Philo T Pritzkau was born in 1902 in a sodhouse on a homestead near Burnstad, which is south of Napoleon, Logan County, North Dakota to John "Johann Pritzkau and Elenore Engel. Philo was their 7th of 8 natural born children and youngest son. John and Elenore also raised a grandson they considered their son and 9th child. John and Elenore were German-Russian immigrants who came to America about 1886 from Neu Danzig, Russia.
Philo spent his childhood haying, harvesting and threshing to help his family eke out a living on their farm near Napoleon, North Dakota. A town with a population under 200, Philo stated in his book "Growing up in North Dakota" that you could see from one end of the town to the other. Nevertheless, he considered it a lively place, adding, "The butcher shop was a great socializing place."
As a teacher; Philo like many of his students who attended his one-room school spoke German with English as his second language. Philo was the only one of his siblings to attend college. He went to the University of North Dakota for one semester, then ran out of money. To earn more, he secured a teaching job at a country school, where teachers were in short supply. There he discovered a love for teaching that eventually led him to earn a doctorate in education from Columbia University and later he was offered a teaching position at University of Connecticut which brought him to Mansfield, Conn., where he lived for 30 years.
As an author; Philo wrote several books, his best known book "Growing up in North Dakota" is a insightful look at his growing from boyhood to manhood on the family farm in North Dakota and the many lessons he learned from his parents and older siblings. A wonderful book tells of how tough it was and how hard they all worked in that era to claim the land the homestead act promised. It also shares the many family trials and triumphs of their lives.
Philo lived to be 102 years old and even in his advanced years he was a man with a great sense of humor and a vibrant personality.
Philo T. Pritzkau's only child and daughter, Patricia Pritzkau MacLachlan, is an award-winning author of many children's books, possibly the most well known is the "Sarah Plain and Tall" trilogy.
Philo spent his childhood haying, harvesting and threshing to help his family eke out a living on their farm near Napoleon, North Dakota. A town with a population under 200, Philo stated in his book "Growing up in North Dakota" that you could see from one end of the town to the other. Nevertheless, he considered it a lively place, adding, "The butcher shop was a great socializing place."
As a teacher; Philo like many of his students who attended his one-room school spoke German with English as his second language. Philo was the only one of his siblings to attend college. He went to the University of North Dakota for one semester, then ran out of money. To earn more, he secured a teaching job at a country school, where teachers were in short supply. There he discovered a love for teaching that eventually led him to earn a doctorate in education from Columbia University and later he was offered a teaching position at University of Connecticut which brought him to Mansfield, Conn., where he lived for 30 years.
As an author; Philo wrote several books, his best known book "Growing up in North Dakota" is a insightful look at his growing from boyhood to manhood on the family farm in North Dakota and the many lessons he learned from his parents and older siblings. A wonderful book tells of how tough it was and how hard they all worked in that era to claim the land the homestead act promised. It also shares the many family trials and triumphs of their lives.
Philo lived to be 102 years old and even in his advanced years he was a man with a great sense of humor and a vibrant personality.
Philo T. Pritzkau's only child and daughter, Patricia Pritzkau MacLachlan, is an award-winning author of many children's books, possibly the most well known is the "Sarah Plain and Tall" trilogy.
Philo T Pritzkau was born in 1902 in a sodhouse on a homestead near Burnstad, which is south of Napoleon, Logan County, North Dakota to John "Johann Pritzkau and Elenore Engel. Philo was their 7th of 8 natural born children and youngest son. John and Elenore also raised a grandson they considered their son and 9th child. John and Elenore were German-Russian immigrants who came to America about 1886 from Neu Danzig, Russia.
Philo spent his childhood haying, harvesting and threshing to help his family eke out a living on their farm near Napoleon, North Dakota. A town with a population under 200, Philo stated in his book "Growing up in North Dakota" that you could see from one end of the town to the other. Nevertheless, he considered it a lively place, adding, "The butcher shop was a great socializing place."
As a teacher; Philo like many of his students who attended his one-room school spoke German with English as his second language. Philo was the only one of his siblings to attend college. He went to the University of North Dakota for one semester, then ran out of money. To earn more, he secured a teaching job at a country school, where teachers were in short supply. There he discovered a love for teaching that eventually led him to earn a doctorate in education from Columbia University and later he was offered a teaching position at University of Connecticut which brought him to Mansfield, Conn., where he lived for 30 years.
As an author; Philo wrote several books, his best known book "Growing up in North Dakota" is a insightful look at his growing from boyhood to manhood on the family farm in North Dakota and the many lessons he learned from his parents and older siblings. A wonderful book tells of how tough it was and how hard they all worked in that era to claim the land the homestead act promised. It also shares the many family trials and triumphs of their lives.
Philo lived to be 102 years old and even in his advanced years he was a man with a great sense of humor and a vibrant personality.
Philo T. Pritzkau's only child and daughter, Patricia Pritzkau MacLachlan, is an award-winning author of many children's books, possibly the most well known is the "Sarah Plain and Tall" trilogy.
Philo spent his childhood haying, harvesting and threshing to help his family eke out a living on their farm near Napoleon, North Dakota. A town with a population under 200, Philo stated in his book "Growing up in North Dakota" that you could see from one end of the town to the other. Nevertheless, he considered it a lively place, adding, "The butcher shop was a great socializing place."
As a teacher; Philo like many of his students who attended his one-room school spoke German with English as his second language. Philo was the only one of his siblings to attend college. He went to the University of North Dakota for one semester, then ran out of money. To earn more, he secured a teaching job at a country school, where teachers were in short supply. There he discovered a love for teaching that eventually led him to earn a doctorate in education from Columbia University and later he was offered a teaching position at University of Connecticut which brought him to Mansfield, Conn., where he lived for 30 years.
As an author; Philo wrote several books, his best known book "Growing up in North Dakota" is a insightful look at his growing from boyhood to manhood on the family farm in North Dakota and the many lessons he learned from his parents and older siblings. A wonderful book tells of how tough it was and how hard they all worked in that era to claim the land the homestead act promised. It also shares the many family trials and triumphs of their lives.
Philo lived to be 102 years old and even in his advanced years he was a man with a great sense of humor and a vibrant personality.
Philo T. Pritzkau's only child and daughter, Patricia Pritzkau MacLachlan, is an award-winning author of many children's books, possibly the most well known is the "Sarah Plain and Tall" trilogy.
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