Bread on the Prairie

When the smell of baking bread is one of the earliest of childhood recollections it means that bread baking will have someone to carry on the baking tradition. And so it has come to be.

The Krueger  Dutch Charlie Creek Farm was graced with a traditional farm house featuring a large kitchen and a wood burning kitchen rang. Corncobs, twigs, straw and other miscellaneous combustibles provided additional fuel. Bread baking was one of the prime functions of that range. Mathilda Krueger was the master baker.

All this is called to mind by Bill Bryson in "At Home: A Short History of Private Life". In chapter IV on "The Kitchen" he points out that in nineteenth century England bread was 80% of the food used in a home. People spent 75% of their income on food and bread was central ." For a poorer family the daily diet was a few ounces of tea and sugar, some vegetables, a slice or two of cheese, and just occasionally a very little meant. All the rest was bread". Page 68 

The German tradition farm home in Minnesota had a more generous diet especially in the meat and vegetables category but bread was a central feature always. An especially vivid scene is that of the summer threshing ring. The threshing machine ("Separator" was the term usually used) was taken from farm to farm and neighbors would help each other bring in the wheat, oats, barley, or flax. Long days in the summer meant steady work for hours in the fields and at the farm house.

The wife and family of the hosting farm would prepare food for large noon meal and lunches to be taken to the field by the children. This means many loaves of bread which had to be freshly mixed, risen and baked. The kitchen range needed the right mix of fuel to keep the temperature steady and there really was no back up in case of a mistake. The housewife had to manage and do most of the heavy labor of food preparation and serving while also carrying on the tasks of raising children, caring for an elderly relative, and being a pleasant hostess. I do not recall men helping in the preparation of food.

Pies and cakes were also expected at the meals. In times of economic strains on all farm families one pleasure of life that lifted the spirits of hard working people were those Chocolate Cakes and Apple Pies, to mention two of the favorites. 

Bread made the world go round on those "threshing ring" days on the prairie. Today there is talk of Iron Chef contests. The farm home generated skilled women cooks who had no peers in the high society restaurants of the city. Formal contests were not necessary on the farm - every threshing season meal was a display of talent and no doubt judgments were made.

We of the Krueger family were honored to have one of the best of bread bakers in Mathilda Pooch Krueger. He traditional  recipe book has many pies and cakes. Bread was taken for granted.

Written by Delton

Rain Forest and Prairie Connection

The Olympic Peninsula of Washington State became part of us in the early 1980s. When our eldest daughter when "out west" to practice the profession of being a Forester we discovered a grand new part of America. The Temperate Rain Forest of the Olympic mountains remains a relatively undeveloped and rugged part of the American scene.

The Quinault and other Native groups have a long history of living with sea and forest along the north west coastal frontier with the Pacific Ocean. In Minnesota the Native cultures are primarily Ojibway and Dakota. The histories of Minnesota and Washington tribal interface with European new comers to America differs in some significant ways. In Minnesota the Sioux Uprising in the 1860s involved family members some of whom were killed in the Uprising. As a result of the violence of that time a reservation system was established. It is only in recent years with the coming of casino gaming that Native peoples have had an economic base of substance.

On the Olympic peninsula the remote situation worked to the benefit of the Native people in that Europeans had a long way to go to get there and the land was not seen as particularly valuable.  The Quinault and others have had a strong cultural life related to the overwhelming influence of natural forces - Rain - Sea - Rain Forests - Fog -  Mountainous Terrain - Wind - Aquatic Life. Their remoteness from major population centers has worked to their benefit.

Recent studies have shown that a site near the community of Forks is likely the most silent place in the States.The immense trees and steep hillsides of the Olympics keeps mass civilization at bay.

A good many Minnesotans went to Washington State in the 1900s when the Forest were diminished by the wholesale cutting of timber to supply national markets. Foresters trained and experienced in Minnesota went from the Pine and Fir of Minnesota to the abundant Western Hemlock, Sitka Spruce and Western Red Cedar of the Olympics.  In the 1980s our family took its place with that number. Our lives have been enriched.

Finding a Practical Route

When approaching a range of hills or mountains the traveler has to choose a route. Should it be up and over the highest ridges or along a valley and up over a pass. Lewis and Clark had that kind of decision to make as they approached the Rocky Mountains on their exploration trip to the West in the early history of America.

Even more daunting is dealing with a sheer cliff. Should the climber risk life and limb to ascend the rock face or compromise idealism with the practical and preserve his/her life for another adventure.

Today the issue is finding a practical route through the challenging mountains of digital communication on the Internet. The ever rising ridges of technological change means that any accomplishment will soon be faced by an even higher ridge of learning and experimentation. It is easy to be paralyzed by impossible challenges that are interesting but not doable.

The moral of the story is to find the digital mountain pass that allows the traveler to get on with it.

Family and the Civil War Weblog now on line

Today, April 12, 2011 begins a five year historical account of the involvement of my family of origin in the American Civil War 1861-1865.
The account is presented at http://prairietopotomac.blogspot.com
Brother Arlin and I are grandsons of Charles Ford Pooch who was in the Army of the Potomac from 1861-1865.  Details will appear over time. Arlin and I are in cooperation on the development of this family historical document. We welcome input from anyone who has relevant information.
Delton Krueger
dkrueger@visi.com

Civil War 150th Anniversary begins in 2011

The Civil War connects with this family in that Delton and Arlin Krueger's Grandfather, Charles Ford Pooch, was in the Army of the Potomac from 1861-1865. He and several brothers enlisted in the summer of 1861 when events apparently touched the passions of Wisconsin young men.  He was in the 7th Brigade that came to be known as the Black Hat Brigade. Company I, called the Northwestern Tigers. was his unit.

It is our intention to put online, perhaps in this weblog, the dates and stories of what we know about Grandfather's role in various movements of the army with special attention on the Battles since that is when the historical record is most available. We have no letters that were written home but we do have War Department records that track much of his career. Other records of Company I give us knowledge of where he would have been along the way. We do have clear records of the battles in which he was a participant.

When mustered out in 1865 Grandfather Charles returned to Wisconsin, was married to Charlotte Amalie Borsack, and early in the 1870s came to the Minnesota frontier settling in Germantown Township of Cottonwood County in central southwest Minnesota.

Transfiguration Sunday - March 6, 2011

In the Christian church year there is a day called Transfiguration Sunday. This day commemorates the time when Jesus and his disciples Peter, James and John were up on a high mountain. What happened there was a terrifying experience that scared the disciples. The event is thought of in Christian circles as a time when the historic connection of Jesus to ancient holy people was made evident and the authenticity of Jesus made evident. (see Matthew 17:1-9)
This event is usually interpreted as a grand display of otherworldly spiritual excitement. I think there is another side to the story. This was in fact a very familiar scene to folks who climb up mountains. The sudden changes in weather that happen in mountain climbing can disorient and challenge the best climbers. A thunder storm when one is exposed on an open mountain face is quite memorable. The scene was about as earthly as it gets.
I am considering the connection of Transfiguration with present day video projects that present sound and visuals that give people a mountain top thrill in the comfort of their own living room.  I think of the attempts of pastors and other worship leaders to give folks a taste of the Transfiguration event in the comfort of their own church sanctuary. Good luck on that one! Even with full surround sound and huge screens in mega churches the attempt is doomed if the purpose is a spiritual transformation for the attendees. There may well be an emotional thrill that will be familiar to video devotees but the familiarity of it all will soon fade into the wallpaper of life.
So is Transfiguration Sunday of any use in the 21st century? I intend to find out on March 6.

Birds in the Bush

A 2011 January winter day in Minnesota means snow and cool temperatures with ice underfoot while walking. On such a walk the brilliant sunshine and blue sky created a scene of natural grandeur.

A quiet walk was interrupted by the sound of small birds in a panic over there across the street where a small pine tree was right up next to the house. As I looked on, it became evident that a large bird was flying around the tree actually beating its wings on the tree. The small birds were flying about wildly. Then the large bird, a hawk, flew up to a tree branch with a small bird in its talons.

The natural grandeur of this day revealed the tooth and claw part of the ongoing story of life. In the bright light of day it was evident that a predator was doing what all predators do - frighten the prey and get them to leave their place of safety and become singly vulnerable.

The same dynamic goes on in human society.