In the winter of 1847 Father took sick and was not able to work.  We had to move to one of the smaller Ihmsen houses – two rooms and a little kitchen.  From that time on, Mother had a hard time.  With Father sick for about two years, the doctor and drug store got all the money Mother had been able to save.  Father died in the fall of 1848.  Father’s illness started with a very bad cold.  The river was frozen up tight and all the hauling was done over the ice.  Some time in February a warm spell set in, so Father stopped at the office to ask how he was to go over with his load and they told him “on the ice.”  When he reached the river, he saw a number of teams on the ice and he followed them.  About one hundred yards out, his heavy load and team broke through the ice; the horses were saved, but were badly cut by the ice.  It was very fortunate that he did not get out into the channel.  Father took cold from being in wet clothes; the cold settled on his lungs and there was no more work for him.  It kept Mother guessing with only Henry at work, making six dollars a month.  Mrs. Ihmsen was very kind to her and Mr. Ihmsen gave her the house free until her little boys could help her.¹⁾My Early Life and the Civil War, Conrad Smith, 1920, pages 11-12