Bio: Popovich, John & Katherine

Transcriber: stan@wiclarkcountyhistory.org

Surnames: Popovich, Savor, Plautz, Korenchen, Cesnik, Zallar, Ulesich

----Source: Family Scrapbook

John was born April 15, 1883. Katherine Savor was born March 4, 1898. Both were born in Krasnih vrh, Jugoslavia. Krasnih vrh means beautiful hilltop, near Metlika.

John came to the United States in 1902. He lived with his sister, Mary Plautz in Calumet, Michigan. He went to school there, learned English and worked in the copper mines. Later he moved to Willard. Mr. Cesnik was instrumental in persuading a great many Slovenes to move to Willard.

He farmed a short while leaving in 1920 for Duluth, Minnesota. There he married Katherine the same year (1921) that she arrived from Jugoslavia. Four children were born to this union: Angeline (Korenchen) who lives in Chicago; John, Frank, and Joe in Colorado.

They returned to Willard after the 1929 crash, farming where Jim Zallar now lives. There was no road to the farm. This was built in 1930, using horses. Where the ground was swampy they rousted out a great many snakes, very large, some six feet and longer. There was a great deal of hardwood timber, which was used as firewood. Same timber, today, used as lumber would be worth a small fortune. Who could have imagined in 1930's that 50 years later (1980) lumber would be selling for a dollar a board foot and up?

The closest neighbor was Joe Ulesich. They left the farm in the mid 1930's, leaving Willard in 1941 for Chicago where John worked and lived with his family until 1956.

In 1956 John and Katherine moved to Greenwood where John died July 17, 1970. Katherine moved to Lakewood, Colorado in 1978 and lived with sons John and Frank. As of now Katherine resides at the Thorp Nursing Home. Son, John lives in Marshfield, Wisconsin.