Jacob Baumgartner papers, 1846-1916

Author / Creator

Baumgartner, Jacob, 1830-1916

Available as

Physical

Summary

Record books of a Bavarian German immigrant and farmer in the Town of Fennimore, Grant County, Wis. The volumes consist of a combination of diary and reminiscence, 1846-1865; twelve volumes of acco...

Record books of a Bavarian German immigrant and farmer in the Town of Fennimore, Grant County, Wis. The volumes consist of a combination of diary and reminiscence, 1846-1865; twelve volumes of accounts and weather notes, 1863-1916; and one volume of lists of taxes paid and other financial records for the Town of Fennimore, 1883-1890, years when Baumgartner was treasurer. The diary records his experiences as an apprentice and journeyman dyer in Germany, 1844-1850; his travels over southwestern Wisconsin, Illinois, and Missouri in search of employment; and his eventual settlement in Grant County. Also in the diary are family records and notations on local history. The accounts volumes contain meticulous records of income and expenditures for Baumgartner's large farm and of the work done on the farm. Excepting the tax list volume, the entire set of books is written in German script. Also included is a copy of an autobiographical letter written July 4, 1876 and recovered from a centennial box opened at Lancaster, Wis. in 1976; a compilation of genealogical information about the Baumgartner and Jehnes families; a copy of a photograph of the Baumgartner family, 1902; and a photo of the family farm, 1870.

Show More