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Note: Barbara was born in Branch Wisconsin, present day Kossuth, the 8th child of immigrants from Bavaria and Prague. Her mother died while she was still young and she and her sister Mary moved with her sister Anna's family to Hanover, Kansas. (Anna's brother-in-law Jacob Gressl had married Mary Forster). Anna, her husband Wenzel Gresl and children moved to Olympia, Washington sometime after 1885. She then lived with another family as a servant. After Anton Forster's first wife died in May of 1889, leaving him a widower with 2 small children, he proposed marriage to Barbara and they were married in November of that same year. Barbara's mother was born in the same village as Anton, in Springenberg, Bohemia. Per Aunt Kath, she looked at marriage as a way out of a bad situation but appeared to be happily married. They are listed in the 1900 census in Washington county, Independence Township as farmers, owning their own land. They later moved to the Andale area, where they farmed. When their son George took over the farm, they moved to the town of Andale. She remained in contact with at least some of her siblings. A picture of her and her sisters Mary and Anna was taken in 1920 and Aunt Kath relates that a brother would visit from Wisconsin. From the notice of death in the Andale newspaper: The Forster's moved to the Andale community in 1903 living on a farm later residing in town and following the death of her husband she and her daughter Clara moved back to the farm where they made their home with her son Joe Forster and where she died. During her years of illness she was faithfully cared for by her son Joe and a niece Miss Gertrude Forster. Grandma Forster as she was affectionately known to many was a faithful member of St. Joseph's Catholic church and the Altar Society. Her body was taken to the George Forster home in Andale at 1:00 p.m. Tuesday, where the community paid their last respects throughout the afternoon and evening. Funeral services were held at St. Joseph's Church, Wednesday at 9:00 a.m. Msgr. J.A. Klug officiated at her services.
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