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Cpl. Henry (Henricus) Weber
Company H

Henry Weber was born in Kahn, Germany, November 1, 1838 and came with his parents to the United States at the age of twelve years.

The family moved to New Berlin, Wisconsin, thirteen miles west of Milwaukee where they devoted their attention to farming. Two years later Henry's father died, leaving him the eldest of seven children to look after the farm.

August 19, 1862, being twenty-three years of age he enlisted as a Wagoner in Company H, 28th Regiment of the Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry. He served under Captains Herman Meyer Jr. and James Murray and received a promotion to corporal. He was honorably discharged August 23, 1865 at Brownsville, Texas, having been in service three years.

One year later he married Margaret Werle and lived in New Berlin, Wisconsin for five years. They then moved to Hammond, Wisconsin where they stayed for six years.

In 1878 they moved to Wahpeton, North Dakota and in 1881 they filed on a quarter of land in what later would be called Havana, N.D. They were the first settlers in this vicinity. Henry hauled his lumber from sixty miles away. There were no roads; he just drove his horses across the country. If need be, they would stop at farmhouses along the way, where they could get rest and food and rest the oxen and the horses. Many times the thermometer registered -36 degrees. In the Spring of 1882, when the house was finished, he moved his family to the Claim. He now had a wife and seven children. Three more children were born here. One child died in infancy. The Weber house was always open to anyone that wanted to stay over night and get something to eat.

Henry gave land for a schoolhouse and enough land to build a Catholic Church. He bought his first threshing machine in 1884 and threshed for all the farmers around the area for many years.

In 1886 the Great Northern Railroad Company came to the village of Weber (Havana), North Dakota. At that time most of the land for the village site was owned by Henry Weber. The citizens of the village petitioned the Postal Department for a Post Office. The petition was accepted and a Post Master was appointed. The name of Weber was sent in, but the Postal Department rejected it because of the similarity to the name of a town called Webster in South Dakota. After the proposal had been submitted for the third time the name Havana was finally accepted. This left the name of the town with two names. The Great Northern Railroad Company continued to use the name of Weber and the Post Office Department used the name of Havana. In 1899 Henry and Margaret built a store. Margaret and two of their sons ran it selling hardware and groceries. Later dry goods was added.

Henry Weber died on October 18, 1934 in Havana, Sargent County, North Dakota.


Source: This story was written by Henry Weber's daughter, Mrs. Margaret Minnie Weber McDonald, in 1970. It was contributed to the 28th Wisconsin Web site by descendants Arliss and Patricia Weber.


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