Interviewer: Jessica Clark Typed by: Marlena Fongthian Math Gross April 30, 1921 Mother was in labor for 2 days Bad rain storm Dr. Grand - from Wishek Already born She survived Youngest of 10 17 years age difference Earliest memories Vaguely - marriage Marget - 1925 Only 4 years old Groom wore a cap Never saw it again Growing up on farm Stayed at home Children stayed at home Summer kitchen - at our house Weddings usually at our place Kitchen floor dance Anton, Margaret, Eloys, Rose, Philliphine, Ralphel, Elizabeth, Leo, Berth, Math Anton - married 1928 - good in school Outgoing - read - visit
Eloys - more for working on the farm Family provided farm for sons Girls got kitchen/bedroom None went to high school - except Math All one room school 27 students & 1 teacher 15 students & 1 teacher Anton & Eloys - 1932 Married I was the closest Sitting on his lap Look at Margaret - remember very little about her Dressed up in men's clothing Oldest photo Rose - how to describe Easy going 1931 Dirty Thirties Sanity - bottom dropped out No crop for 3 years 20-21 horses A lot of work - nothing in return Farm animals - hogs, chicken, cattle, ducks, geese Very little beef used No cooling facilities Wooden barrel - salt brine
Last 3 weeks - 4 weeks Then smoked Hanging in grainery Indians - same thing Kept the meat Making sausage Stuck in the throat Turning - scolding A lot of work Timing Bristles - removal Start with the head - save all the meat Remove everything Early days we didn't make bacon Something similar Cleaning the intestines Usually Anton's job Later on they also bought them Saved time A lot of work Cut fat boiled for lard Coal/wood stove Oven - all cast iron - warm the kitchen Cold in winter Living room - hard coal stove
Became red - sometimes lasted until the next night Regulated heat From town - 11 miles Hogs 6-7 Cows never butchered It wouldn't keep a whole day Had sausage to eat - grinding by hand Strength Never butcher a lot at one time 100 at time Pick out the chick Clog Kids "bleed em" Blood drained A lot of girls did most of it Gophers Older boys did more hunting They were destructive Eat the wheel How Trap Share with twine Jerk Kill 'em During the 1930's paid for the tail - 2 cents or 3 cents
Catch tail Take 'em to the county auditor If you had chance - town cookies - ice cream cone 4th of July 7:00-11:00 Lived in Hills district Fire crackers Nothing for farm kids Not a dance very often St. Anthony had a baseball team for a while Played other town teams I was the 1st one taken to baptism by car Model T 1926 Model T = 2nd car Bought a Pontiac Hauling cream cans - important feature Slide around Tip it twice going around a hill Got team of horses to flip it back over Summer - more cream Milk cows - cream separator In house - bolted to floor Cylinder Kept turning Not much cream - with the process 1 gallon 2 times a day
29 cows All the kids helped Grain January waiting for spring Never had the horses in at one time Toward spring bring in all horses - give 'em grain - energy for future farm work 1897 - father came - homesteaded the area in 1900 Mrs. Pat O'Neil Taught dad how to read and write Campbell town - Kintyre Better $ 1899 Dad learned how to read, write and speak English Foreman 1902 - Campbell - cattle Bob sled Open winter - no snow/cold By 1902 he had learned 5 years Didn't know any English Head Cheese Consisted mostly of the skin of the pig Used pig stomach Tied the stomach shut Use the sausage stuffer Hold stomach
Pump it full of head cheese Add meat to the skin Tough stuff Made gloves Get the feel of how full it was Losing meat Cut it off and tie it Cheaper to make your own Hard times Bunch of kids - no crops CCC Camp $5 - $20 Helping hand No WPA - we were too rich 1936-37 - Dad couldn't pay the land taxes Many left - went west Dad had a little more pride He wanted to be self-sustaining He never mortgaged the farm or the cattle County Commissioners - 2 year deal Father married in 1904 Kids didn't realize the pressure 1/4 = 160 acres Carried mail 30 years in Napoleon 1/4 mi wide, 1 long Always had at least a years supply of hay
Sandstorms day after day Getting cattle Wind & no rain Water No cattle buyers Roads Mucker - machine Elevated the ground Dump wagons Rodeo at Bernsted Just a trail - travel with a sled Cold/snow Weather a lot different Always enough wind for water 160 ft deep Nobody went into the CCC's - Raphael - didn't want to go Dad - lost father at 10, mother at 13 He was abused School - closed up Only 2 students left 2 1/2 mi and over hills Dad didn't want that Sister & husband moved to town Oct 1st I got homesick staying with my sister School house - 8th grade dumb farm kid 30 students 1 grade
Never seen a basketball Didn't have the right shows Last one to be chosen Hard for high school I couldn't wait for Friday night 1938 - Margaret died - she had 3 children Math responsible for cooking for her family 1st report card Every 6 weeks you got a report card All F's except one Graduated from 8th grade Spent 1 year at home Decided to go back to high school Did better every month - then took the exam Country school - state exam Older/knew people Comfort Margaret - death - many headaches Heart trouble? 32 years old Married to Tony Mitchell Not really sure what happened "I'm dying" He remarried Grasshoppers Worms - infestation
Chewed on the siding of barn Fork - roughness Grasshoppers - hungry No chance to stop them Create a poison mix Impossible to really kill the grasshoppers Plows (3) - (2) bottom 5 horses on each Seed drill 4 horses on that Rye you would seed in the fall Look something like wheat Very little use Header -photograph 6 horses on header 2 box Unload and make stacks Threshing machine - brother-in-law had one Help stacks - hauling bundles Two trips Very little spoilage Unload everything by fork My job was to drive the team 7:00am - go until dark Gasoline tractors
1935-1st tractor International 1530 Bought a used tractor Metal grippers - logs Flat crankshaft Got a new tractor International - pulled a 3 bottom outfit Took to Wishek - for advancements Rubber tires 1941-42 Raufel Gross - how he met mother Dad - 18 came 1897 Jan. Railroad ended at Eureka Mom - 1898-1899 - mother got off in Wishek, 16 years Mother came all by herself at 16 years 1902 - Dad buying cattle Another guy offered to go with him Mother worked at that time for a priest who was working with the Indians Mother's parents eventually came over - settled near St. Michael's Wishek for beer Anton Wangler - Button accordion Married Dad's 1st cousin Mom worked fields with Pa Got sulky Long time before Geffrey came to pick her up - she didn't know him Most people were stingy Her mother was interested in coming over
Folks came 1902 Grandfather 1917-1918 - grandmother died Never got to know them Mother and father died when they were kids Dad was 10 years old when he lost his parents Dorf-village Mother remarried Tagged along with cousins Never really talked about the voyage Parents came on same vessel a couple years apart Came 1900 Talking about father Good/honest/no drinking/no smoking Homemade brew Wooden barrel - behind stove - yeast barely, pieces of bread Always on the cooked stove Drilled hole through top Sauder copper tubing Running it through twice Folks didn't do People thought they were rich People were envious of the Gross family Never had a loan from the government She was a saintful woman All those kids - out in the field working too Phillipine died at 17 years old
Tonsels Burned up - died 11 days later 8 years old Funeral - it was terrible Song - sung around the grave Sound of the dirt on the box Margaret is buried next to Phillipine - song was in German St. Anthony Catechism instuction Walking barefoot Used to play the accordion German school Had to do some in German Martin Brown 90 kids at one time Mass was in Latin Priest faced the alter Alter bows kneeled behind him Some want to go back to Latin Nobody knew Latin Couldn't eat/drink from midnight on Early mass - if you went to confession Always had two masses on Sunday By time you got home it was already 2:00pm Ride to a neighbor's house and play baseball Cars became more prevalent
Drive to Red Calce Fade away early 30s All the banks close Decline of Napoleon's bank $65/month - 1 suit Working at bank in Mandan Riveting and assembly work Within a short time I was up to $90/month Brother was sick with flabitious - blood clots Went out to help his brother Too late to draft You can volunteer Stayed at Tony's for two winters Run down farm Advised brother on farming operation After 2 years - he decided he didn't want to be a draft dodger Wanted to go out on my own Brother eventually sold out Left for service Beans/paper plates, 2x's/day On ship for 24 days Going over