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Crous, Ernst (1882-1967)
Mennonite Weekly Review obituary: 1967 Jun 22 p. 2
Birth date: 1882
text of obituary:
Died May 31
By Dr. Cornelius Krahn
IN A LETTER written on June 3, Mrs. Crous reports that her husband had passed away on May 31. Dr. Ernst Crous well known all over Germany and also among the Mennonites of the rest of Europe and North America.
In 1949-50, Dr. and Mrs. Crous spent one year on the college campuses of Bluffton, Goshen and Bethel under the sponsorship of the Council of Mennonite and Affiliated Colleges. Dr. Crous taught Mennonite history at the colleges and both he and Mrs. Crous were eager collectors of books and papers pertaining to the Mennonites in America.
Already before their coming to America, Dr. and Mrs. Crous had started a Mennonite Research Center (Mennonitische Forschungstelle) which was first located in Goettingen and later in Krefeld, the home town of Dr. Crous. It was here that both Dr. and Mrs. Crous established a large collection of books and files pertaining to the Mennonites the world over.
DR. CROUS started his life's vocation over 55 years ago as librarian of the Prussian State Library in Berlin and lectured in classes designed for library training. His specialty was bookmaking and bibliography. In this field he published numerous books and articles.
In Berlin, Dr. Crous was active in the Mennonite congregation which met in the Moravian church. He was elected minister of the congregation and remained its honorary elder to the end of his life. During the war, Dr. Crous retired from his duties as librarian and during the collapse of Berlin they fled to Goettingen where he was active in helping Mennonite refugees and in organizing a Mennonite church. Both sons of Dr. and Mrs. Crous perished on the eastern front during the war.
AMONG THE many positions which Dr. Crous held among the Mennonites of Germany is also the chairmanship of the German Mennonite Historical Society. He wrote numerous articles in the various Mennonite papers of Germany and also in America. He was one of the editors of the Mennonitisches Lexikon, the forerunner of The Mennonite Encyclopedia. He contributed numerous articles for the German and well as the English Encyclopedia. He was also the chairman of an organization which prepared valuable Anabaptist sources for publication (Taeuferakten Kommission).
Dr. and Mrs. Crous appreciated their visit in America very much. This was warmly expressed in a letter which was published in The Mennonite (Jan. 16, 1951). They stated: "We are trying to transmit some of the inspiration and knowledge from America to our folks over here in Germany. We hope that as ambassadors of goodwill we may have helped and may continue to foster a better understanding and esteem between the brethren on both sides of the Atlantic. . . . May, in this critical hour, God bless you as He has blessed us among you."