Cedarburg--One spring day in 1846 a young blacksmith named Heindrich Krohn strolled up Cedar Creek in search of a home. At the site of the present Krohn homestead, he came upon a small clearing, perhaps one-half acre in size. Sitting on a stump in the center of the clearing, resting from his labors with the axe and brush-hook was the owner of the land. Heindrich stopped to rest and talk, and soon he had agreed to purchase an 80-acre tract.

In this way began the stay of the Krohn's in our community.

Heindrich Krohn was born in Hannover, Germany. As a young man he decided to be a blacksmith. After serving his apprenticeship, he became a journeyman and traveled through the towns and provinces practicing his trade.

In 1836, Heindrich came to the United States and spent 10 years practicing his trade in New York. In 1844 Heindrich became a naturalizeed citizen of the United States. In 1846 he decided to go west and came to Milwaukee. There he was advised that, if he planned to continue west, to stay close to water, as many stories of westward travelers dying of thirst had drifted back to Milwaukee. Heindrich following this advice, walked along the Milwaukee River to the junction with Cedar Creek. He continued along Cedar Creek until he stopped at the clearing where he and his descendants were to live for the next 102 years.

When he had built a log cabin, Heindrich had his wife come to join him. He set up a blacksmith shop, and in his spare time continued the clearing of his 80 acres. As the years rolled by, four sturdy sons came to assit him. Wilhelm, Engelbert, Fred and Henry. The sturdy pioneer, Heindrich, died in 1891 and was buried in the old Cedarburg cemetery.

When his father died, son Engelbert took over the opertion of the farm. Engelbert was married in 1881 to Marie Lueders by a Rev. Strassburger in the Immanuel Lutheran church in Cedarburg.

The children of this union are, from oldest to youngest, Henry, a doctor, now deceased; Ethel, now Mrs. Wilhelm Mintzlaff of Cedarburg; Grover, now operator of a frozen food plant in Russelville, Arkansas; Emma, now Mrs. Paul Bramer of Milwaukee; Walter, a machinist in Milwaukee; Louisa, now Mrs. Geo. Anschuetz of Cedarburg; Alma, deceased; Marie, now Mrs. Harvey Groth of the town of Cedarburg; Minnie, now Mrs. Herman Kuells of Cedarburg; Erna, at home; John, present proprietor of the Krohn farm; Edna, a teacher in Waukesha county, and Ottilia, at home.

Engelbert Krohn and his wife Marie are now both buried in Hamilton cemetery south of Cedarburg. Son John and daughters Erna and Ottilia operate the Krohn farm.

In the year 1839 Peter Wilde, his wife and three grown sons came to the United States from Pomerania in what is now Germany. The Lutheran Wildes left Europe because of intolerance toward their faith and sought the religious freedom of the United States.

The trip to the United States by sailing vessel took about six weeks. During that six-week period began the romance of Gottlieb Wilde, one of the sons of Peter, and Wilhelmina Milbrath, a young lady aboard the same vessel.

When the ocean voyage was finished, Peter Wilde and his wife and sons, Joachem and Michael, came to Wisconsin to what was then Washington county. Gottlieb, perhaps more ambitious and serious since meeting Wilhelmina Milbrath aboard ship, stayed in New York to work on the Erie canal. His object was to save $50 so he could buy some land.

Upon his arrival in Wisconsin, the two sons of Peter Wilde each took out a 40-acre tract of land. Peter did not take out land in his own name, but lived with his sons.

In 1842, Gottlieb gave up his work on the Erie canal and came to Wisconsin. He married Wilhelmina Milbrath and purchased the 40-acre tract of land that his brother, Joachem, had purchased three years before.

Seven sons and three daughters were born to Gottlieb and Wilhelmina. As his family grew, Gottlieb increased his land holdings. In 1865 he added 40 acres and a few years later another 20 acres. Gottlieb Wilde died in 1884 at the age of 89 years.

In 1872, son William bought his father's farm and continued its operation. He married Magdelene Wille in 1878, and to them were born five sons and four daughters. The sons and daughters are: Reinhold, now living in Milwaukee; Emil, deceased; Alma, who became Mrs. Gottlieb Kaiser and lives in Sheboygan; Theodore, now proprietor of the Wilde homestead; Selma, now Mrs. Ed Huth, living in West Allis; Louisa, now Mrs. Richard Boeder, living at Brillion; Hattie, now Mrs. Carl Balsinger; Herbert, a mail carrier in Milwaukee; and Rudolph, living near Cedarburg.

William Wilde died in 1934 at the age of 88. The present owner of the Wilde farm, Theodore, married Martha Boeder in 1916 at Wayside, Brown county. They have eight sons and daugthers. Armin and Florence and the twins, Martha and Marion, live at home. Erna is Mrs. Elmer Bert of Thiensville; Ethel is Mrs. Clarence Loppnow of West Bend; Melvin is now employed in Green Bay; and Ilma is now Mrs. John Sitkiewitz and lives in Thiensville.

Son Melvin served three years in the U.S. Army. It is rather interesting that in the course of his duty, he was sent to Europe and fought in southern Germany. He just missed returning to the birthplace of his great-great-grandfather, Peter, in Pomerania.

Theodore Wilde in 1925 sold a half interest in the Wilde homestead to his brother, Rudolph, and in 1931, sold out completely. In 1940, Theodore re-purchased the farm when Rudolph's health became poor.

The Wilde farm, 109 years in the family, is the oldest so far featured in the Ozaukee Press Century Farm series. At the present time, it is a neat, well-kept farm with 50 head of fine Guernsey cattle.

Port--Johannes Maechtle and his wife Catherina and son John came to the United States in 1845 from the province of Pomerania in what is now Germany. Johannes and his family did not come directly to Wisconsin, but went to Cleveland, Ohio, where Johannes worked as a shipping clerk for 50¢ a day. When the depression of the later forties came along, Johannes and his family came westward to Wisconsin by boat on the great lakes. At that time there was no harbor in Port Washington, so they landed at Sheboygan and hired a team of horses and lumber wagon to carry their possessions to Port Washington.

The Maechtles selected an 80 acre tract of land, and on February 10, 1848 Johannes received a patent from James K. Polk, president of the United States, "to have and to hold the same, together with all the rights, privileges, immunities and appurtenances. . . "

The early years of the Maechtles in Wisconsin were difficult. They arrived here with two very young sons born in Cleveland; they had very little money, practically no farming tools, little household furnishings. They lived in a crude log cabin. Johannes often worked for neighbors and was paid for his labors with provisions. Catherina picked wild raspberries in season, carried them to Port Washington and sold them to the townspeople. The struggle of the first years was to earn and save enough money to buy tools, oxen and a cow. But toll and thrift and time gradually eased their circumstances. The family grew in size and prospered.

When they became grown, two sons, Johan and Gottlieb, left home and continued westward - Johan settled in Minnesota, Gottlieb in Dakota. The other sons and daughters stayed in Wisconsin. Johannes Maechtle died in 1875. His son, Heinrich, took over the operation of the homestead.

Heinrich married Carolina Pape and to them were born five sons and three daughters. They are: Ed, a retired farmer now living in Milwaukee; John, also a retired farmer, now living in Port Washington; Frank, a farmer in Ozaukee county; Emma (Mrs. Charles Liebenstein) now residing on an Ozaukee county farm; Dora (Mrs. E. H. Runkel) living in Port Washington; Walter, the present proprietor of the Maechtle homestead; Monroe, a farmer in Ozaukee county; and Esther, deceased.

Walter met Lenora Reinke of Manitowoc county while visiting an aunt there. They were married in December of 1913 and in March of 1917 purchased the Maechtle homestead. He has continued operation ever since then.

To Walter and Lenora were born a daughter, Dorothy, and two sons, Elroy and Lester. Dorothy is Mrs. Walter Naber of Mayville, Wisconsin. Elroy and his wife (the former Virgina Dickmann of Saukville) and their son Gary Lee, live upstairs in the Maechtle home; Lester is a senior at Port high school and lives at home.

Son Elroy served in the army during the last war. He saw overseas service with the third armored division and participated in the Normandy invasion with that spearhead division. In all, Elroy took part in 5 major campaigns and was honorably discharged from the army in October of 1945. He now assists his father in the management and operation of the Maechtle farm.

It was a pleasant spring afternoon when Ozaukee Press visited the pleasant Maechtle farm home. We found the Maechtles to be a friendly family, easy to get acquainted with. From the large picture window in their living room, we saw a pleasant view of the gently-rolling countryside, a peaceful, quiet scene which has kept the Maechtles content there for a hundred years.

Dacada--Although it looks like any other prosperous, industrious farming community in the United States, the northern part of Ozaukee county was settled mainly by immigrants from Luxemburg a century ago and still reflects much of the character of those hardy pioneers from the picturesque little European nation. The Luxemburg language is still heard almost as much as English and many of the customs of the old country are still observed.

One of the first of these Luxemburg families to receive land from the government under the homestead act was the Nicholaus Ludowissi family from Konig, Luxemburg. Together with the Johan Delles family they received 80 acres in the east half of the southwest quarter of section 1-12-21E on June 2, 1847. The land lay alongside what is now highway 57 a mile south of the present Ozaukee county line. To his original 40 acres Nicholaus added 10 acres he purchased from Henry Muller in 1866 for $4,000.

The Ludowissi's lived in a log cabin for 32 years, and it was while building his first frame house in 1879 that Nicholaus fell and was injured. He died from the injuries on Sept. 6, 1879 and was buried in the church cemetery at Dacada. Nicholaus left two sons, Nicholars N., and Cornelius, and four daugthers Mary, Elizabeth Mueller, Catherine Jager and Katherine Arendt. The farm was taken over by the eldest son, Nicholas, who operated it until he died in 1930. His wife, Josephine, died in 1938.

Son Nicholas continued to add to his father's holdings, buying 40 acres from Lizzie Delva in 1915, so that now the farm contains 211 acres, including 147 under cultivation, a 20 acre spring fed lake stocked with bass and perch, and a large woods. When Nicholas died, the farm was taken over not by his eldest son, Nicholas Jr., but by the next son, John, who rented it from his mother until he acquired title to it in 1930. The children of Nicholas and Josephine were Nicholas Jr., who homesteaded in Montana and is still living there; Mary, who died in 1931; Annie (Mrs. Axel Wiltgen), also deceased; John; and Peter, living in Milwaukee.

The present owner of the century-old farm, John, married Lillian Schladweiler of St. Michaels on August 10, 1921. They have two sons of whom they are very proud; Jerry, who helps his father operate the farm, and Norman, who graduated from Port high school in June and joined the U. S. air force last week. Norman worked as a photographer for Ozaukee Press after school and will attend aerial photography school after basic training.

Belgium--Proud of the heritage they have received from their ancestors who where among the pioneers who wrested Ozaukee county from the wilderness, the members of the Gonwa family gathered at the ancestral farm where the middle road and Jay road meet in the town of Belgium for a family reunion Sunday, July 25th. When the noses were counted by host Emil Gonwa, it was found there were 137 present.

Hung on the walls of the big garage in which the celebration was held were copies of original deeds to the farm and a chart prepared by George Gonwa tracing the family tree. It showed that the founder, Philip Gonwa, with his wife, son Frank and three daughters came here from Koerich, Luxemburg in 1847. Philip had been a tailor in the old country and decided to come to the new world to better his lot and to give his children a better chance in life.

Carrying their worldly goods on their backs - there was no road north of Port Washington in those days - the Gonwas walked up the Green Bay trail, now highway 141, then cut over to where they had purchased 80 acres of land, 40- from Bernard Schommer and 40 from Henry Schmitz. That was in September of 1847. Later, on August 11, Philip received a grant of an additional 80 acres from the government. All of the land was covered with a dense hardwood forest which the Gonwas had to clear by hand. An Indian village was located on a corner of the farm and young Frank hunted wild game with the young Indian bucks. The family lived a hard life in a log cabin and one daughter died at the age of nine.

But the Gonwas prospered and out of the forest emerged a fine fertile farm. Philip, who died in 1880, turned the farm over to son Frank in 1868. Frank married and raised 10 children; Margaret Colteaux Thill, Susan Even, Ann Colteaux, Kathryn Decker, jacob, Mary, Antoinette Schmidler, John, Elizabeth Schmidler and Maria Even. Kathryn, of Chicago, now 88, is the only one still living. Frank died in 1907.

One of the oldest buildings in the northern part of Ozaukee county, remembered still by many residents, was the little chapel that stood at the cross-road on a corner of the Gonwa farm. It was built by Frank in the 1850's when the church at Dacada was only a mission, visited by the priest once a month. Neighbors from miles around came to the chapel to pray and to hold May devotions. The little stone building stood until 1928, when the intersection was widened.

The farm was handed down to Jacob and his wife, Elizabeth Binsfeld, in 1891 and they operated it until Jacob died August 16, 1934. The children of this union were Mike of Milwaukee, George of Chicago, Nic of Random Lake, Catherine Eberhardy of Marshfield, Fred of Belgium, Rose Watry of Port Washingtin, Bertha Sorenson of Milwaukee, Emil on the farm, Regina of Milwaukee and Hildegard Kowalewski of Milwaukee. All are living and attended the reunion Sunday.

Now, 101 years after it was founded, the farm is operated by Emil Gonwa and his wife, Loretta Jacoby of Randon Lake, who he married April 24, 1937. They have three children to keep the farm in the family: Joan, 8; Ronald, 5; and Janet, 2.

It was 102 years ago last July that Dietrich Nero, a tailor in Steinhude, Hanover, Prussia packed up his wife and three sons and set out for the wilderness that was North America. After a rough ocean crossing, a landing in New York, and a rough trip overland, the little family of immigrants wound up in the town of Mequon, then in Washington county.

According to the original indenture still in possession of the Nero family, Dietrich and his wife purchased 40 acres of land in section 2, town 9 from Margaret Collins, widow of Dennis Collins who bought the land from the government in 1841. Dietrich and his wife and sons, Dietrich Jr., William and Henry immediately set ot work to hack a farm out of the dense forest, burning the trees as they cut them down. Gradually they established a farm and their family grew with the addition of two more sons, August and Fred.

Eventually the boys left home; Henry going to Cedarburg where he established the branch of the Nero family there and opened a shoe store, now a flower shop. Dietrich, Jr., being the eldest remained on the farm and took possession of it in 1882, the year before his father died. He purchased another 35 acres of land from William Heidemann, making the farm its present 75 acres. The first Dietrich had paid $250 for 40 acres of land in 1846, while his son had to pay $2,000 for 35 acres 36 years later.

Dietrich, Jr. married Dorothea Harmsen and they had 10 children to help them run the farm. According to the old plat book of 1892, they raised, "jersey cattle, grade Norman horses and fine sheep." Dietrich died in 1894, a year after his mother who lived to be 93. In 1896 the farm was passed on to Dietrich Jr.'s son August, who paid each of his brothers and sisters from $100 to $300 for the title.

August married Marie Becker of Milwaukee and they had four children; Hattie, Anita and Melvin, all of Wautoma; and Herbert, who received the farm in 1934 and now operates it with his wife, the former Hilma Moths of Waubeka. They have two daughters, Jeanette, 13, and Marie, 10, who go to the First Immanuel Lutheran school in Cedarburg.

Harold Woodworth, owner of the 111 year old Woodworth farm on county trunck C in the town of Cedarburg, is descended from a long line of pioneer Englishmen including such famous ones as Miles Standish, Henry Sampson, John Alden and Priscilla Alden. The first Woodworth, Walter, came to America in one of the 11 vessels of the fleet of John Winthrop which landed at Salem, Mass. in 1630.

The Woodworth family first established itself in Scituate, Mass. Walter's descendants moved to Norwich, Conn. and Lebanon, Conn. and in 1760 William Woodworth, great-grandson of Walter, was attracted by a proclamation inviting New Englanders to Nova Scotia. He moved there with his family, along with a large number of "New England planters" from Connecticut and Rhode Island.

The founder of the Wisconsin branch of the family, James William Woodworth, was born to the Peter Pineo Woodworth family of Cornwallis, Nova Scotia in 1813. On March 27, 1835, James and his brother, Ephriam, took passage for Boston, Mass. From there they went by stagecoach over the mountains of Vermont to Albany, N.Y. From Albany they "footed it" to Schnectady where they engaged passage on a canal boat for Buffalo. Pressing on, they came to Lenawe county, Mich. and entered a 120 acre claim. This claim was later disposed of and they took land in Wisconsin.

James and Ephriam returned to Nova Scotia then and made plans to emigrate to the United States. In the spring of 1837 the two boys and their father, Peter Pineo Woodworth, charted a small schooner, loaded her with wood, proabably to help pay their passage, and on May 19 sailed out of the Pereau river. They arrived in Boston May 26 and on Jujne 7 got to Buffalo, N.Y. The next day they sailed on a steamer for Milwaukee, Wis., and arrived there June 16. They landed on the shore of Lake Michigan and hired a small boat to take them up to the village, a distance of one and a half miles.

The following day about 2 p.m. they started up the Indian trail in search of their friend Isaac Bigelow. They encountered two shanties on the trail, those of Taylor Heverlin and Isham Day. After getting directions at these shanties, they pressed on, watching for a tree on the right of the trail which Bigelow had blazed. When it grew dark they continued to feel the trail with their feet, but they arrived safely and found their friends well and glad to see them away off here in the wilds of the Wisconsin territory.

On June 19, 1837 James and Ephriam took up separate claims of land in Ozaukee county (then Washington county) about 20 miles north of Milwaukee, that of James bordering on the Milwaukee river. He received the deed March 3, 1847 signed by President John Tyler.

On March 1, 1838, James married Mary Cerena Loomer. Theirs was the first marriage in the county and their first son, Watson, was the second child born in the town of Mequon. An active man, James not only hewed out a farm in the wilderness, but he was elected a judge in the first election held in the county at Port Washington and he served as minister of the Methodist church at Grafton.

James and Mary had nine children, but life was hard in those days and most of them died before reaching adulthood. Mary also died in 1857 and James married her cousin, Harriet Loomer, in 1858. They had two sons, George and Homer. Homer "went west" and moved to Portland, Oregon. George stayed home and bought his father's farm in September, 1889.

George Woodworth married Sarah Jane Dockery in Cedarburg in 1895. Now 85 years old, she is living on the old Dockery homestead in the town of Mequon where she was born. This farm is also over 100 years old, having been started by her father, Michael Dockery, who came from Ireland about 1838.

George and Sarah had two sons, Warren and Harold. Warren died six years ago and Harold, who is an attorney as well as a farmer, now operates both the Woodworth and Dockery farms, a total of 260 acres. Harold married Nettie Megow of South Milwaukee in 1926. They have two sons, Harold, 15, and George, 9. Harold attends Cedarburg high school and George is in Bigelow school.

The Voland Farm In Mequon In One Family 105 Years
Extracted from the
Ozaukee Press
December 9, 1948