Genealogy as History: Ukraine

Wainer history is Ukraine history. Both ‘original’ Wainer’s came from a portion of Eastern Austria that is now part of Ukraine. The history of Ukraine is complicated and honestly requires quite a bit of reading. I’ve selected a few of the books that have helped me understand this history.

For general Ukraine history the following two books are the best. The first one is, i think, easier to read as it’s not filled with dates and mind-bending names ( mind-bending to me anyway). The second is more ‘academic’ in its presentation.

If you were to read one book about Ukraine, it should probably be this one( it’s also a very recent release): “A Brief History of Ukraine: The Forging of a Nation” by Yaroslav Hrytsak

Another wonderful book, but slightly more academic in nature is: “The Gates of Europe: A History of Ukraine” by Serial Plokhy

One of the hard parts about Ukraine history is how Ukraine is so interrelated to the other countries that are its neighbors. Having a good understanding of Polish history, as well as the history of Lithuania, Russia, and the Austrian-Hungarian empire are helpful in understanding the history of Ukraine. The book I recommended in an earlier post about a general history of Europe is a good place to begin(https://stumbleback.wordpress.com/2024/03/10/genealogy-as-history-europe/), but I’ve found these two books to be very helpful:

“The Reconstruction of Nations: Poland, Ukraine, Lithuania, Belarus 1569-1999” by Timothy Snyder

“God’s Playground: A History of Poland, Vol. 1: The Origins to 1795” by Norman Davies

The atrocities that both Hitler and Stalin subjected the people of Ukraine ( and elsewhere) are covered in these two books:

“Bloodlands: Europe Between Hitler and Stalin ” by Timothy Snyder

“Red Famine” by Anne Applebaum

Another way to get some Ukraine history is to watch Yale Professor Dr. Timothy Snyder’s undergraduate lectures on “The Making of Modern Ukraine” on YouTube. The link to the first lecture is: Here

Genealogy as History: New Netherlands

If you are a Knickerbocker then some of your earliest ancestors to the new world were Dutch and lived here in North America in a place that was then called New Netherlands. The first Knickerbocker, Harmon Knickerbocker ( there was no such surname until he started using it), and his wife Lysbet Bogaert were both immigrants from Holland.

A fantastic book about the times and places they lived is: The Island at the Center of the World: The Epic Story of Dutch Manhattan and the Forgotten Colony That Shaped America by Russell Shorto.

Mom Migrations

My mother ( Marjorie Ann Knickerbocker) was born in Minnesota but eventually moved to California. Before marrying my father ( Peter Richard Wainer) she lived with her sister Helen, her husband ( John O. Vesterby), and another sister Eleanor Knickerbocker in Los Angeles. When I was very young I remember going to Aunt Helen and Uncle John’s house and being fascinated by their backyard rose garden and the fact that it was a two story house with an easy way to the roof. I remember no one would actually let me up on the roof by myself, but as a young kid, it was pretty intriguing.

In going over some old emails, I ran into one from Shirley that had a picture of the old house with my Aunt Eleanor standing in front of it. I was also able to track the address down from 1960 voter registration rolls in LA County. One of these days I’ll have to hop up that way and take a current picture. The one in Google maps isn’t quite the thing.