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THIS IS OUR LIFE
by Mrs. Dora Bohlman
I am a widow, 83 years old, have 30 grand-children and 12 great-grand-children. I had the pleasure to live with my husband for over 62 years,sharing pleasures and pains with him an undeserved grace. I was born inCook County Ill., about 30 miles south of Chicago, on the 23rd of October, 1871. I was Anna Marie Dorothea. They called me Dora for short. Myparents were Heinrich and Sophie (Heneike) Meyer. When I was a year and a half old, my parents moved to Iroquois County, Illinois. There theybought a farm for $8.00 an acre. That was my home then, where I grew up with my four sisters and five brothers. They all have already gone toour eternal home. When I was four years old, I remember seeing my youngest brother for the first time in his cradle. When I was five and a half, I saw John Bohlman (my future husband) for the first time. He was born in Hanover, Germany, on the 9th of October, 1863. When he was fourand a half years old, his parents came to this country. They named himJohann Heinrich, for short, John. His parents were Heinrich and Adelheide (Masemann) Bohlman. All that John remembered was that his grandfather had a canary, and that he himself was a tall, thin fellow, and that his mother and Mrs. Otto cried when they left the Old Country. They settled in Cook County, Ill. When John was nine years old, his father died(1872). When he was 13 and a half years old, he was confirmed in St. Paul's Lutheran Church, March 25, 1877, by Pastor E. Hieber. Soon after that, one day, Mr. Henry Rippe came to their house and told John's mother the sad story that his wife had died and left him with a three year old girl, gave birth to a boy and then passed away. He said, "Then I thought about you, that you were living here alone with your three boys."Then he asked her, whether she would go with him to Iroquois County andhelp him rear his children. She knew him already, when he was still single, and that he worked for their neighbors at the time her husband was sick, and that he came to do their chores. So she decided to go withhim, but asked him to adopt her sons, which he did, and he was a good step-father to her boys. They all three worked for him on the farm untilthey got married. Father Rippe's own son died when he was 6 years old.The girl is now 80, the widow of the late Ernest Schroeder (Aunt Mary).
When I was 8 years old, my oldest sister got married and I stayed withher for two years, going to school from there, and since it rains a lotin Illinois, I had to miss school quite a bit, so my decided to get mea place near school. So the next three years I worked hard to make upfor the lost time, learned all the Bible passages in the Catechism andmany song verses, and at that time we had everything in the German language. But the last year I went to school, a state law was passed that every school had to teach English. We then got some English books, as Readers, Arithmetic, Grammar, etc. but the Religion was always in German.On the 29th of March 1885 I was confirmed in St. Paul's Lutheran Church, Woodworth, Ills., by the late Rev. Hartmann, who also baptized me ininfancy, and later married us. Then I stayed home with my parents withthe exception of two months in the spring of 1889 I worked in Kentland, Indiana. At that time John and I exchanged letters, and both saved them, and I still enjoy reading them. On New Year's Day 1889 John put a ring on my finger and we became engaged and were married on the 3rd of October, 1889 in Woodworth, Ills. Then John's parents built us a nice new home. There we lived then, the two of us, and I tell you, we were thehappiest people that ever lived. We lived in that house 20 years. In 1909 we moved to Oklahoma. Our marriage was blessed with 11 children. Our first two babies were born premature, the oldest was born on the 16thof June, 1891, and the second on the 16th of March, 1892. They both died a few hours after birth, but later the Lord replaced them three times, about which we are happy.
We have nine living children, the oldest one, Laura, is now the wife ofAdolph Schroder, a farmer. They were married on the 25th of October, 1916. Sophie is married to John Rosalius, a farmer, on the 1st of October. 1919. Adelia is married to a merchant, Norman Grummer, on August 20,1922. Our eldest son, we named after his Dad, John, who is a graduateof Concordia Seminary, Springfield, Illinois, and now a Lutheran pastor, is married to Cordelia Tappendorf on July 24, 1927, the year of his graduation. Arthur is also a Lutheran pastor, graduated from Concordia Seminary, St. Louis, Mos., 1928 and is married to Anna Wieke, August 22,1928. Edwin is a farmer and lives on the home place. He was married toEdna Wyssmann on Dec. 22, 1935. Alfred is a parochial school teacher.He graduated from Concordia Teachers College, Seward, Nebraska, and ismarried to Bertha Geisler August 28, 1935. Wilbur is a doctor and surgeon, graduated from the Okla. University Medical School onJune 7, 1937,and got married to Ruth Wegener on June 2, 1937. Harold is a farmer andlives on his farm south of Okarche. He was married to Erma Dubben on July 28th, 1950. Wilbur and Harold both served in World War II. They areboth born in Oklahoma, the others were born in Illinois.
Well, when we got to Oklahoma we bought us a farm 4 and one half milessoutheast of Okarche. There we lived with our nine children which the Lord had given us gradually one after the other as the years passed by,and they were all very dear to us, and I must say, none of them causedus any grief or heartache (for which I am very grateful). There we alsocelebrated our Silver Wedding in 1914 and later our 40th and 45th.
In 1936 we retired and moved to Okarche. There we were again, just as we had started out in 1889, of course a little older. Here we celebratedour Golden Wedding in 1939, and five years later the 55th, then in 1949 we had the rare joy of celebrating our Diamond Wedding with all our children present and a lot of friends and relatives. Then we lived together, John and I, two years, five months, and 16 days. Then on the 19thof March 1952, the Lord called my husband to our heavenly home, and I am here patiently waiting for the Lord to say, "Leave thy children, cometo Me, and see thy husband again!" And God has always kept His promises through all these years, and I know He will also in the future, as Hesaid, "I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee."
It is true, we also had dark days, sickness at times, and also those years of the Second World War when our boys were in the services. There was many a tear shed, and many a prayer sent the the Throne of God, buthow wonderfully and faithfully God has kept all His promises!
(Found with Mrs. Margaret Bohlman's things after her death November 1974.)
(Mr. Rippe's first wife was Margaret born in 1833, died Feb. 23, 1877,and buried on the St. Paul's Cemetery, Woodworth. Henrich Rippe born Feb. 23, 1877 died November 29, 1883, also on the same cemetery. AdelheidRippe born January 3, 1834 died August 9, 1890. Thanks to Edwin Bohlman we have a copy of the adoption papers.)
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Matthias
Steinke
