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About The frontier. (O'Neill City, Holt County, Neb.) 1880-1965 | View Entire Issue (March 15, 1951)
16 PAGES — 2 SECTIONS North-Nebraska’s Fastest-Growing Newspaper VOLUME 70.—NUMBER 45. O'NEILL. NEBRASKA. THURSDAY. MARCH 1^1951. " PRICE: 7 CENfs mar sqc Gene Doolittle Fatally Injured r - 4t> - Struck by Broken Chain; 2d Tragedy in Family AMELIA— A 24-year-old vet eran of World War II, Gene Doolittle, died about 1:30 a.m. Saturday, March 10, in the Stuart Community hospital, several hours alter having been injured in an unusual accident. About 3 o’clock Friday after noon he was working with his t brother, Clyde, and his nephew, Marvin Doolittle, loading hay on an underslung with the block and tackle method. A ring on the end of the cable slipped off a stake, went flying through the air and struck Doo little. The injured man was rushed to Dr. N. P. McKee at Atkin son, arriving there about 3:30 p.m. Doctor McKee transferred the unconscious victim to the Stuart hospital where he died. ^ Doctor McKee said he doubted if young Doolittle ever knew what struck him. He suffered a compound skull fracture and never regained consciousness. Friday’s tragedy is the second fatal accident in six months in the family of Mr. and Mrs. Thom as Doolittle, prominent Amelia ranch people. On October 29, 1950, a son, Earl Doolittle, 36, died from gun shot wounds suffered in a hunt ing accident. Earl was hunting a lone near his home and his gun accidently discharged. Funeral services for Gene Doolittle, youngest son of Mr. and Mrs. Thomas Doolittle, were conducted Monday, ' March 25. at the Amelia Meih v odist church. Rev. L. R. Hans* berry, of Chambers, was in charge. Music for the services was fur nished by a mixed quartette com posed of Mrs. George Fullerton, Mr. and Mrs. Lawrence Barnett and Clyde Widman, with Mrs. Widman at the piano. Pallbearers were Ralph Adair, Bill Sammons, Hienie Frahm, Jack Gilman, Lloyd Waldo and Lyle Fix. Interment was made in the Chambers cemetery. He was bur ied near the grave of his broth er, Harold. Survivors include: Parents — Mr. and Mrs. Thomas S. Doolit tle; sisters—Mrs. Herman Med t lin, of Chambers; Mrs. Bernie Kennedy and Mrs. Harold Ful lerton, both of Amelia; brothers —Art, Clinton, Thomas and Clyde (“Dick”), all of Amelia. Two brothers, Harold and Earl, preceded him in death. Gene was a lifelong resident of Holt county, except for the time he spent m the service. He was with occupation forces in Korea at the close of World War II hos tilities. Postmaster’s Wife Heads ARC Drive Mrs. Thomas J. Sullivan has been named chairman of the an nual American Red Cross mem bership and fund - raising drive for 1951. This was announced Tuesday by Glea H. Wade, of O’ Neill, Holt county ARC chair man. Mrs. Sullivan is the wife of O’Neill’s acting postmaster. Holt county’s quota for 1951 is $2,035—slightly higher than last year. Reason for the increase is brought about by the increased burdens placed on the organ ization brought on by the Kor ean war. The ARC has expanded its blood bank facilities to meet the new crisis and already has saved, many lives. Blood bank reserves also will be available for civilian use in event of catastrophe or enemy attack on the U.S. “Fresh in the minds of most of us is the manner in which the ARC came to the aid of Holt countyans during the winter of 1948-’49 in connection with ‘Op eration Snowbound’,” Mrs. Sulli van explained. “I’m sure folks will be liberal in their giving in order that we may go over the top—even though our Holt coun ty drive is being started several weeks late.” Libraries Can Improve Service— Limitation on the amount which Nebraska cities, villages, and townships may levy for the lib rary fund was raised from one to two mills when the unicamer al passed. LB 189 on February 22 The vote on the bill was 38-0, and since it contained the emer gency clause, it became effective when signed by governor Peter son March 2. By raising the limit on the a mount which local authorities levy for library purposes, the way has been opened for Nebras ka libraries to give greater ser vice to their communities. WANT ADS as low as 35c per insertion.—The Frontier. \ Gene Doolillle, 24 . . . victim hay cabling accident. (Story at left) BULL SELLS FOR $2,500 AT BUTTE EH Royal Domino Sets a New High For Herefords BUTTE—The reserve champ ion bull, EH Royal Domino, es tablished a new all-time high selling price Tuesday at the fifth annual spring sale of the Niobra ra Valley Hereford association held at Butte. The bull, calved November 9, 1948, was consign ed by A. M. Engelhaupt, of Butte, and purchased by Clyde H. Fish er, of Spencer, for $2,500. EH Royal Domino is a son of a a $30,000 bull. The grand champion of the show, judged Tuesday morning by Clare Clements, of Ord, was LH Bozato 34th, consigned by L. J. Lechtenberg, of Spencer. The champ was calved June 20, 1949. He brought $875, purchased by Frank Lechtenberg, of Anoka. The grand champion fomale also was consigned by L. J. Lechtenberg. Calved November 20, 1949, LH Lady Domino 4th was purchased by Louis Jura cek, of Niobrara, for $500. Best three head award went to L. J. Lechtenberg. The champ bull and female represented two of the trio. The Butte Gazette of fered a trophy. Walter G. (“Walt”) Sire, sale manager, said the entire ottering .of bulls — 34 head — averaged $590. The top 10 bulls averaged $900. The first 20 bulls to walk through the ring averaged $700 per head. Ninety were present at the association’s annual banquet, sponsored by the Butte Commun ity club, on the eve of the sale. Among Holt countyans present were Mr. and Mrs. S. R. Robert son, of O’Neill; Mr. and Mrs. W. J. Meusch, of Butte, and Floyd Whitaker, of Chambers, all mem bers of the association. Clyde H. Fisher, of Spencer, is association president. CONTINUE METER CASE 10 DAYS Manufacturer May Have Counsel at Next Hearing Monday was answer day in Holt county district court for the plaintiff, the city of O’Neill, in a temporary injuction suit brought by a group of citizens known as Sumner Downey et al. The city asked for a delay and District Judge D. R. Mounts gran ted a 10-day continuance. Meanwhile, one councilman in formally explained to The Fron ted Wednesday that the park ing meter manufacturers would have legel counsel in the court room for the next hearing. Until now the meter people have not seen fit to appear in court. The meters are being held at the fire station. A restraining order prevents the city from having the meters installed, in accordance with an agreement with the manufacturers. Under terms of the contract, 150 meters “more-or-less” are to be installed on both sides of Douglas street between Third and Fifth streets. New post-type stop - and - go signals for O’Neill’s main inter section, in the heart of town, “within the next few days,” a council spokesman said. Lack of an automatic signal at the Fourth and Douglas inter section are expected to arrive has created a hazard. The over head signal was taken down when the wind tore the guidewdes from their moorings. Attend Meeting— Mr. and Mrs. C. E. Jones at tended a dinner in Norfolk Fri day evening. Mr. Jones attend ed a Central Finance corporation directors’ meeting in the after noon. ALiCt ANN MINTON, HOLT PIONEER, DIES Burial Today for Queen of O’Neill’s Diamond , Jubilee Mrs. Alice Ann Minton, 86, widow of the late John Minton, died at 12:40 a.m. Tuesday, March 13, at the home of her daughter, Mrs. Jane Judge. The late Mrs. Minton was hon orary queen of O’Neill’s diamond jubilee celebration in 1949. She was honored for being one of the longest continuous residents of the community. Funeral services will be held at 9 a.m. today (Thursday) at St. Patrick’s Catholic church. Very Rev. Timothy O’Sulliman, church pastor, will officiate and burial will be in Calvary cemetery un der direction of Biglin Bros. A rosary was offered at 8:30 p.m. Wednesday at the Judge home. Pallbearers chosen are H. D. Grady, P. C. Donohoe, D. H. Mc Carthy, John Sullivan, H. J. Birmingham and H. E. Coyne. Alice Ann Barrett was born April 28, 1864, at Kingston. Canada, a daughter of Patrick Barrett and Mary ConvU Bar rett. In 1875 she came to Holt coun ty from Peoria, 111. Mrs. Minton . . survived tri als of pioneer life. On November 15, 1884, at St. Patrick’s church she married John Minton. The Mintons be came the parents of seven chil dren, and lived on a farm 9 miles northeast of O’Neill. Mr. Minton died 57 years ago. Survivors include: Sons—Pat rick, of Norfolk; John, of Oma ha; Richard, of O’Neill; daugh ter—Mrs. Jane Judge, of O’Neill. One son and two daughters preceded their mother in death: Michael, Kathryn and Mrs. T. F. Matthews. The late Mrs. Minton came to Holt traveling with her parents by covered wagon from the end of the rail line at Wisner. Her father had been “sold” on Holt county by one of Gen. John O’ Neill’s stirring speeches. Mrs. Minton's parents sur vived pioneer hardships and later she proved her pioneer heritage by carrying on with seven children when she was left a widow at the age of 31. I Her eldest was only 12. She planted corn and perform ed other manual tasks. Mrs. Minton was almost a life long member of St. Patrick’s church. She was also a member of the Royal Highlanders. . She leaves 16 grandchildren and 23 great-grandchildren. Freddie Kane, 15, Fever Victim Freddie Kane, 15, son of Mr. and Mrs. Larry Kane, former O’ Neill residents, died Wednesday, March 14, in Minnesota, where the Kanes are residing. Death was caused by rheumatic fever. Mr. and Mrs. Fred Hartlieb, of Omaha, grandparents of the boy, telephoned the news to O’Neill. Funeral services will be held Saturday morning in Omaha where burial will be made. The Kanes left O’Neill about 12 years ago. Survivors, besides the parents and grandparents, in clude one brother and one sister. The Town House Opens Today— Val and Joyce Darling an nounce in this issue the formal opening of The Town House at the comer of Eighth and Douglas streets. The spacious Mellor es tate has been transformed into 1 a luxurious dining cafe and will i cater to groups and parties. “Voice of The Frontier” . . . WJAG (780 k. c.) Mr. and Mrs. J. W. Ressel . . . unusual celebration for O'Neill couple.—Norfolk Daily News Photo. FORMER RESIDENT DIES AT UNCOLN Mrs. Bert Shoemaker, 61, Dies Sunday After Lingering Illness Mrs. Bert Shoemaker, 61, for mer O’Neill resident, died Sun day, March 11, at Lincoln after a lingering illness. A rosary was offered at 8:30 p.m. Wednesday in a Lincoln fu neral home and funeral services will be held at 10 a.m. today (Thursday) at Holy Family church in Lincoln. Rt. Rev. L. V. Barnes, church pastor, will offi ciate and burial will be in Cal vary cemetery at Lincoln. Mae M. Carlon was born at O’Neill, a daugter of Mr. and Mrs. Thomas Carlon. Mr. Carlon was an O’Neill attorney and served for many years as county judge. The Carlon family left O’ Neill to move to Denver, Colo. Whan she married Mr. Shoe maker she returned to O'Neill to make her home, residing here continuously until about three years ago when the Shoemakers moved to Lincoln. In late years Mrs. Shoemaker sold insurance and did interior decorating. Survivors include: Widower — Bert; sons—Harold J., of Norfolk; Donald F., of Boise, Ida.; Ches ter A. and Richard E., both of Lincoln; sisters — Miss Grace Carlon, of Rochester, Minn.; Mrs. Leonard (Josie) Soukup, of Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.; Mrs. L. P. (Lor etta) Duffy, of Sante Fe., N. M.; Mrs. W. J. (Lillian) Hammond, of Los Angeles, Calif.; seven grandchildren. LIZZIE M’KIM, 72, DIES SATURDAY Widow of Former Holt Official Is Buried At Clearwater CLEARWATER— Mrs. Lizzie McKim, 72, widow of the late L. C. McKim, died at 11:50 a.m. Saturday, March 10, at her home in Clearwater. She had be come ill shortly before her death and had summoned two neigh bors, Mrs. Herbert Soguster and Mrs. Lyle Stevens. They were near her when she died. Funeral services were held Wednesday, March 14, at 2 p.m. at the Methodist church in Clear water. Survivors include: Daughters— Mrs. Annabelle Shoemaker, of Boise, Ida.: and Mrs. Opal En gelhaupt, of Gering; sons—Dr. V. C. McKim. of Fresno, Calif.; George W. McKim, of Albuquer quu, N. M.; Clinton McKim, of Rulo; Lyle C. McKim and Or ville McKim, both of O’Neill; 27 grandchildren; 1 great-grand child; brother —John Anderson, of Clearwater. The two sons from a distance, Dr. V. C. McKim, of Los Ange les, and George W. McKim, of Albuquerque, were delayed in getting to Clearwater following receipt of news of their mother’s death. The plane in which they were traveling was grounded. Arrive for Visit— Mr. and Mrs. Harold Connors and Mrs. Ed Connors, of Sidney, arrived Friday to spend the weekend at the home of Mr. and Mrs. M. J. Wallace. Mr. Connors and Mrs. Ed Connors returned to Sidney Monday, but Mrs. Connors remained to visit for two weeks. ■ Visit at Jansing'g— Mrs. Oliver Ross and daughter visited Mrs. Herman J. Janzing last Thursday. Spend 60th Wedding Date in Hospital Mr. and Mrs. J. W. Ressel cel ebrated their 60th wedding anni versary Sunday, March 11. Sixtieth wedding anniversaries are rare, indeed, but the circum stances surrounding this celebra tion made the affair even more unusual. Because Mrs. Ressel is a patient a t Lutheran hospital slowly recovering from —of all ! things—an appendectomy. The 60th wedding celebra tion was originally scheduled for the Harry E. Ressel home at O'Neill. But an emergency appendectomy on February 24 changed all that. The 81-year old woman was rushed to the hospital suffering from an a cute attack of appendicitis. Came the wedding day and the husband, 86, accompanied his son, Harry, and wife, through drifting snow to be on hand for the celebration. They took with them a three-tier cake (see pho to). The Ressels were married March 11, 1891, at the Methodist parsonage at Ithaca. Her maiden name was Fannie Boyden. The couple resided on a farm near Ceresco until March 1, 1919, when they moved onto a farm near Plainview, where they lived until 1928 when they moved into Plainview. On December 3, 1948, the aged couple moved to O’ Neill. They became the parents of three sons—Harry E., of O’Neill; Curtis, of Plainview, and Burtis, who died in infancy, and two daughters—Mrs. John Senseney, of Plainview, and Mrs. Frank Senseney, of Manson, Wash. The two daughters married brothers. There are 20 grandchildren and 19 great-grandchildren. Miss Ruth Harris Starts Home from China— Miss Ruth Harris, daughter of Mrs. Esther C. Harris, has start ed on a journey home from Chi na, where she served as a Meth odist missionary for four years. Miss Harris arrived in Hongkong February 22 and departed for Rangoon, India, March 7. She and several lady mission aries from Pennsylvania expect to visit places of interest in Eur ope before arriving in the U.S. about the beginning of June. They expect to visit the Holy Land, Rome, Switzerland, France, England and Scotland. Seek to Provide Ladies’ Restroom The Chamber of Commerce, in session Tuesday noon at Slat’s cafe, unanimously went on re cord backing a move to provide a public ladies’ restroom in the l city. A specific suggestion which i drew enthusiastic favor was a proposal to transform the base ment of Grattan township library from a living apartment into rest quarters. The idea, however, will haVe to be placed before the Grattan township board and the library board for final decision. Cham ber President L. M. Diehlman, District Judge D. R. Mounts and L. D Putnam, who is also Lions club president, were appointed as a committee to confer on the matter. Eighteen were present at Tuewlay’s March meeting. Ora Yarges, of Stuart, Holt county extension president, and Charles Crook, of the soil conservation service, were guests. Secretary James W. Rooney reported that the Sowers, of the Lincoln Chamber of Commerce, would visit O’Neill in May. “ Frontier for printing ! Brunt of Storm Bypasses City Fifth Annual Spring Issue This week’s issue of The Frontier is the fifth annual spring edition. Keynote of the bulk of the advertising is the advent of spring, the Easter season and the new fashions. In previous years The Fron tier’s spring number has been on a more ambitious scale with extended coverage. But this year the prospects of a serious paper shortage have obliged the management to restrict the size and coverage. Consequent ly, this issue is only slightly larger than normal issues. Despite a cold blast during the past week, there are har bingers of spring at every hand. Several persons have re ported sighting early robins. Easter Sunday, March 25, will not again fall as early in the year until sometime in the next century. Most of the spring moves have been com pleted and truly it can be said that spring is almost here! VETERAN PAGE BANKER DIES Oscar L. Reed, 62, Fails to Recover from Major Surgery PAGE—Funeral services were held in the Methodist church at Page on Sunday afternoon, March 11, for Oscar L. Reed, 62, who died at his home Wednesday night, March 7, just four months after submitting to a major op eration. Rev. C. E. Wilcox, church pas tor, assisted by Rev. George Francis, had charge of the ser vices and burial was in the Page cemetery, under the direction of Biglin Bros. A male quartet, Ralph Gray, Vernie Hunter, Marvin and Dale Stauffer, sang "Nearer My God,” “Going Down the Valley,” and "Face to Face," accompanied on the piano by Mrs. Ralph Gray. Pallbearers were: Alton Brad dock, Robert Gray, Ralph Larson, Frank Cronk and C. E. Walker. Despite storm conditions and aero temperatures, the church was filled to near-capacity with persons coming to pay final re spects. Oscar Lewis Reed, second son of the late Pulaski and Elizabeth Reed, was born at Page on April 8, 1888. He grew to manhood in this community. After attending school here he attended school at Nebraska Wesleyan university and later taught school for five years. On December 24, 1913, he was married to Bertha Clinton. They began housekeeping at Page, where they have since made their home, •with the exception of about a year spent on a home stead near Newcastle, Wyo. During their early years of marriage they operated a cafe at Page. Later Mr. Reed served for four years as postmaster. For the past 15 years he has held the position as secretary of the Page Cooperative Credit association. He was a member of the Am erican Legion, having served in World War I for 16 months. He sprved with the army of oc cupation at Coblenz, Germany, for several months following the armistice. He was a member of both the Masonic lodge and the Indepen dent Order of Odd Fellows. Mr. Reed took an active part in civic affairs. Survivors include: Widow; stepson—Dr. George Clinton, of Los Angeles, Calif.; step-grand son—Dee Clinton, of Los Ange les; brother — Elmer Reed, of Royal; sisters—Mrs. Allen (Su sie) Haynes and Mrs. Harry (Maude) Harper, both of Page, and Mrs. C. F. (Nelle) Storm, of Hoyal. Among out-of-town relatives attending the Reed services were Mr. and Mrs. Charles Nichaelson, Mrs. Emma Reed, Miss Betty and Stanley Reed, of Cozad; Dr. George Clinton, of Los Angeles, Calif.; Mr. and Mrs. Fred Storm, Mr. and Mrs. E. Blackmore, Mrs. Forrest Storm and Elmer Reed, of Royal; Mr. and Mrs. Laurence Haynes, Miss Viola Haynes and Gordon Harper, Sandra and Jeanette, all of O’ Neill. Region in Grip of Coldest Blast of Winter Weather was the big news this week—and folks in the O’Neill region sat, for once, in the spec tators’ chair. The brunt of the storm skirted the eastern fringe of the O’Neill legion and choked highways with snow. * Old Man Winter applied a strong grip on this sector for ex actly a week. By late Wednesday his back appeared to have beia broken and the weatherman was forecasting milder, springlike temperatures. Th* saiga—the worst of the winter—-began late Wednesday. March 7, when shirtsleeve wea ther suddenly caught cold. Some snow fall that night and Thursday. Friday Old Man Winter relin quished a little but Saturday ha settled down to a day of inter mittent snowfall after starting with mist. The moisture made highways treacherous with the icy coating. High winds and about four inches of snow characterized Sunday s weather. East of tho ] Junction of highways 20 and 276 i ® miles east of Inman, the storm piled up heavy snow and clog ged both federal highways. Mainline trains on the Chicago & North Western railroad niain tiiined uninterrupted service al though running late both Sunday and Monday. Eastbound Sioux City busses Sunday started out but turned back at Osmond. Busses to and from Sioux City and Norfolk were not dispatched early Mon day. Traffic piled up late Sunday near Clearwater on highway 275 and near the Orchard cemetery on highway 20. Motorists traveling from Om aha to O'Neill required eight hours to make the trip during the Sunday storm. Snow in the hills near Randolph and Laurel tied up highway 20 traffic through Monday and part of Tuesday. Fresh blowing refill ed the cuts. The Burlington maintained ser vice on the O'Neill-Ferry branch but the trains were obliged to follow snowplows. Motorists Sunday proceeded in the O’Neill area with their headlights on. Visibility Sunday and early Monday was restricted to a max imum of about one thousand feet. Wind velocity those days ranged from 17 to 25 miles per hour. The storm was mildly reminia eent of the Recurring Blizzards of 1948-’49. Most observers here were willing to label the stor..j as a “miniature model.” Lowest temperature in O'Neill during the weekend, unofficially, was 4 degrees below zero. Ten inches of snow fell at Lau rel. About 20 long distance tele phone circuits were knocked ** out of commission through the Bell system's toll center. At no time, however, were any towns in the O'Neill region isolated. Most of the breaks occurred between O'Neill and Norfolk and between O'Neill and Val enline. Telephone linemen resorted t® snowshoes in the Ewing and Clearwater localities. Occasional ly, without the shoes, the work men would sink in to their hips Consumers Publie Power dis trict, which administers 13 north Nebraska counties, reported no serious power difficulty. Their lines withstood the pressure of snow, sleet and wind. John D. Osenbahgh, resident Nebraska highway engineer, re ported that all main roads in Holt, Boyd and Rock counties were open continuously. Highway 14, north of Neligh, was closed Sunday and part of Monday; highway 13, north and south of Creighton, was closed Monday. Livestock men say the winter has been especially good for live stock and feeding has been rela tively easjr. Many farmers, howerver, are fretting over the dryness. They point out that spring is just * round the comer and there is a serious shortage of topsoil mois ture. Mr. and Mrs. Pat Hynes drov® Mrs. Mar are t Reinhardt to Oma ha Tuesday.