Nowicki Farm

Records show that Daniel Johnson and wife Eleta and
Fred Rietbrock and his wife Helen sold a 120 acre
tract of land to Martin Nowicki and wife Kathryn
(Socha) who came from Europe in 1877. They came
with a few other settlers, namely: Switlick, Lewan-
dowski, Wojciechowski and Waskowiak families.
Living together with the Switlick's for a few days,
they cleared for themselves a little space where they
built a log house and later a barn. They had nine
children.
Martin who was a musician ironically died at an
early age of a heart attach while playing at a
wedding. He left his wife Kathryn and family to
clear the lands.
As money was needed, Mike, as a young man, and
his older sisters walked to Wausau to work. Those
were long and tedious hours. Many times they would
stop in at the Waskowiak's on the way to rest and
then continue home. They raised sheep to supply
the wool for the family needs. Cows were kept
according to how much feed they had from the cleared
lands. The cream was skimmed from the milk by hand
and what they couldn't use themselves they fed to the
animals. When creameries came into existence they
could then sell the cream to creameries. They had
their own separator which was driven by a tread
mill operated by a dog, sheep or goat. Threshing of
grain was done by flail. Whatever products they had
extra were taken by the younger brother John and their

mother to Wausau. On their way they left the wheat
or rye to be ground into flour at the Rib Falls mill,
only to be picked up on their way back. As the years
went by the flail threshing of grain was replaced by a
six-horsepower grain machine - consisting of a cylinder
and sieves. One man cut the bands on the bundle
while one or two men fed the bundles into the
machine. Then one would shovel the grain away in
bushel boxes while the other men carried the grain
into the bin. Few others carried the straw to the mow.
Later the thresh machine came into existence which
was driven by a steam engine. This machine took
the bundles as they were and separated the grain
from the straw and blew the straw out onto a
stack or mow.
Mike assumed the responsibilities of operating the

farm. As it was a custom to have an agreement made
those days, Mike would have to pay off the rest of
the children as they left home and support his mother
until her death.
Mike married Mary Kropidlowski, November 16,
1891. They had a family of twelve children: Anna
(Murkowski), Helen (Murkowski), Frances (Nowacki),
Anton, Mary (Myszka), Lucy (Socha), Joseph, Julia
(Witucki), Rose (Witucki), Celia (Albrecht), Peter, and
Thomas.

All living children of Mike Nowicki. Back Row: Peter, Celia (John Albrecht),
Lucy (Frank Socha), Rose (Joe Witucki), Joseph, Julia (Andrew Witucki), Tony.
Front Row: Thomas, Mary (Jacob Myszka), Frances (John Nowacki), Helen tLeo
Murkowski), Anna (Peter Murkowski).

Tread mill used to operate a cream separator - powered by a dog.