i. Johann
(John) ISAAK was born on 20 Jun 1863 in Josephsdorf, Bessarabia, Ukraine.
He died on 28 Dec 1929 in American Falls, Power Co., Idaho. He has reference
number 176. He was buried in American Falls, Power Co., Idaho.
24 ii.
Wilhelm (William) ISAAK.
iii.
Gottielf ISAAK (photo) was born on 30 Jul
1874 in Danelsfield, Bessarabia, Ukraine. He immigrated about 1880 to Parkston,
Hutchinson Co., South Dakota.(146) He
died on 19 Jul 1937 in McMinnville, Oregon.(147)
-17-
The Family of Gotthilf and Katharina Isaak
(Taken from Family History of Clara Stinnett nee Isaak, Gotthilf's daughter)
Katharina, the oldest daughter of Peter and Elizabeth Mehlhaff, was six months old when they arrived in the United States. Fortunately she was not old enough to know what hardships they were enduring. She was the baby they had to carry when they went to work at Menno, which was fifteen miles from their homestead. I am sure those trips back and forth were long, difficult and tiring for all, but with the determination and foresight of my grandparents they made the best of it.
In those days there was not too much opportunity for school but they all made the best of whatever advantages there were.
(Katharina is John P. Mehlhaff's sister)
Mother grew up in this vicinity and married Gotthilf Isaak on November 10, 1896. His parents, Mr. and Mrs. August Isaak, migrated to this country the same time as my mother's parents did. He was six years old when they came here.
He was reared in the same wonderful Christian atmosphere as my mother. This is a double heritage for which we have all been grateful down through the years.
When they were first married, they settled on a farm in the Tripp area. Their home consisted of a sod house, and if I know my father, it was built to last. He was very mechanically minded and whatever he built, or made, it was as firm as the rock of Gibraltar. He often used the expression: "dess ist guss eise fescht", meaning as solid as iron.
On two 'separate occasions I visited the farm where they lived when they were first married. My first time was in the 1930's and I was looking around the farm, and low and behold in the machine shed there was what I would call an elevator, manually operated of course, which consisted of a big wheel, rope and whatever else it took, that was used to lift the lighter machinery to the second floor. If there was a way to make the work easier, my father would come up with it. In the summer of 1976 my husband and I again visited the farm and found that the cistern was still being used that was constructed when my parents homesteaded.
The five oldest children, Edward, Nathaniel, Theophiel, Pauline and Emma were born in South Dakota. They were still youngsters when my parents decided to move to Yakima, Washington. He wanted to settle in that fruitful
_______________________________________
-18-
country but made the mistake of letting folks talk him into settling and homesteading in Idaho. They had stopped at American Falls to see relatives and friends and after much persuasion, they changed their plans and homesteaded at American Falls. Gotthilf cleared land near Neeley. He built a house towards the river.
The clearing of the land was a long and difficult task. It was covered with sagebrush, which had to be grubbed and burned before they could cultivate the soil.
Once again my father's inventive skills were put to use. When they first drilled for a well, the well driller had gone quite deep when he hit an air pocket and lost his equipment. But my father captured onto this, made a dugout cellar, above which he built the sommer kuchen (summer kitchen), which served as their first home. The air pocket made an automatic ventilation system in the dugout cellar. He put a screen over the air vent, built a cupboard around it and this was my mother's refrigeration system. Here she was able to keep her butter, cream, milk, meat and whatever needed to be kept cool. It was almost equal to the modern refrigerator. The main part of the dugout was used to hang their hams, bacon, sausage, etc.
As time went on, the remaining buildings were built, which included a beautiful farm home.
The first few years were prosperous as the land was new, and they did real well. But as time went on, misfortune began paying its toll.
There were crop failures, dust storms, grasshoppers, and what have you. Each misfortune left its mark financially.
During those first few years my parents fought the common enemy - 'Russian Thistles'. They could grow when nothing else could. Day after day they had to go to the fields and try to hoe out the thistles, stack and burn them. Finally my father came up with an invention which he called Isaak's Rotary Rod Weeder'. He invented and built the original machine and patented it. This was very successful in uprooting the thistles, and at the same time did not hurt the grain. I am proud to say, his machine, although he sold his patent when he could no longer build them because of ill health and finances, is still used extensively today.
_______________________________________
-19-
When his health broke, my parents traded their farm for a place in McMinnville, Oregon. Here he regained his health and they farmed, raised chickens and dad did some garden plowing for people in the community. Those years were filled with many fond memories. Times were difficult but the love of God, family 'togetherness' and fun played an important part. We didn't have much, but no-one could have been any richer in experiences, laughter and fun. Our home seemed to be the gathering place for family, neighbors and friends, particularly on Friday evenings. Every Friday our parents would ask 'how many freezers of ice cream should we make today'. We know, and so did everyone else, that the welcome mat was out and come one - come all. Some of the greatest memories of all, were the 'sings' around the piano. 'Whoever' could play 'whatever' would gather 'round and dad would sing.
While we were on this acreage, in 1937, my father was called home to be with the Lord. My brothers had married, had established homes of their own and my two sisters and I remained on the farm with mother until she sold the place and moved to Salem.
Now, looking back over my shoulder, I shall pick up a bit more about the family itself.
After my parents moved to Idaho, Alvin, Helen and Clara were born. When Emma was just a baby my mother's father passed away so mother went to South Dakota for the funeral. She took Pauline with her, who was six years of age at the time. Incidentally, mother often said, Pauline was an unusual child, never wanted to play where she would get her clothes dirty. She was unusually kind and sweet. As a matter of fact often said, she felt she was too good for this world.
After grandfather's funeral, Pauline insisted she wanted to go home but mother wasn't read to go. However, grandmother said "that child has a reason,, you'd better go'. .so to satisfy her wish, mother returned home. When she got home, Pauline climbed up on my father's lap and hugged and kissed him and he expressed his happiness for having her home and she said:,-, but dad, I won't be here long". He was shocked and couldn't believe his ears " said to her, "why do you say that, you're not even sick". She said "You'll see' and a week later she was gone.
I am proud to write about my brothers, and sisters. My oldest brother Edward inherited my father's mechanical talent. He was gifted in many avenues of this field. He could overhaul a car and make it run when no-one else could. All he would have to do is drive it around the block and he could tell you what was wrong with it. He was also an efficient welder. As a matter of fact, he found a way to weld 'pot metal'. They said it couldn't be done, but he found a - way and it has been used succesfully since.
Nathaniel, or 'Dan' as we called him, was equally talented in the electrical field and radio. He briefly attended Linfield College where he pursued his talents. He mm home and built our first radio. It was the first radio in the community and I can definitely remember when he
_______________________________________
-20-
built it. The frame was a 'puffed wheat box and he hand-wrapped all the coils that went :into it. My father would laughingly kid him and say, "Do you expect that thing to work?" and much to his amazement it did work. I will never forget when Dan turned it on, put the earphones on dad's head & the look on dad's face when he could hear voices. His eyes got as big an silver dollars and said 'it works!"
Later, he built a bigger set and everyone in the neighborhood would come over and 'listen to the radio'. That was quite a treat. This particular radio was used as a 'give-away' prize at the Leader Hardware Store, uncle John's store. I have often regretted we didn't keep his first radio as a momento.
After moving to McMinnville, he and my other brothers, Ed, Ted and Al, owned and operated two grocery stores (one in McMinnville and one in Salem). After they sold the stores, he pursued several other fields and the last years of his life he spent in the Real Estate Business.
Theophiel, or 'Ted' was gifted in reclamation work and would have made a great success at it if he could have pursued this profession. The reclamation crew begged him to work for them but his loyalties kept him on the farm. While on the farm he also worked for uncle John at his store in American Falls and learned a lot about the grocery business. He put this knowledge to use when he and my other brothers operated their stores in McMinnville and Salem, Oregon. After they sold the stores, he too pursued other professions and spent the last number of years building homes and was very successful at it.
Emma was born in Parkston, South Dakota. She too had a hidden talent that she was never able to develop. During my father's illness she played an important role in his care. As a matter of fact, she was so efficient, even as a teenager, the doctor who cared for my father said: "why don't you send that child to nurses' training, she is a natural and is doing m more good than the special nurse you are paying for". It was too bad, but because of finances, she couldn't fulfill her own personal dreams - she would have made a great nurse. But instead she showered her talents, love and generosity on the rest of the family and gave so much of herself to everyone else. She never thought of her own needs, it was always the other follow. I can honestly say I have never known a sweeter, kinder person in my whole life. She worked hard at whatever she did. She worked at Hollywood Cleaners for a number of years and the last few years she worked in the State Cafeteria as head of the salad department.
Alvin, or 'Al', was the youngest of the boys. He went to High School in McMinnville. After high school he joined his brothers in the grocery business where he remained until they sold. After he left the grocery business, he went into Real Estate. He was very successful in this field and I think the thing I am so proud of was the share he had in shaping up the 'code of ethics'. He believed in helping people find what they wanted in the price they could afford, rather than what 'gains' it meant for him. He also had a very special gift - the gift of leadership and speaking ability.
_______________________________________
-21-
Helen was originally named 'Irene', but when dad learned there was a theatre named the 'Irene Theatre' he said: "No daughter of mine is going to be named after a theatre." So she was called by her middle name. After high school she became employed at the Oregon Mutual Fire Insurance Company and became a very successful key-punch operator. As a matter of fact she became the first to learn how to operate the key-punch machine at Oregon Mutual and they didn't want to let her resign when she planned to move to Salem. After leaving McMinnville, she worked for the State of Oregon until she married and moved to Galt, California. Where's Galt? Well, its a little dot on the map about 23 miles South of Sacramento. A quaint little town where she does a great job as a 'housewife' and a 'grandmother'.
Clara, the youngest of the clan went to Neeley school the first four years, then one year in American Falls and finished grammar school in McMinnville, Oregon. She also attended High School in McMinnville, where She graduated. The summer she graduated she started working for Oregon Mutual Fire Insurance Company. She worked ton years, then went to Bob Jones College in Cleveland, Tennessee (now located in Greenville, South Carolina) for one year. In the interim, mother sold her place and she, Emma and Helen moved to Salem, Oregon.
After completing the school term she went to Kansas City where she taught bible school for the summer. This included five sessions in the colored churches and one session in a white church. After completion of the bible school sessions she returned to Salem and went to work for the State of Oregon as a Secretary and remained there until she retired in May of '76.
This concludes the chit-chat about our family but in conclusion I would like to pay tribute to my wonderful parents who gave us such a rich Christian heritage. One of my friends once told me a couple of years before mother passed away, "I could learn by sitting at your mother's knee".
I thought that was a beautiful tribute.
Some of the fondest memories in my life are: hearing my father read the scriptures out loud every night and kneeling in prayer, and seeing both of them reading the scriptures so faithfully. If they were here today, I would like to say again: "Thanks for giving us so much - you really gave us a richness in Him". How thankful I am that I can say that all our families are Christians.
Would also like to say a 'special note of appreciation' to all the beautiful people my brothers and sisters married, and to their families. Although I have had the misfortune of losing both of my parents, all my brothers and one sister, I have the joy of my 'in-laws' who mean so much to me. And when I express all the above, I know I can say without a doubt, Helen joins me in my thoughts and thanks. Helen and I are the only ones left out of our family but we have the warmth of 'fond memories' that will live in our hearts forever.
______________________________________
-22-
'We are so thankful that we can say, all those who are gone know Christ as their own personal Savior and have gone to their eternal rest in Heaven.
In closing, a special tribute to my husband a beautiful Christian, for taking such wonderful care of my mother during her illness the last two years.
. . . Submitted by Clara Stinnett nee Isaak
iv.
Jacob ISAAK was born in 1875 in Damlsfeld, Bessarabia, Ukraine. He died
in South Dakota.
Return to Table of Contents
