Searching for Benjamin’s Father 2

Before we begin to excavate through Glenn Penner’s email about the identity of Benjamin Buller’s father (see here), we should reset the background that will guide this search. A brief review of our family genealogy will set the stage.

1. As we all know, Grandpa Chris’s father was Peter P Buller. 

2. Peter P was born to Peter D and Sarah Siebert Buller in Molotschna colony in 1869 and came to the United States with his family in 1879.

3. Peter D was also born in Molotschna colony (1845); his parents were David and Helena Zielke Buller.

4. David Buller was probably born in Volhynia (1818), just after his parents and older brother Benjamin emigrated to Volhynia. David’s parents were named Benjamin and Helena (we do not know Helena’s maiden name).

5. We learn from Molotschna (Waldheim) records that Benjamin’s father was also named Benjamin. We do not know his mother’s name. We distinguish the two Benjamins by referring to the father as Benjamin 1 and to the son as Benjamin 2.

Our male ancestors can thus be presented in linear fashion as follows (father > son): 

Benjamin 1 > Benjamin 2 > David > Peter D > Peter P > Grandpa Chris

The question that this series will seek to answer is the same one addressed in Glenn’s email: Who was Benjamin 1’s father? 

We believe, with good reason, that our particular family line originates with the George Buller who was patriarch of all the Bullers in the Przechovka Mennonite church. The problem we have struggled to overcome is connecting our line (Benjamin 1) to the descendants of George in that church. Glenn’s proposal does precisely that. With that background in mind, we will begin to unpack and evaluate that proposal in the next post in this series.