This is a photo of the Winter family cabin constructed in 1856, and located on the bank of a creek in Section 28 of Plymouth Twp., Plymouth County, Iowa. The cabin was torn down in the early 1910s.
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My great great great great grandfather, Dietrich Winter (Sr.) was of the first band of white permanent settlers in Plymouth County, Iowa in 1856. At the time of their settlement Plymouth County was part of Woodbury County. A group of 28 settlers originally from Hesse-Darmstadt, Germany settled on the Floyd River Valley, known as Melbourne, in Plymouth Twp., Iowa. These first families consisted of Schneiders, Winters, Schindels, Schmidts, Emmerts, and Helds. There settlement was located between Plymouth and Hungerford Townships. With their successes the first seat of Plymouth County was located here until 1872. Dietrich was born ca 1804, first married to Johannah Metzer , and she died in childbirth having their one son, (1)Philip Winter , b. 1825, and married Elizabeth Hottum , and Dietrich married (2) Anna Magdalena Sauer , and they had the following children live to adulthood; (2)Anna Maria Winter married Frederick Held ; (3)Katherine Winter married John Schneider ; (4)Louis Frederick Winter married Henrietta Kannow ; (5)John Christian Winter married Regina Lentz ; (6)Elizabeth Winter married Erhard Held, Jr.,(7)Henry Winter married Rosinna Fissel , and Dietrich "Dieder" Winter married Augusta Tiesler. |
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This is a photo of Dietrich's eldest child, Philip Winter, who was to have remained in Germany and care for the family vineyard. Philip's son, Dietrich (Jr.) came to Plymouth County, Iowa when he was of age. Philip died in 1868, in Germany. We are not certain if he visited Plymouth Co., Iowa? This photo taken in 1867 of Johannah Winter Maschmann with her father Philip Winter holding another daughter, Elizabeth, and sons Dietrich and Leonard It has an early LeMars, Iowa photographer's emblem on the back of this original photo. A few of the Helds went back and forth to Germany from U.S., so we know within the community they did do this. |
Dietrich was a vineyard farmer and hired a tutor to assist his family in learning English prior to making the move to Plymouth County, Iowa. A group of family and friends had settled in Ogle County, Illinois, and it was under the leadership of Dietrich's son-in-law, John Schneider (with two others) that they set out first and arrived near Section 4 of Hungerford Twp. on 3 Jul 1856, with the rest following yet that summer. Journals of these early settlers tell of the buffalo, prairie chickens and native Indians, who the Floyd River Valley settlers worked in peace to make their settlement. Dietrich worked as a transporter bringing lumber and goods from Sioux City, Iowa and St. John's City, Nebraska (present day Dakota Co., NE) they called the area Jackson Co., Nebraska (though a Jackson county does not exist.) In 1857, a group of settlers near Westfield began and Dietrich assisted hauling goods to this community. The Westfield settlement attempted to drive off the native people, and within a few years their settlement was defunct. Dietrich settled near Section 28 of Plymouth Twp., his son, Louis later taking over this settlement in 1861. Dietrich moved to Jackson, Nebraska and was buried in Ponca, Nebraska. Dietrich was referred to as Dietrich, Sr., and his grandson, Dietrich Winter, Jr. (the son of his eldest son, Philip). Dietrich Winter, Jr. operated Winter's General Store in Hinton from 1892 until his son closed the business in 1971. This store was moved to Pioneer Village at the Plymouth County Fair Grounds and is occupied by the Sportsman Trading Post.
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