The article is devoted to the research of family structure of German settlements in the Volga Region in the middle of XIX-th century, based on the analisys of "Gnilushka" colony in the Kamyshin district of Saratov province. Family structure model of the colony is being studied by the enumeration lists from the point of view of demographic analysis and J. Handzhnal's theory of existence of a unique European-type marriage.
