Mat Rauert has contributed the following in relation to the early settlement of Prairie Creek Township:

The first settlers of Prairie Creek township were Peter Mohr, who later moved to Grand Island, Peter Holling, who later removed to the vicinity of Wood River, George Spence, deceased, and Danance Dickinson. They came in the spring of 1871 and later in the same year Eli Barnes, Hans Moeller, Nichols, James and Mat Rauert, Nic Depue, Henry Kruse, and Peter Thompson came to swell the settlement. In 1872 George Nollen, Robert Kinkle, Peter Wingert, and Mr. Lanfield cast their lots with the new settlers.

It was many years before the northern part of this township was settled, but along the banks of Prairie Creek a thrifty settlement soon sprang up which organized school district, built bridges, and connected their settlements with the railroad at Grand Island and Alda. Game was quite plentiful during the early days especially in the sand hills north and during the drought and grasshopper periods the settlers divided their time between hunting deer and antelope and snaking cedar post out of the canyons along the Loup River, for sale in Grand Island, and this was almost the only means by which "cash money" could be secured. At that time the Indians coming through on their annual hunts from the Loup rivers to the Platte and Republican south were frequently visitors of the early settlers, but never hostile and only by their thieving and begging did they give much concern to the early settlers.

FURTHER NOTES ON THE SETTLEMENT OF PRAIRIE CREEK TOWNSHIP
BY ELI A. BARNES

The first settlers of Prairie creek township were:

Peter Mohr, Peter Holling, who later removed to the vicinity of Wood River, George J. Spencer, Dennis Dixon. They came in the spring of 1871. Later came Eli A. Barnes, Samuel M. Schisler, Hans Moeller, Nicholas,

James and Mat Rauert, Nicholas M. Depue, Joseph R. Proctor, Henry Kruse, Claus H. Wiese, Peter Thompson, I. P. Beagle, Capt. W. W. Thompson, James Baldwin and A. Baldwin, Isaac L. Messeraul, George Nowlan, Robert Kinkle, Peter Wingert, Anna M. Weeks, John Lanphere, Mr. Barlow, William C. Dean, John Trimble, Mr. Burton and William E. Preston. Mr. trefren, George and Luther, settled on December 20. With these settlers closes the year 1872. Then came Wesley Milhollen, Thomas Hosler, John Lee and adam Hessel. School district number 18 composed Prairie Creek township, Othman A. Abbott county superintendent of schools. The first schol officers were Eli A. Barnes, moderator, Joseph F. Procctor, treasurer, and John Lanphere, director. The school house was built on the homestead of Eli A. Barnes by James Tout, later of Grand Island. Then the district was divided and the school house moved on northeast corner of George Nowland's homestead, where it now stands.

Other early settlers in the Prairie Creek vicinity were Joe Lilian, John Mader, Jim Baldwin, Henry Schisler. The town of Abbott was formed out of section 30 of this township. In recent yers the Robert Taylor ranch had grown to such proportions that the portion of it which lies within Prairie Creek township constitutes over a third of the area of the township.

A roster of some of the landholders in Prairie Creek township prior to 1890 will show other early settlers than those already named:

Wm. H. Sumner, Mary A. Bullock, James Fonner, Thmas Hossler, Josiah Brown, Jacob Lessig, William Dudley, George Rauert, Joachim Rauert, Louis Upperman, A. C. Downs, M. V. Atkinson, H. C. Roehling, Henry Mohr, Sr., Alvin Eager, John E. Mader, James Lewis, C. B. Lewis, Hannah Kent, Benj. Swank, J. C. H. Read, Giles A. Smith, D. R. Castiday, Peter Thompson, Geo. Nouland, John Peterson, James Nichelson, C. A. VonWasmer, W. R. Mader, Silas Y. Bryson. Robert Taylor and Kenneth McDonald's ranch holdings now take up a large portion of the township.