BioA: Martins, Mr./Mrs. John (50th Anniv. – 1930)
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Surnames: MARTINS HOFFMAN LAPOINT LEE BURNETT FITCHETT NEITZEL KINDARD BUTLER FRANE

---Source: COLBY PHONOGRAPH (Colby, Clark County, Wisconsin) 08/21/1930

Martins, Mr./Mrs. John (50th Anniv. – 17 Aug. 1930)

Mr. and Mrs. John Martins, residents of the town of Unity since 1881, celebrated their golden or fiftieth wedding anniversary at their farm home southwest of Unity Sunday. Their eleven children and their families were present, together with other relatives and friends, all together nearly two hundred people being in attendance.

At 1:00 o’clock, a banquet was served on the lawn, two large tables, in the form of a “T” being arranged. Mr. and Mrs. Martins were seated at the head of the table with five sons at the right of the father and six daughters at the left of the mother. A separate table was arranged for the twenty-two grand children. Sons in law and daughters in law waited on the tables.

Trimmed golden colored candlesticks and yellow cake served as a centerpiece. The chairs of Mr. and Mrs. Martins were also adorned with yellow ribbons and flowers and the former wore a boutonniere and the latter a corsage of yellow roses.

Above the entrance to the porch was suspended the inscription, “1880 Golden Wedding – 1930”, in gilt-covered letters and figures, and yellow garden flowers were used profusely in the house. Out-of-doors decorations also included a large American flag on the mail-box, and a row of smaller flags along the driveway.

After the banquet, Rev. O. H. Hoffman, pastor of the Zion’s Lutheran church of Colby, who also serves the Lutheran church at Unity, conducted a brief service, after which he presented, on behalf of the children, Mrs. Martins a gold wedding ring and Mr. Martin with a gold watch chain. They also received other gifts and tokens in behalf of the congregation and others. The Romeo band furnished music for the occasion.

John and Katherine Martins were both born in Germany, the former in 1853 and the other in 1862. Both came to Wisconsin in 1880 with their respective parents, and they were married the same year at Newton. In 1881 they located on their present farm, which at that time was a piece of woodland, and which they cleared and built up into a fine dairy farm.

Their eleven children are Mrs. Ida LaPoint, Marshfield; Mrs. Lena Lee, Minneapolis; Emil and Mrs. Mathilda Burnett, town of Unity; Mrs. Margaret Fitchett, Milwaukee; Dan, also of Unity; Henry, undertaker at Junction City; Herman and John at home, Mrs. Susan Neitzel, Milwaukee, and Mrs. Sophia Kindard, Minneapolis.

Mr. and Mrs. Abe Butler and Mr. and Mrs. Victor Frane of Colby, old friends of the family, attended the event.