The Capital City Saga...

Below is a copy of Junior's biography taken from a book by Adeline Gnirk entitled "A Capital City Saga".

There are several facts which are mistaken, and I'll not correct those mistakes here as I've done so in other posts on this blogsite.  This is the article which sparked my interest in researching our family roots and I wanted to place a copy of the article here for future reference.

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"CONRAD MARTIN KLEIN was born December 7, 1886 [sic] in LaSalle, Illinois to Conrad and Christina Klein.  They were immigrants from Luxembourg, Germany who made their first sojourn in Illinois, homesteaded in Wisconsin, and settled later in Iowa.  Conrad Jr.'s father was killed in an accident; his mother Christina married a Mr. Betts and they became the parents of 10 daughters.

C. M. (Conrad Martin) worked seventeen years in the Chicago Steel Mills.  Here he met Margaret Roller who was working for a family there.  Conrad M. Klein and Margaret Roller were married on St. Valentine's Day, February 14, 1900.  His wife Margaret was born on July 18, 1878 in Belgium to Mr. and Mrs. Peter Roller and she was christened Margaret Christine Roller; the Roller family immigrated to America and settled in Wisconsin.

C. M. Klein entrained to Bonesteel, South Dakota to file his claim on a homestead in the last great frontier, the former Brule Sioux Rosebud Indian Reservation in Gregory County.  He drew the NE 1/4 of section 19, Burke Township.  He returned to Chicago for his wife and four young sons.  En route to South Dakota in 1905, his fours sons succumbed to the dread killer diptheria; they were buried in LeMars, Iowa where C. M.'s half sister was living.

The bereaved parents gathered their belongings and proceeded by rail to Bonesteel, South Dakota.  They continued by horse and wagon to their homestead two miles north of Burke, South Dakota and busied themselves in "proving up" their claim.  The first building was a barn wherein C. M. stored all their belongings.  Indians passing through shot flaming arrows into the roof and fire consumed everything he owned including his family records and papers.  They stayed with a neighbor while setting up their soddy and they built a larger barn; this all took place between 1905 and 1906.

A son Raymond in 1907, and a daughter Rose in 1909, were born in the prairie home.  In 1910 C.M. built a new frame house where Ambrose (1911), Victor (1913), and Conrad (1916) were born.  The house is now occupied by the Herman Lubbers family.

The children attended the Rambrant school when they became of school age.  Rose and Ambrose became teachers in Gregory County.

C.M. (Conrad Martin) Klein died July 2, 1939 at Burke, South Dakota:  Margaret C. Roller Klein passed away March 14, 1947.  They were parents of five children: Raymond (deceased) never married but farmed the homeplace; Rose (deceased) married Herman Raschke, two sons Vernon and Donald; Ambrose married Gladys Bowers (deceased 1978), six children-Margaret, James, Robert, Leroy, Kathy and Alvin.  Victor married Blanche Henrecy (deceased), a daughter Sandy; and Conrad married Maxine Mann, six children-David, Joan, Janice, Debbie and Susan."