Ratzlaff, Benjamin (1791-1874)
Benjamin Ratzlaff (1791-1874), an elder of the Rudnerweide Mennonite Church, Molotschna Mennonite Settlement, South Russia, was born 1 April 1791, in Jeziorka, West Prussia, a son of Peter Ratzlaff, and moved to Franztal, West Prussia. He was ordained minister in 1819, and immigrated to the Molotschna in 1820, where he was chosen elder of the Rudnerweide Mennonite Church in 1835. He was active at the time of the revival and signed many documents and letters pertaining to the origin of the Mennonite Brethren. In 1874 he joined a group migrating to America. He died at Buhler(?), Kansas, three weeks after his arrival.
Bibliography
Friesen, Peter M. Die Alt-Evangelische Mennonitische Brüderschaft in Russland (1789-1910) im Rahmen der mennonitischen Gesamtgeschichte. Halbstadt: Verlagsgesellschaft "Raduga", 1911: 139, 167, 192, 197, 208, 499.
Hege, Christian and Christian Neff. Mennonitisches Lexikon, 4 vols. Frankfurt & Weierhof: Hege; Karlsruhe; Schneider, 1913-1967: v. III: 430.
Isaac, Franz. Die Molotschnaer Mennoniten. Halbstadt: H. J. Braun, 1908.
Unruh, Benjamin H. Die niederländisch-niederdeutschen Hintergründe der mennonitischen Ostwanderungen im 16., 18. und 19. Jahrhundert. Karlsruhe-Rüppurr: Selbstverlag, 1955: 369.
Adapted by permission of Herald Press, Harrisonburg, Virginia, and Waterloo, Ontario, from Mennonite Encyclopedia, Vol. 4, pp. 255-256. All rights reserved. For information on ordering the encyclopedia visit the Herald Press website.
©1996-2013 by the Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. All rights reserved.
MLA style: Krahn, Cornelius. "Ratzlaff, Benjamin (1791-1874)." Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. 1959. Web. 23 May 2013. http://www.gameo.org/encyclopedia/contents/ratzlaff_benjamin_1791_1874.
APA style: Krahn, Cornelius. (1959). Ratzlaff, Benjamin (1791-1874). Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. Retrieved 23 May 2013, from http://www.gameo.org/encyclopedia/contents/ratzlaff_benjamin_1791_1874.
