A Word from the Author

  In the Afterword to my previous book, Children of the Danube, I indicated that a sequel would be forthcoming, fulfilling the promise I made to my mother, “To Remember To Tell the Children.”  The writing of this sequel has taken on a life of its own and become a Trilogy.  This is the first volume in the series.  The Pioneers is focused on the experiences and lives of the first three generations of my family in Hungary that closely parallel those of many of the other Children of the Danube at that time, who are also an essential and integral part of the same story.
  At my son Stephen’s suggestion, I have adopted a different approach in the style of my writing, in order to breathe more life into the “history” that unfolds.  He encouraged me to use the technique I used in telling Konrad Tefner’s story in Children of the Danube.  One of my readers, Dan Drew, commented to me personally, that I wrote from the right and left side of my brain, using both intuition and deductive reasoning along with historical fact to give the reader a sense of “being there”.  Telling my readers “how it was” even though I had not been there.  It is flesh and blood people and their lives that best convey the essence of history and for that reason the trilogy has become a work of historical fiction, but one that is as detailed and factual as it is possible to be.
  The characters are of my own creation, based on and emerging from the stories and reminiscences that have been handed down in various family circles that are part of my extended family and those of others.  The social, religious, political, economic and historical context in which they lived their lives, that I have tried to describe faithfully, are shaped by decades of research, documentation, study and personal interviews as well as several visits to Hungary and the various communities that play a part in telling the story.    All references to others outside of my extended family are actual persons and the information associated with them, with only few exceptions, are factual, coming from numerous sources, including the Roman Catholic Church Records in Törrökkopany and Karád, the early Lutheran records in Somogydöröscke and Ecsény, all located in Somogy County and from numerous Lutheran congregations in the Tolna.
  One of the primary resources that proved invaluable in establishing the historical framework, setting and time line to the trilogy is the Heimatbuch der Nordschomodei, to whose authors and researchers I am indebted.  Nor could I fail to express my gratitude to my mentor, the late Johann Müller of Bietigheim-Bissingen for his encouragement, support and providing me with countless sources of information, reference materials and documents when I first began this personal pilgrimage in search of my identity, heritage and spiritual roots.  For those interested in a fuller bibliography I would refer them to the extensive one provided in Children of the Danube.
  I acknowledge my thanks and appreciation to my son Stephen for acting as my editor, for his insights, challenging questions and literary ability that greatly enhanced the final version of the manuscript.  I would also like to express my gratitude to J. R. Harris of Authorhouse, both for his counsel and personal support and the friendship we have discovered in working together.
  For most of the past year I have been living in 18th century Hungary, while residing in 21st century Oshawa, to which my wife Jean recalled me for lunch and the other necessities of life on an almost daily basis; and without her support and understanding this book would have never been written.