Michael Raschko

Michael Raschko was born in House No. 124 at Bakowa, Banat. The sponsors at his baptismal were Michael Pfeifer and Barbara Birling. In 1888 their surname was spelled Rasko in the church register and Raschko in 1890. He emigrated with his wife and three daughters to America, embarked the Ship "München" at Bremen and reached Baltimore, Maryland on May 1, 1897.

    He was a widower after Gertrud Grundhauser, his first wife, who died May 5, 1890 at Bakowa house No. 202.  In October 1890 he married Katharina Maixner (Meichsner) who was born in Bakowa 1869 and then died at Lefor, in Stark County, North Dakota in 1957. 

They emigrated to the United States in 1897 with their daughters Magdalena, Eva and Elizabeth. The rest of their children were born in the United States.
They settled in a town named Lefor in a barn with four other families until their sod houses were built. They all took turns cooking their meals. The first church was built of sod and the parishioners had to furnish their own seats for services by brining in their wagon or buggy seats.The closest town for these settlers to get their commodities was at Gladstone, which is ten miles north of Lefor. The town of Lefor was founded by Adam A. Lefor.... see his profile.

      Michael had two brothers, Carl, Johann and one sister.  Carl stayed in Romania, John moved to North Dakota and lived with Michael for a short time.  He then moved to Montana.