*Letter written to "Alice Traxler" daughter of Nick and Alice. dated Nov 5 (no year)
Dear Alice & All
Was surprised to hear from you as it's been ages since hearing from you= and you have even changed your address, how would have found you had I come there?
As to the family of Traxlers you know I was very young when grandfather died-and mother said very little of their life in Germany. She always spoke of coming from Germany to NY and how sick Grandmother was coming over and how Uncle John & she prayed & begged her not to die while at sea- because they buried all at sea, account of sharks. Then she spoke of playing with rag dolls (all they had) with some badish children. Seems she was 8 or 10 if I remember right. Then she told of how the indians were on the war path & and how grandmother took the 5 children including Uncle Nick (2 weeks old) & hid in the cornfield all night long where she took an awful cold and died (seems grandfather was in Menomonie getting provisions, at that time I guess most farmers had ox teams only, and it took about 2 days to make the trip). Grandfather raised all 5 youngsters. Neighbors wanted to adopt some of the children but Grandfather said NO. As long as there was a crust it would be shared between them and he stoutly refused to put a step mother over them. With the aid of Mother (Mary) and Uncle John (only kids themselves), they grew to be respectable men and women.
Mother married I believe when she was 22 to Anton Long. I was the only BRAT to that union. When I was about 9, she married William Snyder to that union 5 children were born, 2 now living.
I was married to H.H. Lawrence, 3 children Hazel, Mabel and Harvey..all are married.
Hazel to C. Q. Myers, has one daughter, Verna who is married to Ivan Hurless.
Mabel married to Harry McKenna has one daughter married to John Gould.
Harvey married to Margaret Forrest, 2 children, Diane, Hi school student, and one son 4 years old.
Now you have it all in a nutshell. Oh, about 33 yrs ago I married W. H. Miller, no children.So the story goes- I used to love to go to dances with Uncle Nick and used to sit by the hour to hear him sing old songs which I only know a line or so of them. These were the good old days.
How is Sadie coming never hear from her. I'll have to get there St. Patrick's day once more. And little Mike, I can't imagine him in Kindergarten. Well, I hope you get some food out of the above. Love, Angie
Died infant
History of Dunn County
(page 868)
Frances, who after acquiring the elements of knowledge in the district school, pursued further studies in the Dunn County Agricultural School, Dunn County Normal School and the Stevens Point Normal School, and subsequently taught rural school in Dunn County for eight years, and grade school at Elk Mound for four years, after which she became the wife of William Mc Kanna.
History of Dunn County
(page 868)John Traxler
John, born June 23, 1892, who is now operating his fathers old farm in the town of Menomonie, married Olga Peterson; they have been the parents of two children, Harold J, born Sept 23, 1923, who died March 9, 1924, and Robert J, born Oct 22, 1924.