Julius John Bettin, son of Fredrick and Juliana (Kalm) Bettin, was born April 24, 1848 in Posen, Poland (Germany). The father of Julius died when Julius was three years of age and his mother later remarried a Mr. Doede. By the time Julius was fourteen he was working as a cattle herder for five dollars a year, plus board and room. By dint of great sacrifice. he was able to save enough to come to America by the time he was twenty-five and on March 27, 1873 he embarked for the promised land. Then a series of happy circumstances and he finally found work as a mason in St. Paul at $1.50 per day. Here he married Friederika Lumbrick.
His wife desired to settle in Dakota so Julius left in 1878 to scout for a homestead. He filed on a quarter south of Casselton, North Dakota, first but changed his mind
and selected land three miles southeast of what was called "Worthington". The family arrived on March 6, 1879 (then Valley City). The cost of beginning farming meant the borrowing of money for equipment and Julius worked for eighteen years before he was out of debt and had a dollar he could call his own.
Friederika died in 1886 and a year later Julius married Augusta Keister, October 1887. To this union were born nine children, namely:
William,
Anne,
Elma,
Tena,
Julius F.,
Clarence,
Larry,
Elsie and
Mathilda.
Source: Barnes County History 1976 Page 29