A small portion of
the Banater Akten are the Schlafkreuzerrechnungen.
Close study reveals that there are 93 individual documents. One
document may consist of one or several pages in which are
contained names and house numbers of homeowner-hosts and the
names of settlers in 49 towns in the Banat.
The purpose for
writing the SKR was twofold. The Austrian government who had
called the new settlers into the Banat before their new homes
were ready, had the newcomers move in with the already
established settlers. The hosts were paid one "Kreuzer" (a small
denomination of Austrian currency) per person per night for the
length of stay of their guests. Hence the coining of the name
"Schlafkreuzerrechnung".
The records vary
considerably in content, but can be helpful to genealogists
because they usually contain the name and house number of the
host in the particular village, dates of arrival and departure
of the new settlers, number of members in each family, and may
contain ages and occupations, history of births, deaths,
marriages, and the name and house number of the new residence of
the settlers.
Towns mentioned in
the SKR include:
Albrechtsflor,
Arad, Beschenova, Billet, Blumenthal, Bogarosch, Bruckenau,
Charleville, Csakowa (Tschakowa), Detta, Engelsbrunn, Fatschet,
Freidorf, Gertianosch, Gladna (Deutsch and Rumänisch), Gottlob,
Grabatz, Groß Betscherek, Groß Jetscha, Groß St. Nikolaus,
Guttenbrunn, Hatzfeld, Heufeld, Jahrmarkt, Königshof,
Karansebesch, Klein Betschereck, Klein Jetscha, Kutritz (Gudriz),
Lenauheim (Csatad), Lippa, Lowrin, Lugosch, Marienfeld, Mastort,
Mercydorf, Neu Arad, Neu Petsch, Neudorf, Ostern, Rekasch,
Sackelhausen, Schöndorf, Segenthau, Soultour, St. Andreas, St.
Huberth, Triebswetter, Uybecs-Ulmbach, Werschetz.
Some settlers
went to the following towns:
Apatin, Adelbach, Daruvar,
Denta, Fabrique (Temesvar District), Köveresch, Kreuzstätten,
Liebling, Moravitza, Nitzkydorf, Orcydorf, Reschitza, Rittberg,
and Temesvar.
Alternatively, one
may also consult the book Die Banater
Schlafkreuzerrechnungen / The German Emigration and Settlement
in the Province Banat in Austro-Hungary 1766-1804 by Hans
J. Prohaska-Schöndorf (1982: Park Ridge, Illinois, USA. Library
of Congress Catalog Card Number 82-99978).
[Published at
DVHH.org 2003 Ron
Gretz]
