The Carpatho-Rusyns are a distinct Eastern Slavic people who have lived in remote villages scattered along the foothills and valleys of the Carpathian Mountains of East Central Europe.
Many began their journey in the U.S. in coalfields of Pennsylvania however in the early 1900s many Rusyn immigrants were working in coal mines in Southern Illinois. They weren’t alone- as we will continue to discuss, there were many Rusyns in southern Illinois.
Today there appear to be few traces of Rusyn ancestry in the coal regions of Williamson and Jackson Counties. Many of today’s references are to “Russians”; given the similarity in spelling between Rusyn and Russian, this is not surprising. However make no mistake, Rusyns are not Russians.
I hope to preserve the history of Rusyns who lived in Southern Illinois. References to their existanance have faded. In his July 1978 Master of Arts thesis titled “The Russians of Buckner” David Smith concluded that within one generation, the rich Slavic history of this region may be forgotten. I’m determined to make sure this doesn’t happen.
Many Slavic immigrants in the U.S. worked in the coal industry. Carpatho-Rusyns were well-represented in coal mines and in mining towns, and their rich legacy in Pennsylvania in particular continues to be studied. However, they also lived elsewhere in the U.S.
But we know there were Rusyns in southern Illinois- we lived there! We were in Dowell, Buckner, Muddy, Royalton, Elkville, Colp, and Dewmaine.
Some Clues… Rusyns did actually exist in Southern Illinois
In 1980, Professor Terry Alliband at Southern Illinois University published a journal of folk life in the region. On page 8 he described “Carpatho-Russian” immigrants who lived in the communities. SIU has preserved this journal at this link here. Professor Alliband wrote “the Carpatho-Russians are traditionally Russian Orthodox and use old Church Slavonic as a liturgical language. In spite of similarity to Ukrainians, the Russians of Southern Illinois maintain that they are a completely different ethnic group and it seems practical, in light of historical circumstances, to consider them so.“
Churches
Church life was integral to the daily life of immigrants. This was no different for Carpatho-Rusyns.
- Protection of the Holy Virgin Mary Orthodox Church, Royalton, IL.
- One of this church’s founders was Frank Derbak, a Rusyn immigrant. Frank and his wife Sophia were born in the Rusyn village of Kolachova. This village is not far from Khust in present-day Ukraine. Their daughter Mary married Michael Dohanich. The Dohanich family comes from Zolotarvo, also a Rusyn village.
- This church is still in operation today. Funerals for my Rusyn family members were held at this church, so we know there was a connection.
- St. Ioasaph’s in Muddy, IL This church was built by Rusyn immigrants and was one of the first ones in the region. Unfortunately this church is no more, as discussed in this article. Some more history of the church is found here. The design of the Royalton church was modeled after after St Ioasaph’s.
References
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A January 1980 article in the Southern Illinoisan was titled “American Russians Seldom Go Back”. This article (page 1, page 2) discussed Rusyns who lived the in the mining towns in the region.
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In July 1978 in his Master of Arts thesis titled “The Russians of Buckner” David Smith discusses the Slavic families in the region.
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This June 1980 article referenced the pending publication of the journal mentioned above, and specifically discusses “Carpatho-Russian” traditions in the region.
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An article published in April 1974 in the Southern Illinoisan describes the rich Easter folk traditions of the local immigrant communities, derived from their heritage of the Carpathian Mountains. The tradition of making paska and pysanky eggs is described in detail; these traditions are strongly Rusyn and Ukrainian.
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This April 1959 article in the discusses the tradition of playing a Trembita, or shephard’s pipe. The subjects of the article are described as Rusyns.
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A December 1974 article in the Southern Illinoisan was published titled “Christmas on December 25th?” In this article (available here), the author discusses immigrants from the Carpathian Mountains.
Do you have any information about Rusyn history in Illinois? If so, please contact me!