The Risches Came to America

      Although the Risch surname is fairly common in Germany, this particular family came from Saas im Prättigau, Canton Graubünden, Switzerland.  

      During Roman times, this mountainous region was known as Rhaetia, and the language of the inhabitants was Rhaeto-Romansh. However, beginning in the13th Century A.D., Germanic Walsers migrated into the area, seeking new pastures for their cattle.  They settled in the Alpine valleys and meadows, eventually outnumbering the original inhabitants. The language they brought with them gradually evolved into the dialect known as Schweizerdeutsch, which is somewhat different from standard German as it is spoken in Germany today.

     The family progenitor, Martin Risch, died on 6 March 1866. This may have been the event which impelled the Risch family to emigrate to the United States. The family journeyed to the port of Hamburg, where they sailed aboard the ship Allemania as steerage passengers. The Allemania reached New York on 29 October 1866.

     Why the Risches eventually settled in Buffalo County, Wisconsin, is not known for certain, but it seems likely that they already had friends or relatives there. There were numerous Swiss settlements in Wisconsin by that time.

Risches of the Past

Name	Born	Died	Contact:
RISCH, Christian	5 Nov 1847 in Saas im Prättigau, Canton Graubünden, Switzerland	17 Mar 1924 in Buffalo County, Wisconsin	donnatreez
	Father: RISCH, Martin Mother: HITZ, Anna Spouse 1: KAMMUELLER, Elizabeth         Spouse 2: WOOLWENT, Katherine
RISCH, Anna L.	31 July 1858 in Saas im Prättigau, Canton Graubünden, Switzerland	19 Dec 1939 in Whitewater Township, Winona County, Minnesota	donnatreez
	Father: RISCH, Martin Mother: HITZ, Anna Spouse:  CARLSON, Anders Gustave
RISCH, Barbara "Nellie"	10 Jun 1863 in Saas im Prättigau, Canton Graubünden, Switzerland	21 Jun 1949 in Prince Albert, Saskatchewan, Canada	donnatreez
	Father: RISCH, Martin Mother: HITZ, Anna Spouse:  SHELTON, James
RISCH, Johann Heinrich "Henry"	16 July 1864 in Saas im Prättigau, Canton Graubünden, Switzerland	After 1940 in Lloydminster, Saskatchewan, Canada	donnatreez
	Father: RISCH, Martin Mother: HITZ, Anna
RISCH, John	7 Jun 1853 in Saas im Prättigau, Canton Graubünden, Switzerland	21 Mar 1936 in Elkton, Brookings County, South Dakota	donnatreez
	Father: RISCH, Martin Mother: HITZ, Anna Spouse: HOFFMAN, Sophia
RISCH, Luzia M. "Lucy"	23 Feb 1850 in Saas im Prättigau, Canton Graubünden, Switzerland	16 Nov 1916 in Rochester, Olmstead County, Minnesota	donnatreez
	Father: RISCH, Martin Mother: HITZ, Anna Spouse: DITTRICH, Ernest
RISCH, Martin	1810 in Conters im Prättigau, Canton Graubünden, Switzerland	6 March 1866 in Saas im Prättigau, Canton Graubünden, Switzerland	donnatreez
	Father: UNKNOWN Mother: UNKNOWN Spouse: HITZ, Anna
RISCH, Mary	5 May 1868 in Buffalo County, Wisconsin	8 July 1954 in Spokane, Washington	donnatreez
	Father: UNKNOWN Mother: HITZ, Anna Spouse :  JANISCH, Frank