duncan, Platte, NE - but actually lived on farms in Polk County.)
Canadians	Adams Co - Spring 1874, French Canadians from Quebec by way of IL Howard Co - Spring 1872, "Canada Hill" colony. Researcher says many of these "Canadians" were born in British Isles, had lived briefly in Canada. Group from Brussels, Ontario, Canada setteld in Warsaw Twp. Platte Co - settled at Lindsay (came from Lindsay, Ontario, Canada) Polk Co. - group settled in Canada Pct.
Czechs:	Box Butte Co - Running Water, Lawn and Liberty Pcts. Butler Co - "Bohemians" to NE corner of Butler Co, to Abie & Bellwood, NE Colfax Co. - about 1870, especially Clarkson & Schuyler Knox Co. - 1869 (group originally settled in Chicago, IL; moved to NE) Saline Co. - Wilbur, NE about 1870, officially the Czech capitol of NE Saunders Co.- Prague, NE about 1870 See the GNIS and the Nebraska locations search for places including the words, "Bohemian","Czechoslovakian", or "Moravian" READ "Bohemians in Nebraska" from NSHS Publications Vol XIX
Danes	Frontier Co. - Curtis, NE - "pocket" of Danes Howard Co. - 1871 Dannebrog, NE (many from Milwaukee, WI) Nuckolls Co - ~1875, SE corner of county Kearney Co. - 1876: Fredericksburg, NE Minden, NE ("pocket" of Danes, south of town) Washington Co. - Orum, NE Platte Co - Rosenberg/Rosenborg, NE Walker Twp, Platte, NE St. Ansgar's Church, Danish Lutheran, (1884) Bethania Danish Evg Lutheran Church, (1879) Valley Co.- settled north of present Ord, on Dane Creek (had lived in WI)
English	Nemaha Co., NE
French	Antelope Co. - about 1870 Franklin Co. - about 1873, near Little Blue River Nemaha Co. - before 1870 (click for story of Julian's French families) Richardson Co. - about 1857
Germans	Cuming County - 1857 Eustis, Frontier, NE - settled in 1886, incorporated in 1888; large number of German families Hall County - 1857 (many had lived in Davenport, IA) Madison Co. - Jul 1866: 40 families, had been in WI previously Nemaha County - Febing, NE Nuckolls Co. - Lawrence [St Stephen's Parish] Otoe County - 1857 Pierce Co - Fall of 1866 - a portion of the German colony from WI, settled mainly on the North Fork of the Elkhorn, a little above the present town of Norfolk, Madison County. (Andreas) Platte Co. Bismark Pct, Platte Co - settled by many Germans from Oldenburg, Germany. Some had lived temporarily in PA, IL & WI before moving to Platte Co., NE 1860's Grand Prairie Twp, Platte, NE - they were members of St. Mary's Catholic church on sect 5 or of St. John's German Luth Ch on sect 13 Richardson Co about 1857 Sherman Co - WILHELM SHOHE, NE - 75 families that were natives of Germany organized in Brooklyn, NY and moved in 1878. (Andreas) Stanton Co. - about 1870 Thayer Co - about 1870 Wayne Co - 1870, along Spring Branch (sw portion of county)
Germans from Russia (Mennonites & other relig.)	Adams Co. - Hastings, NE Cass Co. - abt 1875, near Louisville, and South Bend, NE Clay Co. - Sutton, NE Franklin Co. - west of Campbell, in North Franklin & Buffalo Twps. Hamilton Co. - Henderson Twp, NE Jefferson Co. - Colony of 350 settled near what is now Jansen in 1874. York Co - Henderson, NE
The American Historical Society of German's from Russia is headquartered in Lincoln, NE. Besides being an historical society with a membership of 5000, it also has a substantial library, and probably the largest collection of books and documents relating to German-Russians in the world. AHSGR'S home page is at <http://www.ahsgr.org/>
Irish	Adams Co - 1874-5, Highland Twp Dakota Co - 1856 Dixon Co. - 1856, South Creek Valley Greeley Co. - 1877 (O'Connor) Holt Co. - 1874 Atkinson, NE O'Neill, NE - officially the Irish Capitol of NE Platte Co. - Shell Creek Twp, NE (west of the meridian)
Luxembourg	Butler Co. (Bellwood) Roseland Twp, Adams Co.
Norwegians	Nuckolls Co - abt 1875, SE corner of county
Polish:	Nance Co. - Krakow, NE (near Genoa) Platte Co - Tarnov, NE Polk Co. - Pilsno, NE Saunders Co. - Prague, NE
Swedes:	Burt Co. - Oakland, NE about 1880 Colfax Co - Leigh, NE Kearney Co. - Keene, NE Nance Co. - Genoa, NE - and adjacent areas in Platte County Salem Evg. Lutheran Church in adjacent Walker Twp, Platte, NE (1879) Lookingglass Swedish Methodist Episcopal Church (1880) on sect 4 of Monroe Twp, Platte, NE Phelps Co - about 1880 Polk Co. - Stromsburg, NE about 1870, "Little Sweden" of NE Saunders Co - about 1870 Washington Co. - Orum, Washington, NE READ "Swedes in Nebraska" from NSHS Publications Vol XIX
Swiss:	Platte Co. - Columbus & Duncan, NE (7 families from Aarwangen, Bern - and many others as well)
Welsh	Adams Co - 1873, Little Blue Twp Platte Co - Joliet Twp., NE (many w/prior connections to Red Oak, IA) First Welch Calvanistic Methodist Church/Cemetery Richardson Co - 1859-67, Prairie Union community

There are many organizations for ethnic groups on the web. You may be able to find your surname in their lists, and get clues about the where members of your family group settled. Several are listed on the Nebraska Research Help (see state page).

A sample of the ethnic organizations involved in genealogy:

African American Research on Cyndi's List
American Historical Society of Germans from Russia - Lincoln

Czechoslovak Genealogical Society Int'l

Federation of East European Family History Societies

Odessa ... German-Russian Genelogical Library

UK+Ireland Genealogy

North American Immigrant Groups
Came from	Settled in NE at
Canada (see above)

United States
Illinois
Stark Co, IL	Platte Co, NE
1854 group organized at Quincy, IL as "Nebraska Colonization Company"	Fontanelle, Washington, NE (Andreas)
LaSalle Co., IL	1855: Tekamah, Burt Co, NE
?, IL	1866: Madison Co, NE
?, IL	1870: Wayne Co, NE along Coon Creek

Indiana	1856: Johnson Co, NE

Iowa
Davenport Co., IA	1857 to Hall Co, NE
Harrison Co, IA	abt 1857 to Cedar Co, NE
Tama Co., IA (many had been res.of IN before living in IA)	Mead Twp, Merrick, NE

Kentucky
Fayette Co., KY	Nemaha Co., NE

Michigan
?, MI	1871-2: 100 families to Adams Co.

New York
Attica, NY	1854: Tekamah, Burt, NE
Catarraugus Co., NY	Mead Twp, Merrick, NE
Cayuga Co., NY	Merrick County, NE

Ohio
Columbus, OH	Columbus, Platte, NE
Miami County, OH	Brownville, Nemaha, NE

Pennsylvania
Pittsburgh, PA	1879-80 Columbus, Platte, NE
Philadelphia Colony (incl some from NJ & OH)	1872 Dawson Co, NE, settled at Plum Creek (now Lexington)

Wisconsin
Mayville, WI	Platte Co, NE
Milwaukee, WI (many Danes)	1871: Howard Co., NE
Sauk Co., WI	Holt Co, NE
Virginia (Grayson County)	Cherry & Hooker Counties, NE

Immigrant Religious Groups

Mennonites	See Germans from Russia
Latter Day Saints = "Mormons"	1845: "Winter Quarters" = Florence, Douglas County, NE abt 1855: Douglas, Washington and Dodge Counties, NE (Danish) 1857: near present location of Genoa, Nance County, NE 1857: Sheldon Pct, Buffalo County, NE
"Quakers" - Friends	Established a college at Central City, Merrick, NE
Seventh Day Adventists	1875: Church organized in Seward Co., NE
Seventh Day Baptists	1871: Grp from WI, near present location of North Loup, Valley Co., NE (Andreas)