Family Recipe Friday - Ribbon Cookies

My great grandmother, Lulu (Robideau) Elsner used to make these cookies every Christmas.  I don't know what newspaper she got the recipe from, but just like it says on the recipe, they are "lovely to look at - delicious to taste"!

1 cup butter or shortening
1/4 cup each of candied cherries and broken pecan nuts
1 ounce milk chocolate, melted
2 tablespoons poppy seed
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 1/2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 egg, beaten
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

  "First sift flour, measure and sift twice with the baking powder and salt, then cream sugar and shortening until light, add egg and beat until smooth and fluffy, add flour mixture a little at a time and mix thoroughly.  Divide dough into three portions, add chopped cherries to one part, nut and chocolate to the second part and the poppy seed to the third.
  "Line a small bread pan with heavy waxed paper, pack the chocolate and nut mixture in the bottom as evenly as possible, over this pack the cherry dough and top it with the poppy seed mixture, cover with waxed paper and chill in the refrigerator overnight.  When ready to bake, turn out of pan and slice very thin, place on lightly greased cookie sheet and bake in hot oven (400 degrees) about 10 minutes or until lightly browned.
  "This dough may be stored in the refrigerator for days and baked as desired.  Makes about 8 dozen thin cookies."

  Tips:  1.  Don't forget to add the vanilla!  The recipe lists it as an ingredient but never tells you to add it.  I add it when I cream the sugar and shortening.  2.  The poppy seeds are optional.  They add a very nice flavor and I love them, but I leave them out because nowadays people are subject to random drug tests and poppy seeds can give a false reading.  3.  I always add a couple drops of red food coloring to the cherry mixture.

Enjoy!

Wordless Wednesday - The Princeton Union: Thursday, December 21, 1911

From the Library of Congress, Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers site.
http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83016758/1911-12-21/ed-1/seq-6

Happenings in Greenbush, Minnesota on December 7, 1911

The following was printed in The Princeton Union on Thursday, December 7, 1911 on Page 7.  It was under the heading of "The Farm Fireside. Gleanings by our Country Correspondents......" under the Greenbush section.

The Princeton Union, Thursday, Dec. 7, 1911, pg. 7

  The school children of district 5 are

preparing for a Christmas program.

  Frank Grow was among the crowd

who attended the dance in Santiago

on Thursday.

  Mr. and Mrs. Sidney Grow and

son, Leland, of Foley were here visiting

with relatives a few days.

   Quite a number of young people of

this vicinity attended the dance at

Santiago last Thursday evening.

  Mr. and Mrs. Nels Robideau and

Mr. and Mrs. Sidney Grow were welcome

callers at Mr. and Mrs. John

Odegard's on Sunday.

  A dance will be given at the residence

of Nels Robideau on Friday,

December 15. Supper will be served

and a good time is assured. Everyone

is invited.

  Mr. and Mrs. Rant Ross, Mr. and

Mrs. Sidney Grow, Mr. and Mrs.

Clyde Ross, Miss Conroy and Miss

Davis called on Mr. and Mrs. Thomas

Grow on Sunday.

  Mr. and Mrs. R. A. Ross and

daughter, Orpha, and Mr. and Mrs.

Sidney Grow and son, Leland, visited

with Mr. and Mrs. John Grow and

family on Sunday.
                                                             

  Most of the people in this article are my relatives!  I'll try to explain who they are, and later on, in a different posting, I will give you more information on each one of them.
  First, Mr. & Mrs. Nels Robideau are my great great grandparents.  Nels and Annie (Grow) Robideau are my great grandmother Lulu (Robideau) Elsner's parents.
  Five of Annie Grow's siblings are mentioned: John Grow, Sidney Grow, Thomas Grow, Alma Grow (Mrs. John Odegard), and Frank Grow.
  At the time this was written, Frank Grow was single and 20 years old;  Sidney Grow, 34, was married to Nellie (Ross), 29, and their son Leland was 6; John Odegard, abt 29, was married to Alma (Grow), 26; Thomas Grow, 27, was married to Ella (Taylor), 22; John Grow, 40, was married to Mary (Burke), 41.
  I wonder how many people attended the dinner and dance at the Robideau home?!  At the time, Nels, 45, and Annie, 38, had 11 children and one on the way.  My great grandmother, Lulu was 15 yrs old.  So there were already a lot of people in attendance!
 





Newspaper is from the Library of Congress, Chronicling America: Historic American Newspaper site: http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/lccn/sn83016758/1911-12-07/ed-1/seq-7/

Sunday's Obituary - Zilla Gawehn

This obituary is for Zilla (Richter) Gawehn.  It was published in the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette on Sunday, March 14, 1954, pg. 12A.

REV. ZILLA GAWEHN
  The Rev. Mrs. Zilla Gawehn, 90, died at 7 p.m. yesterday in her home, 513 East Suttenfield St., where she had been ill a week with pneumonia.
  She was born in East Prussia, Germany, and came here in 1890.  She was a member of the First Spiritualist Church.
  Surviving are two sons, George and Erich J. Gawehn, Fort Wayne; and two daughters, the Misses Betty and Luella Gawehn, also Fort Wayne.
  The body was taken to the C. M. Sloan & Sons Funeral Home, where friends may call after 7 p.m. today.


  ____________________________

  Zilla was Lydia (Richter) Elsner's sister.  Zilla was born Oct. 26, 1863 in Germany and married August F. Gawehn in about 1885.  She immigrated to America in 1890 along with her husband and two children, George and Elizabeth.  They settled in Fort Wayne, Indiana and they had  two more children, Luella and Erich.
 
  Zilla's husband August died October 20, 1929.  Her sister Lydia died April 7, 1936 leaving behind her husband of more than 50 years, Albert Elsner. 
 
  Zilla married Albert Elsner on Dec. 28, 1936 just 8 months after her sister died.  Zilla and Albert were married for 11 years before he passed away on July 5, 1947.

  The only new information that this obituary provides is that Zilla was a Reverend.  I was hoping there would be a mention of other Richter family members that were either surviving or had passed before her.  Oh well, I'll just have to keep looking!

Wordless Wednesday - Remembering my dad

Me and Dad, Sept. 1962

                                   Steven LeGrande Warner
                         December 7, 1940 - September 3, 2002

Sunday's Obituary - Albert John Elsner

This obituary for Albert Elsner was printed in the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette on Thursday, July 3, 1947, Pg. 10.

ALBERT JOHN ELSNER

  Funeral services will be conducted Saturday for Albert John Elsner, 89, who died at 2:40 a.m. Wednesday of a heart ailment at his home, 2540 Thompson Avenue.

  Services will be held at 3 p.m. in the Harry Wilson Funeral Home, Dr. B. F. Clark, of Indianapolis, officiating.  Burial will be in Lindenwood Cemetery.

  Mr. Elsner was a retired farmer.  He was born in West Prussia, Germany, and came to the United States in 1890.  He had been in failing health for several months.

  Survivors include the wife, Mrs. Zella Elsner; four children, Mrs. Elizabeth Kettelhodt, Princeton, Minn., Otto Elsner, Minnesota, Fred Elsner, Chicago, and Eric Elsner, Los Angeles; four stepchildren, George, Luella, Elizabeth and Erich Gawehn, all of Fort Wayne; eight grandchildren and one great-grandchild.

  Friends may view the body at the funeral home after 7 p.m. today.

_________________________

I believe that Zilla is probably the one that gave the information for this obituary to the newspaper.  I was hoping to find out if Albert had any siblings.  I'm not sure if the information is accurate about him being born in West Prussia as I have only ever seen or heard Germany as his place of birth.  So I will check into that and see what I can find out about it.  Also, he did not immigrate in 1890, it was 1887.