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John William Janson 1891-1979

This morning, Larry asked if I recognized these folks: I didn't.  But it turns out they're related ('course they are, or I wouldn't post em! ☺)

Remember the two Janson families who arrived in Minnesota in the spring of 1883?  One was Joseph Janson, his wife Franziska, and their first five kids.  They were our great grands.
The other was Johannes Janson, his wife Maria Anna Sauer with their first five kids.  Joe and John were cousins, so the relationship is a generation farther removed, but they're still "our" Jansons, from Horrenburg, Rhine Nekkar Kreis, Baden, Germany.


John and Maria had 14 kids in all, but 3 of them died from a flu epidemic in November 1883.  The surviving 11 grew up just fine.  Some had families, some didn't, and one became a nun.  Yup, the man in the pic up there was one of the 11, also named John.  The photo was taken in 1955--John with his wife Anna Weires, and two of their daughters, Hildegard and Roseanna.  Pretty cool, huh?

That's John William Janson  as a kid (left)--maybe his First Communion or Confirmation?--and as a World War I soldier (right). He would have been 27 in 1918.  He married Anna Weires in April 1920.

The photo below was taken in May, 1956.  By December that year, both Mike and Joe had died, so it was a pretty precious get together for them.  

OK!  I think we have this photo properly identified now, thanks to Monica the great granddaughter of Theresa, lower left, and to Bob, Sophie's grandson.   THANKS, MONICA ☺ and THANKS, BOB!

 These two pics are pretty faded, but it looks like John and Anna enjoyed their lives and their family.
Working up from the youngest kid shown, we have Albert, Roseanna, Edward, Hildegard, and possibly Bernard in back, next to John.  We figure this was about 1944, since Roseanna looks about 10.  We don't know who the grandma or grandpa is in the back there.  Anyone know?

Ok, what else do we know about John and Anna?  This is their eldest son, John Herbert Janson.  I remember meeting him when I was a kid, at weddings and funerals, I suppose.  He was born in 1924, so he was 9 years younger than mom.  I remember him only as "old" and "nice".

And look--here they are on the cover of a reunion booklet from 2004.  Anna died in 1969, and John in 1979.  Looks like they had a huge wonderful family, huh?



Thanks to Carrie Stave, Bev Janson, Larry and Ancestry.com--! 
☺

To all my relatives:

Stille Nacht

A virtual sing-along with my siblings, at Christmas.

Musical Christmas presents for you

OK, this isn't Christmas music, but I can't think of any other legit 

reason to share it with you.

I just LOVE it, every time I watch it, and you will, too--trust me ☺:

Larry grew up in Hawaii.  Maybe 5 years ago, he sent four CDs by this man, Israel Kamakawiwo'ole.  I think I can sing along with 99% of them now...☺

This sweet infectious tune is one you can sing along with.  It's as tho Iz is singing a harmony part, just waiting for you to sing lead. 

YAY, Lord, of course

Let's hear some harmony!

Silver Bells

Ahh, this song is so fulla images of lights, cities and silver bells--how else to illustrate it, especially if you have Windows Movie Maker right there??
Still, I love it ☺

A family Fav

Let's Sing Christmas

  I picked videos in our voice ranges to post the rest of this week.  Sing your part, ok? 

 Mom's probably listening....  

Words

Mom was a champion speller in grade school (loosing a spelling bee to Cecilia Kapsner and resenting it for the rest of her long life) and a stickler for proper usage.  She believed you could fairly judge a person by the way they used words.  How hard was it to use 'saw' instead of 'seen'? To her, poor usage was willful stupidity.
So, I'm affected with a good share of it, too, but rarely run into it; I had to find my own peeve, and it turns out to be words-you-understand-on-the-page-but-can't-pronounce-or-use-even-tho-you-might-want-to.
For instance:

DEMUR (disagree or object)
DEMURE (modest, reserved)
EKES (...out a living) Great for crossword puzzles, tho.
SCION (...of a family)
TUMULT
DAIS
MELEE (a riot)
PUTATIVE
LEIGH (name)
LOUGH (pronounced lock)
PICARESQUE  (pik-uh-RESK)
adjective:
1. Of or relating to humorous or satiric fiction describing, in a series of episodes, the adventures of a roguish hero.
2. Of or relating to rogues or scoundrels.
PICTURESQUE  like a picture
LASSO
CHOATE is a school in Connecticut, right?  but then, what's
INCHOATE?

I think of Garrison's monologue about reading the word Egyptian and sounding it out in his head as E-gip-tee-un.  I truly get that, don't you?

Odds and Ends

 For no particular reason, here are various articles and ads from old magazines, and one pic from about 1966.  LOL...because I CAN.

How do these people connect?

Yup, a good way to find family stuff online is to periodically search for the names, even if you just did it a month ago.  Between Larry and me, the one who remembers to do this isn't me ☺.


These two obits were found in the Brainerd Dispatch, Nick Meyer's on October 23, 1969 and Marguerite Faust in the July 20th, 1971 edition.  So, why are they here?


Well, they were brother and sister, children of Math Meyer and Catherine Brausen.  Two of their sisters married Jansons--Leonard and Alfred--sons of John Janson who arrived in America with our Great grand, Joseph Janson.   See?

The aforementioned Alfred was the grandfather of Carrie, who's contributed facts and photos to the blog.


It's just cool to make these connections, I think.

Joseph Janson's American Citizenship Document

Thanks to Tom Janson for this!

Remember this singer?

Just for fun ☺!

Have YOU worried about this, too? ☺

Evidently the homesteader who sold his claim to Joseph JANSON was named J. JOHNSON.  This map is the 1907 plat of Buckman township, and the land is still labeled with that name. There was a time in the 1920s when the farm was owned/labeled "J. Brandl", but otherwise, 'Johnson' seemed to persist. 
I've wondered alot whether ownership actually was that iffy. Grandpa Janson mentioned major ups and downs during his own tenure--was he really that close to loosing it, so often? 

Well, not necessarily.  Here's the well restored 1895 Minnesota census, enumerated by someone who didn't seem to care about correctly spelled names.  The JANSON family is spelled Johnson, see?  Hm, did Joseph say it that way?  If Joe and John were pronounced CHOE and CHON, then you'd think Janson would be pronounced CHANT-SON...?  
However, in those years, if the census taker came around when you weren't handy, a neighbor could give the info, and often did, I think.  You were accounted for, even if it was wrong.

It's just something to keep in mind when we look at plat maps, ya know?

Leaving Antwerp in February, 1883

Here's the family story about how Josef and Johannes Janson and their families left Europe:
Mom said they packed up and left by night, secretly loading their stuff and kids into rowboats on the river.  I always assumed "the river" was the Rhine, like we'd mean the Mississippi, but looking at the map of that area, there's a tributary to the Rhine right from Dielheim.  Wow--was that river really deep and wide enough to float get-away boats?
Anyway, the Rhine seems to meander all over, but eventually leads to the ports in Rotterdam and Antwerp in a whole different country, Holland.  Mom said they were "safe from pursuit" there, and could leave on the next ship out.  That ship turned out to be the Zeeland, a Red Star Line ship (last post, right!)

So this week, Larry found a pdf containing places in Belgium, the US, and Holland where you can write to find info about ancestors who left on Red Star ships. However, what really interested us were the photos sprinkled thru the brochure: 

The Red Star Line building, evidently at the port in Antwerp.

Waiting to go.
Judging by the women's clothing, this was a good 40 years
after  the Jansons left, but possibly from the same building?

 "Everything for passengers is done free of charge in this building"
says the sign (in 5 languages).  These were luggage disinfecting machines...
but I think they were not even thought of when our folks left.
These pics seem to be from well after 1900.

The most interesting photo, I think, is this pic showing passengers filing on board.
The words under the pic are the only explanation given, 
but the walkway in the foreground vs. the line of people farther down the quay 
speaks volumes.
 
And, damn, that's one SMALL ship.

The ship they rode in on...

(A title stolen directly from Larry☺ who also found this picture--surprise!)


Our Jansons came here on a ship called the ZEELAND.  It was a Belgium ship when they sailed, but here it says Norway.  lol...what did I miss?
Anyway, Larry's been trying to find an image of it for ages, and finally succeeded.  Just LOOK how small that deck is--I believe there were over 800 passengers on board.  Whew.

(Right, any nationality could sail on any ship as long as you had the cash, huh?)

A report card from 1915-1916

A legend in our family is the story about mom going to High School in Buckman.  She said the nuns only taught freshman and sophomore classes, and only in alternate years, so she was a sophomore first and a freshman second.  That would have been 1931-32 and 1932-33. (Mom finished HS in St Cloud, at Cathedral, while she worked for board and room with a local family).


Irene Janson, mom's cousin three-times-removed, attended St Michaels Parochial School (1st year) in 1915-16 when she was 14, about the year this photo was taken...

Sr Waltrudis seems to have been a tough marker--but then, just look at the list of subjects taught, beside the fact that report cards came out monthly--whew.

I've left these two scans large so you can examine them better when you click the pic.  Oh, and don't miss the didactic missive "TO PARENTS".  Evidently the nuns knew best how to raise good Catholic kids.

The other Janson family in Buckman

If you're from Buckman and remember when my ex-husband and I owned Zenner's Store, you'll recall that Irene and Robert Janson helped out there quite a bit.  Their dad was "the other" Joseph Janson, the blacksmith, and their mom was Mary Poster.  Irene and Robert had a brother, Otto, a cashier at the bank in town, who married Philomine Theis.  (That's all I know about Otto, except that he and Philomine lived in Minneapolis in 1965, according to her sister's obituary).

Anyway, back to Zenner's store.  I left the marriage, the store and Buckman in June of 1974, but Andre' stayed on with even more help from Robert and Irene.  

Robert died in 1978, and when Andre finally closed the store, he was the nearest thing to family Irene had.  As she got older, Andre' and his wife Sue graciously provided a home for her with them.

When she died in October 1993 she was buried next to Robert in St Michaels Cemetery in Buckman.  Her box of photos and mementos has been sitting in a closet of Andre's house ever since, waiting for someone who wanted them. 

Now, 18 years later, I realized they could be here, on the blog.  Andre' brought them along on a trip to St Cloud, and here they are--too many for one post, but let's start with her family of origin, ok?

If you know this part, just skip it... ☺

Two cousins came to America with their families in 1883.  They were Joseph Janson and Johannes Janson.  (Joseph was my great grandfather).

Johannes was Irene's grandfather.  His son Joseph was Irene's dad, or "Joe Janson, the blacksmith" in Buckman.  Here he is on the left, back row.

The Johannes and Mary (Sauer) Janson family in about 1895 before their family was complete.

Joseph Janson and Mary Poster

August, 1901

Below, the family on a summer day in about 1917:  Robert, Irene and Otto with their mom Mary and dad Joe.  The kneeling woman might have been Gramma Janson. or Gramma Poster?

It's all in the perspective

Over the past four years, Larry and I have discussed Nabers quite a bit, in particular my grandmother's mother, Elizabeth.
  (Grandma's father, Gerhard Naber, married his second Elizabeth in 1871.  They had 5 more kids together: Elizabeth, John, Catherine, Margaret, and Gerhard.  My grandmother was Margaret).  
  We've wondered why Elizabeth and her grown kids left Petersburg, Iowa and moved to Buckman, Minnesota, of all places.  Ok, daughter Catherine was living in Pierz with her husband and kids.  Did they move to be near her?
  In my mind, it was a mother who moved to another state and whose unmarried kids came along.  But 'society' saw it differently, evidently.  Here's a blurb from the Buckman News of March 4th, 1910:

John Naber, his two sisters and mother, who are now the proprietors of the A.L. Kiernan farm arrived here from Iowa on Saturday with their stock and household goods, and will make their future home here.

Wow.  Ok, we know Elizabeth's husband Gerhard died in 1891, so she'd been a widow for almost 20 years by 1910.  John was 37, his sisters were 38 and 28, but his mom was only 64 when they arrived in Minnesota...hardly over the hill.
  But wait--John's brother Gerhard wasn't listed with the family there.  No wonder--he'd married Julia Grittner in 1909.  Her family was from Buckman, so the Nabers had earlier associations with Morrison County...it's a still unfolding story!
(Thanks to Horst's book (see the sidebar) for including this blurb).

Russian Squirrels

For your edification regarding wildlife and your pondering on how-the-hell-they-knew-that, here's a blurb from a 1908 Minneapolis newspaper:

One Hundred thirty-five years ago, yesterday

 From the Minneapolis Tribune, September 17, 1876.  Amazing that we weren't aware that CB Buckman had an amputation  or wore a wooden leg.  Wow.  For context, this incident happened 10 years before the devastating tornado that swept thru Sauk Rapids, Rice, Buckman and Pierz in 1886.  Buckman wasn't a town then, either, not until 1903, and the Janson families wouldn't arrive for another seven years.                                         


CRUEL ACCIDENT
________________
 A Well Known Minnesota Farmer Mangled by a Threshing Machine--His Condition Critical.
_______________
Pioneer Press and Tribune
St Cloud, Sept. 14--Yesterday morning, about 9 o'clock, an accident happened at Rich Prairie, in Morrison county, by which Mr. C.B.Buckman, one of the best known and highly respected citizens of northern Minnesota may loose his life.  Mr Buckman was engaged at work around a threshing machine at his place, Rich Prairie, and had occasion to go upon the machine while in motion.  While passing over the cylinder his left foot was caught in the remorseless teeth, and literally torn to fragments.  A messenger was immediately sent to Little Falls, distant eighteen  miles, who there telegraphed to Dr. McDonald, at St Cloud.  The doctor made all haste, but during the long interval between the accident and the arrival of the doctor, Mr Buckman suffered terribly and bled profusely.  Dr McDonald amputated the mangled member a short distance below the knee, and reports that when he left him, his patient was comparatively comfortable, although in a critical condition.  
Mr Buckman is well known not only in northern Minnesota, but in St Paul and Minneapolis as well.

More about the school problem...

This was an article in the Minneapolis Morning Tribune in December 1913.  It documents a ruling by the state  high school board re: "graded schools in St Joseph, Melrose and Richmond in Stearns county, and in Pierz, in Morrison county".  I'd editorialize a bit, but I have to go to work....☺

Religious Teaching Barred from Schools
____________
State High School Board Refuses Aid to those Giving Sectarian Instructions.
______________
No Member of a Religious Order to be Permitted to Teach.
__________
Action Follows Investigation into Merger of Public and Parochial Schools.
________________
Religious instructions in any public school during the usual session hours, or the hours immediately before or after, instruction from "any book of a sectarian character" during such time, the presence in a school building of any emblem having a purely religious significance and the wearing of the garb of any particular religious organization--all are forbidden by a recent resolution of the state high school board which was made public yesterday.
The board's action results from an investigation made a year ago by its inspectors of high and graded schools respecting the employment of teachers in any high school or graded school where such employment is restricted to a particular order or sect.
George B. Aiton, high school inspector, reported that no state high school was conducted in such a way as to be open to charges of being a parochial school. S. A. Challman, then inspector of graded schools, reported on the conduct of the graded schools in St Joseph, Melrose, and Richmond in Stearns county, and in Pierz, in Morrison county.
Order Recieves Salaries.
Mr. Challman reported that "in each of these schools teachers are employed who are members of the Benedictine order; that some part of the school day has been devoted to religious instruction, given either by the teachers or by some other persons not connected with the public schools; that in each of the schools there were kept religious emblems and symbols; that the teachers did not recieve individual salaries but at the end of the month a check or warrant was issued for the full amount of their contract services and made payable to the Sister Superior."
The board thereupon asked the attorney general for an opinion as to whether schools of the character names were entitled legally to recieve the state aid accorded high and graded schools.  The attorney general replied that the law, judicial decisions and his own opinion, together with the facts ascertained regarding the schools mentioned, raised serious doubts as to the authority of the high school board to continue granting state aid to these or similar schools.
In the minds of the members of the high school board, the final determination of the merits of these and like cases should be left to the state supreme court, so the regulations adopted by the board to govern in the situation were made effective only beginning August 1, 1914.  It is stated at the office of C. G. Schultz, state superintendant of education, that state aid for the schools named in Mr. Challman's report has not been withheld for 1912-1913 and will not be for the current year ending July 31, 1914.
New Rules for Schools.
The regulations adopted, applying to all schools under the supervision of the high school board for the earniing of state aid, are as follows:
1.  The school board must have exclusive control over buildings used permanently for public school.
2.  In buildings used during emergencies the school board must have exclusive control over rooms used for schools purposes during hours of school.
3.  The use of any school room for religious instruction during the usual hours a public school is in session or the hours immediately preceeding or following, either by public school teachers or by any other person, is prohibited.
4.  No public school teacher, while employed as such, shall give instructions from any book of a sectarian character, or in any subject not ordinarily embraced in a public school curriculum, during the usual school hours of any day when the public school is in session or during the hours immediately preceeding or following the same.
5.  The public school, its pupils, teachers, property or organization shall not be used in the interests of any church or religious order.
6.  No emblem, symbol or device which has a purely religious significance shall be permitted in any building used as a public school.
No Sister May Teach.
7.  The employment of persons who have taken some ecclesiastical vow or obligation which prevents them from personally recieving and using funds paid for their services as teachers, and causes them in fact to turn over such funds to some church or ecclesiastical superior is deemed to be a conversion of public funds in violation of the constitutional prohibition as expressed in section 16, article 1 of the constitution of Minnesota, and is prohibited.
8.  No teacher shall be permitted to be attired in the uniform or garb of any particular organization or order during the time such person is engaged in the work of teacher in the public schools of the state.
The state high school board consists of R.E.Denfeld, superintendant of schools, Duluth, president; C.G.Schultz, secretary; George E Vincent, president of the university; Eli Torrance, president of the norman school board, and George F. Howard, university school of agriculture.
Public and Parochial Schools Merged.
It is understood that the school situations in the towns that have occasioned the action of the board have arisen through the attempted solutions of the parochial-public school problem by the merging of the two kinds of school where they formerly existed separately, the teachers in the parochial school being continued in some or all of the departments of the merges institutions, but without an abandoning of their distinctive garb or religious instruction.

Naber bits and pieces

Sometimes you just need to wonder about stuff--like, how come the Nabers are such a cipher in our family lore?  I think mom knew who was who and how they connected, but we didn't think to ask, I suppose.  And then, mom's grandma  pretended that she couldn't understand English, so perhaps she flew under the local radar back then.  Maybe they were just quiet people?  Or, more likely, when Gerhard's second wife* left Iowa, she and her kids were lost to the relatives there.  Settling in Buckman c. 1900 must have been tough, since there were no relatives to rely on for social intros.  Daughter Catherine was the only Minnesota connection, but she lived with her family north of  Pierz, at least 15 miles from the Naber farm.
Anyway, it only re-occurred to me tonight that single persons mean 'no offspring', so their genealogy stops dead when they do (sorry ☺).  Of the kids that moved to Buckman with Elizabeth (Richels) Naber*, two, Elizabeth and John, died with no issue.  Catherine & Wm. Bahns had kids, and Gerhard & Julia (Grittner) did, too.  Margaret married Anton Janson and luckily became my grandma, but Elizabeth and John and their half sister (a nun) are only grave markers and obits now.  By the time we came along, only grandma's brother Gerhard was still living.  He lived in Crow Wing county until 1962.  Wonder why we never connected.  Or did we--and I just don't remember?

Elizabeth Naber 1873-1910

Miss Nabor of Buckman Dead

After Several Years of Suffering with Chronic Bright's Disease–Buried in Buckman Monday

Miss Elizabeth Nabor, of Buckman, died Friday morning at four o'clock, of Brights' disease, at the age of 38 years. She had been ailing for several years, but was able to be about and attend to household duties until Monday last week, when her condition became more serious. 

The alarming symptoms increased until Friday morning, when, well prepared with the last sacraments, she passed away.

Miss Nabor was born in Petersburg, Iowa, January sixteenth, eighteen hundred and seventy-three. She leaves a mother, two brothers, John and Gerhard, two sisters Katherine and Margareth, two step-brothers, Herman and Henry, and two step-sisters Mary now Mrs. John Schlichte, 

and Sister Raphael O.S.F.

The funeral services were held in the St. Michael's church in Buckman and she was laid to rest in St. Michael's cemetery.

Pierz Journal, April 20, 1911

We have John's grave marker at St Michael's in Buckman, but no obit or even a funeral card.  He was born in 1874 and died in 1922, at 48.  What kind of life did he or his sister have?  Who were they?  

I'd like to know someday.

So, here's an article about a wedding from the 30 April 1899 issue of the Dubuque Herald.  The bride's family was probably related, and most likely Elizabeth and her children attended:

Dubuque County News.

____________

Notable wedding at New Vienna Tuesday morning.

____________

Cascade ___ Ballists have organized for the season--Improvements being made by the Great Western at Dyersville--Other news of interest to Dubuque County residents.

____________

____________

A notable morning wedding took place in St Boniface Church, New Vienna, Tuesday morning April 25 at 9 o'clock.  It was that of Barney Vaske and Miss Mary Naber, both prominent young people of that place.  The ceremony was performed by Rev Father Pape (?) in the presence of a large assemblage of relatives and friends.  After the ceremony the newly married pair, in company with the invited guests, repaired to the home of the groom's mother, one and one-half miles west of New Vienna, where a grand reception was held.  The day was pleasantly spent and much amusement was furnished those present.  The bride is a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Frank Naber, prominent people of New Vienna, and is a young lady who possesses many noble traits of character.  She has been a dressmaker in her home town for many years and her friends are many.  The groom is a prosperous young farmer who has made his home with his mother for many years.

And just so these pieces are together, here's grandma's sister's obit:

Services Wednesday For Mrs. Bahns

(January, 1954)

Funeral services were held at St. Joseph's church, Pierz, at 10 o'clock Wednesday morning for Mrs. Katherine Bahns, who passed away at St. Gabriel's hosptial at 12:20 a.m., Monday, January 18th. She had been ill for one year and after a stroke, was admitted to the hospital where she died several hours later. 

Pallbearers at the rites were Ben Nagel, Alfred Gohl, Joe Gohl, Werner Schamal, Carl Virnig, and Ed Schwinghammer. Interment was made in the Pierz cemetery.

Honorary pallbearers were Mrs. Joe Gohl, Mrs. Ben Nagel, Mrs. Henry Kobilka, Mrs. Werner Schamal, Mrs. Gordon Anderson, and Mrs. Ed Schwinghammer.

Katherine Naber was born at Petersburg, Iowa February 8, 1881 and married William Bahns 51 years ago. They resided on the present Bahns farm northwest of Pierz about 40 years, which is now being operated by her sons, John Bahns. Mr. Bahns passed away in 1932.

Surviving are six children, Mrs. Sigmund Syzyeblewski (Rose), Toledo, Ohio; Mrs. Leonard Hoheisel (Regina) and John, Pierz; Mrs. Stanley Sarp (Alvina) and Mrs. Lawrence Cable (Helen), Minneapolis; and Mrs. Bernard Carlson (Angeline), Little Falls.

There are nineteen grandchildren and two great grandchildren. One brother, Gerhard Naber, also survives.

Ok, these are puzzle pieces that'll fall together someday.  We're just laying them on the table with the colored side up.  ☺

"Buckman, its Pioneer History, its Cultural Legacy"

Remember all the references to "Anon" here on Janson and over on Hesch History?  Well, he's about to become a published author, so that'll be the end of his online anonymity.  Horst Hanneken's been working on a book about Buckman for the last 18 months or so (based on a lifetime there). The book contains 75-100 old photos, some in color.  It documents the homes and businesses in town since the very beginning...who built them, who bought them later, and what became of them.  He's hoping the book will be ready by September 18th (St Michael's Church Bazaar this year). 

His parents, Anna and Gus Hanneken, lived in the third house west of the Hall after they emigrated from Germany with their first child, Horst, in 1950.  That kid grew up to teach German in Pierz and to write "Buckman, its Pioneer History, its Cultural Legacy" for us to discover.  I can hardly wait! 

 When Horst figures out how he wants to merchandise it, I'll add that here, but in the meantime, if you want a copy, email me and I'll forward it to him, ok?  He figures it'll be about $40.00, plus postage.  (marlysky at gmail dot com)  BTW, Horst is way more concerned with documented facts than Larry and I are.  I'm pretty sure he doesn't guess hardly at all in the book ☺

YAY, Horst!!

Probably why Daniel couldn't leave Horrenberg....

Aw'right!--we Buckmanish descendants come thru for each other again!  This time, I sent copies of Daniel's file (denying his family permission to emigrate to America in 1853) to Michael Hortsch, who lives and teaches in Michigan....actually, not too far from Jackson ☺. The Hortschs are related more thru the Hesch/Otremba side of the family, but I doubt his graciousness comes from them.  Michael was educated in Germany and speaks fluent German.  No doubt his attempts at reading Suetterlin from 158 years ago would be rough, but WAY better than Larrys or mine.
Of all times to ask a college prof/scientist for a favor, early September is probably one of the least-well-thought-out.  But being all excited about discovering Daniel's story from Stephen and Carrie, I assume it'll be just as interesting to everybody else.  Honest.  And Michael didn't  run away screaming, so....
Here's what he thought:

From what I understand from the pages I looked at, the major concern that local administration is expressing is the financial support the Janson family is lacking for their travels to America.  One document is a statement of a Peter Körner, who came visiting from America and he promises to pay for the food the family would need while traveling.  However, the local council doubts even that his support is sufficient as they state that they don't know whether Peter Körner has the money to keep his promise.  On some other pages are excerpts from the local church books about the Janson family. I am not sure how helpful my transcripts are as I was unable to decipher everything and I am unable to read many words.  I did not look at all the material and did not see a final verdict or justification of the denial to emigrate.

 I suspect Daniel owed money in town as well, since he'd just lost his fight with the municipality of Horrenberg over where to build the city hall.  It must have been galling to stay there, too.  
ADDED LATER:
Stephen wrote (March 2012) with questions--


The last Janson to own the Wilden Mann was Joseph (who was 16 years older than Daniel), and who owned it up to 1847.  Joseph was able to emigrate to the USA in 1853.  If he owned the inn and was able to emigrate, how does this supposedly hold back Daniel and his family?  Daniel never owned the inn, he may have worked there as a result of his brother owning the inn, but it lists his occupation in the family book as a Waldhuter, which suggests that he was a maker of hats...  
Hmm...a waldhuter was something to do with the forest (wald) but google thinks "huter" means "Moravian".  To be continued, probably! ☺

Anyway, here's what Michael found, in German, followed by the Google translation of it.

  We are SO indebted to Michael!

Page 7
(This page is an excerpt of the catholic church book)
Auszug
aus dem k?derbuch der Gebornenen und Getauften
der katholischen Pfarrgemeinde besteingen
Page 8
Auszüge
Aus den Pfarrbüchern der Pfarrei
Balzfeld
Daniel Janson Bürger und ?? zu Horrenberg ist
am 28ten Januar 1816 geboren und hat sich mit erster Ehe-
frau Regina Schweigert (gest. 2 Dez 1846) gezeugt:
a  Magdalena, geboren den 11 März 1844
b  Johannes, geboren den 19 Sept. 1845
mit zweiter Ehefrau Maria Anna Helfniger von
Oestringen (Östringen) gezeugt:
c  Josef, geboren den 26 Juli 1849
d Daniel, geboren den März 1850
e  Valentin, geboren den 7 August 1851
f  Christina, geboren den 11 Oktober 1852
Balzfeld, den 9 Februar 1853
Gr. Kath Pfarramt
Page 9
Grossherzogliches Bezirks Amt
Herrenberg am 18ten Februar 1853
Page 10
Grossherzogliches Bezirks Amt
Herrenberg den 28ten Februar 1853
Page 17
Geschehen ?? dem 24 ?? 1853
Verehrlicher Oberamtliche Verfügung vom 16? 
d.. M. Nr. 5443 zufolge, hat der Gemeinderath den
Peter Kürner welcher vor einigen Wochen aus
Amerika hierher gekommen ist auf das Rathhaus
Eingeladen, derselbe ist heute erschienen,… man
Hat ?? demselben das ?? gekommen…
Schreiben des Grossherzöglichen Bezirksamt Wies=
loch demselbigen vergelassen, und dessen Erklass?-
ung hierauf undergeschrieben, und ?? von
demselbigen unterzeichnen lassen wie folgt..
“derselbige erklärt sich, dass er für die ??
Jansen Eheleute samt 6 Kindern, nur die Leb=
ensmittel bei der Überfahrt ?? nach Am=
merika bestreiten wolle, allse übrigen
Kosten für die Überfahrt muß Daniel Jan=
Page 18
sen selbst für sich und seine Familie be=
streiten für ???
habe er keine Mittel und habe es ?? seinem
??? nicht ?? ?? alle zu
zahlen. ??? und als ?? angegebenen
??? unterzeichnet
Peter Körner
Der ??? Gemeinderath hat hiermit
Zu bemerrken, dass nicht einmal er ??
?? nur Peter Kürner so viel Mittel besitze
um die hier versprochenen Lebensmittel für
fragliche Familie bestreiten zu können, hier
besitzt er keine Mittel, und ob er zu ??
?? so viel BaarGeld mitgebracht 
und ?? besitzt ist ihnen nicht
bekannt, ??? hat derselbe keins
?? und ?? wurden zur ge=
fällig ?? Verfügung ??
Oestringen den 24 Febr 1853
Gemeinderath
(5 signatures, probably the members of the Gemeinderat)

Page 8

Excerpts

From the parish books of the parish

Balzfeld

Daniel Janson and citizens? is Horrenberg

Born on 28th January 1816 and has been with first-marriage

Schweigert wife Regina (d. December 2, 1846) begat:

a Magdalena, born the March 11, 1844

b born John, 19 Sept. 1845

with second wife Maria Anna of Helfniger

Oestringen (Östringen) begat:

c Joseph, born in the July 26, 1849

d Daniel, born on March 1850

e Valentin, born on 7 August 1851

f Christina, born in the October 11, 1852

Balzfeld, the February 9, 1853

Gr. Catholic rectory

Page 9

Great Duke's district office

Mr. Berg on the 18th February 1853

Page 10

Great Duke's district office

Herrenberg the 28th February 1853

Page 17

Happen? the 24? 1853

Official Upper honorable order of 16?

d.. M. No. 5443 According to the municipal council has the

Peter Kürner from which a few weeks ago

America has come here at the Council House

Invited, the same is released today, one ...

Has? the same? come ...

Letter from the district office Grossherzöglichen meadow =

vergelassen same hole, and its top notch? -

UNG under written thereon, and? of

have the same sign as follows ..

"SAME explained that he for?

Jansen married people, including six children, only the Leb =

ensmittel at the crossing? by Am =

would deny Merika, alls other

Cost for the trip must Daniel Jan =

Page 18

sen for himself and his family be =

arguing for?

He did not have any means and it? his

? not? ? to all

. pay ? and when? given

? signed

Peter Körner

The? Common Council has hereby

To bemerrken that not even he?

? Peter Kürner only possess so many means

here the promised food for

Family dispute in question can be here

he has no funds, and that he?

? baar brought so much money

and? owns them is not

known? none has the same

? and? were to ge =

due? Available?

Oestringen the 24 Feb 1853

Common Council

(5 signatures, probably the members of the council)

Thank you, Michael, for all your help ☺