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SetschanfelD

The village of Setschanfeld was established in the 1830's in the Banat region of Austria-Hungary by the descendants of the original settlers of the Banat, who arrived in the mid-1700's. The first Setschanfeld residents came from the surrounding towns of Heideschuetz, Ernsthausen, Zichydorf and others, as well as towns that were farther away such as Bogarosch. It was an almost completely German village located north of Werschetz. Over the years, the name of the town changed depending on the ruling country at the time. Setschanfeld was also known as Szecsenfalva and Secenovo; and is today called Duzine, Serbia.

For over a hundred years, Setschanfeld existed as small village where generations of ethnic Germans lived and raised their families. Every morning horses were hitched to wagons and the men went off farming, while the women took care of their homes and children. Every Saturday, they held a farmer's market where people from the surrounding villages would sell their vegetables. The farmers produced so much more than they could ever use, and sold their crops on the market. These farmers produced so much that at one time the Banat was known as the “Kornkammer of Europe".

In 1944, the Germans were on the brink of defeat and began to retreat out of Yugoslavia. They made plans to evacuate the German villagers from their towns and some did leave. Many others did not; refusing to leave the only homes they had ever known. On All Saint’s day in 1944 the Partisans went into the villagers homes, abducting husbands and fathers who were taken to the town of Werschetz. None of these men were ever seen again. A month later, the young women and mothers were torn from their children and sent to Russia to work in slave labor camps. The rest of the villagers were taken to internment camps where many were starved or otherwise killed. The town of Setschanfeld was turned into an internment camp. In April 1945, Germans from the surrounding villages were brought to Setschanfeld and held in the camp until it disbanded in 1946. The majority of villagers that were being held in the Setschanfeld camp at that time were moved to the internment camp in Heideschutz.

These Danube Swabians are our ancestors. Their memories and stories should be kept alive and our history never forgotten. If anyone has any information on the town of Setschanfeld or the families who descend from those who lived in the village, please contact Amy Nichols at anichols@att.net.

Preserving the heritage of Setschanfeld and the people who lived there for future generations