Norma BORTH

Father: William Frederick BORTH
Mother: Clara Laura SANITER 

                                                     _________________________
                            ________________________|
                           |                        |_________________________
 _William Frederick BORTH _|
|                          |                         _________________________
|                          |________________________|
|                                                   |_________________________
|
|--Norma BORTH
|
|                                                    _William Karl SANITER ___
|                           _Charles W. SANITER ____|
|                          |                        |_Louisa Erna? EIFERT ____
|_Clara Laura SANITER _____|
                           |                         _Friedrich WILLENBOCKEL _
                           |_Ida Emma WILLENBOCKEL _|
                                                    |_Julianna WILDE _________

Notes

Updated December 27, 2022. Compiled by Howder (www.howderfamily.com) from the following source(s):

(1) 1930 United States Census Wisconsin, Dodge Co., Emmet Town. (part of): Enumeration District 14-17; Sheet 5A; (undated) 1930.

Norma BORTH is the daughter of William F. and Clara (Saniter) BORTH. She is 6 years old, born in Wisconsin, and attending school.

(2) 1940 United States Census for Wisconsin, Dodge Co., Emmet Twp.: Supervisor's District 2; Enumeration District 14-23; Sheet 3B; April 9, 1940.

Norma BORTH is the daughter of Clara BORTH, a widow. Clara furnished information to the census taker for this household.

- Address: R1 Watertown, Wis.
- Home: It is a farm
- Age: 16
- Highest Grade of School Completed: High School - 2nd Year
- Birthplace: Wisconsin
- Residence on April 1, 1935: Same House
- At Work: No, Student

(3) William F. Jannke III and Ken Riedl, Co-Editors, Watertown History Annual 1, November 2006. Watertown Historical Society, Watertown, Wisconsin. "The Borth Quintet: A Tale of Radio's Pioneers, 1930s - 1940s." Pages 107-114.

"With these musical strains the popular radio act, the BORTH Quintet, opened their weekly Sunday afternoon broadcasts. From 1934 to the late 1940s they were heard throughout the state of Wisconsin over WIBU radio in Poynette. The quintet was comprised of Robert, Esther, Selma, Norma and Meta and together they played instruments (Robert played the violin, Meta the Spanish guitar, and all played the harmonica) and sang golden songs of days gone by. Even now after more than 50 years has passed since they were last heard, the very mention of the BORTH Quintet brings a smile to the faces of those who remember eagerly finishing their chores so that they could all gather around the radio at 3:00 to listen to the sisters sing."

"The BORTHs lived on a farm located about three and a half miles north of Watertown, in the Town of Emmet. Their parents, William and Clara (SANITER) BORTH, were hard working farmers of Germanic ancestry. German was spoken around the family home until the children were old enough to attend the Stone School, located a short walk south of the farm. From then on, English was the only language spoken in the family. They never sang any songs in German while they performed."

"In 1931 William BORTH, the head of the house, died suddenly of a heart attack, leaving the family to struggle in the throes of the Great Depression of the 1930s. Mrs. BORTH was a determined woman and she bravely maintained the farm and raised her children, one of whom, Selma, was born with Cerebral Palsy."

"The family struggled on and then in the mid 1930s Mrs. BORTH was approached by radio pioneer William C. FORREST, owner of radio station WIBU, to act as a sales representative for Watertown. Her job was to sell ad space on the radio, and for each ad she sold she got a commission. This is how she was able to maintain farm machinery, buy groceries, etc."

"Beginning in 1934 the Watertown Daily Times began to carry notices of the newly formed BORTH Quintet appearing at 4H events and picnics... By 1934 they had made their first appearance on WIBU and the rest, as they say, is history... Their mother, Clara, served as their agent and for approximately seventeen years the quintet would travel the 48 miles to Poynette to broadcast each week."

"On the trunk of their car Mrs. BORTH had a large sign painted to advertise her daughters' radio program. As they traveled, and the BORTHs were great ones for visiting all parts of the United States and Canada, the ad on the car's trunk spread the fame of the sisters radio show... The broadcasts continued without fail, with the possible exception of December, 1945 when the radio tower was felled by a severe ice storm."

(4) Kittell, Hazel (Saniter), compiler, "The Elsie Saniter Family Journal," (Kewaunee, WI: self-published manuscript, June 19, 1997), p. 69, 198, 215.