This branch of the Austrian Hesch family is descended from Johann Hesch and his wife Marya (Schlinz) Hesch, who came to America from Oberschlagles, Bohemia with three sons: Paul, Mathias, and Anton. +++Johann & Marya settled in Buffalo County, Wisconsin but moved to Pierz, Mn in about 1885. .+++Mathias settled in Waumandee, Wisconsin and moved to Pierz in 1911. +++Anton never married but farmed with his dad in Agram Township, where he died in 1911.+++And Paul, my great grandfather, settled five miles away, in Buckman, Minnesota. He died there in 1900.

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Tuesday, July 29, 2014

Scofflaws of 1900


We're familiar with German tempers, right?   We grew up with the German sense of propriety and order, righteousness and stubbornness.  We even find those dubious qualities in (gasp) ourselves sometimes, and then we deny em.  But no, those 'qualities' came to us legally.  It's only accidental that Larry found accounts of the hotheads below; whew, a Hesch wasn't involved.

 Were there widespread incidents in 1900 that pissed off the priest?  Did women come to mass hatless?  Were people  genuflecting without a thump of the knee?  In any event, I can't believe that many people came to mass directly from the field, as Theo Stumpf did here.  Besides, working on Sunday was a worse sin.  Luckily, there was a defender of the faith there in St Josephs, ready and willing to toss him out on his ear.  I've never heard of a Church Policeman before.  It must have been a thankless job, and pretty unpopular too. No wonder it didn't last. Besides, Joe Bollig was only 31 in 1900--who'd listened to a youngster like that?
Here's a little tiff between neighbors Mary Kuder and Frank Otremba 
from July 27, 1900.  
Was 1900 a particularly BAD year?



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