Born: 1878, Died: 1950
Married: Helena Braun, Eliese Neufeld
Jacob Janzen was born in Steinbach Molotschna Colony, Mennonite colonies in the Ukraine in Southern Russia. He became an ordained minister in the village in which he lived and worked. He was the schoolmaster there. After the Revolution in Russia, when the communists took control of the country, there was much disturbance in the countryside. The Mennonite settlements received especially harsh treatment. The men particularly were taken away forcefully and many were never heard of again. This happened to the husband of Eliese Neufeld, who was widowed and left with a small family. She married Rev Jansen a widower, the teacher and minister in their community. Rev Janzen could see that life was going to be very much more difficult for his people, so in 1924, he and his new family, including Waldemar [illegible] future artist joined a group migrating to Canada. They arrived in Waterloo in late 1924. In 1925 Janzen bought a home on 35 Church St (Central).
He was the leader in purchasing the old Presbyterian church on George St after 1925 when most of the congregation joined the new United church. The church became known as the Russian Mennonite Church and later the Waterloo-Kitchener Mennonite Church. Bishop Janzen went on to serve a number of Mennonite congregations in Canada and finally became a Mennonite Bishop. He retired in 1948. In 1949 he suffered a stroke and died two months later.
Sources:
Waldemar Neufeld, Conrad Grebel College.
Mennonite Historical Society of Ont., Volume 6 No 2, Mar 1988.
Bishop Jacob H. Janzen Biography
Description
- Creator
- Little, Ellis, Author
- Media Type
- Text
- Item Type
- Articles
- Description
- This is a handwritten biography of Bishop Jacob H. Janzen from the Ellis Little Papers. This biography has been transcribed exactly as written. Ellis Little was a local historian, who was the principal of Elizabeth Ziegler Public School. On his retirement, he invested much of his time in researching and writing about Waterloo's history. The Ellis Little Papers consist of extensive notes, papers and historical works.
- Notes
- To see the original document please visit the Ellis Little Local History Room at the Main Branch of the Waterloo Public Library
- Date Of Event
- 1878-1950
- Subject(s)
- Personal Name(s)
- Janzen, Jacob ; Braun, Helena ; Neufeld, Eliese ; Neufeld, Waldemar
- Local identifier
- ELP 51.100
- Collection
- Ellis Little Papers: Men and Women of Our Past
- Language of Item
- English
- Copyright Statement
- Copyright status unknown. Responsibility for determining the copyright status and any use rests exclusively with the user.
- Location of Original
- Ellis Little Papers
- Contact
- Waterloo Public LibraryEmail:askus@wpl.ca
Website:
Agency street/mail address:35 Albert Street, Waterloo, Ontario, Canada, N2L 5E2
- Full Text
