How did they tile a field?

Over the years, I've heard different farmers refer to tiling a field, which immediately gives the exact WRONG image.  Even when they said "drain tiling", whatever you imagine is wrong.

While you can definitely see (and imagine) "making hay" or "spreading manure", you can't tell a field is tiled by looking at it.
I asked Uncle Reinhard what a drain tile was, and he said it was a 8" or 12" clay or cement pipe that you buried under a field to help drain it. Hmm, isn't that a huge job?  Especially for his dad back then?

Well, yes, it was.  ◄ That illustration is from a horticulture encyclopedia from 1914.  The scoop tool looks tedious, at best. They must have had to dig with horses and a trencher sort of machine.

 The map and two photos below are from a 3 volume report called "A Historic Context Study of Minnesota Farms 1820-1960" that Larry found online.  Almost nothing about farming in those years is beneath consideration--man!--windbreaks, cultivation methods, barn design, livestock and recommended housing for
each animal, even smoke house and outhouse design and where mama should put her garden.
So we have the drain tile plan for a fairly large field. Whew, when they invested all that sweat and a thousand tiles in one field, no wonder it was hard to give up, huh?

(I imagine those two women brought sandwiches and coffee for mid-morning break for the crew ☺).















BTW, another thing I discovered about farming and how-things-happened:


When the settlers finally got the land cleared enough to have a larger herd of cows, and creameries were built to accommodate the extra milk, the farmers demanded better roads because they had to haul the cream to the creamery without it turning to butter...isn't that cool?

Mom's cousins Ida & Walburga

Katherine (Naber) Bahns 1881-1854

Grandma Margaret Naber (Janson) had a sister named Katherine.  According to the 1910 Buckman township census, Katherina and her husband William Bahns had 3 little girls by then--Rose, Regina and Helen.  They evidently lived east of town because a page later I found Andrew Suess.  

We know they married in Iowa in 1902, and that Rose and Regina were born there, but Helen was born in Minnesota.  The only two photos of Katherine we know we have are HERE and HERE, and we have none of William (1869-1932).

However, among mom's pictures, the girl with the accordian I think is Helen or Betty Bahns, both of whom I remember.  Larry found a reference to William Bahns leading a band in Pierz, so music was probably a part of their home life.   I can't tell which of mom's cousins she is, but I do know that's Helen in the next two pics.

Helen Bahns married Lawrence Cable around 1940.  That's them on the right....

and Helen behind the girl below.  No, I don't know who the others are...lol.

This little girl is the next generation: She's Katherine's grandaughter Shirley, born in 1941.  Her dad, John, was the youngest of Katherines kids, born in 1914.

I'd really like to hear from a Bahns descendant, or a Cable or Sarp or Hoheisel!

Da Choe und da Chon

When we were kids, mom said that two brothers came here from Germany and settled in Minnesota--Joseph and Johannes Janson (Choe & Chon).  One of the first things Larry and I discovered when we started looking was that they were not brothers, but cousins, and that actually, THREE Janson families came here that year.

In genealogy, you talk about the "common ancestor", or what person, how far back, connects all of us?  In this case, it's Georg Valentin Janson and his wife Eva Kathrina Reissfelder.  Georg was born in 1773, Eva in 1781, and they had ten children, two of whom were

JOHANNES (b 1803)

and

DANIEL (b 1816)

in Horrenberg, Heidelberg, Baden, Germany

Johannes Janson and his wife Maria Juliana Bayer had ten kids, one of whom was JOSEPH JANSON (1844), the immigrant who became our great grandfather.

Daniel Janson and his first wife, Regina Schweigert had at least three kids, one of whom was JOHN JANSON (1845), the immigrant who arrived with our great grandparents.

Daniel Janson and his second wife Maria Anna Helfinger, had at least one son,

DANIEL JANSON (1850), who arrived in the US a few months later 

and settled in Rice, Minnesota.

(OK, now that's clear.  Commit it to memory, cuz there'll be a quiz at the end of the blog).

Eugen Janson 1878-1940

 Over the years, I've often wondered about Eugene, the Janson brother who was two years older than (grandpa) Anton.  He died before WWII, nine years before I was born, in a completely different era of American history.

I wonder about him because he never married, but never seemed to make a home of his own (like Wendelin did).  Was Eugene shy or "slow"?  In that family, the two sisters who "weren't farm wife material" were sent to the convent, but what did you do with a less-able son?
 
All we have is what Anton wrote about Eugene in his book.  Anton was 23, "a hard worker, and led by lofty aspirations", and his dad was "a rheumatic invalid":

"Together with my ambitious and honest brother Eugene, I took over.  Out of sheer enjoyment of doing it, he and I rehabilitated the homestead during the subsequent ten years, at the same time helping everyone of our family of eight to a generous start in life.  The well-being of others was our primary aim.

On this opportunity I shall pause to honor the memory of my dearest brother Eugene; to give evidence of respect which I held for him.

Like father before him, Eugene was honest.  His sincerity, modesty and unassuming disposition; his unswerving loyalty to the Principals of Right and Justice has earned him the right to respectful commemoration by posterity.  Eugene was a strong as well as a beautiful character, faithful and brave, unafraid to lift his voice against tyranny and oppression, for which I always entertained the highest regard for him".

(I think grandpa's brothers and sisters would have debated his assessment...lol (italics, above).  Anton was 23 in 1903, and Eugene was 25.  The family had returned from trying to farm in Virginia.  Wendelin was in LA sending money home to help keep the farm going, and Sebastian had married in 1898 (I think he was in Wadena by 1903...?).  Francie married  John Brandl that year, but Rose didn't marry Joe Brandl until 1914.  We're not sure about when Sophie and Anna left Buckman for the Campbellsport convent, but it was probably about this time that they were both finally "taken care of")

Anyway, all of this is by way of explaining something Larry brought up last night--in the 1920 census, Eugene and his mother are living in town with Joe and Rose, and Eugene is working in the Brandl Garage.

Anon helped us figure out who most of the men were in the photo below (1925) except for the two on the far right.  

We think its really likely that one of them is Eugene Janson....whatdaya think?

(L to R) Bill Weisbrich, Joe Brausen,

 Hank Poster, Tony Sand, John Brandl 

and Andrew Suess.