The J. Lewis/Lois and Augusta Bruckner family story the 1970 "The History of a Homestead" newspaper article says "They also took in a l4-year old girl from a broken home and raised her as one of their own". It is believed that that girl was Fern Walker, daughter of Edward Walker and Adeline Fenner.
Fern Walker was born in 1893 so at age 14 it would have been about 1907 when she went to live with the Bruckners. It is not know what "broken home" refers to as Fern was an orphan. The 1900 census shows Fern living with her parents in Strong Springs, Adams County, WI. Her parents died in 1901 (mother) and 1903 (father). It is possible that her parents had separated before her mother died. Her mother died in Adams County, WI and her father died in Marion County, IA. The 1905 census shows that Fern was living with her Fenner grandparents (Henry & Lucy Fenner). It is not known why Fern went from the Fenner family to the Bruckner family as there is no record of Henry and Lucy Fenner being separated. The 1910 census shows them living together near the Bruckners in New Chester, Adams, WI. Click here for information on Lewis & Augusta Bruckner.
Fern married Edwin Draeger some time between 1910 and 1912 when their first child was born. Edwin is listed in the 1910 census as still living with his parents in Adams, County. The 1910 census shows Lewis and Augusta Bruckner, and children, living in Pacwaukee, Marquette County, WI and Fern is not listed as living with them. It is not known where Fern lived after she left the Bruckners and before she married.
The History of a Homestead article also says "She later returned after she married, with her husband and lived in the house that Grandmother Anna had lived in." If that is true it is not know if they lived there before they had their first child in 1912 or if some of their children were born there. Anna, Lewis Bruckner's mother, continued to live in the log house John built but the History of a Homestead article says "At one time, Louis tore off the kitchen of his house and used the wood to build his mother a house much closer to his than the log cabin" It is known that before Anna died in 1907 she lived with Lewis and Augusta in the new house that was built for them when they married. It is not know if Fern and her husband lived in the log house or in the small house built for Anna. That small house was later converted for use as a storage building.
By 1919, Fern and her family were living in/near Elkhorn, WI which is in SE Wisconsin and Fern was killed there in May of 1919. Following is the story as told by Ferns oldest child Adeline. "On a Wednesday night in June, 1919 [Thur, 24 Jul 1919], the family was on their way home from a band concert. Edwin [Walker, husband] was pushing a cart with Ferl and Lorraine [children] in it. Fern [Walker] had Adeline on one hand and Norma [children] on the other. They were singing songs the band had played during the concert. There was one electric light on a post for the neighborhood, it had to be turned on manually. Edwin told Fern to go turn it on. There had been work to move a house and some wires were not replaced properly, when Fern switched the light on she was electrocuted in front of her entire family. The power company gave Edwin $10,000 as compensation for her death."
Fern's Husband Edwin soon remarried and had more children. He died in 1979 at age 93 in Colorado Springs, CO.
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From 25 July 1919 Madison, WI newspaper
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From 25 July 1919 Eau Claire, WI newspaper
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Family Tree with generation numbers for Fern Walker
This family tree information came from various family trees found on the Internet and may not be 100% correct.
1 Jacob Fenner, Born: 1802, Germany, Died: 22 Jan 1867, Brooks, Adams, WI
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The Jacob Fenner Family came to America on the same boat as John Gottfried Bruckner.
Wife: Anna Martha Grebruse, Born: 1804, Germany, Died: 22 Mar 1879, Adams, Adams, WI
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Children of Jacob & Anna Fenner
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Harvy Fenner, Born: 30 Sep 1828, Germany, Died: 1914, Brooks, Adams, WI
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John Fenner, Born: 1834, Germany, Died: 1 Sep 1904, probably Adams County, WI
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Herman Fenner, Born: 1836, Germany, Died: 28 Aug 1907, Oxford, Marquette, WI
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2 Heinrich (Henry) Fenner, Born: 6 Mar 1840, Germany, Died: 1 Jul 1920, Brooks, Adams, WI
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Wife: Lucy Ann Wilson, Born, 24 Aug 1847, Saratoga, Herkimer, NY,
Died: 03 Feb 1923, Preston, Adams, WI
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Children of Henry & Lucy Fenner
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Frederick William Fenner, Born: 12 Nov 1866, New Chester, Adams, WI,
Died: 15 Aug 1939, Eau Claire, WI
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3 Adeline (Addie) A. Fenner, Birth: 6 Aug 1868, New Chester, Adams, WI,
Died: 11 Nov 1901, (Typhoid Fever) Cottonville, Adams, WI
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Husband: Edward Ernst Walker, Born: Jun 1861, IN,
Died: Dec 1903, Knoxville, Marion, IA
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Children of Adeline & Edward Walker
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Chloe Walker, Born: March 1890, Died: unknown
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4 Fern Walker, Born: Jun 1893,WI, Died: Jun 1919, Elkhorn, Walworth, WI
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Husband: Edwin Ferdinand Draeger, Born: 08 Dec 1885, Kilbourn, WI,
Died, 13 Aug 1979, Colorado Springs, El Paso, CO
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Children of Fern & Edwin Draeger
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Adeline Rose Draeger, Born: 27 Feb 1912, WI,
Died: 07 Dec 2009, Bentonville, AR
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Norma Draeger, Born: 01 Nov 1913, WI, Died: 28 Dec 1991, Fresno, CA
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Ferl Edwin Pat Draeger, Born: 24 Jun 1915, Brooks, Adams, WI,
Died: 04 Sep 1961, Colorado Springs, El Paso, CO
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Lorraine May Draeger, Born: 15 Dec 1918, Madison, Dane, WI,
Died: 08 Nov 2008, Oklahoma City, Cleveland, OK
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Iva E. Walker, Born: 25 Jan 1897, WI, Died, 16 Apr 1990, Evansville, Vanderburgh, IN
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Truman Everett Walker, Born: 1 Jan 1900, WI
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Frank Moses Fenner, Born: 24 Nov 1872, New Chester, Adams, WI,
Died 1961, Adams County, WI
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Mary Fenner, Born: 9 Jun 1876, New Chester, Adams, WI,
Died: 16 Jan 1947, Adams, WI
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Edwin Fenner, Born: abt 1879, New Chester, Adams, WI, Died: 1947
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Albert Fenner, Born: 31 Jan 1882, New Chester, Adams, WI,
Died: 19 Feb 1934, Adams County, WI
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Laura Fenner, Born: 13 Jul 1884,New Chester, Adams, WI,
Died: Oct 1942, Brainerd, Crow Wing, MN
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Raymond Fenner, Born: 23 Oct 1888, New Chester, Adams, WI, 1956,
Died: Janesville, Rock, WI
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Robert Leon Fenner, Born: 1847, Germany, Died: 5 Oct 1912, Adams, Adams, WI
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