THE BRINK FAMILY
Mr. and Mrs. Elmore J. Brink came to Nebraska from Waterloo, Iowa, in 1883. Mrs. Brink was the former Rose Flood. they homesteaded a quarter-section of land three miles south and one half mile east of Battle Creek. Later, they acquired 160 acres directly south of their home, as a timber claim.
Farming was difficult and uncertain in those early days. They were plagued by drouth, hot scorching wind, grasshoppers and severe winters.
To supplement the family income Mr. Brink decided to set out a large orchard. Fresh fruit was almost unheard of in the stores. He contacted the Gurney Nursery at Yankton, South Dakota, which had been established a few years earlier. Two of these men came, selected the plot and advised that windbreak be planted on the north side and that the ground be summer fallowed. The next spring they returned and set out the fruit trees. There were six kinds of apples, four varieties of cherries—red, yellow and purple plums, peaches, pears and apricots. The peaches and apricots were not very successful as they could not withstand our cold winters. Water had to be hauled to keep these young trees growing.
The Brinks also had a large berry patch consisting of June berries, raspberries, currants, gooseberries, black berries, strawberries and numerous mulberry trees. They planted a grove of black walnuts. They cared for from twenty to thirty hives of bees.
All these things provided good food for the family and there was always ready sale for the fruit and honey. People came in and picked apples, cherries and plums by the bushel and gathered berries for their jellies and jams.
As the years went by the climate seemed to moderate. The rains came more frequently, there were fewer wind storms and the winters were less severe. Farming and stock raising flourished.
These courageous early settlers have long since gone on to their reward. Mr. Brink died quite suddenly of a heart attack in December of 1911, and Mrs. Brink was in her 91st year; death came in October 1942.
There were six children in this family — Willard, Bertha, Charles, Mary, Elmore and Margaret (Mrs. Henry F. Walz). Mrs. Walz is the only one still living.
—Mrs. Henry Walz
THE FLOOD FAMILY
Mr. and Mrs. Frank Flood farmed southeast of Battle Creek. Mrs. Flood's maiden name was Jane Wade. There were six children. After the death of Mrs. Flood, the family moved to town. Frank Flood was the town marshal for many years. Ed Flood of O'Neill, Nebraska and Elizabeth (Bess) Flood of Franklin Park, Illinois are the only surviving members of that family.
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