John and Lucy Chapiewski Family

John Czapiewski was born in Gdansk (Danzig) area of Poland, which was then under German rule, in 1856 and later immigrated with his parents to Quebec, Canada. He was eight years old then (1864). He had one brother, Joseph, and two sisters, Anna and Mary. His mother passed away and shortly afterwards his father and family moved to Winona, MN, and began farming between Lake City and Winona, on the Mississippi River. While his father was swimming in the river, he drowned.

John Czapiewski was then raised by the Frank Narloch family (father of B. J. Narloch, who later moved to Minto). John may be from Wiele Parish, Poland like Frank Narloch where both names are common.

I was not able to find Frank Narloch on the 1870 cencus in wisconsin, John would have been age 15 in 1870 and 25 in 1880

When John was 18 (1874) years old, he began working on the railroad between Fargo and Valley City, ND. When he was 22 years old, he heard about the rich land northwest of Grand Forks. In 1879, Joseph Wysocki, Michael Merchlewicz and he walked all the way from Fargo and filed on a homestead, four miles southeast of Minto. This land remained in the family until 1940. After settling there he met Lucille Grzadzielewski. They were united in marriage in 1884; Lucille Grzadzielewski was born in Sroda, Poland, in 1868. When she was six years old, she immigrated with her family to Calumet, MI, and lived there six years.

1885 State Census: Walsh County, North Dakota

Name Age (Birth) Relation Occupation Nativity ED
Chepeski,John
26 1859 Head Farmer Poland 04-012-05
Chepeski,Lucy 17 1868 Wife Poland 04-012-06
Chepeski,Frank 6/12Dec Son Dakota 04-012-07
Grunleski,Rosy 5 1880 Sister in Law MI 04-012-08
Luminski,John 30 1855 Servant Poland 04-012-09
Lumenski,Frances 26 1859 Servant Poland 04-012-10
Lumenski,Annie 3 1882 Servant Daughter Poland 04-012-11

I am not certain who is the familiy living with John unless it is Slominski or Lunski.

John and Lucille Czapiewski had a family of sixteen children, two passing away in infancy, they are Frank, Thomas, Estella, Lawrence, Mary, John, Margaret, Joseph, (twins) Leo and Phil, Elizabeth, Lillian, Pifie and Winslow. A childhood recollection of the older brothers and sisters was living in the old log cabin on the “east farm” by the Forest River. The family had eighty acres of timber land; their father grubbed forty acres of it for raising crops. Eventually, he acquired four hundred acres. The harvest sea son was a very hip occasion and heir father would go by earn and wagon to Oslo, MN, and bring home keg beer, putting it in the ice house to keep cool. The men working on the threshing team really enjoyed it when the day’s work was done. Their mother always had special meals and the children can remember how they would enjoy her good cooking.

In 1917 John and Lucille purchased the Guy Miller farm, a half mile west of Minto, and it remained in the family for many years.

In 1924 John Czapiewski retired from farming and moved to Minto. The children attended school there. Their childhood memories are of the beautiful park, swimming in the river, playing baseball, and those wonderful Fourth of July celebrations.

In 1936 John Czapiewski passed away. In 1940, four years later Lucille followed. They were interred in the Minto cemetery.