One who has pride in the past will soon
have a future of which to be proud

Volume 2, Number 2 - December 2003

Letter from the Editor

Here we are putting out our third semi-annual "Historical Times" newsletter. When I
first suggested this project little did I realize what a joy it would become. Doing something to
preserve our rich heritage keeps me young at heart. At the monthly meetings, and everytime
I volunteer to show visitors around one of our museums, I learn something new.
I grew up on a farm just south of Pilger in the 30's and 40's. Like many of you I left the
area in the 50's to go onto "better" things. The "better" things included serving my country
for some 43 years. But, "you know what?" returning to my hometown in 1998 is the "best"
thing ever.
Being the "new kid" in town it was no time until I "volunteered" to help here and there.
The Historical Society was an organization needing help. A handful of aging members were
struggling to keep the Society going. Guess I saw an opportunity to serve a community that
had preserved my heritage for me during my long absence.
It is in that spirit that I carry out my duties as your Editor.
Roland Jensen, Editor

Historical Marker Sign Replaced

The Historical Society of Stanton County recently replaced a badly weathered sign
marking the Site of the First Homestead in Stanton County. The sign is located near the
corner of Highway 15 and Highway 275 just north of Pilger. The new sign was designed and
painted by Marquerite Marshall with the help of Ray and Carol Kingsley, all members of the
Society from Stanton. (Click to see photo).

Improvements Made at the Pilger Museum

Over two weekends in August, Historical Society members, with the help of volunteers
from the Village of Pilger and local residents, poured a new concrete pad. (Click to see photo).
With financial and material help from J.D. Alexander, Pilger Sand and Gravel, Gerhold
Concrete Co. of Wayne, Village of Pilger and Don Sprieck the project was completed with the
assistance and expertise of Terry Schulz of T Built Construction of Pilger. The pad will
provide over 1,000 square foot of outdoor space to display antique agricultural artifacts. The
center piece of the display will be the flour mill donated by the Alexander family. Work will
begin on the display once the concrete cures and availability of volunteers. Other
improvements included replacement of deteriorated siding on the Annex building. Don
Sprieck furnished the siding and led the team of Society members in making the repairs.

Society Hears Talk on Lewis & Clark

The regular monthly meeting of the Historical Society of Stanton County was held at the
conference room of the Pilger Store on October 7th. Featured speaker for the evening was
Lavonne Nightingale from Norfolk. (Click to see photo). She gave an in-depth talk on
the history of the Lewis and Clark expedition that took place 200 years ago. With the use of an
antique opaque projector she used photographs, newspaper clippings and other visual aids
to paint a colorful picture of their historic adventure. In addition to Society members, several
members of the newly formed Pilger Lewis and Clark study group attended.

Election of Officers

The Society held an election of officers for the year 2004. New officers are: president, Jim
Duncan; vice-president, Becky Frerichs; secretary, Gloria Koch; and treasurer, Virgine
Jensen. (Click to see photo).

Historical Society on the Internet

A newly designed web page has been initiated off the Stanton.Net home page. Thanks to
Bob Paden, owner of Stanton Telecom, located in downtown Stanton, space has been made
available for the service without charge to the Historical Society of Stanton County. The
Society's web page is managed and maintained by Judy Throener, Marketing and Public
Relations Director at Stanton Telecom. Roland Jensen, editor of the Society's newsletter
"Historical Times," provides updates to keep the web page current and up to
date with the Society's activities and accomplishments. To view the new pages go to http://www.stanton.net/stantoncountyhistoricalsociety.htm. and click on the Community
Links tab then click on Stanton Historical Society. To go directly to their web pages go to http://www.stanton.net/stantoncountyhistoricalsociety.htm. You can also get there using a
search engine like Yahoo by searching on Stanton County Historical Society. From the web
pages there are "blue" links to forms, photos and the Newsletter - simply click on the links to
view. Comments or questions can be directed to Roland Jensen at e-mail address:
rjensen@inebraska.com.

Historical Marker May Move

The Society received a letter dated October 2 from the Nebraska State Historical Society's Historical
Marker Program. This letter informed us that our Historical Marker
located at the Pilger rest area on Hwy 275 needed to be relocated. (Click to see photo). The
Nebraska Dept. of Roads planned to permanently close and demolish the rest stop effective
November 1, 2003 - less than a month away.
Roland Jensen presented the letter at the October monthly meeting. The Society
members were "shocked" at this turn of events. This was the start of a wave of community
outrage, letter writing and media coverage that resulted in Senator Conneally calling for a
townhall meeting. Kris Winter, District Engineer was asked to attend to explain the NDOR's
action despite recent expenditures of over $90,000 to upgrade to ADA standards and drilling
a new well. Some 60 citizens packed the firehall in Pilger to voice their objections. As a
result, the NDOR was asked to delay the closure for 90 days. The rest stop is currently still
open while Stanton County officials explore other means of continuing the operation.
Interested agencies include the Lower Elkhorn Valley Resources District as well as others
interested in promoting travel and tourism in Northeast Nebraska.
The Historical Marker stays for the time being however, as you can see in the photo it is
need of repainting. If it has to be relocated, the Stanton County Commissioners have okayed
moving it to the County Court House lawn in Stanton.

New Lifetime Members

The following have been added to our list of lifetime members: Joy Ann Johnson, Ray and Carolyn
Haddock, Robert R. Jensen, JD and Deb Alexander and Eugene and Sharren Bohac. Letters of
Congratulations and Lifetime membership cards have been sent to each new member for their one time
contributions of $100 or more.

More Rural Teachers Remembered

As of November 4, 2003, another 24 teachers have been remembered through our
"Remember a Teacher" fund raiser campaign. If you have not remembered your favorite
teacher you can still honor him or her by returning the attached form (click to see form)
along with a $25.00 contribution. Their name plates will be engraved and
placed on a plaque (click to see photo) in the restored rural schoolhouse.
The following is an additional listing of remembered teachers: Chera Lee (Knaack)
Avery, Esther B. (Pont) Bartak, Irma (Carson) Butterfield, June (Petersen) Davidson, Joy
(Scherer) Denney, Rita Frerichs (Teacher's Aid), Shirley (Brabec) Gadeken, Greta (Iverson)
Grubbs, Dola (Wolverton) Husmann, Ruth Koch, Delores (Kane) Kropp, Helen (Bysong)
Lorensen (1st & 2nd Grade at Pilger Elementary), Irma (Julke) Malcohm, Irma Mann, Holly
(Goeller) McClure, Eleanor (Sokol) McIntosh, J. Paul McIntosh, Margery (Prawitz) Miller,
Jean (Henricks) Nordhues, William T. Novotny, Libbie (Stoklasa) Podany, Ethel (Wagner)
Pont, Henry Schultz, Naomi (Brooks) Siemsglusz and Betty (Eschliman) Zoucha.

Buy A Brick Fund Raiser

Research has found that District 56 was named Roosevelt, probably to honor President
"Teddy" Roosevelt. The bricks have already been engraved (click to see photo). The following
school districts still need contributions for their bricks: 6, 10, 11, 12 (needs $55), 26, 27, 31,
33, 35, 38, 50, 54 (needs $50), and 56 (needs $75). If you attended one of these rural
schools in Stanton County please contact others that may have attended and try to
gather enough contributions ($100) to buy your brick. Use the attached form (click to see form)
to detail your contribution.

Bell Tower On Restored Rural School

Thanks to the generosity of the family of Ted Melcher, and the craftsmenship of Dan
Molacek, the one-room rural schoolhouse at the Stanton Heritage Museum complex has a
bell tower. (click to see photo). The tower was built by Dan Molacek, and funded by the
proceeds from the Ted Melcher Golf Classic. In the tower is the original bell that once
beckoned students at District 13.

EUB Church Needs New Roof

Recently a large tree was removed from the west side of the EUB church. During wind
storms it was brushing against the aging cedar shingles causing them to deteriorate.
(Click to see photo). Although the roof is not leaking, the time for a new roof is fast approaching.
The Society's long range goals includes the replacing of the cedar shingles which will be quite
expensive. If you would like to help, your contribution would be greatly appreciated. Use the
attached form to indicate your desire to assist.

Shipping Box With A History

Since the turn of the 21st century, descendents of August and Augusta Goetsch have
gathered annually for reunions. Perhaps the pictures of their great grandparents and the
shipping box holding the family bible (see photo) have sent them digging for the gold of the
past. August's parents, John and Minni Goetsch, immigrated to Wisconsin from Prussia in
1856. He married Augusta Schwichtenberg in 1868 and moved to Spencer, IA. In 1882, they
moved to Hoskins, NE then later homesteaded east of Stanton on the north bank of the
Elkhorn River. They had eight children - Paul, Frank, Albert, Ida, Minni, Martha, Lydia and
Helen. All the children were baptized, confirmed and became members of St. John's
Lutheran Church in Stanton. The family lived off the land, raising cattle, chickens, ducks,
some sheep and milked cows. Papa August died in 1894 after being gored by a bull.
Constantly plagued by hardships, the fatherless family always found a way to survive. When
the pantry was empty, Mother Augusta filled a wagon with wild plums and hauled them to
Sioux City to trade them for staples that her family might survive the long hard winter. She
only lived 57 years.
The shipping box now graces the head of the stairs at the Stanton Heritage Museum.
Pictured (in the photo to the left) with the box are (standing) Mary Goetsch
(grand daughter of Frank) and Paul Goetsch (grandson of Paul) both of Stanton. Seated are Ruth
Ann Schultze Vogel (grand daughter of Ida) of Stanton and Mary Ann Goetsch Beune
(grand daughter of Albert) of West Point NE.