History of our home, by Meg Bruck
Linda, so sorry it took me a bit. I don’t know
how but this slipped my to do list for sure!
Well our new adventure started about a year ago. By the way I hope it’s ok that
I start from the beginning to give you the full spectrum of “God puts us where
he wants”. Well I meet many people through working for the county library
system. One of my regular patrons had over heard me discussing Ant and I
wanting to buy property for farming and the boys to hunt. Well that was it. He
lived 1 mile on our same road and had 20 acres to sell. His only stipulations
were it be used for farm, a young family to make it their home, & they sell
for what price he purchased it for. All seemed perfect. So the men shook hands
on the price and agreed as soon as we were ready to list, they’d be ready to
move. We never dreamed of leaving our cute little 1864 build brick farm house
until this “perfect” thing feel in our lap! Well after a long year of wrapping
up projects, Benny’s health bouncing around, and many tears on the boys behalf
to not leave “home”, we pulled our torn selves together and put the sign up.
Whelp! It happened. !2 days in to our home being for sale, we had7 showings, 10
booked showings, 5 offers, and a holding list of over 30 people wanting to view
it! That was fast. We figured it was meant to be when we got an offer for $5000
over listing price plus guaranteed financing and willing to do any repairs that
may arise to pass appraisal. Seemed perfect so we accepted.
Well 2 weeks after accepting the offer, the home 1 mile down the road backed
out on us. They had decided since ours sold so quickly that they could get more
for theirs than we agreed on. Word was broken and we were out .
We felt with there contract we wrote up on the sale of our home and there being
so many out there we would have an easy time finding one we loved so we didn’t
back out. After a month and no luck we found that the cute brown farm house
Chuck had once mentioned being a Bruck farm, was for sale. We looked around,
loved its charm and the fact that it may have been a family farm so we put an
offer in. They rejected it completely because it had to be hinged on our sale.
Well we worried. We prayed. We searched. Until the sellers of the cute little
brown farm house called our realtor. She said the sellers realized we were
Brucks and since the farm was a Bruck farm they will reconsider and sell if we
matched the offer that had just been presented. WE DID! With one week occupancy
in our little brick house we closed on the cute brown farm house.
As soon as we closed the first thing I did was go to the township hall in
Exeter. They showed me pictures from the 70’s, 80’s, and 2000’s. They told me
There had been 2 separate families that owned the house between 1984-our
purchase. Then the township clerk pointed out that prior to that the home had
been Brucks. Yay finally a positive proof that Brucks had indeed lived in our
now forever home. Next I went to the museum to see what I could find. They had
no photos there but I did find lots of fun things out about the first Brucks
from Germany and their job titles, marriages, and locations. I had remembered a
distant Bruck cousin on Facebook was to be believed to grow up here on
the farm so I reached out. He, George Bruck jr.,was more than happy to share
that yes he grew up here. So had his dad. And so did his grandfather! Eureka!
Her it was. So I asked my father in-law who his great grandfather was… JOHN
JOSEPH BRUCK. This was the builder of our farm, the first Bruck from Germany, and
the beginning we were looking for!
Ant and I had always said how amazing it would be to have his Grand father and
Great grandfathers house, which aunt Rosie still lives in on Scofield Rd. We
never ever imagined we would end up in THE Bruck homestead! This really is what
made the difference for our little family having full 100% peace with the
decision to uproot to a new home. Our boys both finally felt like this was
amazing and were no longer sad about leaving the dirt road behind . Ant and I
had an amazing amount of relief. It was a hard thing to be in the whole
process, happy because we had so many people love our little brick farmhouse.
Sad to leave memories and a place our boys could not imagine moving from. And
making a new place feel like our little piece of dirt. To be brutally honest….I
cried almost daily the week before we moved and the week after. I’m confident
ant thought something was wrong with me! 😊 I sobbed and sobbed the whole drive the
last night we left our little brick farmhouse. It had been the first place we
had nothing but good memories and peace in life. There the ups and down and
turmoil seemed to always have good and love following. I just could not imagine
anything else being home. Boy was I wrong. God really does place us where he
wants us. This , I am confident, is where He wants us. After feeling lost,
saddened, confused, and defeated here we are. Happily right where He knew we
needed to be all along!
Well fast forward 3 months. The boys have found endless exploring to do in all
the barns. They have found initials and dates of 1903 painted on beams, old
wooden wine barrel spouts, horse shoes, and lots of prospective “club houses”
.Yet to be decided which will be “their” barn. 😊 We have found that this house suites us
and our love of history and family. Both boys were anxious to get school
started to share about their move, their 5 barns, their huge house, and the
fact that Their Great Great Grandfather had built it! That they are 6thgeneration
to live here! Each day I look around and am just in awww. The house still
has some original wood works in the parlor. To think of all the time and love
that was put into making them and all the hands who have touched it ! Just
amazing. And the barns! My favorite is the hay barn.36ft by 92ft long!
All hand hewn, wooden peg piece together, perfectly fitted to make a firm
structure that has been here well over 100 years! Just amazing! All with no
machinery or cranes. Just men, hard work, and horses. Just beautiful.
Now along with our new found history we wanted to try to find out if there were
any old photos of our farm to be displayed. When I asked around, there were no
shortage of stories to this old place, but no photos. I must share my favorite
story we were told. It is said that when the farm was purchased by JOHN JOSEPH
BRUCK and MARIE ANN (BLASER)BRUCK in1867, he and his young family were in such
a rush to get the first harvest in that they logged out the 64 acres and
planted right there around all the stumps! No time to rid the stumps, just
needed to get that first crop in. This paints a vivid picture in my head. Don’t
know if it was as funny to them but it makes me smile .
After googling, museum, and township hall with no luck, I went online. I surfed
ancestry a bit and found there were many Bruck Family Trees but were all
private. So me being the inquisitive gal that I am I reached out to one of the
tree makers. I simply sent a message via Ancestry and stated we had bought my
husbands original family farm in maybe and were looking for photos or family to
tie to it. Well It was another blessing. The very first try was a hit. My
message was replied to with an email, name, and a joyful willingness to
correspond and send photos! The sender, an older generation cousin, had let me
know that her mother grew up there and was a Bruck. She also sent me multiple
photos of the house, barns, and family! She also said if I am interested she
would love to direct me to more cousins who may have more stories and photos.
She lives out of state now but said she had asked some years back if anyone
knew what became of the farm or who owned it but no one did. She was elated to
know it was “ back where it belonged” according to her. In the Bruck family
again.
We plan on continuing our hunt for more photos and stories. We also plan on
having a gathering in the upcoming fall of 2017. We would like to bring the
farm full circle and bring as much family together in one place . Where it all
began in the United States for the Bruck family!
Sent from Mail for Windows 10
I’m so sorry for such a lengthily letter. It was truly hard to wrap up in one
email. We are blessed blessed blessed. We look forward to growing old and grey
here and one day seeing generation 7 walk through the original front door in
the parlor! This home will be in no shortage of projects or repairs as it has
not been truly loved in some time. But we plan on tackling them one at a time.
One I am looking forward to is installing the old original kohler kitchen sink
w/drain board back into the kitchen! It was hiding in the basement under a pile
of boards and dust. Our first fun project we have done was filling the barns
with noise, manure, and usefulness. AKA the boys’ livestock. The milking end of
the barn has been filled with dairy goats. The stalls have calves. The hen
house is over flowing with Benjamin’s heritage breed hens. And we just cleared
out the hog house to soon fill with, Abe’s favorite, piglets. We really feel as
though the generations before us have given us so many memories and warm love
without even meeting them. Life happenings like this really give you a full
grasp on how much our lives leave their mark in so many ways and reach to so
many people. Long after their death on this earth, The Brucks who came from
Germany show us all the hard work that is still giving us the life we have
today!
We are so grateful and content! So happy we could share this happy story with
you aunt Linda!!!!!
The portrait of man/woman – JOHN JOSEPH BRUCK
& MARIE ANN (BLASER)BRUCK- the builders of our farm
The portrait of the individual man- JOHN JOSEPH
BRUCK post the death of his wife
The photo with the 6 people standing is of John
joseph, Marie ann, and their 4 youngest children
The photo on the sleigh was in our back yard
with the 2nd generation born here children( adult children)
The photo in front of the barn is John Josephs
son Joseph John (2nd to youngest sons) and his wife and 2
children
The phot by the house of man woman an 2 babies
was also Joseph Jon and family after the death of his father .
With Full Hearts & Dirt under our Nails,
Ant, Meg, Benjamin, & Abe
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Make yourself at home.
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