Difference between revisions of "Toews, Bernhard (1863-1927)"

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[[File:ToewsBernhard.jpg|300px|thumb|right|''Bernhard Toews with first  
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[[File:ToewsBernhard.jpg|300px|thumb|right|''Bernhard Toews with first wife Katharina (Funk) and two children. Source: ''Preservings'', no. 16, p. 30.'']]
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Bernhard Toews: teacher and immigration delegate; born 4 September 1863 in the [[Chortitza (Chortitza Mennonite Settlement, Zaporizhia Oblast, Ukraine)|Chortitza Colony]], Russia (present-day [[Ukraine]]), to Jacob and Anna (Wiebe) Toews as the seventh of eight children. In 1885 he married Katharina J. Funk (1865-1903), daughter of Bergthaler [[Bishop (Ältester)|Ältester]] [[Funk, Johann (1836-1917)|Johann Funk]]. They had 13 children, nine of whom made it to adulthood. In 1904 he married Aganetha P. Harder (1876-1927). They had six children together, one of whom died in childbirth. Bernhard died 12 November 1927 in Rochester, [[Minnesota (USA)|Minnesota]].
  
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wife Katharina (Funk) and two
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Toews immigrated to [[Canada]] in 1877 with his family, where he settled in [[Reinland]], Manitoba. He was baptized on 2 June 1884. Born and educated in [[Russia]], Toews was well qualified as a teacher in Manitoba's [[West Reserve (Manitoba, Canada|West Reserve]]. He strongly believed in church-run, [[German Language|German-language]] education and willingly taught in the [[Sommerfeld Mennonites|Sommerfelder]] church's [[Elementary Education#North America|private schools]] for meager pay ($30 per month). When the provincial government attempted to [[Old Colony Mennonites#The School Question|abolish the Mennonite private elementary school system]] and force children to attend public schools, Toews kept his children in the private schools; for this act of resistance he was imprisoned along with several others from 6 January 1920 until 21 January 1920.
  
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children. Preservings Photo. '']]     Bernhard Toews: teacher and immigration delegate; born 4 September 1863 in the village of Chortitza, [[Chortitza (Chortitza Mennonite Settlement, Zaporizhia Oblast, Ukraine)|Chortitza Colony]], [[Russia|Russia]], to Jacob and Anna (Wiebe) Toews as the seventh of eight children.
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Toews became one of the most consequential boosters of [[Emigration from Canada to Mexico and Paraguay in the 1920s|emigration from Canada in the 1920s]] among the [[Conservative Mennonites (Dutch-Prussian-Russian)|conservative]] Bergthal Mennonites and an advocate for moving to Paraguay in particular. He began pressing the case for emigration to his Ältester, [[Doerksen, Abraham (1852-1929)|Abraham Doerksen]], and to [[Zacharias, Aron (1871-1928)|Aron Zacharias]], Ältester of the [[Rosthern (Saskatchewan, Canada)|Rosthern]] [[Bergthal Mennonites#Saskatchewan Bergthaler|Saskatchewan Bergthaler]], in June 1920. He played an important role in organizing and was a member of the 1921 [[Canadian Mennonite Land-Seeking Delegations, 1919-1922|land-seeking delegation]], sent by a coalition of conservative [[Bergthal Mennonites]] to [[Paraguay]] and [[Mexico]], that received a [[Privileges (Privilegia)|Privilegium]] from Paraguayan President [[Gondra, Manuel (1871-1927)|Manuel Gondra]], paving the way for the immigration to that country. When Ältester Doerksen decided to move to Mexico instead, Toews (along with many of his fellow Sommerfelder) continued to see Paraguay as the preferable course. He died, however, before he could emigrate.
  
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Bernhard Toews grew up with his family in southern Russia. He gained a good village and secondary school education in Russia. He immigrated  to [[Canada|Canada]] in 1877 with his family and many other Mennonites where he settled in Reinland, [[Manitoba (Canada)|Manitoba]]. He was baptized on 2 June 1884. In 1885, Bernhard married Katharina J. Funk (1865-1903), daughter of [[Funk, Johann (1836-1917)|Johann Funk]], bishop of the [[Bergthal Mennonites|Bergthaler church]] which had just been established on the West Reserve in 1882. Bernhard and Katharina (Funk) Toews lived in Gnadenthal from 1886 to 1900, and remained members of the [[Sommerfeld Mennonites|Sommerfeld Mennonite Church]]. They moved to Wiedenfeld in 1900. In 1902, Bernhard’s brother Heinrich Toews, also a school teacher, gained notoriety when he shot three students and three trustees, and killed himself a short time later. Bernhard’s wife Katharina died in 1903. In January 1904, Bernhard married Aganetha P. Harder (1876-1927) in Butterfield, [[Minnesota (USA)|Minnesota]].  They also made their home in Manitoba. They had six children together, one of whom died in childbirth.
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Toews left behind a considerable amount of valuable written material. [[Plett, Delbert F. (1948-2004)|Delbert Plett]] describes Toews's journal as "one of the more important examples of the writing regime of the conservative Mennonite culture."<ref>Plett, 110. See also Friesen and Loewen.</ref> His journals provide one of the only accounts we have of those who were jailed in Manitoba and [[Saskatchewan (Canada)|Saskatchewan]] for their defiance of the mandatory school attendance laws. His detailed and observant travel diary is also an important source for our understanding of the itinerary, aims, and impressions of the 1921 Bergthal delegation to Paraguay and Mexico.
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=Notes=
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<references />
  
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With the education he had received in Russia, Bernhard was well qualified to teach in the Mennonite-private village schools in Manitoba. In 1916, however, the Manitoba government abolished private schools in the province. Many teachers and ministers who continued to work in the private, Mennonite-operated schools were prosecuted because of amendments to the Public Schools Act, and Bernhard was imprisoned on 2 January 1920. Later, he became involved in investigating the possibility of immigration to [[Mexico|Mexico]] or South America. In 1921, he traveled to [[Paraguay|Paraguay]] to make arrangements for a mass migration of Mennonites out of Canada. Just before he and his family were scheduled to leave, Bernhard became ill. He died on 12 November 1927 in Rochester, Minnesota.  His wife died six weeks later.
 
 
= Bibliography =
 
= Bibliography =
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Friesen, John J. Review of ''Reise-Tagebuch: Mennonitische Chaco-Expedition 1921'', by Bernhard Toews. ''Preservings'', no. 13 (December 1998): 133-134.
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GRANDMA (The <strong>G</strong>enealogical <strong>R</strong>egistry <strong>an</strong>d <strong>D</strong>atabase of <strong>M</strong>ennonite <strong>A</strong>ncestry) Database, 5.03 ed. Fresno, CA: California Mennonite Historical Society, 2007: #88381.
 
GRANDMA (The <strong>G</strong>enealogical <strong>R</strong>egistry <strong>an</strong>d <strong>D</strong>atabase of <strong>M</strong>ennonite <strong>A</strong>ncestry) Database, 5.03 ed. Fresno, CA: California Mennonite Historical Society, 2007: #88381.
  
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Plett, Delbert F. “Bernhard Toews (1863-1927), 1921 Delegate.”  <em>Preservings</em> No. 16 (June 2000): 30-32.
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Kouwenhoven, Arlette. ''The Fehrs: Four Centuries of Mennonite Migration'', translated by Lesley Fast and Kerry Fast. Leiden: Winco, 2013: 181-182.
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Loewen, Royden. ''Village among Nations: "Canadian" Mennonites in a Transnational World, 1916-2006''. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 2013: 33-38.
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Plett, Delbert F. "Bernhard Toews (1863-1927), 1921 Delegate." ''Preservings'', no. 16 (June 2000): 30-32.
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Toews, Bernhard. "Life and Travel Remembrances of Bernhard Toews," translated by Delbert Plett. In ''Old Colony Mennonites in Canada, 1875-2000'', edited by Delbert F. Plett. Steinbach, MB: Crossway, 2001: 111-115.
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Toews, Bernard. ''Reise-Tagebuch: Mennonitische Chaco-Expedition 1921''. Schulverwaltung der Kolonie Menno, 1997.
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{{GAMEO_footer|hp=|date=June 2025|a1_last=Huebert|a1_first=Susan|a2_last=Ens|a2_first=Gerald}}
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[[Category:Persons]]

Latest revision as of 20:31, 23 June 2025

Bernhard Toews with first wife Katharina (Funk) and two children. Source: Preservings, no. 16, p. 30.

Bernhard Toews: teacher and immigration delegate; born 4 September 1863 in the Chortitza Colony, Russia (present-day Ukraine), to Jacob and Anna (Wiebe) Toews as the seventh of eight children. In 1885 he married Katharina J. Funk (1865-1903), daughter of Bergthaler Ältester Johann Funk. They had 13 children, nine of whom made it to adulthood. In 1904 he married Aganetha P. Harder (1876-1927). They had six children together, one of whom died in childbirth. Bernhard died 12 November 1927 in Rochester, Minnesota.

Toews immigrated to Canada in 1877 with his family, where he settled in Reinland, Manitoba. He was baptized on 2 June 1884. Born and educated in Russia, Toews was well qualified as a teacher in Manitoba's West Reserve. He strongly believed in church-run, German-language education and willingly taught in the Sommerfelder church's private schools for meager pay ($30 per month). When the provincial government attempted to abolish the Mennonite private elementary school system and force children to attend public schools, Toews kept his children in the private schools; for this act of resistance he was imprisoned along with several others from 6 January 1920 until 21 January 1920.

Toews became one of the most consequential boosters of emigration from Canada in the 1920s among the conservative Bergthal Mennonites and an advocate for moving to Paraguay in particular. He began pressing the case for emigration to his Ältester, Abraham Doerksen, and to Aron Zacharias, Ältester of the Rosthern Saskatchewan Bergthaler, in June 1920. He played an important role in organizing and was a member of the 1921 land-seeking delegation, sent by a coalition of conservative Bergthal Mennonites to Paraguay and Mexico, that received a Privilegium from Paraguayan President Manuel Gondra, paving the way for the immigration to that country. When Ältester Doerksen decided to move to Mexico instead, Toews (along with many of his fellow Sommerfelder) continued to see Paraguay as the preferable course. He died, however, before he could emigrate.

Toews left behind a considerable amount of valuable written material. Delbert Plett describes Toews's journal as "one of the more important examples of the writing regime of the conservative Mennonite culture."[1] His journals provide one of the only accounts we have of those who were jailed in Manitoba and Saskatchewan for their defiance of the mandatory school attendance laws. His detailed and observant travel diary is also an important source for our understanding of the itinerary, aims, and impressions of the 1921 Bergthal delegation to Paraguay and Mexico.

Notes

  1. ↑ Plett, 110. See also Friesen and Loewen.

Bibliography

Friesen, John J. Review of Reise-Tagebuch: Mennonitische Chaco-Expedition 1921, by Bernhard Toews. Preservings, no. 13 (December 1998): 133-134.

GRANDMA (The Genealogical Registry and Database of Mennonite Ancestry) Database, 5.03 ed. Fresno, CA: California Mennonite Historical Society, 2007: #88381.

Kouwenhoven, Arlette. The Fehrs: Four Centuries of Mennonite Migration, translated by Lesley Fast and Kerry Fast. Leiden: Winco, 2013: 181-182.

Loewen, Royden. Village among Nations: "Canadian" Mennonites in a Transnational World, 1916-2006. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 2013: 33-38.

Plett, Delbert F. "Bernhard Toews (1863-1927), 1921 Delegate." Preservings, no. 16 (June 2000): 30-32.

Toews, Bernhard. "Life and Travel Remembrances of Bernhard Toews," translated by Delbert Plett. In Old Colony Mennonites in Canada, 1875-2000, edited by Delbert F. Plett. Steinbach, MB: Crossway, 2001: 111-115.

Toews, Bernard. Reise-Tagebuch: Mennonitische Chaco-Expedition 1921. Schulverwaltung der Kolonie Menno, 1997.


Author(s) Susan Huebert
Gerald Ens
Date Published June 2025

Cite This Article

MLA style

Huebert, Susan and Gerald Ens. "Toews, Bernhard (1863-1927)." Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. June 2025. Web. 19 Jan 2026. https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Toews,_Bernhard_(1863-1927)&oldid=180924.

APA style

Huebert, Susan and Gerald Ens. (June 2025). Toews, Bernhard (1863-1927). Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. Retrieved 19 January 2026, from https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Toews,_Bernhard_(1863-1927)&oldid=180924.



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