The collection consists of four personal diaries of what was originally a set of at least eight volumes. The four surviving volumes (I, IV, VI, and VIII) cover 37 years of John Kroehnke's life. However, because of the missing volumes there are considerable gaps in what is known about the diarist's life.
The original volumes were written in old German script. After presentation to the Historical Society in 1955, the first volume was translated into modern German and brief notes were prepared on the other three volumes. Later an English translation of Diary I was prepared.
Coverage of the collection begins with the first days of his emigration from his German homeland, and it ends with the domestic affairs of his later years as a resident of New Holstein township in Calumet County, Wisconsin. Although Kroehnke writes very little about his family, the diaries are valuable as a very detailed exposition of many topics of interest to researchers studying immigration history. Among the topics well documented are his journey across the Atlantic and via the Erie Canal and the Great Lakes to Wisconsin, the process of homesteading in the wilderness, farming practices, community life, and general labor and economic conditions. Kroehnke's discussion of the Civil War, for example, focuses largely on the war's economic impact.
John Kroehnke appears to have been a well educated and cultured man, and his journals contain many reference to his painting, music, and attendance at local theaters. As a result the spelling, syntax, word-idea representation, and writing may be of interest to linguists and paleographers.
