In the mid 19th century, a number of German families followed the same path of emigration from a township sized area just west of Minden, about 50 miles south of Bremen, in the Province of Nordrhein-Westfalen to a locale, now known as Hope, along the boundary between Blooming Grove and Cottage Grove townships in Dane County, Wisconsin.

Although many of the original German settlers of this area of Wisconsin remained there, several came to Nebraska after it became a state in 1867. Surnames of German families that came to southeastern Nebraska from Dane County, Wisconsin included Becker, Heidenreich, Pieper, Rolfsmeier, Gausmann, Meyer, Kleine, Rurup, Brandhorst, Hankel, Holscher, and Hoppmann.

If you are a descendent of any of these families from the Minden area of Germany and would like more information about their immigration and migration to Nebraska, please respond to this post. Additional contributions to the overall record would be appreciated.