My great grandfather, August Schaeffer was born April 14, 1822 in Saalfeld, Sachsen Germany to Hartmann Schaeffer and Dorothea Reinhardt. The extended family lived in and around Kalbsbrieth, Heygendorf and Obersdorf in the Thuringen area. According to information from a source in Germany, the Schaeffer home was built in 1785 but partially burned and rebuilt in 1803. How fortunate I am to have postcards and photos sent by family members who traveled on a grand tour of Europe ca 1914 which show the original house, church and guesthouse owned by August's brother Carl and his son Gustav. The Schaeffer's occupations aren't certain, but milling was mentioned and perhaps raising horses were both pursued. August with his wife Minna, and three brothers emigrated to America ca 185l. It seems likely that they were once again facing upheavel in their country and were of an age when they might be called upon to join the military. It is ironic that Thurlius, actually did join the Union Army and was killed in the Civil War. The brothers settled in Milwaukee County and Montello Counties in Wisconsin where they engaged in various occupations. Brother Abraham and his wife Amelia Losach settled in the city of Milwaukee and eventually had 11 children, several of whom went to live with August and Minna after the death of their mother. August farmed with his father- in- law, Siegmund Caesar before moving with Minna, small son Anton and two more children; Clara and Herman to Minnesota.
They settled on a farm in Aurora Township, Steele County and appear in the 1857 territorial census.
About 1860 the family moved to Pine Island in Goodhue County where he became part owner of a flour mill. This is where Mary, Albert and my grandfather, Frank, were born before once again the family was packed up and headed toward Stearns County. Frank was a baby and Clara remembered walking through what is now downtown Minneapolis, trying to keep the few farm animals they had from wandering away. They spent a few years in Raymond and would have lived near brother, Steven, his wife Mary Ann along with three daughters and two sons. Clara, the oldest daughter had soon married Frederick Williams and had her first daughter, Lena. The oldest son, Anton, appeared to be farming his own property. In June 1873 the family headed farther west and apparently finally found their ideal forever home in Pomme de Terre, Grant County.
August and Frederick, Clara's husband, immediately began construction of a mill and by fall had it up and running. Fred and Clara never actually lived in Pomme de Terre, but bought several lots in the plotted village as well as nearby farmland. The mill provided the struggling new village an important reason for farmers, travelers and new pioneers to stop and seek new homes. It must have been an exciting time because the nearby Pembina Trail brought army units, oxcarts, covered wagons and curious travelers seeking more land and new adventures and they became constant customers and guests. According to his obituary, " In the early days many a traveler enjoyed his hospitality and made his place a stopping point. No deserving weary traveler was denied rest, or honest hungry man turned from his door unsatisfied. He was generous---a large man physically with a heart in proportion." This description of his size is interesting because according to a passport application from December of 1890, he is 5ft 6in tall with blue eyes and a straight nose. Hmmm, his sons, grandson and great grandsons certainly inherited height from some part of the family! August and his family certainly witnessed a changing scene as Pomme de Terre experienced an exciting few years as more westward movement continued on the nearby trail until the railroad bypassed it to the north and south.
The mill burned down in 1887 and it was considered to be the end of an exciting era. Slowly the dream of a busy town on the prairie died too. Although August and Minna continued to live nearby in a new home built in 1891, life must have been very quiet and sedate compared to the changing times they had been witness to. August died unexpectedly on Nov 3, 1898 and is buried in the Pioneer Cemetery at Pomme de Terre which is a short distance from where their first green house stood and the mill made an impressive site along the rushing water of the Pomme de Terre River. It seems appropriate that one of the chosen hymns was "Shall We Meet Beyond the River."
