Stories of the Land: German Immigration

Story 1 – Leaving Germany

The first emigrants from Mecklenburg-Schwerin came to the town of Middleton in the early 1850s. Many of these immigrants were laborers or skilled tradesmen, looking for opportunities for a better life.

Story 2 – Coming to America

Around 1851, the first German settlers from Mecklenburg-Schwerin arrived west of Madison. The journey from Mecklenburg to Wisconsin was difficult and expensive, and could take as long as 12 weeks.

Story 3 – Early German Settlers

In the 1850s & 60s, the first house of most immigrant settlers was a one-room log cabin. German Immigrant Joachim Goth lived with his wife, mother and 8 children in a small cabin here on this land.

Story 4 – Farming, A Family Affair

Life for the new settlers wasn’t easy. It was often dominated by work and required learning new skills and farming practices. Boys helped their fathers in the field, while the girls helped their mothers in the house and in the garden.

Story 5 – Schools

Until 1878, German immigrant children in the Town of Middleton had only minimal formal schooling. There was no school building, the school year was fragmented, and it was hard to find qualified teachers. At first, many of the children of the Mecklenburg, Germany families went to church schools where pastors taught bible verses, catechism, and hymns.

Story 6 – Church

Immigrants from Mecklenburg, Germany who settled in the Pope Farm Conservancy neighborhood tried to preserve their culture as much as possible. The first immigrant community building was often a church. In 1852, immigrants from Mecklenburg who lived in the area around the Pope Farm Conservancy founded the first German Evangelical Lutheran Congregation.

Part 7 – Social Life and Language

For many German Immigrant families in the town of Middleton, church was the center of social life. Special celebrations, church holidays, picnics, choir meetings, and other occasions brought the congregation together. In conversation, they spoke English, German, or the Mecklenburg dialect.

Part 8 – The Goth Family

The Goth Family were among the several hundred immigrants from the Mecklenberg region in Germany who settled in the town of Middleton in the 1850s and 1860s. Joachim (James) Goth, a farm laborer lived with his wife, mother and 8 children in a small cabin on the land that is now Pope Farm Conservancy.

Part 9 – The German Cabin Site at PFC

The German cabin site was rediscovered at Pope Farm Conservancy in 2008. Who lived here, and why? What was it like to live in this one-room log cabin, sharing space with a large family? Watch and learn how James Goth and his family lived on this hillside over 150 years ago.