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About The frontier. (O'Neill City, Holt County, Neb.) 1880-1965 | View Entire Issue (May 3, 1951)
12 PAGES — 2 SECTIONS i North-Nebraska’s Fastest-Growing Newspaper VOLUME 70.—NUMBER 52. O'NEILL, NEBR.. THURSDAY, MAY 3, 1951. PRICE: 7 CENTS STATE HIST SOC Dr. Doug las Gets 50-Year Award Atkinson Physician Delivers 3,400 Babies in Career (By a Staff Writer) ATKINSON — Dr. William James Douglas, 78, this week is being honored—along with 9 oth er Nebraska physicians and sur geons — for having completed more than a half-century in the practice of medicine. The venerable old doctor, who ( estimates he has helped bring some 3,400 babies into the world, boarded a train Monday night and headed for Omaha where to day (Thursday) he is to receive the award from the Nebraska State Medical association. He was born in Pekin, Md., came to Nebraska with his par ents in 1878, was educated at Om aha high school, graduating in 1894, and graduated in 1900 from the Omaha medical school—the forerunner of the University of Nebraska college of medicine. f When the Maryland - born Douglas lad reached Omaha the town had no paved streets: it was a typically western riv er town. As a young general practition er, Doctor Douglas first went to work as a relief for an ailing physician at Clarkson. He also practiced at Dodge, Benedict and Tilden before coming to Atkinson in 1901. From that time he has been closely and intimately identified with the community life. At one time he maintained a stable of 17 horses to get him over the country to look alter the medical needs of the people. With the advent of the automobile, Doctor Douglas bargained for an early Hupmooile and was one of * the lirst motorists west of Nor iolk. The title was accompanied by _ considerable inconvenience. When he’d run low on gas he oftimes was stranded because only a few communities "stocked” gasoline. (Some of the drama in the ca reer of this country doctor could easily fill a book. There was Ihe lime he oper ated on a xarm boy on the kitchen table—the hired man administering the anesthetic. Ihe appendectomy went ott o kay. in mis case. Doctor Doug las nad to be a diplomat, too. The parents originally declined to let me doctor operate. With a t nourish he packed his grip and started to town. “The parents came after me and l operated," he recounts. • lhere was little time to waste and tne act helped them to make up tneir minus," he added with a satisiying smile. “1 retail anouier incident,” he continued. “An old man was bal ing hay. He stuck his right arm into tne baler, it got caught just above the elbow, and the arm was mangled. "They brought him into my office, tie wouldn't take an an esthetic. 1 amputated—and to this oay Inal man is getting fairly good use of what is left of the arm." Doctor Douglas married Anna May Campbell on June 17, 1DU4, in Atkinson. They bceame the parents oi a daughter, Mrs. David ^Catherine Delores) Adler, who now resides in Winnetka, 111. Mrs. Douglas has been dead for many years. When Atkinson was a mere village, Doctor Douglas was act ive on the village board and was insistent that a municipal water system be installed, doing away with easily contaminated private wens, wnen tne town grew into a second-class Nebraska city, Doctor Douglas continued in a prominent civic role. He was mayor oi Atkinson ior more than a quarter ot a century. During World War I Doctor Douglas leit AtKinson for a time to serve as a captain in the med ical corps. tie was district American Le igon commander in ltf33-’34, has been a ineiong Republican, is a member oi tne catnolic church, Anights of Commbus and Amer ican Medical association. Mrs. Adler is to be with her father m Umana wnen he re ceives the ou-year award. Board of Equalization Convenes Next Week The Holt county board of su pervisors will convene Monday, May 7, as a board of equalization. me board is required to meet for not less than 3 nays nor more tnan od uays. Meanwnne, substantial i n creases in valuations are being noted as the lion county assess or’s staif compiles personal tax records, i'tie *.a peicem increase m cattle vaiua aous alone will ac count tor a stable gain for the county s colters. Marks 41h Birthday— David Grasmick, son of Mr. sary Wednesday with a small and Mi's, isamuel Grasmick, cele brated his 4th birthday anniver party at his home. Barbara Moore, Carol Jean and James Al len Klein, and Mark and Dale Skulborstad were guests. Dr. Douglas . . . closely ident ified with community life since the turn of the century.—The Frontier Photo. (Story at left) REA ENERGIZES ANOTHER SECTION Switches were thrown Friday and Saturday energizing por tions of the second section of the Niobrara Valley Electric Membership corporation’s REA lines. Forty farmsteads receiv ed power for the first time. Most of these places are locat ed in the Inman vicintiy. When the second section con struction is completed, rural electrification will be carried to about 700 farms and ranches, according to the manager, Ed Wilson. The Niobrara’s annual meet ing was held Tuesday at the American Legion club in O’ Neill. George Rowse, of Cham bers, was elected to succeed Harry Ressel, of O’Neill, as a member of the board. Ressel is retiring from the board, declin ing to be a candidate. Iowan Purchases John Deere Agency Harry R. Smith, of Akron, la., Wedesday became O’Neill’s John Deere dealer. He purchased the agency from Lloyd Collins, vet eran north - Nebraska and south ern South Dakota implement dealer. The John Deere store, located in the remodeled O’Neill Roller drome building, was closed Wed nesday for inventory. Collins will continue to handle the Oliver farm implement line and DeSoto and Plymouth cars in his former location on South Fourth street. He plans to re model and improve his former location. Mr. Smith, who is single, has been farming near Akron for many years. M/Sgt. Roy Johnson Reaches Pacific Isle M/Sgt. Roy D. Johnson is now stationed on Eta Jima island, off the coast of Japan, according to word received this week by his wife. Johnson, a former Lohaus Mo ton company employee, is teach ing vehicle maintenance for the ordnance division of the army. A reservist, he was recalled to act ive duty last fall and spent sev eral months on the West coast. His address: M/Sgt. Roy D. Johnson ER, 37767641, Co. I, Eta Jima Spec. Schl, APO 354, c/o PM, San Francisco, Calif. Dramatic Teacher Goes to Minnesota Miss Cecily Spaulding, English and dramatics instructor at the O’Neill public high school, has accepted a teaching position at Austin, Minn., and will not re turn to O’Neill next year. The play, “High Window,” which was directed by Miss Spaulding, received special rec ognition at the Nebraska fine arts festival in Lincoln several weeks ago. “Miss Spaulding has brought our speech department to the highest peak yet attained by the O’Neill high school,” reported Mr. George. Scout Rally Here Friday Evening A district-wide Boy Scout ral ly will be held at the American Legion club in O’Neill on Fri day, May 4, beginning at 7:30 p.m. All Scouts and Cubs in the district are invited to at tend. A motion picture film will •be shown and ribbons will be presented. Meeting Slated — Mrs. Sam Maxwell, of Omaha, vice-president of the Nebraska council of extension clubs, will be the guest speaker at the meeting of the extension groups of the county to be held in At kinson at the KC hall on May 9. Three films will be shown knd a covered dish luncheon will be served at noon. WITHDRAWAL ON METERS VOTED Adopt Resolution in Session Lasting Until Wee Hours Those innocent looking parking meters are making news again. The new city council, in ses sion Tuesday night with 2 new councilmen at the table, required 5Vi hours to: 1. Adopt a resolution by a 3-2 count to withdraw the city’s a greement with a parking meter firm; 2. Voted 3-2 against confirma tion of L. M. Merriman for coun cil appointment to fill a First ward vacancy; 3. Perform such routine duties as renaming William W. Griffin as city attorney, appointing The Frontier the official city paper for the next 12 months, and re naming the police staff for an other year—including Chet Calk ins, chief, and Walt Calkins and Joe Wert, assistants. It was 1:45 a.m. when the meet ing finally broke up. The old council in January entered into an agreement with the Duncan Parking Meter corporation for 150 meters, which long since have arrived. A restraining order was issued when irate citizens pro tested installation of the meters. If the resolution adopted Tuesday night stands, the re straining litigation will die a natural death. If the resolution is withdrawn, the district court will decide the validity of the original agreement between the city and the manufacturer. Voting for the resolution weje Councilmen Norbert Uhl, Marvin Johnson and M. J. Golden. A gainst the resolution were Tony Asimus and C. E. Jones. Mayor J. E. Davis asked the council to confirm the appoint ment of Merriman to fill the va cancy created last month by the resignation of L. M. Diehlman, who has moved to Arizona. Uhl and Golden voted to confirm the appointment; Johnson, Asimus and Jones voted against the con firmation. Janice Lee Counts 10 Grandparents PAGE—There’s a little girl by the name of Janice Lee Reiss who is well-blessed with grandparents. She has 10 of them! Janice Lee is the infant daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Ken neth Heiss, who live 1% miles north of Page. Moreover, all 10 of them re side in the Page and neighbor ing Middlebranch communi ties. On the maternal side the grandparents are Mr. and Mrs. jvenneth Waring and the great grandparents are Mr. and Mrs. Hoy Waring and Mr. and Mrs. J. W. Finch, sr. On the paternal side, the grandparents are Mr. and Mrs. Raymond Heiss and the great - grandparents are Mrs. Elizabeth Cullen and Leonard Heiss. Missourians Here— Mr. and Mrs. Max Chapman and daughters, of Kansas City, Mo., are visiting Mrs. Elsie Slat tery. Ten of Alvin Hesse's good neighbors are: | On tractors — Harlan Spath (left) and Melvin Carson (center); standing (left-to-right): Dar ± rell Hesse, Orville Kemper, Richard Buxton. Charles Russell, Marvin Stauffer, Harold Dorr, Clarence Stevens and Gus Spath. — The Fron* tier Photo. •mUr Alvin Hesse . . . tinkering with spine is dangerous busi ness.—The Frontier Photo. (Story at right) Miss Harris Now Touring Miss Ruth Harris, daughter of Mrs. Esther C. Harris, arrived re cently in Rome, Italy. Miss Har ris, who served as a Methodist missionary in China for 3 years, is enroute to the U.S. While she was in Agra, India, she and her companions saw the Taj Mahal, one of the 7 wonders of the world. She had also been in the Holy Land. Miss Harris boarded a plane at Delhi, India, for Rome. On the way, she stopped at Karachi, Pakistan, and Barra, Iraq, was attending the opera. One of the highlights in Rome She expects to visit in Flor ence, Vienna and Milan, then she will continue to Switzerland, where her itinerary includes Berne, Geneva and Thain. Other places that she plans to see are Mainz and Stuttgart, Ger eral places in Belgium; Paris, many; Amsterdam, Holland; sev Chartres and Versailles, France. On May 13 she expects to leave for the British Isles where she will spend 2 weeks. Her ship for the United States sails May 27. Frontier want ads produce a mazing results! Driver of this overturned car suffered a skull fracture and died a few minutes following the accident on U.S. highways 20-275. near Dry creek bridge. Funeral services for the driver, Russell Qraham, a World War II navy veteran, were held Friday,—O'Neill Photo Co. Alvin Hesse Has Good Neighbors Page Farmer Bedfast Following Spine Surgery (By a Staff Writer) PAGE—A rudy-faced 29-year old Page farmer lay flat on his back and occasionally stole a glance out of a window. He saw an unusual parade of tractors, discs, drills, trucks and a variety of other farm implements. They were congregating at his place. Manning t h o • e machines were 29 good neighbors — 29 guys who recognised that Alvin was having a tough go and needed a boost. By Saturday night, those good neighbors had brought some of Alvin’s spring farming operations up-to-date They had disced and planted 70 acres of oats and they started discing another field — only to have the rains come and delay them. Alvin’s trouble began in March. He developed a sore back. By March 17, the family physician decided the young Page farmer had a bone affliction that requir ed an operation. A “disc” had slipped in the spine—the doctors have a fancy word for it. He was taken to St. Josephs’ Mercy hospital in Sioux City where a bone specialist removed some bone from his leg on April 3. And on April 6 that same bone was grafted into the spine. Dangerous business—tinkering with the spine, even for a special ist. For several weeks he lay in the hospital recovering. Then the doctors said he could go home — provided certain care was assured. The hospital bed belonging to Simonson post 93, of the Ameri can Legion, O’Neill, was taken to the Hesse home, located 1 Mi miles north and 2 Mi miles east of Page. One-inch boards were plac ed on the bed under the mattress. The boards keep Alvin’s back level. Meanwhile, things needed to be done, even though spring was a little late this year. His father in-law, Gus Spath, of Inman, performed the chores and did ev erything he could; Mrs. Spath helped in the house. But still Al vin’s backlog of work was stag gering. That’s where the good neigh bors came in. Mrs. Hesse is the former Ger trude Spath. They have 2 chil dren—Karen, 4, and Terry, 2%. In about 3 weeks, Alvin will return to Sioux City for a fitting of a brace for his back. Looks like quite awhile before he’ll be able to do any heavy work. That’s what’s rough. Red-headed Alvin normally is an active fellow. But now he's immobilised to the extent that he requires the aid of 2 persons and a strong sheet to turn him over in his plank lined bed. That nice big window and a cheery room help consume the all-important mending time. "Gosh,” he explains, "time goes slow.” Budding of the trees, darting of birds past the window and the activity in the fields across the way kinda make a fellow uneasy about getting out there. But those good neighbors, who came Friday and Saturday and moved a mountain, relieved a lot of that anxiety. Among them were Donald Summers, Herbert Kemper, Floyd Belik, Gus Hesse, Andy Wettlaufer, George Wettlaufer, Ben Asher, Kenneth Asher, Har old Asher, Richard Asher, George Clasey, Ralph Larson, Dwaine Sukup, Robert Summers, Henry Hesse, Clarence Nissen, Junior Sorensen, Edgar Stauffer, Char les Russell, Marvin Stauffer, Harold Dorr, Melvin Carson, Har lan Spath, Darrell Hesse, Orville Kemper, Richard Buxton, Clar ence Stevens, Frank Beelaert and Gus Spath. Alvin spent 23 months in Europe during World War II, rushing across France, Ger many and into Austria with the late Gen. George S. Patton's Third army. Alvin was with an artillery outfit attached to the Third pnd was awarded a bronze star for gallantry. Plan Oil Meet Soon at O’Neill Lloyd J. Twibell, of Orchard, an experienced geologist and oil iield worker, reports that he is receiving requests for local fi nance in connection with a pro po. <'d test well in the northwest Antelope and eastern Holt coun ty area. Twibell is lessee on a 28-thou sand-acre block lying east of Page and extending to Orchard. He estimates northeast Nebras ka would benefit from about sev en-eighths of the oil and gas pro duced if wells could be develop ed. A meeting is planned soon in O’Neill. Visits Lincoln— Miss Devine Brennan spent the weekend in Lincoln visiting at the home of Mr. and Mrs. T. A. 1 Foster. MILITARY BURIAL FOR CRASH VICTIM Overflow Cro>vd at Russell Graham Burial Rite Russell Graham, young O’Neill farmer who died Wednesday, Ap ril 25, about 8 p.m., following an auto crash, was buried Friday, April 27, following funeral ser vices at F i r s t Presbyterian church. Simonson post 93, of the Am erican Legion, furnished a firing squad for the military burial in Prospect Hill cemetery. The church was unable to ac commodate the crowd that gath ered for the service. Rev. Mel vin H. Grosenbach, pastor of Wesleyan Methodist church, of ficiated. Young Graham’s 1947 model car went out of control while he was traveling east from O’Neill on U.S. highways 20-275. His ma chine skirted along the shoulder of the road for about 300 feet, turned over several times and came to a rest on its side, facing north. v The driver, alone in his car, suffered a fractured skull and died a few,minutes later. The father, Maurice Graham, farmer residing 8 miles northwest of O’Neill, *said that his son had been subject to heart attacks RUSSELL GRAHAM and presumed that such an attack caused him to lose control of his car. Survivors include: Parents — Mr. and Mrs. Maurice Graham; sisters — Mrs. William (Muriel) Brewster, Mrs. Orville (Rita) J5p penbach, and Mary Kathryn Graham, all of O’Neill; brother— Darrell Graham, of O’NeilL / , Russell was born Juno 13, 1925, at O'NailL a son of Maur ica J. Graham and Kalhriaa Ernst Graham. Ha was raazad north and north waal of hara. altendad rural school in lba Meek and districts 15 and 90 schools. 4 He enlisted in the navy on Ap ril 18, 1944, being stationed id Farragut, Ida. Later, when L* contracted rheumatic fever, he was hospitalized at Corona, Cal if., for 8 months. On April HI 1945, he was given a medical dis charge. Young Graham and his father together farmed 500 acres. Mrs. Floyd Ritts and Mrs. Ott® Lorenz were in charge of the flowers. Members of the Legion’s firing squad and color bearers includ ed Gordon O. Harper, Clinton Wolfe, Emmett Carr, G. Owen Cole, John Grutsch, Charles Yar nall, Edward Moos, Hugh Benson, Kenneth Oetter, Glea Wade, James Lyons, Fred Appleby, Donald Clyde, jack Everitt and Laurence Urbin. Edward Bridges played taps. A mixed quartette, composed of John Dick*Miss Irene Searles, Mrs. Grosenbach and D. H. Clau son, sang “The Last Mile of the Way,” "Sometime We’ll Under stand” and “The Old Rugged Cross.” Since his separation from the service he has farmed with his father and recently he assisted his brother, Darrell, in an O’Neill service station. Pallbearers \vt Donald Gra ham, Edward Graham, William Marcellus, Fred McCart, Joe Go kie, jr., and A1 Hamik. McCarviPes Store to Change Locations — McCarvilles store, located in the Odd Fellows 'building here since the firm was established nearly 5 years ago, will move “within a few days” to the re modeled, enlarged. Consumers Public Power dr strict building on Douglas street. McCarvilles’ former location was on South Fourth street. Frontier for printing!
