01
before 1864
Genealogy archive · 1864—2026
A story,
that must not be lost
From the Volhynian line to the search for Kroekers worldwide: archives, migrations, unknown branches and documentary proof of kinship.
5 generations16 people15+ documents
Emma Ivanovna and Vladimir Usachev (Kreker)≈ 1975
This archive was created to restore the names and facts that were kept from me in childhood for safety and the hope of a quieter life under a Russian surname.
Why this mattersWhy the archive was created
The truth that was kept silent in childhood
“When I was a child, people tried not to tell me about the past. Names, origins and painful facts were hidden because a Russian surname seemed like protection and a chance for a quieter life. I understand that choice — it was made for safety. But today I want to restore the truth carefully, through documents and without invention.”
Eugen Usachev · archive author
Photo gallery
Emma Ivanovna and Vladimir
Two carefully restored archival photographs. The faces, expressions and historical character of the originals have been preserved.
Share a photograph
The date and place are still being verified.
The date and place are still being verified.
The ancestors’ journey
Six stops.
One hundred and sixty years.
From probable roots in West Prussia to Berlin today. Every point is supported by documents — or clearly marked as a hypothesis.
02
1864—1941
Volhynia
Peski · exact place under review03
1941—1956
Kazakhstan
Deportation · Sennoye04
1956—1975
Dubovskoye
A new life05
1975—2023
Shakhty
Home · Chernobyl06
since 2019
Berlin
The archive continuesExplore the archive
Where to begin
Three ways into one archive: through people, places or documents.
01
Genealogy
Five generations in one direct line
Verified dates, family connections and branches still waiting to be uncovered.Open section02
Map
160 years on the move
Nine key places: from West Prussian roots to a new chapter in Berlin.Open section03
Documents
The archive speaks through evidence
Personal files, certificates, EWZ cards and digital copies from archives in five countries.Open sectionDirect line
Five generations,
connected by memory
Surnames changed in records, borders moved and documents disappeared. But the direct line endured.
View the family treeNew in the archive
Latest discoveries
The archive is updated as new files, certificates and transcriptions arrive.
All updates15 July 202601
FL-220 certificate: surname at birth
The archival certificate confirms a key fact: at birth he was registered as Vladimir Vasilyevich Kreker. The document separates the confirmed name from hypotheses about his biological father.
Read more28 July 202602
Personalblatt and household registers
Lydia Dreger’s Personalblatt has been obtained, with new information about her parents, religion and a previously unknown daughter of Emma Ivanovna.
Read more27 July 202603
Reply from the Bundesarchiv
EWZ file R 9361-IV/18702 became available for research. Lydia Dreger’s card revealed new details about relatives and another child.
Read moreArchival research
Documents from five countries
Requests to archives in Germany, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Canada and Russia. The current status of each search is shown.
Open the research logReceivedArchival certificate FL-220Vladimir Vasilyevich Kreker · 15 Jul 2026ReceivedPersonal file no. 1229Sectoral State Archive of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine · 28 pagesReceivedEWZ50 Film B019MHSBC, Canada · frames 1340–1353ReviewedR 9361-IV/18702Bundesarchiv · 5 August 2026In progressFamily branchesUkraine · Kazakhstan · Germany
Kroekers worldwide
One surname — many journeys
The search is no longer limited to one known line. Spellings including Kröker, Kroeker, Kroecker, Kreker, Kroeker and Kroeker are included.
Tell me about a branchEurope
Germany · Poland · Ukraine · NetherlandsVital records, church registers, civil records and migrant archives.
Eurasia
Russia · Kazakhstan · KyrgyzstanDeportation, special settlements, household registers and rehabilitation files.
North America
Canada · USA · MexicoPassenger lists, censuses, naturalization, land records and Mennonite collections.
South America
Paraguay · Brazil · Argentina · BoliviaMigrant colonies, church registers and present-day family branches.
Useful links
Research resources
Reliable databases for Mennonites, Volhynian Germans, victims of repression and archival collections.
All resourcesGRANDMA OnlineThe largest database of Mennonite genealogy.Odessa3A database of Germans from Russia and Ukraine.Open ListRecord for Emma Ivanovna Kreker, born 1924.Volhynia 1913Register of landowners in the Volhynia Governorate.BundesarchivThe German Federal Archives.MHSBCMennonite heritage archives in Canada.Arolsen ArchivesInternational research on victims and survivors of Nazi persecution.Library and Archives CanadaImmigration lists, censuses and land records.US National ArchivesUS immigration, naturalization, census and land records.
Support the project
Help fund the next archival discovery
The Kroeker Archive is a private, non-commercial project. Donations are used only for archival certificates, research trips, DNA tests, scanning and translations.
Next stepNew archival requests and document copiesVolhynia · Kazakhstan · Germany
Choose a payment method
A voluntary private donation. The project does not have official non-profit status.Research continues
Gaps still remain in the archive
Every document, archival photograph or DNA match may reveal a new branch.
We may be related
Do you recognize these surnames or places?
Kroeker / Kröker / Kroecker, Dreger, Schultz, Frelich, Simentsova, Usachev — contact the author. Information about Leo Dreger and Vasiliy, whose surname is not established, is especially important.