USA > Nebraska > Furnas County > Pioneer stories of Furnas County, Nebraska > Part 14
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The spring of 1876 I put in my erops and as usual the grass- hoppers did the reaping. I was elected assessor and served for three years. I got no pay at all for the first two years, and $5 for the third. I was treasurer of the school board two years. 1 got some carpenter work and some saw mill wright work that summer. In August our boy was bitten by a rattlesnake and we had a terrible time getting him cured.
The spring of 1877 opened up pretty good. I put in some wheat and corn and rye, and had a good erop. On the 19th of June our twins were born. The girl. Mary Edith, is now Mrs. E. A Shrove of Denver. The boy, Charles Ernest. is a traveling salesman for Kingsbaker Cigar Co .. of Kansas City. He makes Beaver City in his travels.
Everything went pretty well until we began stacking our grain. Lee Hobson, A. J. Horton and I were exchanging work. We were working at my place and had one stack of grain finished and Hobson was working on another. In putting some poles on the top he lost one of the ropes, and after my little boy had helped him get it he set the fork against the stack and forgot it. When Hobson got through he slid down the stack onto the fork handle, and was badly hurt. We had a hard time until he got so he could be taken home.
My wife and five children had the diphtheria. My wife was very sick for over a week, but they all got over it. I had quite a bit of carpenter work in 1878 and raised a good crop, so We got along pretty well.
The spring of 1879 I rented my land and worked at my trade. There was quite a lot of building and we raised another good crop, so I began to think Nebraska was all right. But it stopped raining and there was no rain from September until the next July. The spring of 1880 I rented my ground again, but the ground was so dry that they could not plow it so I got no crop. I had to go away to get work. The summer of 1881 the drouth and cinch bugs took everything.
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1882 was the same way. That fall I came to Fairbury to get work. My folks did not like to stay alone so much so I moved them down here, and we are here yet. I came to the conclusion that I was not built for a farmer, so I gave away my claim and quit it.
There is one thing I would like better than anything, and that is to see the old pioneers all together again at a farmers' picnic like we had then. They are scattered all over, some are still in Furnas county.
Wishing them a happy and prosperous year I will leave them for the present.
CHAS. A. CLARK.
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CHAPTER XXV
When M. N. Jenkins First Saw Beaver City It Was Inhabited by Prairie Dogs, Rattlesnakes and Buffalo. Now Look At IT !
Editor Times-Tribune .- Perhaps it would be of interest to the old settlers of Furnas county to hear from one who took part in the battles of those early days with the grasshoppers, rattle- snakes and Indians.
It is forty-one years the tenth day of July since I first saw Beaver City. At that time the town was inhabited by prairie dogs and buffalo. The two Hadley boys, M. R. and Jesse : Will Kinzer, Tommy Williams and Danforth had taken claims around the prospective townsite. I was traveling in company with Ed Lyon. We ate our lunch here and then steared our double header oxmobile on up the creek, dodging the dead buffalo carcasses by the way, and camped that night with I. S. and Jonathan Meyers. who were shingling their first cabbin with elm bark and sod.
The next day we went to the present site of Wilsonville. Here we found Corlas Wilson and Russel Johnston camped under the shade of an old elm tree on the banks of Beaver Creek. Cor- las Alexander soon made us welcome. A few days later John McKee joined our company. He was looking for a location to start in business. Unele John was third assistant cook. His part was to grind the coffee with a sledge hammer. We had huge appetites in those days. It required a stack of flapjacks almost knee high and a dishpan full of buffalo steak to fill us up to the collar.
Our camp was the frontier, no other station except a mili tary post at Red Willow and Wild Bill, who camped near us a few days and then moved on. We had a few Indian scares that summer but lost no sealps, and later in the fall a big fire with high wind which licked up the hay stacks and a few cabins and the clothes that happened to be off our backs.
Our nearby postoffice at that time was Alma, but later on we heard of Arapahoe, and then we thought that we had things
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convenient. Lowell and Kearney were the nearby railroad towns.
As the country began to settle we felt the need of mutual association. Accordingly the Beaver Valley Home Guards was or- ganized, the object of which was not only to make our presence felt in case of mischief, but that we might make our wants known and invite horse thieves to "keep off the grass." Our association together called forth a discussion of our need of public improvements, such as postoffices, public highways, or- ganization of the county, locating county seat, starting public schools, and appealing to Uncle Sam for protection against the encroachment of the red skins.
Our first effort to be heard by the legislature was to send John McKee to Lincoln to lobby for us in forming and naming the county. At this time all the territory west of Harlan county was known as Lincoln county and was represented by Buffalo Bill in the legislature. After Furnas county was bounded and named then came the county seat question, and some of you know what happened in some of those bob-tailed conventions.
Well, we "left our footprints in the sands of time" and we ean never pass that way again. My mind often reverts back to the days of making history in Furnas county, but space will only permit me to hit a few of the high places. We often got short on rations, and did not have much to live on but faith and buffalo grass until the team would get back from the railroad. Then eame the hot winds and the grasshoppers that blasted our pros- peets for a erop, and then the going down into "Egypt" after corn. Then eame the Indian raid of '78, followed by the de- structive prairie fire which licked up the grain and hay. Perhaps some of you have not forgotten the old "funding bonds" that were issued by the county, and sold for "spot cash," but the rash never came. Many times we found ourselves up against a dark proposition. Those were days of anxiety and exeitement such as we shall not be called to pass through again.
It may be now that not many of the old settlers are left. Some, no doubt, have gone to other parts of the world, and some to the silent city of the dead. I have been away from Furnas county eighteen years, having lived in Colorado since leaving there. I shall be glad to hear from any of you who are interested in me, or to have you call on me when visiting Boulder.
M. N. JENKINS.
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CHAPTER XXVI
L. B. McComb Tells the Story of the Founding of Lebanon, and Relates Incidents in the Lives of the Pioneers
Editor Times-Tribune .- It is with much interest that I have read the different stories of pioneer days published in the Times-Tribune. Although there will be a similiarity in some respects to the other contributions, I feel that I would like to add my little mite to those already handed in. so Iwrite and if you consider this not worthy of publication, commit it to the waste basket.
It was in the spring of 1872 that my father took the western fever, and it proved contagious inasmuch that one neighbor and himself fitted out a prairie schooner and started overland from Green Lake, Wisconsin, little knowing what their destination would be. They came on and on, until landing at Lowell, Kearney county, they concluded that they were far enough west for the time being. Lowell was a thriving little town, where the land office was then located, and father and Mr. Elkins secured work as carpenters and worked until fall. Once in the summer father got quite homesick because he found some "crawlers" in his clothes. He immediately packed his grip to start for home, when some one, finding out what was the cause of his sud- den change of movement, told him what to do to rid his clothes of these inhabitants, so instead of carpentering for a while, he proceeded to have a wholesale massaere, and when it was over, instead of going home, he wrote home telling us of his experience. and also told us to sell out. pack up and come to him.
So on the 14th day of November, with three wagons equipped with a stove and other things suitable for winter traveling, and with nine people in our company, we started for the west. travel- ing all the first day in a glorious snow storm, and staying the first night with my unele and family, who considered it a very foolish move. Unele told mother that she was going where she could not find a stick large enough to whip a child with. She was not of the disposition to be easily "bluffed." so her reply
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to this remark was, "I'll use my hand." He then said, "You will have to live in a dugout out there," Her reply to that re- mark was, "No, I won't. I'll not go under ground until I go for good." In this she was mistaken, as later on my story will reveal.
It would take too long to tell all the trials and hardships of that six weeks' trip in midwinter, camping out every night but two. Some may say, "Surely it did not take six weeks to make the trip." No it did not, for two weeks of that time we were camped at Maringo, Towa, with sick horses. We arrived at
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Former Home of James McComb
Plattsmouth, December 30. There we were told that we would surely perish if we tried to cross the plains in our wagons, so we chartered a car, loaded our goods and came by rail the remainder of the journey, arriving at Lowell the first day of January, 1873. Father had already prepared a little home for us, so we were not long in getting settled. My introduction to the new town was the acquaintance of a tame buffalo that would persist in follow- ing me to school, which was anything but pleasant for me, I was so afraid of him. Hle belonged to a Mr. Valentine, one of the merchants of the town, and he would dodge into the store whenever an opportunity presented itself, always expecting a treat of candy and apples.
Well, I must pass on. Our stay at Lowell was only during the winter. In the spring of 1873, father pushed on farther west
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and located at what is now Lebanon. Father in later years sold the townsite of Lebanon one 40 of the land being a part of our old homestead.
Just as we were about ready to pack up and move to the Beaver the big April storm broke upon us with all the force of a genuine blizzard. Any of the pioneer settlers will distinctly remember it. We were shut in for three or four days, not dar- ing to venture even a few steps from the door, and before the end of the third day all we had to eat was crackers and water. for everything was so wet inside and out of the shanty that mother could not make a fire. We had to stay in bed in order
Present Home of James McComb
to keep warm. The morning of the third day, father thought he must try to go to the stable to see how the horses were faring. so in a lull in the storm he started, and for a wonder, found the stable, or what was left of it. The wind had blown the straw cover all off, and the horses had trampled snow until their heads could be seen above the stable. All must of course know that the house and stable were both poorly constructed or they would have better withstood the force of the storm. They were put up only for temporary use. Father soon got the horses out of their snowy bed and took them to the livery barn. Then he went to the hotel and got dinner, but did not dare venture home until nearly night, for if he had missed the house, he could have gone for miles in that direction without finding a house. It was . an anxious afternoon for the ones shut in, so when father came walking in a little before sun down, there was general rejoicing.
When the storm was over we started for our own home, be- ing ten days on the road from Lowell to the northeast quarter of section 17. township 1. range 26 west. It rained nearly every day we were on the road, so when we arrived at the Republican river near Arapahoe the river banks were flowing full, and
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nothing could be done but swim. Just as we were about to start in a Mr. McGill, who lived near the present town of Hendley, came to our rescue with an ox team and helped us across, then loaded the little folks into his wagon and went ahead with them. When we arrived at their home a good warm supper awaited the whole company of us. I shall never forget that meal nor the people who were so kind to us that night.
We immediately proceeded to make a house by pitching our tent and using some boards that father had on hand, setting them up tent fashion and using a tree at each end of the build- ing for the upright poles and some good heavy joice for the ridge pole, with not "a blanket for a door," but a piece of car- pet. Such was our home for the first five months of homestead- ing, as there was no time to build a better one, for some breaking had to be done and a crop put in, which with my brother's help father went about doing without delay. In swimming the Re- publican river everything in our wagons got wet. so we had to have a general unpacking and drying out time. Added to that we had to have another gray-back massacre. for somewhere on the road they had crept in. What a time we had, washing up and getting rid of the pests.
One day not long after we were settled, we heard a noise outside like the grunting of hogs. We went out to see where the noise eame from, and just a few rods from the house we dis- covered a herd of about 60 buffalo leisurely feeding along. The men happened to be away from home that day, so we missed getting a good shot at them.
I have told you what our house was like, but not what other belongings we possessed besides our household goods. Well. they consisted of three horses, one cow, a hen and a rooster, the latter a present to mother when she left Lowell, and, by the way she raised that summer from the pair 30 chickens, the old hen setting three times.
Buffalo and antelope hunting was the favorite pastime for those days, but that soon came to an end, for we were only nicely settled and the crop well started when we were visited by a band of Pawnee Indians out for a buffalo hunt. There were three hundred of them and our place was alive with them for three days. Their camp was only a half mile from our house. and while there they killed 300 buffalo in one day. They dried and packed the meat ready for use in three days, putting it in
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bails, as near as I can remember 21/2 feet long, 11/2 feet wide, and perhaps a foot thick. The bails were covered with raw- bide. They carried their meat on pack ponies, loading them down until they would almost stagger under the load. When coming in from the hunt the same ponies were loaded with the raw meat, thrown over the ponies' bare backs, and an Indian sitting on top of the meat. We visited their camp one after- noon and saw them working at their various kinds of employ- ment. One old Indian was making himself a ruffled bosom shirt, and on sight of mother, called on her for assistance, which she freely gave. Some were making bead ornaments, some piecing quilts, some preparing the evening meal by cooking brown beans over a camp fire, and some were busy tanning bul- falo hides and packing meat. In the company were two old sol- diers holding honorable discharges from the government, who came and begged the privilege of having dinner with us. How they did eat! They surely fulfilled the proverbial saying that "'an Indian can eat enough in one day to last him a week." We traded with them in many different ways, exchanging their wares for groceries, for father had already established a trading post, supplying the few settlers with the necessaries of life, am- munition included, as no person at that time would have felt that he could live here without his gun at his right hand.
Giving the Indians a rest I must now return to the subject of building a home in the west. After the excitement of the Indian company was over, father began hewing logs preparatory to building us a permanent home. The house was ready for the roof when father was called upon to accompany a young friend to his home in Wisconsin, who had come here in hope of regain- ing his health, but in vain, for he died soon after his arrival home. When father returned from his trip he brought more supplies for the little store, adding to the stock, prints, ginghams, shoes, and some rough articles of clothing, such as were needed for the time and place in which we lived. It was late in the fall when he returned, and too cold to try to think of finishing our house in time to be comfortable for the winter, so he pro- ceeded to dig a hole in the hillside and before many days a dugout with a tent for a roof was completed for our winter quarters. Thus mother had to submit to going underground, mueh against her pride and will, at the same time admitting that it was a comfortable place to be on a cold day.
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The spring following our sojourn in the dugout, several changes took place. Our home was completed, and the dugout converted into a little store. Lebanon postoffice was established at our home. My brother carried the mail from Beaver City the first six months free gratis, later he was given the job of over- land mail carrier and paid by the government.
Time waits for no one, neither does the tide of immigration. Now settlers are locating all along the Beaver valley. Among the first besides our people to grace the land of buffalo grass with homes were the following families and bachelors: R. P. Iligh, Dr. Isaiah Bennett, Frank Galusha, W. D. Johnston, James Springer, George MeClure, Bruce Cummings, Charlie and Wm. Johnson, George and Platt Kinne, JJohn and Wm. Townley, Wm. JIalsey, and the Lyon brothers, four in number. West in this vicinity of Danbury were the Ashton, Royar and Dolph boys, and east in the neighborhood of Wilsonville were Robert McComb and sons, Daniel Crooks, L. M. and Castar Wilson, Geo. Miller, Mr. Soper, A. A. Phunb, Henry Remington, Marion McDonald, and Ur. Thatcher, the latter being the only blacksmith for miles around.
About this time the first marriage in this new country took place, that of John Townley to Miss Elizabeth Springer.
In the spring of 1873 Red Willow county was organized. At the primary elections arrangements were made for each pre- cinet to write out their own tickets, there being no printing office in the county at that time. A committee was appointed to do the work, and it was a tedious task, there being only enough settlers for the county to legally organize. Though only thirteen years old at this time I had the honor, through permission of father, of helping write the tickets. My father, B F. Bradbury, was elected one of the first county commissioners, and made his monthly visits to the county seat, Indianola, 20 miles away, to attend commissioners' meetings.
The first school in this viemity was taught by Mr. Galusha, the schoolhouse being a dugout. The school furniture consisted of a home made table for the teacher's desk, and benches for the ten pupils. The heating plant was a little alcove in the back of the dugout, called a fire place, the chimney walled up with sod.
The first religious organization was a Sunday school, held at the home of Frank Galnsha, where most of the religious met each week to study the word of God together, and every two
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weeks we were visited by Elder Stewig, a Campbellite minister from Indianola.
The first birth to be recorded was that of my nephew, F. F. West.
The first social gathering that I remember was in honor of a birthday of Mrs. R. P. High. Both old and young were present, and then the company was not large. Mr. and Mrs. Tom Wil- liams of Beaver City. came all that long distance to make merry.
The first death to bring sorrow into our midst was that of Grandpa Remington. who died at the home of his son, Wm. Rem- ington. The funeral was held in the sod school house, and in- terment was made on a plot of ground just back of the school house. The casket was made by Daniel Crooks of plain pine boards covered with black calico. In later years Mr. Reming- ton's remains were moved to the Hamburg cemetery.
In the years of 1874 and 1875 grasshoppers made such rav- ages on the crops that little was left for the settlers to subsist on. In order for them to stay and hold their claims, the govern- ment came to their rescue by sending aid by way of provisions and clothing. Second hand clothing was also sent by eastern people which was gladly received by the really destitute. The clothing from the government consisted mostly of army clothes, so when the men were fitted out with their new clothes, a stranger coming into the community might have thought the regular army was here in full force.
Grasshoppers and drouth also made other changes in rural affairs, for the majority of the settlers now turned their atten- tion to stock raising, as there was plenty of free range and the native buffalo grass was found to be excellent feed. Many are the days when I have taken my paper or crochet work and acted the part of shepherd boy or sadled my pony and taken charge of the herd of cattle.
It was not uncommon at that time to see a tame buffalo with the herds of cattle grazing contentedly. At one time my father owned six. three of which grew to be four years old be- fore he sold them. One of them took a particular dislike to me, and of course I was afraid of him. One time he pushed me down and was about to trample me when mother came to my rescue and drove him away. Ile was such a pet that he woukl often step into the house and take a morsel off the table if he saw anything he liked. He would follow us to school, remain all day.
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and return with us at night. Finally we grew tired of such a troublesome pet, so father made a rack in the wagon, loaded him in, and started east to sell a buffalo. He went as far as Gib- bon, where he sold "Buffy" for $10 and 15 bushels of potatoes.
My story now brings me up to the centennial year of the Declaration of Independence. This was a notable time for us here in the west as well as for those at the Centennial Exposition. We began preparations a month before the notable day to cele- brate in loyal style. The first thing we did was to send to Mont- gomery Ward & Co., then called the Grange store, for goods for flags. Mother made these, one large one four yards long, and six small ones six inches in length. The large one was to be carried by a flag bearer, the small ones to decorate the bridles of the horses. On the morning of the Fourth, the neighbors, 22 in number, old and young, met at father's for a start across the divide to Indianola. A wagon had been especially fitted up for the occasion, with seats all around the box and a high spring seat for the driver and flag bearer. It took a well equipped four horse team to haul the load and the provision prepared for the journey. Father had gone to Indianola the day before to attend commissioners' meeting and he met us one-half mile out of town, escorting us in grand style. We really were given credit for having the best equipped outfit on the grounds. The day was spent in a real patriotic way, and we remained until the morn- ing of the 5th.
The next ineidents worthy of note were the Indian raid and big fire in the fall of 1878. The morning of October 1, peo- ple all along the valley were notified that the Cheyennes were on the warpath and that all must flee for their lives, so we went with the rest to "Stone's Fort," just west of Wilsonville. Mother loaded the two younger children into a passing wagon, then she and I hid a few of our most valued treasures in the tall grass near our home, then saddled our ponies and started east. Father was in Minnesota on business at the time, so did not have a chance to participate in the enjoyment of the chase. Brother Charlie and our herder remained at home to guard the stock. They stayed until time to corral the stock and then started in pursuit of the refugees. Mother and I had not gone far when we came upon Mrs. W. D. Johnston and her little boys, who were driving their stock to where they could be better protected than at home.
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We finally arrived at Fort Stone, where men, women and children to the number of between 200 and 300 were crowded to- gether, scarcely a man knowing where to find a weapon of de- fense had the enemy arrived. Scouts were soon sent out to in- vestigate the real situation and it was found that the Indians had simply gone across country from Oklahoma to their former reservation near Fort Robinson in northwest Nebraska. The raid was a rebellion against being moved south by the govern- ment. The only damage they had done or intended to do was in the direct trail from one reservation to another. That in- deed was plenty, for murders were committed, horses stolen, homes pillaged, and crimes committed too awful to narrate. The husband of one poor woman in our company was among the victims and it was heart rending to witness the scene when news of his death was brought to her.
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