of horses and mules, grain and many tons of hay were destroyed by the big fire.

When the Indians were migrating along the creek, they would stop at the Tiedgen home. To keep them from doing any harm, Mrs. Tiedgen would give them fresh home baked bread and meat. They would camp along the creek close to the Tiedgen home. The early records show that the Indians picked up the dead hogs along the creek that had died of cholera and were used by the Indians for food.

Mr. Tiedgen had the first and only threshing machine in the area for some time. Joe Orr's father helped him run the machine. They would start threshing in the Battle Creek area and would end their threshing run around Columbus.

The Union Cemetery is now located on the Tiedgen timber claim, 1 1/2 miles south of Battle Creek. Mr. Tiedgen is now laid to rest at this place having passed away in 1921 at the age of 87.

This inspiring story was written by Everett Tiedgen of Battle Creek, a grandson of John F. Tiedgen.

THE WHITLA FAMILY
An interesting interview with Mrs. Maude (Whitla) McIntosh

David O. Whitla came from Iowa in 1870 to seek out a homestead and chose the Northeast Quarter of Section 9, Twp. 23, Range 3 in Battle Creek Precinct which is now the farm home of Mr. and Mrs. Ed Volk.

He came alone, leaving his wife and baby boy in Iowa. During the year he prepared a dugout and sod building for shelter, broke out some of the native grass never before touched by plow and raised some crop. In the fall he returned to Iowa, taught school there that winter, returning to his homestead with his wife and two-year old child in the spring of 1871.

The first two years spent on the homestead were lean years. Drought and grasshopper and loneliness created a togetherness in the family and friendships with the few neighbors which were lasting. always Indian scares and many times a settler's nearest neighbors were in an Indian camp.

Then with the continued drought years, Mr. Whitla would look to the lower ground to the north, see the luxuriant grass and yearn to move there. Mr. Whitla, after "proving up" on his homestead, sold it to the Little family and for $600 bought the SE1/4 of Sec. 33 in Valley Precinct from Wm. Schmidt, where they built a little home and later also purchased the SW1/4 of Sec. 33 to the west. The old Whitla home is where the Beltz family now live and which is owned by Walter Schulz and the other quarter is where the Everett Tiedgens now live.

Their son Webster was born in the old soddy on the first homestead and daughters Mabel and Maude and son David, Jr. were born in their new home.

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