​In Touch With Prairie Living

By Michael M. Miller 

michael.miller@ndsu.edu

My October column includes a heartwarming interview with Christina (Gross) Jundt on October 14, 1998, at Rugby, ND, performed by her first cousin, Brother Placid Gross, Assumption Abbey, Richardton, ND. Entry the entire transcription right here: https://hdl.deal with.web/10365/31673.

Christina was born on November 10, 1909, and died on April 18, 2006. Her mother and father had been Clemens and Catherine (Leier) Gross. She attended Brazil Faculty #3 in Pierce County and accomplished her training at St. James Academy in Grand Forks. When Christina got here residence to the Gross farm, she labored in a cook dinner automotive for the native farmers and did farm chores at residence. Christina married Thomas P. Jundt in Balta, ND. For 22 years, she cooked on the Little Flower Catholic Faculty at Rugby, ND.

Christina’s mom, Catherine, was 12 years previous when the household emigrated from South Russia to North Dakota. Christina recalled, “I keep in mind one factor that bothered my mom essentially the most that we didn’t have a pleasant place for swimming. She stated in Russia when she grew up it was virtually a sin if the kids couldn’t go swimming, and she or he missed that rather a lot.”

“Grandpa John talked about how they’d every kind of fruit timber at residence in Russia. They didn’t can or freeze in these days. It wasn’t enjoyable to go and decide by yourself timber, so that they go to the neighbors and snatch the fruit. Sure, they’d quite a lot of fruit timber. Then once they come to North Dakota they’d nothing.”

Christina shared an expertise of the ship which carried the household over the Atlantic Ocean, “The ship obtained into an iceberg. It had an enormous gap in it. So, they only form of floated alongside, and everyone who might maintain a pail had to assist bail out water. They’d all obtained the final rites and so they sang and prayed. They had been all ready to die. After about ten days, a small fishing vessel got here by and stated, ‘We are able to’t pull you except you throw overboard all the pieces you possibly can probably spare. Make the ship as mild as you possibly can.’ The passengers needed to unload many invaluable objects of their baggage and throw into the Atlantic Ocean. The ship arrived at New York Metropolis, and so they had been protected.”

Christina remembers talking German as a baby. “We spoke half German and half English. We didn’t speak an excessive amount of German as a result of most of our neighbors had been Norwegian. My mom couldn’t converse Norwegian and the neighbor woman couldn’t speak German, however the two might sit down and have an enormous dialog collectively. The neighbors had been well-to-do. They didn’t need to have their ladies to have something higher than what we had. So, earlier than faculty began, the mom would come to our home with the catalogs. My mom would inform her what she was going to order us to go to highschool in, after which the neighbor woman would get the identical garments. They ordered from Montgomery Wards and Sears Roebuck catalogs.”

Whereas attending St. James Academy boarding faculty at Grand Forks, ND, Christina shared this reminiscence. “Within the spring we obtained rhubarb morning, midday, and supper. We obtained uninterested in it. So, sooner or later when the nuns had been within the prayer hour, we snuck out and we tore out all of the rhubarb and threw it over the fence. Just a bit bit on the opposite facet on the Lutheran sister’s faculty. They wore grey. So, once they noticed the rhubarb destroyed, we needed to go to the chapel and pray with the Lutheran youngsters as a result of we had been so imply and ruined the rhubarb.”

Christina reminisced about constructing the Catholic church at Balta, ND, “I keep in mind once they had been constructing the church at Balta, my of us took down the kerosene range. They took virtually all of the dishes and kettles. They fed the employees there. It was all volunteer work. That weekend we obtained two carloads of individuals from Napoleon to assist. We needed to go to the neighbors and borrow kettles and dishes.”

“When Grandma Gross died, anyone made the coffin and it value $9. Grandpa Gross stated, ‘Don’t you dare give me something higher than what Grandma had.’ When Grandpa died, I believe it was $400. He would have seemed humorous within the $9 coffin.”

The Gross household saved in contact with the households left behind in Russia and would ship a lot wanted garments. “We despatched them coats and sweaters. Tom had a go well with he had for a few years, the go well with he obtained married in, and stated, ‘Ship them my go well with too.’ So, we obtained a pleasant letter again, and so they stated the oldest son was the speak of the group as a result of he obtained married within the go well with we despatched over. The opposite boys had all been getting married in patched overalls.”

Christina remembers sending an enormous field to the kinfolk in Russia for Christmas. “Tom stated, ‘Why don’t we splurge and get of packing containers of Hershey bars and a few walnuts and stick them in between the towels and garments.’ The kinfolk in Russia had a 12-year-old woman. Later the woman came around Gross kinfolk in Napoleon. I went over and requested her if she remembers that her of us as soon as obtained a bundle from North Dakota that had walnuts and chocolate sweet. She stated, ‘Sure, the chocolate!’ I stated we had been the kinfolk who despatched the bundle. She hugged me. She stated, ‘That’s the biggest factor you may have performed. We would have liked garments and we wanted meals, however after we noticed the chocolate, we had been simply thrilled.’”

“We had a creamery in Silva the place they purchased chickens and butchered them and shipped them out. The primary 12 months we farmed, we had a reasonably good crop. In the future we obtained utterly worn out – hailstorm. So, all we had was about 1,000 chickens. We charged all the pieces, the chickens, gas, and gasoline from the shop in Silva. Tom advised the shop proprietor, ‘I’m sorry we’re not going to pay our invoice. However we’ve about 1,000 chickens. We need to preserve a minimum of 100 for wintering and butchering, and we’ll provide the relaxation, or else 5 cows. We gives you each different cream examine and pay you that manner.’ The Silva retailer proprietor stated, ‘No I’ve a special thought, you invite my spouse and me out for Sunday night time supper.’ Tom replied, ‘You’ll be able to come out for supper greater than as soon as. You simply come out to the farm everytime you really feel prefer it.’ We paid for what he had charged throughout the summer season with the chickens.”

Christina was a shining star in Prairie Public’s award-winning 2012 documentary, At Residence in Russia, At Residence on the Prairie.

YOU SHOULD KNOW

Germans from Russia Heritage Assortment, NDSU Libraries: For extra details about donating household histories and images, or the way to financially assist the GRHC, contact Michael M. Miller, NDSU Libraries, Dept. 2080, PO Field 6050, Fargo, ND 58108-6050, (Tel: 701-231-8416); michael.miller@ndsu.edu; or go to library.ndsu.edu/grhc.