Karl August married Dorothea Mortensen and had 11 children. He was a farmer and homesteaded in Hessel, Michigan.
Standing are Anna, Morten, Frederick & William. Seated are Manetta, Virginia on Dorothea's lap, Ellen, Roy & Karl August.
The two pictures immediately above are of the house that Karl August built for his family. In the picture, to the left, is Ellen Johnson & Ellen Nye.
The four pictures above are of Karl August's farm.
This is how the homestead looks today.
Left is a picture of downtown Hessel today. Right is a picture of Hessel taken from a boat on Lake Huron.
Today Hessel is a very small village. It is primarily a resort town. Every August they have a boat show which attracts thousands of visitors.
William, Anna, Frederick & Morten
Roy, Manetta & Ellen
Virginia, Carl, Jordan & Dorothy
Manetta, William, Ellen, David Jordan, Dorothy "Tena", Carl, Anna Mae, Morten, Dorothy, Frederick & Virginia
Karl August's grave.
Four Cousins
Louis Nye (Frederick), Charley Nye (Carl), Elmer Lamoreaux, Harvey Hamel (Dorothy)
Pigs on the Nye Farm.
Cattle on the Nye Farm.
Nye Road looking East.
Nye Grain Binder
Old Nye Barns
The Hessel Presbyterian church allowed me to take the old books home and study them.
Charles & Dorothea joined the Presbyterian Church 10 August 1901. The Hessel Presbyterian Church was organized 30 April 1901.
The Nojd name has been spelled several different ways, but this is the first time I have seen it spelled Nyd. This is also the only American record I have seen of Tena using her birth name of Dorothea.
The first six Nye children were baptised 24 August 1903. There is no record of the other children being baptised at this church. Karl August may have had his dispute with the church before the next child was born. I have been told that he objected to the stained glass windows and left the church.
Charles, Roy & Mort relaxing on the farm.
Nye Farm Crops
Charles did general farming.
They had crops, vegetables, hay and animals, cattle, pigs, lambs and horses.
Roy driving the horses, Mort, their grandfather, Hans Mortensen, Carl, Jordan and Charles.
This picture was labeled the house on the corner. Charles bought a house in downtown Hessel that was next to the grocery store. The house has since been torn down and replaced with a modern house. Charles' grandaughter, Donna Johnson Blosser, lives there.
Nye Farm with Roy, Mort and Fred sitting on the fence.
Animals on the farm
Well on the farm
Tena & Morten with Carl & Jordan on top of the hay wagon.
Nye Brothers in 1917
Roy, Mort, Fred & Bill
The above two pictures are of antique farm tools in the possession of Charles Nye - the grandson of Karl August (Charles A. Nye). About 90% of these tools were used by Karl August.
