Written and Compiled by Esther Poppens Soderberg in July 1978
Christina Witte’s father was a minister, the Reverend Philipp Witte, who became the first pastor of the Germantown Presbyterian congregation which was organized in 1886. The building was erected in 1887 on land given by Menne Plucker. It was there that John Plucker and Christina Witte met and in 1893 they were married by the bride’s father.
They lived for 28 years on a farm that was originally homesteaded by a Frenchman and purchased from him in 1884. The land was half cultivated and half prairie. Before the prairie land could produce, the grass had to be burned in the fall, and then plowed back after being broken in the spring. This was called “back-set). Wheat was the only crop that would grow on this kind of land at first.
There are many stories to be told about life in the South Dakotas – drought, poverty, and hard work. The first house that Menne built for his family in 1877 was a mud, or sot, house. Benne had to borrow money to live and at that time the interest was 10% with an additional 5% commission to the lender. By contrast, prices were low: eggs 3 cents a dozen and corn 25 to 20 cents per bushel.
Since this was a community of German people, everyone spoke in the Low German dialect and children learned their English in school. School laws in the early days did not say at what age or in what grade a pupil could leave school. High schools were uncommon so if anyone wished to continue their education, they attended an Academy.
John Plucker bought his first car in 1916, a Reo. He kept it in the granary in the alley between the bins. The story is told that after he had instructions about how to start, stop and drive the new “contraption”, he decided to park it in the “garage”, namely the alley of the granary. Everything went well until he had gone as far as he thought necessary and decided to stop, but his mind went blank and all he could say was “Whoa!” Both he and the family were happy that both doors of the granary were open at the time.
In 1921 John bought a grain elevator in Lennox and a big home on the outskirts of Lennox. John and his son, Menne, operated the elevator until 1926. John and Christina lived in the Lennox house until their deaths.
FIFTY-EIGHTH WEDDING ANNIVERSARY
MR. AND MRS. JOHN P. PLUCKER
From The Presbyterian Messenger – written by Lydia Plucker Mihelic
1951
On November 29th Mr. & Mrs. John P. Plucker of Lennox observed their 58th wedding anniversary. They have spent most of their lives in the Germantown and Lennox vicinities. The parents of both of them were pioneers. Mr. Plucker’s parents came from East Friesland, Germany to Oregon, Illinois about 1860. From there they moved to Ackley, Iowa, and in the fall of 1877 they took a homestead in the present Germantown township area. Mrs. Plucker’s father, the Reverend Philipp Witte, became the first pastor of the Germantown Presbyterian congregation which was organized in 1886. The building was erected in 1887 on land given by Menne Plucker the father of John P. It was there that John Plucker and Christina Witte met and in 1893 they were married by the bride’s father.
After 28 years of farming the family moved to their present home in Lennox. Mr. & Mrs. Plucker enjoy visiting with friends and neighbors and especially with their three daughters and one son who come to see them as often as possible. At 82 Mr. Plucker still likes to tell stories of incidents which happened in his childhood, and which are of interest to our generation in that they furnish some very sharp contrasts in methods of work and attitudes of people then and now. Some of these stories follow and could be matched by other pioneer couples whose children still live in this area.
Mr. Plucker tells that the farm which is presently owned and operated by his son, M. E. J. Plucker, was originally homesteaded by a Frenchman. His father, Menne Plucker, purchased it from him in 1884. The land was half cultivated and half prairie. Before the prairie land could produce, the prairie grass had to be burned in the fall and broken the following spring, and then it was plowed back in the fall. This was called “Back-set.” It was not till the following spring that the land was ready for sowing wheat. Corn could not be planted because the land was too hard to work.
Another recollection of Mr. Plucker is that the first summer of their married life, in 1894, there occurred a very severe drought which caused a total failure of crops, both garden and grain. Then every effort had to be made in order to keep the animals alive.
Still another story which he likes to tell is the one about their trip from Ackley, Iowa, to the homestead claim in the Germantown Township. His father came ahead to begin the homestead and to have some of the land broken. Six months later the family of six children came by train. With two wagons they brought some lumber, stock and one pig. Since there were no wild animals which could be hunted for meat, the pig which they brought with them was their only source of meat for the first year, 1878. Because of adverse circumstances, the Menne Plucker family had very little money when they moved from Illinois, and when Menne came to South Dakota to claim the homestead, he had only $5.00 in his pocket. He borrowed money to build a mud house and to buy the absolute necessities for his family. The interest on the borrowed money was 10% and a 5% commission. Another item of interest which Mr. Plucker recalls is the prices. In 1895 eggs were three cents a dozen, and corn cost 25 to 30 cents a bushel. In 1920 oats sold for $1.04 a bushel, but in 1922 it was only eight cents a bushel.
Amid all these difficulties and every day problems the Pluckers took a lively interest in the church. The church was to them a haven of rest and a source of strength. They did all in their power to preserve it for future generations. May the gracious Lord continue to grant the John P. Pluckers a pleasant eventide.
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