64 years ago today

Johann Heinrich NABER

THIS seems to me to be a really precious document for the Naber family in 1878 Nebraska.  It gave them ownership of 80 acres because they'd lived there for six years, and they'd improved it.  That 12 X 27 soddy was about the size of a small one car garage, and the 10 X 20 one is mentioned as a second house...like for sleeping maybe?

Below, December 1st, 1877, John becomes a citizen of the United States, and so his whole family became citizens too.
(John Heinrich was my grandmothers' uncle, or Great grandpa Gerhards' brother).

THANK YOU to Larry, and to the state of Nebraska for digitizing these records...

Royalton, Minnesota in 1922

WHY does Royalton figure so large in the history of our families in Buckman?  Well, Royalton was relatively close, and had a railroad station on the north-south Great Northern line, not to mention that there are few hills between the two towns, so hauling stuff there would be easier on the team.  Also, the Royalton rural mail delivery incredibly included the Janson farm a mile west of Buckman.  Then too, Royalton was the second largest city in Morrison County and aggressively recruited settlers.  It was built on the Platte river and there were a couple of mills using the water power (a flour mill and a saw mill).  So it's not so odd that this photo was published in the Minneapolis Morning Tribune of October 1st, 1922.  If you were on the train going northwest from Minneapolis, it's a town you might be curious about...

Quick--where was Joe Blow's Bar eventually located?

Zenner's Sausage

When we bought the store in Buckman from Kilian and Dela Zenner,  part of the purchase was learning how to make their wonderful sausage.  Local folks loved it, and vacationers and hunters stopped especially for the sausage on their way 'up north' or 'to the lake'.  They were loyal either to Zenner's Sausage OR Thielen's Sausage (Pierz), not both.  (Thielen's seemed a bit sweeter to me, and the meat was ground finer.  Zenner's was WAY better!)

Anyway, at the time, we were sworn to secrecy.  This was a recipe NOT to be shared, even with family.  It was a sacred trust, ya know?

But now, so much has changed.  It's been over 30 years since the last batch was made at Zenners.   Kilian and Adela have been gone for more than 20 years.  Even the building that was Zenners is gone...maybe it wouldn't be such a bad thing to share the recipe now, huh?  A sort of Legacy gift from them to us.....especially if some of YOU make it, and think about your memories of Buckman and them...

Of course, you can make this in any quantity you like--as little as a pound or two--and make it into links or not; have it smoked, or not.  It's almost as good frozen in patties, unsmoked.  

As to the amount of garlic, I think you can never have too much.  We were usually limited by how long it took to peel and chop all that garlic, but these days, you can buy quart jars of it, ready to use.  

The mustard seed adds a little flavor, but I add it cuz it's such a treat to find one stuck in your teeth afterwards...lol  DO make a batch, ok?  

It tastes so much like HOME.

Added MUCH later: Here's a workaround if you can't get 

Morton's Sausage seasoning~

 

Morton Sausage Seasoning Knock-off: It can be difficult obtaining Morton's sausage seasoning at a reasonable price. If you can't find it or are unwilling to pay outrageous shipping fees, try this recipe: 4 tsp Kosher salt | 4 tsp ground or rubbed sage | 2 tsp fine ground black pepper | 2 tsp red pepper flakes | 1 or 2 tsp Coriander 

This recipe should flavor 4lbs of ground meat.

A sincere THANK YOU to Kilian and Adela Zenner

The Red Star Lines ZEELAND

This is the ship that Joseph and Franziska Janson arrived on, with their first five children--Wendelin, Sebastian, Sophia, Eugene and little Anton.  Evidently, ships leaving Europe and arriving in America were reported in the newspapers, and not just cuz Jansons were arriving ☺.
In these clippings Larry found, there are quite a few facts in shorthand, like that the ship was a steamer led by Captain Buschmann; it left Antwerp, Belgium on February 14th, 1883, passed the Delaware Breakwater on March first, and arrived in Philladelphia on March 3rd with "mdse and passengers" at the Peter Wright & Sons dock (Pier 54, foot of Prime Street).

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THIS ► is a most interesting list of  merchandise aboard the ZEELAND on that trip.  The word "do" means 'ditto', and probably 'dozen' too; I assume it was copied from an actual list, but look: window glass, extract of meat, silk ribbons, pencils, marbles, toys, china, pipes, clay, champagne, wire.  And, a warning, below, to any merchant foolish enough not to pick up what he'd ordered--within 24 hours of arrival--whew!





AND..."don't trust the crew"?  (Wow, how incredible to be able to figure out what international commerce was like in the 1880s). 

An historic ad, letting us know how often the ZEELAND sailed and how much it would cost to steam back across the Atlantic on that valiant ship:

first class cabins were $60 to $76...second class cabins were $55 and steerage was $26 (per person, I suppose.  From our research, fares TO Europe were higher because there was more money to be made in freight from America, rather than people).  

(BTW, John Janson, his wife Maria Sauer, and their eldest 5 kids arrived on the Zeeland this trip, too).