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About The frontier. (O'Neill City, Holt County, Neb.) 1880-1965 | View Entire Issue (Feb. 10, 1955)
1 o TWELVE PAGES * Mon. — Wed. — Sat. 9:45 A.M. — 780 k.c. North-Central Nebraska’* BIGGEST Newspaper Volume 74.—Number 41. O Neill, Nebr., Thursday, February 10, 1945. Seven Cents Mrs.French, Ex - School Head, D ies Elected Holt County Superintendent, ’09; i Burial at Atkinson ATKINSON— Mrs. Minnie B. French, 79, former Holt county . superintendent of public instruc tion and a veteran teacher in the Atkinson and Ewing communities, died at 2 a.m., Sunday, February' 6, at the Masonic home at Platts mouth. Mrs. French, who had been in , health for a number of years; suffered a stroke on January 29 and never regained consciousness. Funeral services were con ducted at the Seger mortuary in Atkinson at 2 p.m., Tuesday, February 8. Rev. E. G. Hughes, Methodist church pastor, offi ated. Burial wras in Woodlawn cemetery here. Mrs. Hughes sang “Rock of Ages” and “The Old Rugged Cross,” accompanied on the piano by Mrs. Jay Jungman. Pallbearers were five great-nephews: Patrick L. and William B. Miller, both of j Atkinson; Robert and Donald } Stark, both of Sioux City; Marvin Miller of O’Neill and E. C. McKay of Atkinson. The late Minnie B. Miller French, the only daughter and youngest child of Abram W. and Armenia Miller, was born on Jan uary 19, 1876, at Kankakee, 111. She moved with her parents to Atkinson when she was a little girl, where her father owned and operated the town’s first hard ware store. She attended the Atkinson pub lic school and was graduated at the age of 16 with the class of 1892. That fall she attended Peru State Teachers college, and after completing the required course she was graduated with high hon ors. Returning to Atkinson, she taught several rural schools, class es being held in homes because schoolhouses in early days were not available. She then accepted a position as instructor in the Atkinson public school, where she taught the sev enth, eighth and ninth grades for 14 years. She was induced by her oldest brother, Alfred, to file for the office of ^county superin tendent of schools of Holt coun ty and was elected to that office in 1909. She served in that ca pacity for 12 years, then moved to Ewing where she taught in the Ewing public school. It was while in Ewing that she met her husband, Ernest C. French. They were married in Sioux City on June 30, 1920. They mov^d to Atkinson where they made their home for a few years, then moved back to Ewing where they purchased and operated a hardware store until Mr. French’s death on May 25, 1928. Being unable to operate the store alone, she sold it and re tired from business. She contin ued to make Ewing her home and for pastime wrote news items for the Ewing Advocate. She was noted for her lengthy and inter esting articles in all her letters because her word pictures ex plained every detail. When her nephew, Lewis A. Miller, left Ewing for Lincoln, she moved back to Atkinson where she spent the rest of her life except for the past 14 months which she spent at the Masonic home. Mrs. French was a charter member of the Eastern Star chap ter and served as worthy matron . of this chapter. She was the last surviving child of the five Miller children. Her four brothers—Al fred, Howard, Sherman and Clark —preceded her in death. Survivors include 14 nephews and nieces. Among the nephews and nieces (Continued on page 6) Mrs. Thiessen . . complica tions following childbirth. Mcther of 3 Dies Unexpectedly at 39 Mrs. John Thiessen Rites at Clearwater CLEARWATER — Mrs. John Thiessen, 39, the former Helen Melcher of Page, died unexpect edly at 7:15 a.m., Monday, Feb ruary 7, in Antelope Memorial hospital, Neligh, of complications following childbirth. The infant daughter is “doing well.” Funeral services were conduct ed at 2 p.m., Wednesday, Febru ary 9, from the Concordia Luther an church in Clearwater with Rev. E. L. Martin, church pastor, offi ciating. Burial was in the Clear water cemetery. Mrs. Thiessen was the daughter cf Mrs. Emma Melcher of Page and the late Edward Melcher, who died about 12 years ago. Survivors include: Widower; sons — John, 3, and Bobby, 10 months; daughter—Emma Adalia, newborn infant; mother — Mrs. Emma Melcher of Page; brothers —Harold of Page and Arthur of Clearwater; sisters—Mrs. Dorothy Clemens of Miami, Fla., and Mrs. Esther Shriff of Tilden. Nachtman Succeeds Harper at Airport The Municipal airport here ac quired new management, effective Tuesday, February 1. George Nachtman, formerly of Chambers, succeeds Gordon O. Harper who has operated the air port the past eight years. Harper has not announced future plans although he is considering oppor tunities at Lincoln and in Cal ifornia. Nachtman, a veteran pilot, is an authorized flight instructor and a licensed aircraft mechanic. Nacht man says he will provide com plete aviation service for the area, including flight instruction, repair servisce, crop spraying and commercial flying. Harper was born and reared at Page. He has not told his plans. Chadron Manager to Speak to C of C City Manager Kenneth Kyles of Chadron has been invited to speak to the Chamber of Commerce here at the next meeting of the group to be held Monday evening, February 14, at Slat’s cafe. Don Petersen, president of the O’Neill C of C, said Kyles will speax for about 15 minutes con cerning city manager experiences at Chadron and will also conduct a question-and-answer period. Gene Shermer Walks Away from Accident AMELIA — Gene Shermer es caped serious injuries when his car overturned several times with him Sunday evening. Those who saw the wrecked car expressed wonder that he was able to walk away from the acci dent. The muscles in the back of Shermer’s neck were badly torn. Mrs. Wolfe (left) and Miss Carson . . . observe open-house today.—Frontier Photo. Still Identical After 80 Years REDBIRD — The Carson twins today (Thursday) will celebrate their 80th birthday anniversary. They will observe open-house at their home, five miles southeast of Redbird, between 1 and 5 p.m. The place is located 30 miles northeast of O’Neill. The twin sisters. Miss Lizzie Carson and Mrs. Mary Wolfe, were born February 10, 1875, at Hartford, N.Y., children of New ton and Isabella Carson. They re sided five years in New York state before accompanying their parents to Saline county (near Wilber). In a Bohemian settlement they spent their childhood and at tended country school. When the twins were 14, the parents decided to move to the frontier county of Holt. Mr. Car son purchased a homestead from the Jacob Davis family, who gave up and went farther west. Their father and the older boys took 10 days to drive the cattle from Wilber to Redbird. The twins came by train with their mother and sister, Carrie. Lizzie and MaFy recall how the pioneer Carson family made trips to O’Neill once or twice a year in a wagon behind a team of horses. It was an event to look forward to and usually required five to six hours. The twins reside in the old home with their sister, Mrs. Car rie Hunter. Their brother, Ed ward, lives across the road on the south. The twins are of identical type and forever are being mis taken for one another—even by some of their closest friends. Mrs. Wolfe jokingly tells about situations in younger life when boy friends would become coni fused. They will greet their friends today in almost identical dress but the costume jewelry will be different. Lizzie has lived on the same farm continuously for 66 years, i Mary married Eloyd Wolfe on January 29, 1902. Two children were born to them—Clifford of Clinton, la., and Mrs. Neva Dales of Skagway, Alaska. The Wolfes resided one mile north of the homeplace on a farm for 17 years and they spent 22 years living in Lynch. Mr. Wolfe, who was a carpenter, died in November, 1941. Since then she has lived with Miss Lizzie and Mrs. Hunter in the original Holt county home only a few rods east of Louse creek. Mrs. Wolfe has two grandsons —Don and Jack Wolfe, both ol Clinton. The twins had four brothers- — William, James, John and Ed ward—and two sisters — Carrie and one who died in infancy. The members of the family still liv ing are Lizzie, Mary, Carrie and FdwaTd. Their parents lived to cele brate their 59th wedding anni versary. Their father died at 81 and their mother lived to be 87. The Carson twins may be Holt county’s oldest set of twins. Both are spry and enjoy good health. Miss Lizzie even chops wood each day to keep trim and keeps a neat pile outside the backdoor. Artist Dazzling; Audience Great An estimated seven hundred persons braved blowing snow to hear the young piano virtuoso, Samuel Sorin, famed Detroit-born artist, present the second in a series of Community Concerts here. The concert was held last Thursday evening. Taking cognizance of the fact O’Neill’s concert audience is ‘young” and newly-established, Mr. Sorin took time at the outset to explain his program. For most of the concert-goers, the music was on the heavy side. Eut the audience was responsive to the point of breaking in with ill-timed applause on Chopin’s Sonata in B minor. After the concert, Mr. Sorin smiled when reference was made to the interruption. “Frankly,” he quipped, “I ap preciate applause whenever I can get it.” The program opened in a seri ous vein with Bach’s Chorale prelude, “I Call Upon Thee, Lord.” The artist impressed his listeners with his firmness of touch and the manner the theme was devel oped and elaborated. The Smiths ... he is ill. Mrs. Elmer Smith Rites Wednesday EWING— Funeral services for Mrs. Elmer E. Smith, 74, who died about 5:50 a.m., Sunday, February 6, were conducted at 2 p.m,, on Wednesday from the Meth odist church in Page. Mrs. Smith, who had been ill three months, died at the home of Mr. and Mrs. Herman Schrader in Ewing. She had been confined to St. Anthony’s hospital for a number of weeks and had been removed to the private care at Ewing only a few days before she died. Biglin’s had charge of the fu neral arrangements and Rev. Lisle E. Mewmaw, church pastor, of ficiated. Burial was in the Page cemetery. Pallbearers chosen are Vernie Hunter, Jerome Allen, Soren Sor ensen, Melvin Smith, Arthur Grass and Gerald Lamason. The late Mrs. Smith, whose maiden name was Clara Bell Pot ter, was born October 26, 1880, at Blair, a daughter of George and Nancy Potter. She came to Holt county in 1885 as a small girl. On June 11, 1902, at O’Neill she married Elmer E. Smith. They became the parents of three chil dren. The Smith family resided many years in the Ewing and Page communities. Survivors include: Widower — Elmer, who was taken to an Om aha hospital last week and is crit ically ill; sons — William E. of) Walton, Ore., and Leo F. of Rain ier Ore.; daughter—Mrs. Mable R. Parker of Springfield, Ore. Tambourin by Rameau-Godow sky followed. The pianist’s left hand depicted beating of the tam bourin (drum) and the right hand provided the dance tune. Sorin expertly reproduced the effects of the 18th century tambourin (un like the modem instrument). Schubert’s Impromptu in B flat major proved to be an exquisite melody with the artist instilling all of Schubert’s romanticism and simplicity of style. Weber’s Rondo Brillante was a glittering presentation. The round and-round dancing might well have been taking place by dancers on the stage—such was Mr. Sor in’s mastery of the Steinway. The Chopin Sonata, actually about 22 minutes in duration, was of the 19th century romanticist variety. The untimely burst of applause followed the Allegro Maestoso. The Scherzo was enter taining enough but the Largo stole that portion of the program—the singing lagatoes. The Finale prov ed terribly fast and Mr. Sorin displayed brilliancy of technique, amazing finger touch and every ounce an artist. Someone said that Brahms took the wine of the romanticists and poured it into bottles of classicists. Which doesn’t mean much on O’ Neill’s Douglas street, except when interpreted by one such as (Continued on page 6) Louis J. Bartos displays the group of three Aberdeen-Angus bulls that won The Frontier tro phy in Tuesday’s show here. The winners are fro m the Bartos and Ray Siders herd.—The Frontier Photo. (Story on page 6.) Street-Widening Hits Legal Snarl Ewing Postal Clerk 37 Years Retiring Hazel Ruby Serves 4 Postmasters EWING—Miss Hazel Ruby, who is retiring after serving 37 years as clerk in the Ewing postoffice. Sunday was honored by more than one hundred persons. An open-house was arranged at the Methodist church parlors by Miss Frances Rotherham, postmaster. Patrons of the Ewing office presented Miss Ruby a set of luggage, while she received many other gifts and flowers. Mrs. Gene Ruby sang a solo, accompanied by Miss Marcia Gib son. Refreshments were served from a lace-covered table centered with white chrysanthemums and red candles. Mrs. Elmer Bergstrom and Mrs. Charles Rotherham were in charge, of the refreshments and Mrs. Harriet Welke and Miss Vina Wood presided at the table. Oth ers assisting with the affair were Miss Ruby . . . began in 1918. Mrs. James Ruby, Mrs. Gene Ru by, Mrs. Joseph Beelaert, Miss Rowena Rotherham, Mrs. L. A. Hobbs, Mrs. Perry Saiser, Mrs. R. G. Rockey, Mrs. William Spence, Mrs. Everett Ruby, Mrs. Herman Zeims, Mrs. Archie Tut tle, Mrs. Ralph Eacker, Mrs. John Archer, Mrs. John A. Wood, Mrs. Wilma Daniels and Mrs. Jessie Angus. When Miss Ruby began her duties as clerk in the Ewing postoffice in 1918 it was located in the building on Main street now occupied by the Firestone store. Fred Waugh was postmaster. Later the office was moved to its preset location on the northwest corner of the main intersection here. Other postmasters under whom Miss Ruby has served were the late Gary Benson, Lyle Dierks and Miss Rotherham. Willis Rock ey and Mrs. Wilma Daniels are now employed at the postoffice and Charles Rotherham is the route 1 carrier. Elmer Bergstrom is the carrier on the daily star route. > ____ The issue of whether or not to relocate two federal highways presently passing through the heart of O’Neill uncoiled this week. The city council, after pondering the question for several weeks, decided to make public a “letter of understanding” authored by State Highway Engineer L. N. Ress, written January 18. (A reproduction of the letter appears on page 6.) Ress states, in effect, street widen ing in eight blocks (on Douglas and South Fourth street) will keep ? the highways on their present locations insofar as commitments can be made by his department “in the foreseeable future.” At the same time, the council prepared a statement of position, declaring the limited street-widening and accompanying expense (one-half would be paid by the federal government) are justifiable “in the matter of keeping the highways” and “as a matter of perma nent and valuable improvement.” Meanwhile, C. J. Gatz, extensive real estate owner, and Jack Arbuthnot, a service station operator and home owner on affected streets, as plaintiffs, Tuesday went into Holt county district court and secured a temporary injunction against Ress and the O’Neill city council. District Judge D. R. Mounts issued the temporary injunction order and fixed Monday, February 14, as date for hearing. The Holt county sheriff’s office Wednesday served notices on Acting Mayor Emmett Crabb, Councilmen Joseph Stutz, Marvin Johnson, Norbert Uhl, M. J. Golden and L. M. Merriman, also on the City of O’Neill through O. D. French, city clerk. Meanwhile, supoenas are being prepared. Deputy Sheriff James Mullen said the notice for Ress was for warded by mail to the Lancaster county sheriff at Lincoln for service. The city consultant engineer estimates the total costs of the street-widening at $61,000. The city’s share is one-half—or $30,500. Sixty-five percent of the city’s share would be “recoverable,” ac cording to the plan, by special assessments. < Council’s Stand ‘Improvement’— The majority members of the city council at 3 p.m., Wednesday submitted to The Frontier a pub lic statement with reference to the proposed street-widening plan in order to retain two U.S. high ways—20 and 281—on present lo cation through the business dis trict. The majority members are Acting Mayor Emmett Crabb and Councilmen Norbert Uhl, Joe Stutz, L. M. Mcrriman and Mar vin Johnson. First Ward Councilman M. J. Golden has been a lone dissenter on the subject since the question first arose. The statement: “In view of the widespread dis cussion on the subject of street widening in O’Neill, in order to retain two federal highways and correct misinformation which is prevalent, the city council has deemed it proper to make a pub lic statement concerning the plans which have been adopted for wid ening Fourth street and Douglas street for the purpose of retain ing highways 20 and 281 in their present locations through the city. “Approximately one year ago, the city was advised of the plans of the state to reroute highway 20 out of the city, and to reroute highway 281 northward through the city and past the public school. Since that time, the city council has been involved in continuous negotiations with the state in an effort to work out a plan whereby traffic could be expedited and the highways retained in the bus iness district of the city. “Such a plan has finally been agreed upon between the city and state, which in substance will re quire the widening of portions of Douglas street and Fourth street to an ultimate width of 69 feet, to correspond with the present widths in the downtown area; thus providing a continuous 69 foot street through the congested and main-travelled portions of (Continued on page 6) f * * * Plaintiff* Say Action ‘Null and Void’— When the possibility of widen ing sections of O’Neill’s two prin cipal thoroughfares, Douglas street and Fourth street, and adopting certain traffic reforms was first broached publicly in the spring of 1954, the city council came under unofficial criticism by a group labeled as the O’Neill Taxpayers’ league. The group published advertise ments conveying opposition to street-widening expense and con tended the traffic reforms would cost valuable parking space in the business districts. An injunction suit filed Tues day in Holt county district court by C. J. Gatz, Jack Arbuthnot “and all others similarly situ ated” appears to most observers as an outgrowth of the impro vised O’Neill Taxpayers’ league. In their petition, Gatz and Ar buthnot allege that “on or about March 30, 1954, the council met in special session and passed a resolution to cooperate with the state highway department for the widening of Douglas to 69 feet, and on April 16, in special session, adopted an ordinance creating street improvement dis trict 16.” The petition alleges that on November 8 the council, in special session, passed a resolution to “ratify, confirm and approve a written agreement with the state” pertaining to improvements on Douglas and Fourth, directing the president of the council and clerk to enter into an agreement with the state known as projects 200(6) and F-313(9). Gatz and Arbuthnot contend these proceedings are “null and void” for these reasons: (a) No notice in writing of the March 30 meeting was given members of the council, according to law. (b) No notice of the April 16 meeting was given in writing or entered in the journal, according to law. (c) Ordinance 280-A is “vague and uncertain.” Gatz and Arbuthnot, through their attorneys, Harold Connors of Greeley and John R. Galla agher of O’Neill, point out that section two of the ordinance re fers to special assessments on property “especially benefited.” The plaintiffs claim the council has not in any way shown who will be benefited, adding “in fact, no one will be benefited.” The council’s action November 8 is null and void, the petition alleges, because Emmett Crabb, president of the council, voted for passage of the resolution while acting as mayor and that Coun cilman M. J. Golden had no notice of the meeting. Gatz and Arbuthnot claim Crabb did not have lawful author ity to enter into the agreement with the state and that State En gineer L. N. Ress, acting as agent for the city of O’Neill, “has no lawful authority to obtain federal funds to match city funds for said project.” The petitioners are distressed about “irreparable damage” to their businesses if the city is al lowed to put into force the agree ment, and maintain the city of O’Neill “will have no assurance in any way, shape or form from the state of Nebraska or the Unit ed States that highways 20 and (Continued on page 6) George Rowse (left) exhibits Super Shadow 2d, reserve champion of the Hereford show, and Henry Wood displays HW Baron Dandy 24th, the grand champion.—Frontier Photo. (Story page 6.) /
