SHEBOYGAN HISTORY

John Henry Boldt, Page 406

JOHN HENRY BOLDT, one of the worthy pioneers of Sheboygan County, now engaged in operating his farm on section 15, Sheboygan Falls Township, has been a resident of the county for nearly half a century, and has ever been identified with her best interests.  The birthplace of Mr. Boldt was in Mechlenburg-Schweren, Germany, the date of the event being November 26, 1827.  He is one of eight children born to Henry Johann and Sophia (Burkenhauer) Boldt.  Four of the number are now living.  Christoff, Sophia and Elizabeth are still in Germany.  Mr. Boldt was twenty-five years old when he set sail for America, landing in New York after six weeks on the broad Atlantic.  He proceeded to Milwaukee, by the way of the Lakes, and came by boat to Sheboygan.  In this city he stayed over night, but there was not a frame house in the place at the time.  For ten or twelve years he worked for a family, and then bought forty acres of timber-land, the farm where he now lives.

    It was in 1862 that Mr. Boldt married Miss Sophia Dankwert, who also came from the same part of the Fatherland.  Five children graced their union.  Herman is a member of the firm of Ballschmidder & Boldt, of Sheboygan Falls; Heinrich is married and lives on a farm which he purchased of his father; Mary is in Milwaukee; Lina lives at home; and Anna is deceased.  On the 25th of March, 1891, Mr. Boldt was called upon to mourn the loss of his loving wife.  Her daughter had died but a short time before, and the mother was not able to recover from the loss.  She was laid to rest in the churchyard on the Green Bay Road.

    After our subject's marriage, the young couple lived in a log house, and though they suffered privations they always looked back to those days as the happiest of their lives.  Mr. Boldt has now retired from active cares, having given over his property to his children, for he did not wish them to experience the hardships that he had had in former years.  This valuable farm, which is still his home, is five miles from Sheboygan Falls, and eight miles distant from Sheboygan.  he has seen the country transformed from a wilderness to its present state of beautiful farms and enterprising villages.  Religiously, Mr. Boldt is a member of the Lutheran Church of Sheboygan Falls, of which Rev. Mr. Hillman is Pastor.  In politics, he is a Republican, but cast his first vote for James Buchanan.