The Buri Family History or Digging Up Bones

They lived near a small village called Krauchthal in Switzerland, ne of the city of Bern in the Canton of Bern. They spoke German and attended the Reformed Church of Hettiswil.

In the 1850's there was a great famine in Germany and Switzerland and the Swiss Government paid people their passage to America hoping thier would be fewer mouths to feed there.

They came to the U.S. when they were 57 and 53 years old,hardly an age for them to start over in a new land, leaving their oldest daughter, Anna Lisette behindwhom was already married and had children of their own. Later two of the grandchildren came to the U.S. They brought with them 6 sons, 3 daughters and 1 grandson. Barbara baked many loaves of bread so they could eat on their journey . After baking the bread, she cut and roasted it, before eating, they poured hot water over it to soften it.

The ships name was the Christiani, led by Captain Anderson.It took 37 days of and many storms later. The Burris settled in Crown Point, In until 1858, until they heard of cheap land in Mn. Their daughter Verena, stayed in In with husband, Peter Hack and later started Hack Mills.

They traveled to Mn in oxen driven wagons and walked much of the way. They stayed with their neighbors until they built their log cabin.All they had to eat was deer meat and crandberries. They bought their land fo $400.78 in 1866. The original house was located where the couple is now buried. Their log cabin burned and so they built a large frame house and dug a new well with a windmill so they had plenty of water.

When the Civil War broke out, thier son David went to war and served with Gen. Sherman. Before the conflict was over, all 6 sons and one grandson had served in the Northern army. Three brothers, Johann, David and Fred plus nephew, John J. enlisted together at Fort Snelling on Dec.19, 1861 and served in the same Co, 5th Regiment, Co A. One son, Friedrich, died during the war as did one grandson, Johan.

Meanwhile at home, Sioux Indians stopped at homesteads for water and rest. Many men did not want to leave their families, in leiu of the Indian uprisings in Nwq Ulm, Mn.

Fighting during the war was heavy and the Burri's suffered from wounds and disease. The book "Minnesota in the Civil War and Indians" published by the Pioneer Press in 1891 gives us much information.

One interesting story about David Burri is that near the end of the war, a young freed slave boy named Raleigh Ashley took a liking to David. Since he din't know where his parents were and he had no home, he followed David and the Mn boys on their journey home. He cooked for them and curried their horses in return for meals. Upon their arrival in West Concord, Mn, where David lived, he took Raleigh to the blacksmith and cut off hsi shackles. Releigh lived with David and eventually married David's wife's sister, Pauline Lick, who was expecting their first child. Eventually the family settled in the little town of Dundas, Mn. Raleigh met his death on a rearing horse, while drunk, giving old rebel war whoops. Some of his children marred American Indians and his descendents live in the Rochester, Mn area.

Upon Benedict's death in 1867, the ownership of the farmpassed unto his some Benedict Junior.He married a widow with 6 children. Plus they had two boys and a girl together. The younger son, August, inherited the 120 acres of the farm in 1903. August later married Ann Bauer, who was from Germany, and they had 8 children together.

August Buri spent his entire 80 years on the farm. He saw rich soil cleared and Montgomery, Mn grew into a town. He saw the first train stream thru. Two of his daughters still live on the farm that was built in 1920 after the old original house was torn down. The Municipal Golf Course surrounds the farm and in fact owns the Buri home. But Benedict and Barbara"s graves remain visible with their large white stones surrounded by a fence. It reminds us that this land was once wild and unsettled.

A great deal of credit goes to Helen Meyer, gd of David and Fannie Bury and her sister Dorothy Dodge and they both live in Montgomery, Mn on the original Burri homestead.

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