John Sautter Farmhouse

Johann:
"Summertime — ach, that was when the farm truly woke up. I'd be out before the sun with the horses, tilling the fields. The ground smelled rich, full of promise. There was always something to plant, something to fix, something needing your hands."

Anna:
"While he worked the fields, I was already busy in the kitchen — baking bread, churning butter, packing baskets for the boys. In summer, it seemed the house hardly ever cooled down. We kept the windows wide open and hoped for a breeze."

Johann:
"The boys would help in the vineyard, training the grapevines. We planted those grapes ourselves, row by row. And the orchard! You could smell the apples ripening by late July. Those trees were our pride, weren't they, Anna?"

Anna:
"They were. I canned as many apples as my hands could manage — applesauce, apple butter, jars and jars lined up in the cellar. And there were always neighbors stopping by. You never sent a man away from the farm without a jar of something sweet."

Johann:
"In the evenings, after the work was done, we'd sit on the porch. I'd whittle a little, and Anna would sew. The kids chased fireflies until they couldn't keep their eyes open. Those were the good days — tired days, but good ones."

Anna:
"But then winter would come, and with it, a different kind of work."

Johann:
"Ja, the first snow always came sudden, like a door slamming shut. We'd spend days before that getting ready — chopping wood, stacking hay, patching leaks in the barn roof."

Anna:
"The house would be wrapped tight as we could make it. I'd hang quilts over the windows and bake all day to keep the stove running hot. Everything slowed down, but it never stopped. You still had animals to feed, water to haul, fires to tend."

Johann:
"Some mornings, the pump would be frozen solid. I'd have to break the ice with a hammer just to get water. And Lord help you if you had to visit the outhouse in the middle of the night!"

Anna:
(laughing) "Ja, and the children all fighting over who got to sit closest to the stove for lessons! I'd keep them busy — sewing patches, knitting socks, making candles by hand."*

Johann:
"And when Sundays came, we'd bundle up so thick you could barely tell one child from another. I'd hitch the sleigh and we'd go to church — the bells ringing through the cold air, steam rising off the horses."

Anna:
"Those winters were hard, but they drew us close. You didn't think so much about the cold when you had family crowded close around the fire, a stew on the stove, and a hymn in your heart."

Johann:
"Summer fed the body, winter fed the soul. And both taught you how strong you could be when you worked side by side."


Disclaimer:
This story is a fictionalized depiction based on historical research and known facts about the John Sautter Farmhouse and life in rural Nebraska during the late 1800s. While Johann and Anna Sautter were real individuals, the dialogue and specific details presented here are intended to bring the pioneer experience to life for visitors and are not direct historical accounts.