With this latest trip through Missouri I'm reminded of many towns strategy that apparently worked in drawing Germans to America.
At the close of the Franco-Prussian War in the 1870's, many German immigrants came to America--where they were drawn to Missouri and the new towns with the familiar terrain like their Homeland.
I myself come from German heritage that arrived in Keokuk County Iowa in 1869-1874.
My great grandparents immigrated from Bettendorf & Tinsdorf region of Germany. They met - married and had seven children.
One of those children was my Grandfather who would end up in Lincoln, Nebraska and marrying a young daughter of his then employer.
(My Grandfather)
(My Grandmother)
My Grandfather later would moved his immediate family in 1919 from a Lincoln, Nebraska farm to a Amorett, Missouri farm... (Where my father was born)
(My father & I)
My grandfather had purchased the land & old farm house from only a picture sight of it while operating his Thrashing business across States from Nebraska to Texas.
He moved his family lockstock & barrel to the old Missouri farm home.
Then the next spring he built his family a new home from their timber & with his new saw mill business on the farm.
He also started a operational ice plant built along the river.
He would later own most of the downtown business buildings in Amorett.
Later he built a huge Walker Strip Mining Shovel and ran a Strip Mining Operation near Drexel, MO with his two eldest sons until his death in 1938.
My father was taught the dragline - crane operation along side his older brothers and would later be employed for 30 years operating a crane in the building of Missouri roads & bridges.
With my Grandparents five sons they had a built in labor crew for the multiple business operations that were started by my Grandfather.
At one time they had additional operations of oil refinery & heating oil delivery business from a Kansas oil well property that was later purchased.
He leased out the downtown buildings for others to run the operations.
Germans are known to be industrious people and I am proud of my heritage.
My own father continued his life's work and was like his father in the ingenuity of anything mechanical.
What a road trip will bring up in memories & my own family heritage. I hope you were entertained by my family rambles. 😅
Nana
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