Histories: Trempealeau Co. Historical Accounts:
"Trempealeau County" by Clarence J. Gamroth:
Volume 1A:
Biographies: John Suchla
by Edward Suchla, 1947
Poland at the time John was to leave the country, was under the German rule whose king said that any parents who had seven sons would get a bonus of $100.00. John Suchla had 8 sons so he got the money to enable him to go to the United States. He came to Trempealeau by train and steamboat. From there he walked to North Creek (east of Arcadia), where he settled. He homesteaded 160 acres which was covered with brush and trees. He first had to grub to clear the land and raise some crops. The main crop was wheat. If he wanted some milled flour, he had to walk to Trempealeau, the nearest marketing station where trains and steamboats touched.
The women worked the lands and the men chopped down the trees and cleared the land to obtain some money to buy cattle and oxen. The price of cattle was about $100.00 per head and the wages were 25¢ per day.
The first building John Suchla put up was a home. A hole was dug on a hillside with the sides in the ground. On the south side was an opening where the light entered. The roof was of logs with a layer of leaves on the top and then covered with a thick layer of dirt.
The next house John put up was a log house with a few windows.
Farming was done with little equipment. A pair of oxen was bought to help mark the land. The men cut the wheat and the women tied it into bundles and carried them home for threshing by hand. Some of the wheat was sold and some was ground into flour for home use.
I got my information from Vincent Suchla who is the grandson of John Suchla.
"Trempealeau County" by Clarence J. Gamroth:
Volume 1A:
Biographies: John Suchla
by Edward Suchla, 1947
Poland at the time John was to leave the country, was under the German rule whose king said that any parents who had seven sons would get a bonus of $100.00. John Suchla had 8 sons so he got the money to enable him to go to the United States. He came to Trempealeau by train and steamboat. From there he walked to North Creek (east of Arcadia), where he settled. He homesteaded 160 acres which was covered with brush and trees. He first had to grub to clear the land and raise some crops. The main crop was wheat. If he wanted some milled flour, he had to walk to Trempealeau, the nearest marketing station where trains and steamboats touched.
The women worked the lands and the men chopped down the trees and cleared the land to obtain some money to buy cattle and oxen. The price of cattle was about $100.00 per head and the wages were 25¢ per day.
The first building John Suchla put up was a home. A hole was dug on a hillside with the sides in the ground. On the south side was an opening where the light entered. The roof was of logs with a layer of leaves on the top and then covered with a thick layer of dirt.
The next house John put up was a log house with a few windows.
Farming was done with little equipment. A pair of oxen was bought to help mark the land. The men cut the wheat and the women tied it into bundles and carried them home for threshing by hand. Some of the wheat was sold and some was ground into flour for home use.
I got my information from Vincent Suchla who is the grandson of John Suchla.