What was it like to travel from southern Russia to Dakota Territory in the 1870s?

That's the theme of a program on tap on Sunday, July 14 at the Bethel Church at the Heritage Hall Museum & Archives complex starting at 3 p.m.
This is the second in a three-part series of moderated panel discussions that explore various aspects of the 150th anniversary of the wave of Germans-from-Russia migration to North America that began in 1874.

Dan Flyger, Marnette (Ortman) Hofer, Norman Hofer and S. Roy Kaufman are providing unique perspectives on different aspects of this story. That includes the history of Hutterite, Lutheran, Low German Mennonite, Reformed and Swiss Amish immigrants who all settled in southeastern Dakota Territory in the 1870s.
The July 14 program will focus on their preparations for leaving the area now known as Ukraine, what the emigration entailed, and what it was like as they traveled from southern Russia to Yankton.

The first program, held on June 2, explored what promoted German-speaking people to settle in Russia starting in the 1700s. The third program in the series on August 4 will explore their arrival in Dakota Territory.

Admission to the program includes the opportunity to tour the museum before and after the Sunday program – 1 to 5 p.m. Regular summer hours are Mondays through Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., and other times by appointment from May through September.

About the museum

Located south of the Freeman Academy campus and on the northern edge of the 40-acre Prairie Arboretum, Heritage Hall Museum & Archives tells the story of Germans-from-Russia immigrants and others who settled in southeastern Dakota Territory in the 1870s. The museum complex includes two large exhibit halls featuring everything from old cars and buggies to Native American artifacts to agricultural equipment to local business history to household items and musical instruments. The archives/library includes more than 10,000 books, maps, periodicals and photos. The complex also includes four historic buildings: a one-room schoolhouse, two early rural churches and a 140-year-old pioneer home.

Heritage Hall Museum & Archives traces its roots back to the winter term of Freeman College in 1911, but today operates as an independent, non-profit organization.