By her grand-daughter
Mrs. Dora Fluth
March 1949

"Dorathea EIfert Plagmann"
Dorathea Plagmann nee Elfert was born July 24, 1849 in Mecklenburg, Schwerin Germany of German descent. She was the child of John and Dora Elfert.
In April of 1873 she emigrated to the United States.
On June 26, 1873 she was united in marriage to Ludwig V. Plagmann at Postville, Iowa.

In 1878 with three small children they left Iowa in a covered wagon drawn by oxen and leading a cow. They landed in Sioux Falls, S. Dak. and
remained there a year with relatives.
In 1879 they decided to take up a homestead in then Dakota Territory. Upon departure from Sioux Falls they were given a setting of eggs and a broody hen which nested in the covered wagon. Lack of adequate roads and bad weather lengthened the trip to almost three weeks. However, on arrival they reported a good hatch of chicks.
They finally located on a quarter of land now located in Taylor township in Hanson County near the present city of Alexandria. The first year they built a sod shanty and broke 30 acres with one oxen and a borrowed horse. The plot was planted to wheat but hail destroyed the entire crop. Drought was another dreaded enemy. They had no water for their cow and often milk¬ed her and gave it back to her to drink.
Their only fuel consisted of cow chips and twisted hay.

During a severe snow storm she shoveled the snow from her bed before giving birth to her first child in Dakota Territory; now Mrs. Freda Tischer, of Amherst, S. Dak.

Years later they built a frame house hauling the lumber from Yankton by oxen.
The first Church services; the Evangelical Lutheran; were held in their home; later in their school house. She was a charter member of the Evangelical Lutheran Church built later, the parsonage being built on land don¬ated to the church by her husband. Most of their social activities centered around this church, altho they attended many card parties and square dances which were held in neighboring claim shanties.

She became the mother of ten children all born without medical assist¬ance, seven still make South Dakota their home. A daughter Anna died Feb. 19, 1895 at the tender age of six.
Mrs. Plagmann's husband worked in a lumber yard in Alexandria for some time, (this townsite being moved from Rockport a few years earlier). He walked the six miles morning and evening, his compensation being 75¢ a day. They sold butter for 5¢ a lb., and he carried home a few groceries on his back.
In June of 1909, after 30 years on this homestead, they retired and moved to Alexandria. Her son John still resides on the old homestead.

She passed away on April 6, 1912, at the age of, 62 years, 8 months, 12 days; cancer being the contributive cause of death. She is buried in the German Lutheran Cemetery six miles south of Alexandria, the cemetery located on her old homestead and also donated by them.
During the hardships of pioneer days she extended help to many, and no one ever went hungry from her door. She was hospitality to the extreme and no one ever asked for food or shelter at her home and was denied.