Franz FRIES

                   NAME:
    Josef aka Joseph
                  

                   Johannes grew up in a German speaking settlement, Landau, in the province of Cherson, Ukraine.  There he married his first wife, Ann, and had a son, Anthony John.  Ann died.  Then he married Florentine Rose Messmer who was from the village of Speier just a few miles from Landau.  They were married in the Catholic Church.  The two of them, together with his son, Anthony, decided to immigrate to the U. S. They obtained a job caring for cattle on a boat load of cattle on its way to the U. S.  The year was 1892.
       They landed in Canada and entered the U. S. through Pembina, North Dakota in May 1892.  Johannes (also known as John) applied for United States citizenship in Morton county, North Dakota in October 1894.  Three children were born to them in North Dakota.  Later, Florentine divorced Johannes.
       During their years in North Dakota, they lived on the Standing Rock Indian Reservation.  Johannes worked for the railroad. Florentine herded sheep.  They were both away from home all day long so they left their children in the poor house in Mandan.  They spoke only German.