This is Grandpa Koftan's earliest photo, by a Tyndall, South Dakota, photographer. On the back is "1891," for he was born 27 April 1891.
The next chronologically is a family photograph of Joseph and Frances (Fannie) Hlinovsky Koftan [originally Kaftan] with their surviving children. Joseph was born 27 October 1861 near Prague, Bohemia, to Frank and Josefa Kaftan. He had five brothers--Charles, Frank, Vince, Robert, John--another infant brother buried at sea, and two sisters, Barbara and Josephine. Coming over in steerage took four months. The daughter of Martin and Rosa Hlinovsky, Frances was born 19 October 1866 near Prague. She had five sisters--Mary, Josephine, Emma, Katherine, and (?) and a brother who died in Bohemia. Joseph was from a poor village, Fannie was middle class, according to Aunt Babe, and both came through Ellis Island, the Kaftans to the Tyndall area, the Hlinovskys originally to Pawnee City, Nebraska. They married 15 April 1886, at Springfield, Bonhomme County, in the Territory of Dakota. According to [Great] Aunt Babe, he stopped sowing oats to get married, which is close to the story of how Jack and Velma, Joe and Ella, married on a day too windy to pick corn. Their three earliest children--Eva, b. 6 March 1887; Clara, b. 9 June 1888; Edith, b. 27 February 1890--died of diphtheria in 1898, the year marked on the back of the family photo by L.J., with "Dad," "Mom," and the surviving children's names at the time: Laurence John, b. 27 April 1891; LeRoy Elmo, b. 21 December 1892; Bozena (Bess) M., b. 20 September 1894; Ella Augustine, b. 5 August 1896; and Frank Edward, b. 28 April 1898. Another daughter, Annie Lora, b. 8 August 1904, died 4 August 1909 from infection after accidentally ramming a stick in her throat (while running, I think??). Later came George Frederick, b. 3 March 1901; Joseph Albert, b. 2 December 1903; Margarette Josephine, b. 5 July 1908, hence known as [Aunt] Babe. The family moved to a Rock County ranch eight miles from Bassett at some point because of family friction in South Dakota. The name changed because of a spelling error on homestead documents, but Aunt Babe doesn't say when. I do know both Koftans and Kaftans are in the Tyndall cemeteries, and Grampa K's cousin, Emil, and his family we've stayed in touch with are Kaftans.
L. J. is the little boy with his arm on the table with the potted plant. He had a strabismus--I think it's called--a misalignment of the eyes, as is more evident in the next two photos.
On the back of the above picture is "Laurence J. Koftan Tyndall, So. Dak., June 3rd, 1908." The photo below simply has the year, "1919."
Leave a comment