I The Frontier s.
Nortb-Nebraska’s bastest-Growing Newspaper SECTION 1
j PAGES 1 TO 8
yoLUME 68—NUMBER 34 _O'NEILL. NEBRASKA. THURSDAY. DECEMBER 30. 1948. PRICE 7 CENTS
Violent Deaths Again Years Biggest News Topic
For the second consecutive year, The Frontier’s edi
torial staff members voted violent deaths in Holt county
the biggest single news topic of the year. At least 14
persons met death violently, including Holt countyans
who lost their lives in the county or elsewhere and non
residents who were killed while in the county.
The second biggest news topic was the eternal
weather proposition. The historic blizzard of November
18 and 19 occupied more space than any other subject in
any given issue. A prolonged drouth early in the grow
ing season earned considerable space in the news col
umns. and weather summaries were deemed newsworthy
almost every week.
Stories concerning O’Neill’s constant expansion pro
vided the third biggest topic.
Lives were wiped out in pairs on three occasions.
Mrs. Thomas Slattery, 44, and Ed L. Hamik, 48, both of
Atkinson, died as a result of a household explosion;
Francis “(Fritz”) Kelly. 32, and F. E. (“Kelly”) Saindon,
• 31, both of O’Neill, were killed in an airplane crash at the
Country club here; and Laird Hardy, 17, of Boise, Ida.,
and Frank E. Hardy, jr., 15, of Chambers, were drowned
in a gravel pit. Among others losing their lives in a vio
lent manner were: Percy B. Sweet, of Stuart, killed in
tractor upset; Gerald Hupp. 3, of Ewing, killed on a Ne
ligh street: Mrs. Hilda Bowen, 69. of O’Neill, fatal
’ ly burned in a household fire; Herbert Longfellow, 19, of
Greenville, O., fatally injured while diving; Lloyd Phelps,
38, of Redbird. died from injuries suffered in a tractor
upset; Leonard Grossnicklaus, 33, of Bartlett, killed in an
aircraft crash near O’Neill; Mrs. William ("Grandma")
Menish, 99, frozen to death. A chronology follows;
JANUARY
Nebraska farmers reaped an all-time dollar harvest
in 1947 from an average yield . . . Francis Flood and Jan
ice Jarman are in O’Neill hospital receiving treatment for
injuries sustained in an auto crash near Chambers. . .
Mr, and Mrs. P. E. Fisher, of Arlington, Wash., formerly
of Amelia, celebrated their golden wedding anniversary
. . . Statements of the conditions of seven Holt county
banks at the close of business December 31, 1947, reveal
an all-time year-end high in deposits, totaling $12,674,
759. . . . James F. Lewis, 4, of Spencer, had his right arm
amputated following a buzzsaw accident. . . F. N. Cronin
was elected president of the O’Neill National Bank, suc
ceeding Mrs. Emma Dickinson Weekes. . . . Farm proper
ty in Holt county is valued at 22 million dollars . . .
“Danny O’Bannon”, whose real name is Elvyn Newman
Bovell, is in custody of authorities in Omaha following
his series of fantastic O’Bannon stories in which O’
Neillites were among his listeners—believers and disbe
lievers . . . Holt county committeemen of the AAA organ
’ ization learned of a 61 percent slash in operating budget *
for 1943 . . . Mrs. D. A. Kersenbrock, of O’Neill, was nam- j
ed chairman of the 1948 polio drive in Holt county . . . I
Deaths: Edward J. Matthews, 53, of O'Neill; Mrs. Frank
Musil, 27, of Inman; Mrs. Milton Black of Verdel; Albert
A Kaczor, 61, of Meek; John Rotherham, 80, of O’Neill;
Benny Rockford, 22, of O’Neill; Mrs. A. C. McDonald, 82,
of Los Angeles, Calif., formerly of Joy; Samuel Derick
son, 88, of Dorsey; Frank Hubby, 77, of Butte; Mrs. Louis
Hohndorf, 86. of Redbird; Mrs. Sheridan Simmons, 76, of
San Diego, Calif., formerly of O’Neill.
FEBRUARY
The fabled Bluejays of St. Joseph’s academy, of At
kinson, are again the Holt county basketball champions
Six youths ranging from 11- to 15-years old were
charged with "juvenile delinquency and dependency"
following a series of breaking and entering incidents. . .
Holt donors contributed $6,218.16 to the Abraham Lin
coln Friendship Train to buy a car of rye and a part-car
of meat for war-devastated areas in Europe. . . . The cash
register of the Outlaw Grocery was looted of $117. The
thieves gained entrance by breaking a wndow in a rear
door. A reward of $150 was offered for information lead
ing to the conviction of guilty persons . . . The much
talked-about zoning proposal has become official. All of
Douglas street is included in the business area. . Mr.
-»nd Mrs. Tl^tmas J. Donohoe marked 50 years of married
life. . . Mrs. Axel Borg, O’Neill farm woman, was chosen
as one of two representatives from an 11-county district to
compete in a Nebraska-Iowa homemaking contest in Om
aha. . . John R. Gallagher and Harold E. Connors, two O’
Neill men, were among 42 new lawyers recently admit
ted to practice in the courts of the state by the Nebraska
supreme court. . . The Consumers Public Power district
advertised for bids on the erection of approximately 80
miles of 115.000-volt transmission line in the O’Neill area.
Deaths; Mrs Wililam Reninger, 77, of Independence, Mo„
formerly of Holt county; Michael Rotherham, 71, of Ew
ing; Frank L. Bain, 89, of ONeill; Mrs. Thomas Markey,
77, of O'Neill; A. J. Placek, 90, of Lynch; Mrs. John F.
Schrunk, 69, of Atkinson; Fred Beckwith, 78, of Atkin
son.
MARCH
T he city council heard a proposal for providing O’
Neill with facilities for night baseball and softball. Ac
tion was deferred pending completion of the canvass for
lunds. . . Boosts of $5 to $25 per head in the tax assess
ment value of range cattle were agreed upon by the As
sociation of County Assessors at a recent meeting In
Giand Island. . . Dorothy Scott, of Celia, was badly burn
ed while attempting to fill a lamp, presumably because
(Continued on page 4)
Gift Shower for
Baby Derby Winner
Holt county’s first-born baby in the New Year will be a
lucky little one.
O’Neill merchants will shower him or her with an assort
ment of gifts that will make that babe the envy of the current
crop in swaddling cloth.
On pages 2 and 3 in section 2 of this issue of The Frontier, de
tails of the 1949 baby derby are outlined. Parents with eligible
offspring must formally enter their child in the contest in order to
win. Contest rules include- that the infant must be born after
midnight on Friday, December 31, within Holt county boundaries.
Entries must be postmarked by 6 p. m. on Monday, January 10,
and the winner wilf be announced on Thursday, January 13, in
The Frontier.
Even the brothers and sisters will benefit from the 500
pounds of coal to be given by the Spelts-Ray Lbr. Co. Gambles
will give a baby pepperell crib blanket, measuring 36"x50", and
the Midwest Furniture & Appliance Co. is contributing a child's
training chair valued at $6.
Brown-McDonald’s have set aside a nifty knitted safety crib
cover, nationally advertised at $6.95 and a cinch to keep baby
warm for several Winters to come. A $1,000 life insurance policy
is being issued by the R. H. (“Ray”) Shriner Insurance Agency
with he first year’s premium paid in full. McCarvillcs’ have a
choice pair of baby shoes for the lucky one, and Gilligan & Stout,
O’Neill’s new drug store, will provide baby with a hot water bot
tle.
An 8” x 10” tinted enlargement with a frame and a dozen 3”x
5” mounted photographs will be baby’s gift from the O’Neill
Photo Co. Total value of these photos is $12. Bowen’s Ben
Franklin store has prepared a surprise gift package for the fond
parents when they come to collect, and Gillespie’s will present two
electrical gifts—a vaporizer and a child’s Jack and Jill electric
clock.
At Montgomery's hardware store, the lucky little guy or gal
will be greeted with a baskenette—a portable bed that can be
used indoors, outdoors or in the car. McIntosh Jewelry will
arrange to fit baby with a 10-karat gold infant's ring, and Shel
hamer Foods will present a case assortment of Heins baby
food.
An enamel bath tub, valued at $6.95, will await the doting
parents when they call at the Jonas Furniture Exchange, and last,
but not least, The Frontier will issue to 1949’s first “Future Sub
scriber” nothing else than a year’s subscription!
So, folks, keep an eye on the big bird as the big 1949 baby
derby gets underway at midnight, December 31!
‘Voice’ Silenced
by Power Failure
“The Voice of The Fron
tier”, O’Neill’s remote control
radio program heard thrice
weekly over radio station
WJAG, Norfolk, was silenced
Wednesday because of the
power failure here.
The “loop” (or direct two
wire circuit) linking The Fron
tier with the control room at
WJAG was tested early Wed
nesday and in good order but
at 9 o’clock the power in O’
Neill was shut-off and the am
plifiers in the O’Neill studio
were “dead”.
A brief roundup of highway
conditions and weather in or
mation was relayed by tele
phone to the station and at
9:30 a. m. the station explain
ed to its radio audience why
“The Voice of The Frontier”
would not be heard.
Broadcasting from O’Neill
will be resumed Saturday
—New Year’s Day—at 9:30 a.
m. Johnny and Jeannie Mul
len—the Harmonairs—will be
featured. News concerning The
Frontier’s 1949 first baby con
test will be broadcast.
No Serious Mishaps
Mar Christmas Day
No serious fires or acciflents
marred the Christmas week
end here.
O’Neill churches were well,
filled for Christmas program
and Christmas day worship
services. Some rural churches
however, were obliged to can
cel or postpone plans.
20 Pages ... This Issue
SECTION ONE
PAGE
Editorial 2
Romaine Saunders 2
Sports 5
Blanche Spann Pease _ 6
Future Subscribers 8
Sick and Injured 8
SECTION TWO
Churches 1
When You and I Were
Young 1
First Baby Contest 2 and 3
James C. Olson _ 4
Classified 4
Real Estate Transfers 4
NOWADAYS
J. J. Bryson 2
Anne Dexter _ 3
Dave Atchison _ 5
Toni DeLay 6
MRS. STAPLES, 49,
DIES AT NORFOLK
Atkinson Farmer’s Wife
Succumbs Following
Emergency Surgery
ATKINSON — Mi’s, Alfred
Staples, 49. wife of an Atkin
son larmer residing 18 miles
northeast of Atkinson, died at
11:30 p. m. Wednesday, De
cmber 22. in Our Lady of
Lourdes hospital at Norfolk.
Death followed an emergency
surgical operation.
b i neral services were held
Sunday in the Butte Commu
n ty church. A prayer service
was held in the Seger funeral
chapel at 1:45 p. m. Rev. Orin
C. Graff, of Atkinson, officiat
ed.
Nina Mary Willard was the
daughter of Mr. and Mrs.
Whitney Willard.
She was born May 15. 1899
at Evin, Kans. Her mother died
when she was two-years-old
and she went to Iowa to make
her home with her grandpar
ents. «
She was married to Alfred
Staples on December 15,
and five children were born
to them. Shortly after their
marriage the family moved
to Minong, Wis., where they
lived two years. They then
returned to Boyd county and
later moved to Holt coun
ty.
Among those from a distance
attending the funeral were:
Donald and Alfred Staples, of
Cheney, Wash.; Whitney Wil
lar and Dale Thornton, oj
Sheridan. Wyo.; Mr. and Mrs.
Floyd Stevens, and Mrs. James
McDonald, of Wagner, S. D.;
Mrs. Nina Anderson, of Brisv
tow, and Mr. and Mrs. Henry
Pfeifer, of Anoka
Survivors include: Widower;
sons—Alfred, jr., and Donald,
both of Chaney, Wash.; and
Wilbur, of Atkinson; daughters
—Mrs. Joseph Hendricks and
Miss Nina Staples, both of At
kinson; sister—Mrs Jess Hupp,
of Dustin; half-brother—James
Willard, of Sheridan, Wyo.
Pallbearers were: V. B
Faust, J. J. Carroll, Harold
Kirkland, John Kreiger. New
ell Pock and M. V. Pock.
The Frontier: $2.50 per year!
AAA OFFICIALS
ARE REELECTED
Harry E. Resell Will
Head Holt Program
Another Year
Twenty-five delegates' to the
annual election of county AAA
i committeemen held here Wed
nesday, December 22, reelect
ed Harry E. Ressel, of O’Neill,
chairman; Fred R. Mack, of
Atkinson, vice-chairman; Al'J.
Sauser, of O’Neill, third mem
ber; George D. Hansen, of O’
Neill, first alternate, and Ora
Yarges, of Stuart, second al
ternate.
( The election was held in the
Holt county courthouse annex
building.
The following were elected
as community committeemen
at recent elections:
Antelope and Iowa—Lynd
I ley J. Crumly, Luvern Van
Conett, Floyd H. Frahm.
Atkinson—Joseph W. Rocke,
Sylvester R. Tushla, Eli W.
I McConnell.
Chambers and Shamrock—
Herman R. Holcomb, Clarence
C. Young, James I. Cavanaugh.
Cleveland and Dustin —
Charles M. Mulford, Elmer C.
Allyn, William J. Meusch.
Conley — Leon C. Hertel,
Charles F. Green, Joe E. Koci.
Deloit—Frank Mlnarik, Car]
J. Thiele, Cletus Muff.
Ewing and Golden— Martin
G. Helmricks, Joseph P. Kac
zor, Alfons M. Beelaert.
Fairview and Wyoming —
Vern Sages'er, C. F. Small,
Ralph E. Rees.
Grattan—Orville K Morrow,
Floyd Ritts, John T. Murray.
Green Valley, Holt Creek
and Francis—Arthur I. Pacha.
Edward A. Bouska, Freddie J
Ziska.
(Continued on page 8)
Conduct Hunt
for Mother of 4
Mrs. Neil (Julia) Ryan, 35,
mother of four children whose
: ages range from 3- to 12-years
old, is believed to have left
O’Neill sometime last Thurs
j day afternoon and no word has
since been heard from her.
Members of her family on
Christmas day enlisted the aid
of authorities in a search for
her.
On Sunday O'Neill towns
people conducted a local
search without avail. By late
Wednesday her whereabouts
had not been determined.
Mrs. Ryan and her husband
operated a neighborhood groc
ery store here. A blonde, she is
five feet three inches tall and
weighs about one hundred
and twenty pounds.
Train Strikes
Truck on Crossing
An Eastbound freight train
on the North Western syslenj
struck a truck owned by Al
bert Sipes on a West O’Neill
railroad crossing Tuesday af
ternoon.
Mr. and Mrs. Sipes were in
the truck when it became stal
led Mrs. Sipes saw the on
coming train and she and her
husband escaped before the
crash.
The machine was badly dam
aged. Mr. Sipes said that the
visibility was “very bad”.
BUS BURNS
LYNCH—The Norfolk-Butte
bus caught fire Sunday about
a mile and a half west of
Lynch. The bus was towed to
a garage. The upholstery was
badly burned and damaged
No one was injured.
Delay Departure
of 4 Draftees
Departure of four Holt court
ty selective service registrants,
scheduled Tuesday, has been
postponed.
Mrs. W. H. Harty, of O’Neill,
chief clerk for the Holt draft
j board, said Wednesday the fol
lowing four men were to have
been inducted into military
service this week in Grand
Island:
WILLIAM SHOLES, of In
man.
EDWIN SPES, of Ewing.
FLOYD WARNER, of O’
Neill
PAUL HIATT, of Amelia.
Mrs. Harty said the four
men will be sent to the induc
tion station as soon as trans
| portation can be arranged.
GRIMS RELAY
OBSERVANCE
Venu.s Couple Married
Half-Century on
November 20
VENUS — Mr. and Mrs.
Charles E. Grim, well-known
Venus couple, observed their
golden wedding anniversary
on Sunday, December 19.
Their 50th wedding date was
Saturday, November 20, but
their open - house affair was
postponed because of the bliz
zard of November 18 and 19.
Highlight of the belated ob
servance was a dinner at the
Elmer Grim place. Present
for the dinner were: The hon
ored couple and their children,
grandchildren, great-grandchil
dren, Mr. and Mrs. Z. G. But
terfield and Henry Hines, of
Venus' and Mr. and Mrs. R. B.
Graves, of Casper, Wyo.
The table was covered with
a white table cloth with 10
yards or more of crocheted
lace on it. It was made by
Mrs. Harry Butterfield, the
Grims’ youngest daughter
while she was attending high
1 school in Orchard.
After dinner, the open
house was held at the
Charles Grim home from 2
to 5 o'clock. Fifty-three rel
atives and friends registered.
They were served ice cream,
cake and coffee. Many gifts
we*re received. Mrs. Irven
Miller, niece of the couple,
baked a three-tier cake, and
over one hundred cards of
congratulations were receiv
ed.
Mr. and Mrs. Grim have liv
ed in the same community all
of their married life. Mr. Grim
was born in a dugout one
fourth of a mile from where
he now lives, on the place
known as Oak View ranch. He
was born September 20, 1874.
and was the first white child
born here. All others were
Indians.
Mrs. Grim was the former
Lizzie Dougherty, daughter of
the late Mr. and Mrs. John
Dougherty. She was born in
Sioux county, la., on June 22,
1881.
They are the parents of
three children: Elmer Grim
and Mrs. Albert Pospeshil,
both of Venus, and Mrs Har
ry Butterfield, of Orchard.
They have four grandchildren,
Harold Pospeshil. of Sioux Ci
ty; Gerald and Telford Grim
of Venus, and Shirley Butter
ield, of Orchard; two great
grandchildren, Janet Lou and
Jerry John Pospeshil, of Sioux
I City.
BOARD TO MEET
The Holt county board of
j supervisors is scheduled to
| meet today (Thursday) and
I Friday in final 1948 session.
PICTURE BOOMS BUSINESS . . . Carlyle
Washecek, O’Neill invalid and son of Mrs. Al
bie Washecek, recently was pictured (as
above) in the daily press for having entered
business for himself in the manfacture of jew
elry. Meanwhile, he has received Christmas
greetings, packages and some orders from new
found admirers.
BOYD MAN DIES
ON 80th BIRTHDAY
Funeral Rites Held At
Spencer for William
M. Kramer
SPENCER — William M.
Kramer, who died Tuesday,
December 21, on his 80th
birthday anniversary, was bur
ied here Sunday following fun
eral services at the Metnodist
church.
The .late Mr. Kramer had
suffered a paralytic stroke some
time ago and had been disabl
ed for several months prior to
his death.
He was born December
21, 1868 at Winterset. Ia..
a son of Mr. and Mrs. Extra
Kramer. He came with his
father and his family to
Holt county when he was
16-years-old.
Leaving the family home
stead, he and two brothers
settled on a homestead in
Boyd county, near Lynch. In
1899 he married Miss Julia
Jensen. One son was born to
them. Mrs. Kramer died in
1901 and on July 16, 1909, he
was' married to Miss Bessie
Ferguson. Four children were
born to them.
The late Mr. Kramer spent
most of his life in the Spen
cer, Bristow and Lynch com,
munities.
Survivors include: Daughters
—Mrs. Ilo McDonald, of Wood
Lake; Mrs. Iva Hallopeter, of
Silver Springs, Md., and Mrs.
Ina Kaiser, of Ainsworth. Sons
—George W. Kramer, of Al
bion, and Andrew Kramer, of
Annadale. Va. Sister — Mrs.
Jack Gordon, of Arlington. He.
also leaves an adopted sister,
17 grandchildren and two
great-grandchildren.
Protestants Plan
Praver Service
O’Neill Protestant churches
will hold a special union ser
vice at the Methodist church
at 7:30 p. m. on Thursday,
January 6.
The service will be in con
junction with the worldwide
prayer week observance, Jan
uuary 2-8
WJAG . . . 780 on your dial!
Fresh Snowstorm
Paralyzes Region
Highways Blocked, Communication and
Power Lines Are Damaged by Blizzard
The O’Neill region was pounded into submission Tuesday by
the Winter’s second major snowstorm.
A raging blizzard moved into the region shortly after noon
and by sundown most highway and rail traffic was reduced to a
standstill. The snow was accompanied by a strong northwest
wind and sent temperatures tumbling to the 7-degree mark.
Compared to the historic November blizzard, the tempera
tures were colder but there was considerably less snow, drift
ing was not as great, and the stofm was shortlived in contrast
with the memorable two-day affair last month.
The Nebraska safety patrol reported that the discipline of
motorists in the O’Neill region was “definitely better’’ than dur
ing the unseasonal November storm in which scores of motorists
were caught by surprise and became marooned.
Tuesday s storm, however, imposed a greater hardship on
dwellers in cities and towns where residents depend on electric
ity for heating and refrigeration.
Sleet and wind snapped a high tension line between O’Neill
and the Belden substation, enforcing drastic power rationing in
towns West of Belden to Valentine and towns South f O’Neill u>
Tilden and North to Butte. Hourly current was “off-and-on’’ in
most towns.
There was a severe sleet damage to high tension l;nes link
ing the O Neill Consumers Public Power district with hydro
electric power sources along the Platte river. The only power
available in the O'Neill district was that generated by diesel
plants at O'Neill, Valentine, Creighton, Hartington, Neligh and
Wausa and the hyrdo plant at She Spencer dam.
O’Neill’s first power interruption occured at 8 o’clock Tuesday
night and a series of interruptions continued until about 5 o’clock
Wednesday afternoon when the break near Belden was repair
ed.
B\ Wednesday night only the Ponca and Newcastle vicinities
also, hard-hit by sleet, were without energy in the O’Neill dis
trict.
Mrs. Harvey Ross, 97,
Former Resident, Dies
Mrs. Harvey (Mary) Ross
97, widow of the late Harvey
Ross and sister-in-law of Man
ford Ross, of O’Neill, died on
j Christmas day at Valentine.
She resided at the Charles
Porter residence in O’Neill for
about a year.
She spent most of her life
at Craig. Her husband died
about 15 years ago.
Funeral services were held
Monday at Valentine and bur
ial was made in Leona ceme
Manager Harry Petersen of
the Northwestern Bell Tele
phone Co. reported that 12
trunk telephone circuiti
were unserviceable out of the
O'Neill exchange, but ser
vice was never completely
interrupted in any direction.
Four circuits between O'
Neill and Norfolk were use
less; two to points North;
five. West, and one. South.
At Grand Island and Kear
ney the damage was so great
that telephone linemen were
being rushed into the area
from many hundred miles.
(Continued on page 8)