FAMILY STORIES

   Nels P. Johnson was born in Haf Christanflod, Sweden on August 30, 1849. As a young man he attended the Naval Academy in Malmo, Sweden, where he rose to the rank of first mate. He held this position on a ship for some time, but wished to advance further. The Lutheran Church was, at this time, the state church so he wrote to his pastor for a recommendation. It was granted, so he then became the pilot of the ship. We have the document he received from the church. When he left the sea, he brought the sextant he used to chart his course. It was crude by today's standards but served him well. Later in his life, he worked at Luther College and loaned the sextant for display -- somehow it disappeared.

N.P. Johnson Family

   Paulina Pearson was born in Aby Skäne, Sweden. She immigrated to America in 1881. That same fall, she and Nels Johnson were married and they settled in Brooklyn, New York, where they resided for four years and where their daughter Jennie was born. Paulina had relatives in Nebraska, so they moved here. They found a place -- the upstairs of a home near the acreage they purchased -- while their home was being built. They enlarged the house as their family grew and lived there the rest of their lives. Mrs. Johnson always kept in touch with a sister in Sweden who sent her many things.

   Mr. Johnson had a hard life, working at several jobs. One was at a brickyard north of the cemetery where he walked to and from work every day. He also mixed mortar for bricklayers and worked at Luther College. He passed from this life on October 13, 1932. Mrs. Johnson passed away at her home on February 21, 1928.

   They raised a family of seven children, none of whom survive: Mrs. Anton (Jennie) Willander, Marie Johnson, Mrs. Arthur (Ellida) Almquist, Mrs. Arthur (Olga) Larson, Carl Johnson, Albin Johnson and Ernest Johnson.

   In 1884, at the age of 15 years, Oscar Johnson came to America from Hvetlanda, Sweden and settled near Ithaca, Nebraska. In 1881, Julia Wallin came with her parents from Skane, Sweden. She was 5 years old and their new home was in Wahoo. April 15, 1908, Oscar and Julia were married and made their home on a farm ¼ mile north of Ceresco. Four children were born: Clayton, Frances, Norris and Fern. Fern passed away in 1946, Julia in 1951, and Oscar in 1955. Frances resides in Verdigre, Nebraska and Clayton lives in Ceresco.

Norris and Alvena Johnson, 35th Wedding Anniversary, Febr. 27, 1981

   In 1895, in the Swedeburg area, Alvin Walin and Alvera Brostrom were born. They married in March, 1919, and that fall, Alvin was killed in an accident. The following April, Alvera gave birth to their daughter, Alvena. They lived with the Brostroms until Alvera married Arthur Larson in 1930 and two families were united on the farm two miles west of Grace Lutheran Church. Art and Alvera retired to Wahoo in 1946. He passed away in 1952 and she in May, 1982, after 11 years in nursing homes.

   Norris farmed and worked at the Ordnance Plant in Mead after graduating from Ceresco High School. Alvena, known by nickname, Millie, worked at Mead, Ceresco Bank and Federated Finance in Lincoln after graduation from Luther Academy and one semester at Bethany College, Lindsborg, Kansas. They were married February 27, 1946 and farmed for 15 years until a car accident forced Norris to give up that occupation. Again he worked at the Ordnance Plant before becoming Secretary-Treasurer of Farmers Mutual Insurance Company. He retired in 1977 and is still president of the firm. He has also served on Lutheran Church Boards of Immanuel, Ceresco; Grace, Swedeburg; and Bethlehem, Wahoo, where he is now Financial Secretary and helped with their Boy Scout Program for a few years. Millie was bookkeeper at the Wahoo Clinic for 15 years, assisted in the Luther College Alumni Office and was organist at both Grace and Immanuel Churches. They have two sons: Harvey and Kerry. Harvey is married to Patricia Davisson of Seward, and they have two special daughters: Kathryn and Ann. Harvey is a CPA in their firm of Seim, Johnson & Sestak in Omaha and commutes from Seward. Trish manages her folks' store, "House of Davisson". They are active in the Methodist Church and were the first couple married in the new church building in 1970. Kerry is in the process of getting his degree at the University after several jobs throughout the years. Both sons graduated from Wahoo High School and are great golfers. Norris started too late in life to chase the little white ball, but really wasn't able until he got two new hips and had open-heart surgery.

   Millie and Norris enjoy church and community activities, playing cards with friends, but especially enjoy having the family around. Submitted by Norris Johnson

   Our family moved to Saunders County in June of 1970. We moved into and still live in the same home in Wahoo. Our house was built around 1910 by Earl Staudinger and his father. The Staudingers constructed many homes and buildings in Wahoo, including the City Light Plant. Earl lived in our house for only a few months while he built the house next door for himself and his new bride. Earl still lived there and was our good friend and neighbor when we first moved in. An interesting fact about the quality of construction in those days -- as Orville was replacing the screen and latch on the front screen door, Earl came over to visit and told us that he had built that door himself. We still have the same door and it is as solid as a rock. We were never sure if Earl approved when we painted it bright red! We have since made many improvements on our home and love it more than ever.

The Orville Johnson Family

   I am an original resident of Saunders County, being born and raised in Mead, a fourth generation member of the Nygren family to live in America. Orville is from Chappell in Deuel County. His father was born near Valparaiso, and lived there until the age of six when his family resettled in western Nebraska.

   Orville and I met while attending Luther Jr. College in its last year of operation before merging with Midland. We both transferred to Kearney State College and were married in 1963 while we were students. After graduation with degrees in education, we taught for two years at Wausa, three years at Papillion and then came to Wahoo. We wanted to live in Saunders County so that Orville would be able to do some farming. He taught in Cedar Bluffs and I taught for three years in Wahoo. Orville began teaching in Wahoo in 1976. He is now an agent with Prudential Insurance Company.

   We have two daughters: Elizabeth, born in 1967 and Amy, born in 1972. We had a son, Mark, who was born in 1969. He died in an accident in 1971 at the age of two. This tragedy in our lives was eased by the wonderful friends that we already had in Wahoo, even though we had only lived here for 16 months.

   We are members of Bethlehem Lutheran Church. We both sing in the Choir and our daughters have been, or are in, the Junior Choir. Orville is presently on the Church Council. Our church is very important to us and we cherish active participation in the community, the country, and the world.

   Orville and I are golfers and are members of the Hilltop Country Club. I'm not good; Orville is better. We love the social aspect of this summer activity. Elizabeth is also playing golf.

   We're happy to be residents of Wahoo and Saunders County. It is a wonderful place to raise our family and we will be proud to say that our daughters are graduates of Wahoo Public Schools. This is our home and always will be. Submitted by Karen Nygren Johnson

   Quentin and Marie Johnson live on a farm 3/4 miles east of Ceresco. This has always been Quentin's home. His parents, Arthur and Emmy Johnson, bought the land and built the house and other buildings on the place before Quentin was born. Arthur's father, Charles Johnson, was born in Sweden in 1847 and came to the U.S. in 1868. He lived in Cambridge, Illinois for 7 years. Then he moved to a farm near Waverly, Nebraska. In 1876, he married Anna Carlson, and in 1892 the family, including sons Carl, Emil and Arthur, moved to a farm 3 miles east of Ceresco. Arthur bought a hardware store in 1912 and married Emmy Wedberg on July 23, 1913. (They lived in a house built by Art which is now the Leonard Merry home). A son, Emory, was born while they lived in Ceresco. After a few years in the hardware and implement business, Art sold the store and the family moved to the present Quentin Johnson farm.

   Emmy Wedberg, daughter of Olaf and Gulla Trued Wedberg grew up on a farm near Swedeberg. Her parents came from near Malmo, Sweden when they were young adults. Other children of Olaf and Gulla were Allie, Frank, Fred, Ebba, Orrie, and Emil.

   Quentin graduated from Ceresco High School in 1941, attended Luther College for 2 years, and helped his father on the farm. In 1948, he married Marie Jessen of Lexington. Art and Emmy retired from farming and moved to Ceresco that year and Quentin continued with the farming. (Many construction projects in the community have also been done by him through the years.)

   At the age of 4, Marie traveled with her parents, Boy and Kirstine Jessen, to Dawson County, Nebraska from Denmark. Kirstine Kragh Jessen

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came from Dalbyover in northern Jutland and Boy Jessen was born south of the border between Denmark and Germany. As a German citizen, he had to be in World War I for the Germans. After the war he went to universities in Denmark and studied agriculture. Because of his education and experience he was able to help the Danish cause, both in Denmark and in the United States. (He received the Kingly Medal from the king of Denmark, the highest award given to lay people.) After coming to this country and living on rented farms for several years, Boy and Kirstine Jessen were able to buy a farm by Lexington, and realized their goal of providing a better future for their large family of 6 boys and 6 girls.

   Children of Quentin and Marie are Eric, Anne, Jean, Wesley and Ellen. Eric and his wife, Gail Campbell of Omaha, who now live in Des Moines, have 2 girls, Melinda and Tracy. Eric has his own business, Iowa Construction Reports, along with a printing shop. Gail, who taught 3rd grade when they lived in Ceresco, is now working and teaching classes at a stretch-and-sew store in Des Moines. Anne and husband, Doug Zobec, live in Colorado Springs, Colorado, where Anne is a nurse at St. Francis hospital and Doug works for TRW Electronics Co. Their children are 3-year-old twin girls, Julie and Christie and 1-year-old boy, Craig. Jean and Ellen live in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Jean is employed by Witty Enterprises where she is assistant manager of real estate. Ellen is a secretary for George Knight and Associates. Wesley is married to Linda (Almery) of Ceresco. They live 7 miles northeast of Ceresco on the place formerly occupied by Wesley's great-aunt, Allie Wedberg. Wesley helps Quentin with the farming and is also a welder. Linda is manager of Boesen's Glass store in Lincoln.

   The Immanuel Lutheran Church in Ceresco has always been the Johnson family's church from the time that Emmy and Art Johnson were charter members.

   All the Johnson children went to school in Ceresco and Eric graduated from Ceresco High School in 1967; the others from Raymond Central High School, Anne in 1969, Jean in 1971, Wesley in 1974, and Ellen in 1980. Eric also attended Dana College at Blair and graduated from the University of Nebraska in 1971. Anne attended Dana College and graduated from Methodist Hospital School of Nursing in Omaha.

   Sextus L. Johnson was one of seven children, born April 7, 1900, to Andrew and Margaret Johnson. Others in the family were Luther, Pierre, Edward, Theresa (Ericson), Eleanor, and Irene (Olson) who resides in Laguna Hills, Ca. and is the only one surviving. The family lived two miles northwest of Mead until they retired in 1922 and moved into Wahoo, leaving the older boys to carry on the farming. Sextus and Edward were the only boys who graduated from Mead High School. The family were active members of the Alma Lutheran Church in Mead.

Victoria and Sextus Johnson, 50th Wedding Anniv. 1972

   Sextus and I were married on June 28, 1922. My parents were Frank and Hulda Udd; other children were Harry, Waldemar, Virgil, Milton, Hildur (Jones) and Vivian (Adell). Waldemar resides in Omaha, Vivian in Northbrook, Ill.; the other family members are deceased. Frank was one of those brave Swedes who came to this country when a young man to make a new life in a new country. He was a farmer. The family lived four miles south of Mead until he retired in 1936 and moved into Mead. He died October 19 that same year.

   Sextus and I began our married life on the Johnson home place. Our home was blessed with three sons -- Milford, Kenneth and Daniel -- eight grandsons, two great-grandsons and one great-granddaughter. Life ahead of us was not always to be easy. During the 40's when the Mead Ordnance Plant was under construction, lodging and meals were at a premium. At one time we were housing and feeding nine men. This meant getting up at four a.m., packing nine lunches, preparing breakfast, in addition to preparing a big evening meal. Some years later, there were many Latvian families coming to the U.S. to begin a new life; we opened our home to different families who made our basement their living quarters. We soon discovered they were not farmers and moved on to a better life in the cities.

   In 1946, after returning from the service, Milford and Leila Hope Kennedy were married; Hope was a former Mead teacher. They lived on a farm four miles south of Mead until 1971 when they moved to Omaha. They are the parents of two sons, both Family Practice Physicians. Alan married Jan Kucer; they have two sons and one daughter and reside in Gering, Ne. Mark married Kenita Kern in May of this year, and they live in Soda Springs, Idaho.

   Kenneth and Eloise Perry were married in 1949, and in 1951 they were sent as missionaries to Tokyo, Japan, which is still their home. They have two sons: Greg, taking nurse's training in Portland, Oregon; Ted, graduated from Colorado Uni. in Boulder, married and living in Denver.

   Daniel married Sharon Moser, and, after spending two years in the service, moved to the home farm. They are the parents of four sons, Leslie, who married Karen Leutkenhaus, Tim, Doug and Arlin.

   Sextus and I left the farm and moved into Mead in 1964. We have been members of the Alma Lutheran Church and served our church in many different capacities.

   Sextus died March 3, 1982. Submitted by Victoria Johnson

   Willard G. Johnson was born July 24, 1909 on a farm southeast of Ceresco. His parents were John F. and Mamie Oberg Johnson.

   The Johnson family moved to Broadland, South Dakota near Huron in 1911, where they farmed until the fall of 1923 when they moved back to Ceresco, Nebraska. They lived in town until March, 1926. They then moved to a farm southeast of Ceresco and farmed for three years, and moved back to town in March, 1929.

   Willard attended public schools at Broadland and Ceresco, graduating from Ceresco High School in 1927. In 1925, he was confirmed at the Ceresco Covenant Church with Rev. J.A. Jones, pastor.

   His parents built a hatchery building in 1929 and started hatching and selling chicks in 1930. Willard worked with his parents in the chick and feed business.

   He was married to Evelyn Victoria Swanson, daughter of Magnus and Anna Swanson, October 5, 1938. Evelyn was born January 30, 1907 on a farm north of Ceresco. Her parents moved to Ceresco in the spring of 1912 where her parents pioneered the Ford garage.

Mr. and Mrs. Willard Johnson

   She attended Ceresco Public Schools and graduated from the High School in 1925. She attended Nebraska Wesleyan and University of Nebraska and taught elementary grades 3-4-5 in Ceresco School for twelve years.

   Three children were born to the Johnsons, namely Dennis Willard, born September 30, 1939; Donald Leroy, January 1, 1941; and Kay Lorae, April 21, 1942. They also have one grandson, Corey John Peterson, born January 19, 1978.

   After the death of Willard's parents, his father in 1943, and mother in 1961, he and his brother, Walter, continued operating the Hatchery and Feed business, adding the selling of fertilizer.

   They phased out the hatching of chicks in 1971, but continued selling chicks that were hatched at another location.

   In January, 1975, Mr. and Mrs. Willard Johnson and Mr. and Mrs. Walter Johnson retired, and sons of the Willard Johnsons, Dennis and Donald, took over the business and moved their office from the uptown area to a place near their grain elevators east of the Co-op elevators. They changed the name of the business to Johnson Farm Services.

   Mr. and Mrs. Johnson are members of the Evangelical Covenant Church, serving in various capacities, and are active in community affairs. Willard is a member of the Comet Lodge 229 of Ceresco. By Willard Johnson

   Jerald was born Sept. 16, 1949 to Joseph L. and Lucille (Konecky) Jonas in Wahoo, Nebraska. He was the fourth of nine children. His brothers and sisters by order of birth are: John, Mrs. Roger (Patricia) Lohr, Mrs. Walter (JoAnn) Swartz, Jerald, Richard, Donald, W. Charles, Mrs. William S. (Kathleen) Jones, and Karen Jonas.

   Jerald attended St. Wenceslaus Grade School, grades 1-6, Dist. 109 Country School, grades 7-8, and Wahoo Public High School. After graduation in 1967, he attended Milford Technical College. In February, 1970, he enlisted in the United States Army. He was stationed at Fort Lewis, Washington and Fort Riley, Kansas. He also spent two months in Germany on maneuvers. He was retired in July, 1971, due to disabilities received in an auto accident. Due to those disabilities, he is unable to work.

   Jerald married Teresa (Terri) Hladky on July, 1971 at St. Wenceslaus Catholic Church in Wahoo.

   I, Terri, was born on Oct. 26, 1951, in Seward, Nebraska. My parents are Thomas J. and Rose (Kunasek) Hladky. My mother was born and raised in Seward County. My father was born in Brainard. He was raised in Butler and Seward Counties. I have two older sisters, Mrs. Donald (Louise) Maly and Mrs. Richard (Wilma) Zimola. I also had a younger sister, Kathleen, who died as an infant.

   I attended Seward County School Dist. 33, Staplehurst Grade School, and Seward Junior High

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School. Upon moving to Wahoo, I attended St. Wenceslaus Grade School and graduated from Bishop Neumann High School in 1970. I was employed in Lincoln for a year before our marriage.

   After our marriage, we lived in Wahoo for a brief time. We moved to Omaha in January, 1972 where Jerald attended school. Our son, Matthew James, was born at Bergan Mercy Hospital in Omaha on Nov. 3, 1972. We moved to Lincoln in June, 1973, and back to Saunders County in April, 1974.

   We built our present home in 1974. It is located south of Swedeburg on an acreage we purchased from Jerald's parents. They built their home next to ours at the same time.

   Our daughter, Jayne Louise, was born July 2, 1975, at St. Elizabeth Community Health Center in Lincoln.

   We belong to St. Wenceslaus Catholic Church in Wahoo, and our children attend St. Wenceslaus Catholic Grade School. I am a member of the Country Clatter Extension Club.

   Jerald's family have been lifetime residents of Saunders County. My family moved from Seward County to Saunders County in January, 1966. My parents now live in Weston and my sisters have been residents of this county since their marriages. Submitted by Terri Jonas

   Joe L. Jonas was born March 30, 1912 on a farm north of Wahoo, where the airport is now located. His parents were Vaclav J. Jonas and Marie (Jirovsky) Jonas, both of whom were born in Moravia, Czechoslovakia. They came to Wahoo separately between 1900 and 1910. The family lived on two other farms north of Wahoo until 1921. They then bought a farm south of Swedeburg.

   He attended grade school, first in District 23, and then at District 48, when they moved to Swedeburg. He has two younger brothers, Frank and George, who live southeast of Swedeburg.

   On August 4, 1942, Joe married Lucille Konecky, daughter of John Konecky and Helen (Dockweiler) Konecky. She was born May 30, 1920 on a farm west of Valparaiso. She attended grade school there until March, 1932. At that time the family moved to a farm northwest of Mead. She graduated from Mead High School in May, 1938. She then attended Kearney State College for two years. She taught school for 2 years in Saunders County. She has two younger brothers. Dale lives at Mead and Vernon lives in Columbia Falls, Montana.

   Joe and Lucille have lived, farmed, and retired in the Swedeburg area since their marriage. They are the parents of nine children and grandparents of nineteen. They have five sons. John, Richard, and Charles farm in the Swedeburg, Ceresco, Wahoo, and Ithaca area. Jerald is a retired disabled veteran. Donald lives in, and is employed in Wahoo. Mrs. Roger (Patricia) Lohr lives in St. Paul, Minnesota. Mrs. Walter (Jo Ann) Swartz lives in Wahoo and operates a beauty shop in her home. Mrs. Bill (Kathleen) Jones lives in Chandler, Arizona. She works for Motorola Credit Union. Karen lives in Yankton, South Dakota, where she is working for an accounting firm and is attending South Dakota State University part-time, studying to get a Master's Degree in the business field. Joe L. Jonas

   John Joseph Jonas was born to Joe and Lucille (Konecky) Jonas on Sept. 14, 1943. He was the firstborn in a family of nine children. John has four sisters: Patricia (Mrs. Roger Lohr); Joann (Mrs. Walter Swartz); Kathleen (Mrs. Bill Jones); and Karen. His four brothers are Jerald, Donald, Richard, and Charles.

   John grew up on a farm six miles south and one-fourth mile east of Wahoo. He attended St. Wenceslaus Grade School, Wahoo from the first grade through the eighth, and Wahoo High School from which he graduated in 1962. Following high school, John attended the Agricultural College in Lincoln and served for six years in the National Guard.

   On July 15, 1967, John was united in marriage to Marlene Benda at St. Patrick's Catholic Church in O'Neill, Nebr. To this union two children were born. Patrick John was born Mar. 21, 1969, and Michelle Marie was born Sept. 21, 1975. John and his family now live on the farm on which he was born. By John Jonas

   On March 29, 1951, Richard William was born to Joe L. Jonas and Lucille K. (Konecky) Jonas at the Saunders County Hospital, Wahoo, Nebraska. He was the fifth out of nine children raised on a farm near Swedeburg, Nebraska. He attended St. Wenceslaus School for kindergarten to the fifth grade. Then from the sixth to the eighth, he went to Dist. 109 near Swedeburg. For high school he attended Wahoo Public.

The Richard W. Jonas Family

   In March of 1969, he enlisted in the United States Army. He left for Basic Training in May of 1969 at Ft. Lewis, Washington. In August of 1969, he went to AIT Training in Ft. Eustis, Virginia. On leave from the service in November of 1969, he married Barbara A. Testa. They left for Germany in November of 1969, where they spent nineteen months, traveling to various places of interest and history.

   In April of 1971, their first son, Chad, was born at the Bad Constradt Hospital in Germany. In May of 1971, they returned home to the United States. In July of 1971, Richard left for a nine-months tour of duty in Viet Nam.

   In April of 1972, Richard returned home after his discharge from the service and went to work for his uncle at the Konecky Oil Company in Mead, Nebraska. The family resided in the Victor Soder farm two miles north of Ceresco. They attended the St. Wenceslaus Church in Wahoo, and both became members of the Wahoo Eagles Lodge. In April of 1973, their first daughter, Julie, was born at the Saunders County Hospital, Wahoo.

   In 1974, Richard went into the family farming operation with his father and oldest brother. In August of 1977, their second son, Joseph, was born at the Lincoln General Hospital, Lincoln, Nebraska. In 1978 their second daughter was born, Rebecca, at the Lincoln General Hospital.

   In March of 1980, the Jonases purchased the Everett Larson farmstead one mile north of Ithaca, where they reside to the present. Richard is now currently farming with his two brothers and enjoys flying his Ultra Light Motorized Glider and snowmobiling when he is not busy with the farming operation and helping others.

   The children go to school at the Mead Public School in Mead. The family are members of the St. James Parish in Mead. The children attend the CCD Program at the church, where Barbara is the assistant to the co-ordinator. She belongs to the St. Teresa's Circle and is the secretary of the PCCW Executive Board. The family enjoys the rural life and are active in various community activities. Submitted by Barbara Jonas

   Elaine Kathryn (Hines) Jones was born during a blizzard January 1, 1940, the second and youngest child and only daughter of Otto William Hines and Rose Agnes (Travnicek) Hines. Her older brother, Marvin Otto Hines, was born March 8, 1938. She was born in the living room of the family farm 2 miles south and ½ mile west of Morse Bluff, Nebraska. Dr. Byers of North Bend and his nurse, Mrs. Lambley, also of North Bend, waded through snow drifts from their car which was stuck in the snow to assist with the birth. Elaine attended Dist. #14 school in Morse Bluff and graduated from North Bend High School in 1957. She attended Midland College in Fremont until 1959. She moved to work in Lincoln, Nebraska where she met her husband, Bill (William Charles Jones), who was attending the Engineering College at the University of Nebraska.

   Bill and his older sister, Helen Elaine, are the children of William Jones and Helen Alisa (Gowen) Jones. He was born June 16, 1938 in Omaha, Nebr.

   Elaine and Bill were married on a hot and humid August 6th, 1960 at the First Methodist Church in North Bend. The couple moved to an apartment in Omaha where Bill began employment with Omaha Public Power District. Their son, Michael William, was born on May 6, 1961, 2 weeks after the couple moved to a home at 9426 Meredith Ave. in West Omaha. Their second child, Linda Kathryn, was born September 24, 1963. The family moved to a new home in a wooded area of North Omaha in October, 1973, a year after Elaine's mother, Rose, died of cancer.

   At the same time Elaine began working part-time at Northwest Hills Church as office secretary. She began taking Commercial Art courses at Metropolitan Community Technical College in 1975. Helen Svensson, an exchange student from Halmstad, Sweden, lived with the family from 1978-79 when both she and Mike graduated from Northwest High School. Mike attended and graduated from Milford Trade School in 1982 and is presently working in auto body at Engdahl Top and Body in Omaha. Linda graduated from Northwest High in 1981 and attends the University of Nebraska at Lincoln with interests in science and medicine.

   Elaine quit her job at the church in 1908 and resumed studies full-time at the University of Nebraska in Omaha. She graduated in December, 1982 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration with a specialization in Advertising Management while working part-time as an advertising assistant for an industrial tool supplier in Benson. In January, 1983, she accepted a full-time position with Brandeis advertising department in Omaha.

   Bert and Dorothy Jurgens have lived on the family farm southwest of Cedar Bluffs since their marriage in August, 1946.

Bert and Dot Jurgens' Relatives, June 26, 1982. Left to Right: Neola, Randy, Bert, Dot, Till, Lill, Alta, Harold, Will and Dorothy.

   The Union Pacific Railroad sold this tract to a Cyrus McCormick, and he in turn, sold to a Seth Richards, who later disposed of the land to Nicholas Schlichting and his wife, the former Lena Sukstorf. Approximately ten days later, Nicholas Schlichting and his wife sold the land to his brother, William Schlichting about April 19, 1876. William Schlichting and his wife, the former Agnes Siemsen, Bert's

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