Marilyn Haschemeyer lives in a rural community in Illinois, USA, and has shared her grandmother's story with us. Frederika Marie (Reka) Litchsinn was born in Ludigsdorf, East Friesland in 1866 and came to America at age 18 to live with her brother in the town of Keokuk Junction, Illinois (which later was renamed Golden). This story brings home the hardships of travelling to America by ship in the 1800s, at time when one-third of the Frisians in Germany emigrated, mostly to the US, where they settled in Iowa, Illinois, Nebraska and Wisconsin.
My Grandma
by Marilyn Haschemeyer
My name is Marilyn Haschemeyer and I live in a rural Illinois community settled by German immigrants in the 1800s. This is the story my Grandma told many years ago, of her travels to America for a better life. This was told to me in German as a young child and I confirmed this story with my mother, Sena Hippen in her later years.
Frederika Marie (Reka) Litchsinn was born in Ludwigsdorf, East Friesea, Germany in 1866 to William and Folkea Litchsinn.
Her journey to America came in 1884 when she was 18 years old. Her brother, Rieke, sent her $75.00 to come by sailboat to a farm in Illinois. The little farming village located in Adams County was called Keokuk Junction which was later named Golden.
She married my Grandpa Christian Friedricks, who was born in Plattenburg, Germany. He also came to America when he was 18 years old and was a millwright. He worked in a Dutch Windmill erected by Mr. Emmiga in Golden. This windmill continues to stand and work today.
They bought an 80 acre plot of unclaimed soil for $1.00 and acre and built a 2 room log cabin where my mother, Sena, was born in 1901.
Grandma lived with us for 14 years during the later years of her life. I remember her as being a small woman with long gray hair. She would let me comb her hair and put it in a bun almost everyday. She never did learn the English language so it was necessary to visit people that could speak German. It was a bit difficult for me to start grade school, knowing mostly German. We all went to German church, then English Church, prayed in German, and if lucky we would have some English speaking people over for a Sunday afternoon visit.
My Grandma was very special to me, since she was always in our home. Today as I get older, I wonder if Grandma was lonely for her homeland as I do remember she would have tears in her eyes as she told me these stories.
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I can remember Grandma telling me how she came to America by sailboat when she was 18 years old leaving from Wilhelmshaven, Germany. She told how sad it was to say 'good-by' to her family, knowing she would never see them or her homeland again. The seas were rough when they boarded the boat, and seemed each time they got out to sea, the boat would again land on shore. After the third try, they were finally able to start across that vast body of water, which took about three and one half months.
Grandma's stay on the boat was not pleasant, as the boat was rather small and overcrowded. There was much sickness and some of the people died. They removed the clothes of the dead before burying them at sea as the people aboard would need the extra clothes to keep warm. There were also babies born on the boat, and some did not live.
She had to sleep in the bottom of the boat, toward the front. The rats were so bad, they ran over them when they were sleeping. She told of the sea sickness, and the filth on the boat from being sick. Since they were on the boat much longer than planned they did not have much to eat.
They came to New Orleans, and then up the Mississippi River to a river town called Quincy, located in Adams County. The water on the river was much better than the choppy seas. It was getting quite cold by this time, and as they came close to Quincy the river started to freeze. The boat became stuck in all of the ice. Grandma managed to get her big trunk out of the boat and onto the ice. She then proceeded to walk to shore, dragging the huge trunk behind her.
After getting on shore, she was in some sort of warehouse and asked if she could store her trunk there so she could make her trip to Keokuk Junction, some thirty miles away. She was able to purchase a horse and was told to follow the telegraph line along the C.B.A.Q. Railroad until she reached her destination. They told her she would know the area as Keokuk Junction was located where the two railroads crossed. This second Railroad known as the Wabash line.
My Grandma and two other people on horses started for Keokuk Junction in a snowstorm. This took many days, and she remembered staying at a home near Coatsburg for the night as they were so cold and hungry.
Grandma found where the two railroads crossed and sure enough, her brother, Rieke Litchsinn from the Pea Ridge area, was there to meet her.The town at that time consisted only of a few small buildings including a saloon, a hotel upstairs for the train passengers and a little feed store. There was a vast amount of land all around them that had not been settled. Her brother told her they still had another ten miles to ride to his home. They followed little paths with the prairie grass so tall you could not see the horse and rider. He explained to her that they could easily get lost if they were not careful.
After arriving at the brother's house, it was not long before she got homesick. Grandma told how she would walk in the woods and cry all day. She asked her brother for money to return to Germany to again see her parents, but he would not give her that privilege. He knew she would never return. Shortly after Grandma arrived in America her Mother died in Germany. Her Father then remarried and had five more children. Grandma then had four half-brothers and one half-sister all of whom she never met as they remained in Germany. Her brother Rieke, also sent money to another brother who started for America on a boat but was never heard from again. Grandma assumed he was lost at sea.
Grandma lived with us until her death in 1941 at the age of 75.
