Welcome to the German Black Eagles Webpage
The German settlers came to Canada around the late 1850’s. They settled mainly in the Pembroke and Eganville area of Renfrew County. In the Bonnechere & Madawaska Valley they mainly settled in the communities of Palmer Rapids, Quadeville and Killaloe. They brought with them the German language and their German traditions.
Following the Second World War, many additional German people came to Renfrew County and in 1955 they formed a social group to serve the needs of German speaking ethnic groups. This group is called the Germania Club and the center in Pembroke serves the region.
In the late 1800’s a group of German citizens called the Wendish people immigrated to the Madawaska Valley around the same time as the German people. The Wendish settled in the Combermere, Palmer Rapids and Quadeville area. They also settled in the Rankin and Woito area near Pembroke.
Combermere maybe Canada’s First Wendish Settlement. The Wendish people are a very unique Slavic group and are Slavic cousins to the Czech, Polish, Slovak, & Kashub people. They speak a language that is called Sorbian which is close to the Kashubian, Czech, Slovak & Polish languages. Surnames such as Fabian, Neuman, Gulick, Lisk, Jahn, Buder, Budrick, Hammel, Layman, Goldberg, Poplie, hienxe, Zadow, Boehme, Heideman, hokum, Luloff, Melcher, Yandt and Schimmens are just a few of the Wendish names that have survived in the Valley since the 1860’s.
The German Black Eagles hockey Club joins both German and Wendish players on their team due to their close ties and historic connection.
