*: ' ** i ‘ ‘ V ,
K he Frontier “
9:30 to 9:S6 A M, ~ ——■ O .• | n I 14
Section I — rages I -o
North-Central Nebraska s BIGGEST Newspaper
Volume 78.—Number 2. O’Neill, Holt County, Nebraska, Thursday, May 8, 1958. Seven Centa.
•* \
STATE HIST SOC
LinCOLII. HEOR.
XXX
. . - . |
Amelia Youth, 15,
Dies of Heart Attack
i i— • .
Fullerton . . . filially strick
en in barber chair.
Interest Slight for
Tuesday’s Election
Court Clerk, Assessor
Races Forseen
Holt oountyans will trek to the
polls Tuesday to cast their bal
lots in what promises to lie a pri
mary election with only mild in
terest .
It’s an "off-year" (non-presi
dentia!') election and only about
iwllots have been received, ae
a dozen applications for absentee
cording to County Clerk Kenneth
Waring.
On the county ticket the follow
ing inciimlients are unopposed on
either slate: Kenneth Waring, re
publican. county clerk; J. Ed
Hancock, republican, treasurer;
Leo S. Tomjack. democrat, sher
iff; George E. Collins, republi
can, surveyor.
On the non-political side, Alice
French is unopposed for county'
superintendent and the same
holds for Frank Nelson, candidate
for re-election to the unicameral
legislature.
The republicans will choose tie
tween Howard D. Manson, incum
lient, and Kieth A. Abort for flerk
of the district court, and the
same party will pick a nominee
for county assessor from a field
of three, which includes William
F Wefso (Incumbent), L. G. Gil
lespie, former assessor, and Opal
Keating.
William W. Griffin, republican
t_1-i T)
gher, democrat, are unopposed on
their respective slates for county
attorney. T7io same holds for
Irene Booth, republican, and Ed
ward N. Flood, democratic in
cumbent, for county supervisor,
First district, and Clarence Er
nst, republican incumbent, and
Robert L. Hanley, democrat, in
the Third.
In the Fifth there is a two-way
bid for the supervisor GOP nom
ination: Harlan A. Dierking, in
cumbent by appointment, and!
Lloyd L. Durre.
In the Seventh there are races |
on both slates. Eli McConnell
and Oliver Shane are seeking the
republican nomination; Willard j
S. Linville and Walter Puckett
are after the demo blessing. Alex
Frickel, incumbent, is not a can
didate.
Voting will be done at the usual
places, Waring said.
(For a view at the state and
congressional levels, turn to the j
state capitol news on page 7.)
Tighe Is Named
Jones Successor
(Photo below.)
Frances Tighe. formerly of
Norfolk, has been named succes
sor to the late Charles E. Jones,
who was manager of the Central
Finance Corporation here since
1939. Jones was fatally injured
last month in a two-car accident
at the west outskirts of tjie city.
Robert Hayter of Ainsworth is
the assistant manager for the O'
Neill office, it was announced by
the firm's board of directors.
"These two men are well qual
ified. fully experienced; they un
derstand small loans and finan
cing; they are insurance counsel
lors, and' they are prepared to
continue the same fine service
and consideration that has been
available in the past,” the board's
announcement said.
Tighe is married and is the
father of three children--one of
whom is in school. He and his |
family will move to O’Neill after
school closes.
Hayter. also married, will con
tinue to reside in Ainsworth.
Nephew, Niece Slain
by Fleeing Convicts
AMELIA Mr. and Mrs. Elmer
Coolidge went to Greeley, Cblo.. j
Thursday to attend the funeral j
of Mr. Coolidge's uncle, Harry j
Parsons. While there they re-!
ceived word that a nephew and
niece had been slain by some es- i
c aping convicts and the Coolidges
went on to their funeral.
Clubs, Organizations
Invited for Parade—
Dale Wilson, chairman of the
Lions club committee sponsoring
the parade Saturday. June 21, in
connection with O'Neill’s big two
day rodeo, said Wednesday 4-H;
clubs, extension clubs, scout or-|
ganizations, churches and busi
ness firms are invited to enter.
The parade will be at 6:30 p.
m., formally opening the rodeo.
o Funeral—
Mr. and Mrs. J. L. McCarville, j
sr.. went to Albion Wednesday to'
attend the funeral of James Kelly, |
/v.vi r.uA uaie Kicnara runer
ton, 15, son of Mr. and Mrs
(J<-orge Fullerton, died unexpect
edly ni a heart attack Saturday j
afternoon. May 3, while seated I
j in a barber chair at Atkinson.
He had stepped on a nail that
i morning at his home, located one
half mile east and one-half mile
south of Amelia. HU parents;
had taken him to Atkinson for a '
tetanus shot which he was given, j
Dale was a second-year (soph
; omnrei student at the two-grade
Amelia high school and the pre
ceding day had made a term-end
I sneak trip to Hastings.
He was stricken at the Mills
i barber shop and futile efforts
were made to revive him at At
kinson Memorial hospital.
Funeral services were conduct
ed at 2 p.m., Tuesday, May 6, at
the Methodist church in Amelia
with the church pastor. Rev.
Harold Bonath, officiating.
Burial was in the Chambers
cemetery under direction of the
Seger funeral home.
Active pallbearers were Gene
Adams, Gene Skala, James Jar
man, John Lee Farrier, Dale
Woods and Gary Small.
Honorary pallbearers were Ger
ald Winings, Merle Winings, Ken
neth Thompson. Richard Grimes,
Lonnie Sparks, Roger Waldo, j
Bernard Knmphaus and Harlan
Lieswald.
In charge of flowers were Mrs.
Clyde Dxdittle and Mrs. Lee Gil
man A male quartet, compos
i ed of Stanley Ijambert, Thomas
laimbert, Ernest Farrier and Ray
Hoffman, sang ‘‘Beautiful Garden
; of Prayer”, ‘‘What a Friend We
■ Have in Jesus”, and “The Whole
World in His Hands”. Mrs. El
vvyn Robertson of Chambers was
piano accompanist.
The minister said the youth
was "known and loved by both
young and old”.
A brother, Donald, said: ‘‘I’m
proud to have had a brother like
him.”
Dale Richard Fullerton was
!x>rn at Stuart August 4, 1942.
His mother is the former Dorothy
i Spath. He spent virtually all of
iiis life in the Amelia community.
He planned to enter Chambers
high school this fall for his jun
ior and senior years of study.
IT- i..L. .. I il. t. tl-i:„A. .1__u
! in 1952 and was active in youth
! fellowship work. He had been a
I member of his 4-II club eight
I years.
Survivors include: Parents —
Mr. and Mrs. George Fullerton of '
Amelia; brother—Donald of In- ]
glewood, Calif.; sister — Phillis,
at home, a Chambers high sen- i
ior; grandparents Mr. and Mrs. I
Robert Fullerton of Atkinson and <
Mr. and Mrs. Charles Spath of ;
Omaha.
Among relatives and friends of j
a distance attending the funeral v
were: ' t
Mrs. Leslie (Anna) Watts of i
Moorcroft, Wyo.; Mrs. Sid (Mar- c
garett Marks of Newcastle, c
Wyo.; Mr. and Mrs. Merril (Mil- 1
dred) Smith of Stuart; Mr. and (
Mrs. Oscar Fullerton of Neligh, }
Mr. and Mrs. Robert Fullerton |
of Neligh; Mr. and Mrs. Forrest (
Maple and family of Orchard.
Mr. and Mrs. Charles Spath t
of Omaha; Donald Fullerton of
Inglewood, Calif.; Mr. and Mrs. j
Paul Moore of Rapid City, S. D.;
Mr. and Mrs. Elmer Swengel of ]
Kansas City, Kans.; Mrs. Kieth i
McMillen of Chambers; Mr. and t
Mrs. Lawrence Barnett and Mr. |
and Mrs. Weaver Brotherton of j
Greeley, Colo.; Mr. and Mrs. |
Gene Thompson of Scottsbluff; (
Mr. and Mrs. George McGinnis
of Nickerson, Mrs. Charles Bligh |
and daughter, Raedee of Omaha. | ]
The church and school were <
used to accomodate the huge l
| crowd attending the services. i
Eby Presides at
C of C Meeting
Ray Eby. first vice-president of i
the Chamber of Commerce, pre
sided Wednesday evening at the •
May meeting. Charles E. Jones, <
president, was fatally injured
last month.
Morgan Ward assumed duties s
of secretary' succeeding John Har
rington, jr. ■ s
A combined implement-auto
fair was discussed and the date !
was fixed for Saturday, May 24. 1
Kieth A. Abart will head a com
mittee to call on implement deal- ‘
ers; Allan VanVleck will head
the automobile portion. The fair I i
will be held on North Fourth in
cooperation with the retail trade
rommittee. Other firms will be
invited to display wares. ,
A coupon tie-in will be employ- I
ed details to be announced. t
Sixteen attended the meeting. (
Lutherans
to Dedicate
New Church
Three Services Will
Be Held Sunday in
New Gothic Edifice
The new C h r i s t Lutheran
church, built at an approximate
cost of $76,000 and located at
Seventh and Clay sts., will be
dedicated Sunday, May 11, begin
ning with a 10 a.m., service.
The door opening ceremonies
will be conducted by the pastor,
Rev. A. S. Gedwillo. Keys to the
front doors of the new' church
will be given to the pastor by the
senior trustee of the congregation,
William Kraft. When the lock has
been turned by the pastor, the
president of the congregation,
Donald Kellner, will officially
open the door for the first time.
After scripture, the procession
al hymn will be sung as the pas
tor and members of the church
council .carrying the sacred ves
sels and the altar candles, enter
the church. They will be follow
ed by the congregation.
Members of the church council
Will present themselves at the
entrance to the chancel. The
pastor, having placed the vessels
in their respective places, will
begin the order of the morning
service.
The president of the Northern
Nebraska district, Rev. Frederick
Niedner, jr., of West Point, will
deliver the keynote sermon. His
theme will be “Open Now the
Gates of Beauty”, from the text
of Psalms 100.
iiil’ <iiiuit 111 win utf atiiiK vy 1
the girls’ sextet. Members of the I
choral group are: Betty Schultz,
Jeannette Fricke, Victoria Ged
vvillo, Karen Hartronft, Sharon i
Hartronft and Elaine Kingman.
Reverend Gedwillo will serve
as the liturgist, and will perform
(he ceremony of dedication. Miss
Sharon Nelson will serve as or
ganist at each of the services.
The order of vespers will be
gin at 3 o'clock. The liturgist
vill be Rev. William Roten, pas
or of St PauT’s Lutheran church
it Chambers. Rev. R. W. Olson
>f Thorp, Wise., a former pastor
>f Christ Lutheran, will preach.
His sermon theme: “I Love the
ZThurch”, from the text of Psalms
34. The girls' sextet will sing the
hymn, “The Church’s One Foun
dation.
A light lunch will be served in
the social room after the service.
The evening service will be
gin with the order of vespers at
7:30 o’clock. Rev. F. J. Rath of I
Battle Creek will preach on the
theme: "Wien Is This Church
a Place of the True Light ”, text
from St. John 12:35. The litur
gical service will be conducted
by the Rev. John Rath of Spen
cer.
A large attendance is expected
from the O’Neill area. The pub.
lic is invited to attend. The
church building may be seen any
time before and following the
services.
Miss Marie Ritz
Enlists in WAC's
M/Sgt. Bill Cousins of the army
recuriting office at O’Neill has j
announced the following recent j
enlistments.
Miss Marie Ritz of O’Neill,
women’s army corps. She will
study crytography.
Dennis Cline of Naper, for the
signal corps.
Philip Fisher of Spencer, for
signal corps where he will study
radar repair.
Norman Larson of Verdigre,
or the signal corps.
Leon Ainslie of Hay Springs, for
regular unassigned.
TO BOYS STATE
EWING — Donald Hawk will
represent the Ewing American
legion post at the boys’ state ac
tivities this year. He is an hon
>r student at the Ewing school.
-1
Hayter and Tighe ... to manage Central Finance Corpora
tion offices here.—The Frontier Photo.
y*.. '•. • . . . . *
It was a riot of fun Thursday evening when members of Madison County Salon 410 of the X et
i 40 appeared at O’Neill in original sacks (pardon, chemise), l’osing in a sattire of the sacks are:
1 Mrs. Edward German of Pierce, Mrs. Lillian Gray of Norfolk, Mrs. Olivia McKee of Atkinson, Mrs.
Lester (Jean) fiiege of O'Neill, and Mrs. Al Bennett of Pierce. (Another picture and story on page
11).—The Frontier Photo.
New Lutheran church to be dedicated here Sunday. Frontal views have appeared twice recent
ly ; this Is a rear-side view, camera looking northeast.—The Frontier Photo.
A. E. Ponton, 80,
Expires in Hospital
Funeral Rites Being
Held Today
EWING — Alder Eugene Pon
ton, 80, a recreational parlor op
erator at Ewing, died Monday,
May 5, at St. Anthony's hospital
where he had been a patient since
Sunday, April 27.
THe had suffered a heart at
tack the day before he was taken
to the hospital by ambulance.
Funeral services will be con
ducted today (Thursday) at 9:30
a m., at St. Peter’s Catholic
church in Ewing. Burial will be
in the family plot in St. Boniface
cemetery at Elgin under the di
rection of Biglin’s. Rev. Charles
Broderson of Neligh will officiate.
A rosary was said at 8 p.m.,
Wednesday at the church. The
remains lie in state at the church
from 4 p.m. Wednesday until to
day’s funeral hour.
Pallbearers will be William
Snider, John Miller, jr., Kermit
Jeffries, Arthur Spittlgr, Emmett
Wright and Ludwig Koenig.
The late Mr. Ponton was bom
in Ashknm 111 Anril 26. 1878. the
son of Joseph and Elizabeth Pat
neau Ponton. His father was a
native of Canada and his moth
er was bom in Illinois. i
On November 29, 1899 he mar
ried Libbie Melvina Garvis at
Lyons. They became the parents
of four sons and two daughters.
They came to Holt county in
1929 from Battle Creek. He had
farmed at Elgin and Battle Creek.
Survivors include: Widow—Lib
bie; sons—George of Elgin and
Adrian of Battle Creek; daugh
ters — Miss Florence and Mrs.
Leo (nrBeice) Tomjack, both of
O'Neill; brothers—Louis of Wash
ington state; Elmer of Ashkum,
111., Adrian of New York; half
brothers Joe and Leo, both of
Chicago, 111.; sisters—Mrs. Cora
Davis of Chicago, 111., and Mrs.
Ella La beaux of Chicago, 111.
Leave for Pre-Induction
Examinations—
Seven Holt county selective
service registrants left by train
for Omaha early Wednesday for
pre-induction physical examina
tions.
They are:
Marvin Morgan of O'Neill,
Bernard Gribble of O'Neill, Ray
mond Meusch of Stuart, Bernard
Engler of Atkinson, Walter Ries.
jr., of Atkinson, Dana Sisson of
Ewing and Virgil Crawford of
Lynch.
Ponton . . .' heart attack.
Meta Martin, $1,
Ex-Teacher, Dies
Born in Wisconsin;
to Holt in ’05
Miss Meta Martin, 81, who for
20 years was a teacher in the
O'Neill public schools, died at
12:05 a.m., Monday, May 5, in a
Norfolk hospital.
She had been ill several
months.
Funeral services were conduc
ted at 2 p.m., Wednesday, May
7, at First Methodist church here
with Rev. Glenn Kennicott,
church pastor, officiating. Burial
was in Prospect Hill cemetery
under direction of Biglin’s.
Pallbearers were Clay Johnson,
jr., Fred Saunto. Clarence Ernst,
Homer Ernst, Bennett Gillespie
and Donald Maw, all of O’Neill.
The late Miss Martin was born
April 26, 1877, at Omro, Wise.,
the daughter of Maurice and
Julia Mae Ferguson She came
to Holt county in 1905 from Steel
City.
The late Miss Martin ran a var
iety store on Douglas street. She
was a member of the LTL’s
branch of Women’s Christian
Temperance Union.
Survivors include: Brother —
Ray M. of Vancouver, Wash.;
sisters—Mrs. Estella N. Maw of
Vancouver, and Mrs. Lola G.
Templin of Chelan, Wise., who
has been making an extended
stay at Loup City with her daugh
ter.
Relatives here from a distance
for the funeral were Mrs. Temp
lin and her husband, Sam.
St Mary’s Senior
Wins High Award
Scholarship Is One
of 11 in State
1 (See editorial on page 10, “Reflect
fireat Credit”)
Miss Cecelia Ann Arbuthnot, a
St. Mary’s academy student and
a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Jack
Arbuthnot. has been announced
as one of 11 Nebraska high school
seniors named as a winner of the
coveted National Merit Scholar
ships.
She is the recipient of a Sears
Foundation scholarship which en
j titles here to four years of college
with all fees paid plus a cost-of
education expense account.
One thousand seniors out of a
quarter of a million 1958 gradua
tes emerged victorious in the
nationwide competition.
Miss Arbuthnot is an accom
plished musician and has won
superior ratings in the district
music contests. She plays clari
net, piano and the organ.
She has elected Regis college in
Denver, Colo., to study English
or history. The grants, which a
mount to $5,000 are provided by
many private corporations, found
ations and trusts.
iviibs uuuniui was uie umy
Catholic high school student in
Nebraska to be a winner.
Miss Arbuthnot was cited and
other members of the SMA senior
class were admitted into the
Alumni association at the annual
banquet Sunday evening. Two
hundred were present.
Mrs. James Earley, president,
presented the pins. Miss Mary
Louise Birmingham was toast
mistresa. It was the 55th annual
event.
The class of 1933—two men and
three women—were present and
recognized on the 25th anniver
sary of their graduation^
Very Rev. Timothy O’Sullivan,
in welcoming remarks, quoted
President Woodrow Wilson once
having made inquiries about O’
Neill because as th president
said, “I meet people quite fre
quently from that town and I
want to know more about it.”
Mrs. Ira Moss, the former
Grace Hammond, named gradua
tes from 1903 to 1932 and gave
sketchy details on those whom in
formation was available. Mrs.
Henry Benze‘, the former Pauline
Dusatko, accounted for the honor
class of 1933 — including J. B.
, Grady, Matthew Beha, sr., Mrs.
(Continued on page 4.)
Swan Lake Fish
to Get Treatment
CHAMBERS-On Saturday, May
17, Swan lake southwest of hero
will be treated with toxicant to
kill the rough fish which have
! overpopulated the waters, accord
ing to Nebraska game commis
j sion spokesman.
At a later date the lake will
| bo restocked with game fish.
TO WISCONSIN
Miss Mildred McNutt, home ec
onomics instructor in O'Neill for
three years and the home ec in
structor in the Orchanl Ixigh
school the past two years, has
accepted a position in Boscobel,
Wise., w'hich is 20 miles from her
home.
Squirt of Teargas
Hospitalizes One
Youths Face Charge
‘Abusing Officer’
Michael ("Mil^e") O’Connor, an
Atkinson youth, was hospitalized
in Atkinson Friday and Saturday
after being squirted in the eyes
with tear gas fired by Police Of
ficer Clifford B. Ratzloff
Apparently the eye injury was
only temporary.
Atkinson city officials pieced to
gether this story' , qf events that
led to the gassing.
Ratzloff said O'Connor had
driven his car through a stopsign
in the city limits. Ratzloff gave ;
chase but gave up pursuit about
a mile out of town because of a
jurisdictional question.
, A short time later Ratzloff wras
making out a traffic ticket when
O'Connor approached him. A
verbal exchange followed and,
according to the police officer,
O'Connor doused the officer with 1
beer from a bottle.
A scuffle ensued with the po- j
liceman attempting to fix hand- j
cuffs on O'Connor. Rolland ("Rol- i
REPORT WRONG
It was erroneously reported
on Wednesday’s “Voice of The
Frontier” program that Bernie
Engler of Atkinson was involv
ed in the incident. This infor
mation, later corrected on
WJAG, was completely wrong
because Engler, son of Mr. and
Mrs. Gilbert Engler, has not
| been involved in any wrongdo
ings whatsoever. Engler en
trained early Wednesday for
Omaha with selective service
j registrants for pre-induction ex
amination and his name
I wholly by error crept into the
text concerning the tear gas in
j cident.
! lie”) Everett, a friend of O’Con
1 nor, interceded and the police
man triggered the tear gas, which
sent O’Connor to the hospital.
Holt County Sheriff Leo Tom
jack went to Atkinson Monday
and returned O’Connor and
Everett to the county ail in O'
Neill where they were held over
night.
The two were given a preli
I minary hearing Tuesday morn
ing and were released after post
ing two hundred dollar appear
ance bonds.
Hearing has been set for 10 a.
m., Wednesday, May 14, but
1 County Judge Louis W. Reimer,
sr., said a continuance had been
j asked by the defendants’ attor
j ney, George Farman of Ains
worth.
Both O'Connor and Everett are
charged with ahusing an officer
of the law.
O’Connor was to have gone to
Omaha this week with a group of
registrants for pre-induction ex
amination, but the brush with the
law interferred.
Little League
Play Starts Soon
Next week the Elkhom Valley
Little Leaguers open a baseball
schedule. Teams are West O’
Neill, East O’Neil], Ewing, Em
met, Chambers, Page, Orchard,
and Stuart.
Tonight (Thursday) the South
west Braves will meet the unde
feated Northeast Cardinals. The
Braves have won two out of
three.
The O’Neill Little Leaguers de
feated Emmet, 5-2, Sunday in a
practice game here.
The initial Junior Legion game
will be played May 18 at Colome,
S. D.
Runaway Albion
Youths Located
Two Albion youths were picked
up Monday by Police Chief Chris
McGinn and held overnight in
the Holt county jail pending ar
rival of Boone county authorities.
Held were Lester Fox, 14, and
Roy Svoboda, 15.
Both boys make their homes
with grandparents. Fox’s grand
father is Albert Shadman; Svo
Ixxla’s grandfather is Adolph Svo
boda.
TO KEARNEY
Jerry LeRoy Kilcoin, 14, Tues
day was ordered to the Nebras
ka state boys’ training school at
Kearney until he is 21. He was
charged by Holt County Sheriff
Leo Tomack for violation of par
ole. Kilcoin had admitted ear
lier breaking and entering the O’
Neill Grain company offices.
Resident
of Boyd 69
Years Dies
Edward E. Angel, 89,
W i d e 1 y-K n o w n in
Two-County Area
SPENCER Edward Fate I Ait
go i, 89, a retired Spencer former
livestock man aiul merchant,
died Sunday, May 4, at Sucmi
Heart hospital in Lynch, lie had
been ill a week and was the old
est resident of Boyd county.
Body lie in state at the I tome
Tuesday and at St. Mary’s Cath
olic church Wednesday. A rosary
was said at the church at 8 Wed
nesday evening.
Funeral services will be held
today (Thursday) at 10:30 at St.
Mary’s Catholic chuch with Rev.
Robert Steinhausen, church pas
tor, officiating. Burial will be in
St. Mary 's cemetery under. the
direction of Biglin’s.
Grandsons will Ik- pallbearers.
The late Mr. Angel operated an
overland Height line between O’
Neill and Boyd county in the ear
ly days when Boyd county and
the Rosebud country were opened
up for settlement mid before the
railroad was built through lloyd
county.
Mr. Angel was born December
14, 18t>8, at Moravia, la., tlie son
of Scott and Jennie Maclntrye
Angel. He came to Boyd county
in 1889 from Chambers. His fath
er lou tided the lirst store in
Spencer.
On March 1, 1897, at O’Neill he
married Elizabeth Theresa Kelly.
They became the parents of three
sons and three daughters. His
Wife died May 22, 1952. A son, Roy
and two sisters and two half
brothers preceded him in death.
For many yeurs Mr. Angel was
a regular attender at cattle and
machinery sales throughout the
area and was widely known in
sale circles.
Survivors include: Sons — Al
bert of Vancouver, Wash.; Kstel
of Spencer; daughters- Mrs. Jul
ia Tronek of Mission. S.D-; Mrs.
Rose Fuhrer of Port Angeles,
Wash., and Mrs. Elizalieth Adrain
of White River, S.D.; half-broth
ers—Leon Angel and Raymond
Angel, both of Delta, Colo.
Homesteader at
Randall Is Dead
BRISTOW Claus Gehlsen. 83,
who farmed many years near the
Missouri river below the Ft. Ran
dall, dam died Friday, May 2, in
Sacred Heart hospital at Lynch.
Funeral services were conduc
ted at 2 p.m.,
Monday, May 5,
eran church in
ffi' ofHy ” Bristow with
j|SP Nielson, church
Pallbearers were Floyd Kelly,
William Wendt, John Bowman,
Frank Nahrstedt, Melvin John
son and Joe Fredricksen.
The Jones funeral home was in
charge of burial in Union ceme
tery at Spencer.
The late Mr. Gehlsen was born
in Theilen Germany, February 3,
1875. He was baptized as a child
in the German Lutheran church.
After attending school in Ger
many, he came to the United
States at the age of 16, joined
relatives at Cinton, la., and later
went to Pendleton, Ore. As a
young man he worked in a gold
mine near Susanville, Ore.
In the spring of 1894 he came
to Nebraska and homesteaded on
the Randall military reservation
northeast of Gross. In his spare
time he hauled freight by team
and wagon from O’Neill to Bris
tow in the days before the rail
roaa was extended north and
west from Niobrara.
He frequently recalled a historic
cloudburst that flooded the Ponca
creek valley at Bristow and
weeks were needed for the dwel
lers to dig out from the mud and
debris.
After residing alone 10 years,
he married Miss Anna Behrens
of Pierson, la. They were mar
ried at Sioux City February 25,
1904, and traveled by team and
carriage three days through snow
and cold weather to reach the
homestead where they were des
tined to make their home a half
century.
They retired and moved into
Bristow in 1954. In February that
year the Gehlsens celebrated
their golden wedding anniversary.
Survivors include: Widow —
Anna; sons—Carl of Mission,
S.D.; Frank of Lynch; Hans an<)
Jacob, both of Bristow; daugh
ters -Mrs. Margaret Simmons of
Platte, S.D.; Mrs. Henry (There
sa) Sell of Mission; Mrs. Ralph
(Mary) Nelson of San Diego,
Calif.; Mrs. Vernon (Anna) Wen
ke of Spencer; Mrs. Leonard
(Minnie) Sixta of I>enver, Colo.;
sister Mrs. Elsie Staben of Clim
tin, la.; set-eral brothers and
sisters in Germany; 29 grand
children and three great-grand
children.
DIES AT 91
ROYAL Mrs. Ida Fanon, 91
resident of Royal died Saturday!
