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A Rumanian Priest in Colonial America

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  07 August 2018

Demetrius Dvoichenko-Markov
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Extract

Officially the first Rumanian who came to the United States is considered to be George Pomutz from Transylvania. He took part in the American Civil War, settled down in Iowa, and became the American consul in St. Petersburg, Russia (February 16, 1866—September 30, 1870). Later he became the American consul general in St. Petersburg, Russia, and served the United States there from June 17, 1874, until his death on February 12, 1882.

There are, however, possible and strong indications of an earlier contact through another Rumanian from Transylvania as far back as the colonial times of North America. A reliable contemporary American source gives us a few details about the travels of a Transylvanian priest in the American colonies. This source is the famous American scholar, scientist and statesman, Benjamin Franklin.

Type
Research Article
Information
American Slavic and East European Review , Volume 14 , Issue 3 , October 1955 , pp. 383 - 389
Copyright
Copyright © Association for Slavic, East European, and Eurasian Studies 1955

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References

1 Ms. National Archives, Department of State.

2 Cohen, Bernard I., Benjamin Franklin's Experiments (Cambridge, Mass., 1941), p. 332 Google Scholar.

3 Samuel Domjen, “Advertisements. The Subscriber,” South Carolina The Gazette (From Monday, October 24-th, to Monday, October 31-st, 1748), p. 573. See also McCrady, Edward, The History of South Carolina (New York, 1899), pp. 492-94Google Scholar.

4 Transylvania is named in German “Siebenbürgen” after the seven main Saxon towns, the Hungarians (Magyars) call it “Erdély” which means “The Land of the Forest,”and in Rumanian it is named “Ardeal” which might possibly mean “The Land of the Hills” “Deal” in Rumanian means hill.

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10 Ibid.

11 Ibid.Emperor Charles VI of the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation.

12 Siebenbürgen, Institut für Rumänische Geschichte in Bukarest (Bucharest, 1943), I, 212.

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