Maria's sixth baby

A farm family's story of guilt and loss, March 1900

Maria lived with her husband, John, on a farm in an area of eastern Wisconsin populated by Bavarian immigrant families.

In the dozen years of her marriage, Maria had borne five children, including the little boy, Emil, who had died soon after his first birthday.

The four children who remained ranged in age from ten to three, and the oldest girl, Estella,…