Founding of the town of Munjor, Kansas
 

The town of Munjor, Kansas looking towards the west.

After landing in New York, the immigrants immediately headed westward.  Arriving in Kansas, some stayed a few days in Herzog (Victoria) with the earlier immigrants; others arrived in Hays on July and spent a short time there.  In a matter of a few days, both of these groups moved to a tract of land along Big Creek, north of the present town of Munjor,  This site proved unsatisfactory and after two months, they moved to Section 25, Range 18 in Wheatland Township to establish their permanent home, which is to this day the location of the town of Munjor.  Other immigrant groups arrived in Munjor in November 1876, September 1877, and July 1878.  After this, until 1900, individuals and small groups continued to join the Munjor community.

The people lived very closely together in houses built after the style of their forefathers in Russia - the lower half of the building dug into the ground, the upper part built of sod cut from the prairie.  These dwellings called "Semlinkas".  The interior usually contained only two rooms: a small room with a fireplace and cooking materials, and a larger room which served as living, dining , and a bed room.  Straw, sunflowers, and wood were used for fuel when available, in their absence, decomposed cattle manure know as "Mistholz". Large sheepskins coats, woven with fur on the inside, were brought from Russia and proved to be very practical during the first winters.  In general the women dressed much as they did in Russia, wearing neither hats nor bonnets, but rather small, black shawls embroidered with designs in colored silk.  At first, the older men wore their hair long onto the neck, but this custom soon disappeared.

The first years and well into the 1890's were years of drought.  During this period, a number of early pioneers left Munjor and returned to Russia.  The hardships of the early life of the settlers would not be easily described nor appreciated.  Perhaps this comment in the parish chronicle, dated October 15th, 1892, is indicative: "The people were so poor it was unbelievable.  How they survived is beyond me.  I just cannot understand it.  They got so far behind in payments.  They had to pay the interest before they could buy the seed wheat.  They hardly were able to make the interest payment.  It seemed as if the rod of the Lord had struck these poor people, His judgment is worse for the sinner."