[page 1]
PART FIVE - continued
Dad had five years to pay the property off, at which time a
Warrenty Deed was to be issued. The deed was actually issued
in 1939, so believe that he may have paid the property off ahead
of time.
A road had to be built into the property, and Dad made a deal
for Rio Grande County to build it. They sent Fred Hawkins with
an old Thirty Caterpiller Dozer to build the road. AS I remember
the tractor was broke down more than it ran. They finally got
the road built and the mill that had been at Del Norte was
moved on the property.(the left hand mill)
The property had some of the best spruce timber any where, but
it was on a steep north slope. ‘The area was very wet, and as
it was steep hillside, things such as the barn had to be built
on supports. As this was to be a long term project the site
was going to have to have numerous buildings on it. Also the
weather was a problem, as there was lots of rain, and snow came
early in the season. There was no shortage of good water, in
fact there was a problem with too much most of the time.
The first mill set was where they had built the camp. They
also had a planer at this location. The mill ran with the old
' engines that it had before. The planer was powered with an
engine from a Thirty Cat. After the first year the mill was
moved above the camp to a new site. This would prove to be the
left hand mills last site. As the weather was a problem they
built a building over the mill, and the mill was not moved out
in the winter. When it was moved to the second site, they used
an engine from a Sixty Cat. for power. I remember that they
were started by using a bar in the flywheel.
In 1940 gasoline engines on the mill would be replaced by steam
power. ' There is an old mine above Stunner called the Pass Me
By Mine. There was a boiler still there and it would be moved
to the mill. A steam engine was picked up at Hotckiss, and
moved to the mill. I am not sure what kind of arrangments were
made for the boiler. Dad acquired this mine along with other
property for taxes, but do not know if that had been done when
they moved the boiler to the mill.
Due to the extremely heavy snow at this site, it was decided that
they should make at least one trip during the winter to shovel
snow from the buildings. It would prove later that even that
didn't save the big building over the mill. The site where the
mill was located does not get any sunlight for several weeks
during the winter. For some other weeks it does not shine long
enough to do much good, The trip in during the winter was a
very hard trip, as it was snowshoes for some miles. The road
was open to above Jasper where the Summitville road went up the
hill. From there on it was snowshoes. I only made one trip in
and it was plenty for me. By the time night came I was ready
#or_bed. Note, supplies were left in one of the cabins for the
Winter trip. 218

[page 2]
PART FIVE - continued
One thing that had interested Dad for many years was Mexico, and
he had a great desire to make a trip down there. In 1939, he
decided that it was time to make a trip to Mexico. He started
by joining the Pemex Travel Club in Mexico, which gave him access
to all the information that he would need, such as insurance
requirments etc. As I remember, we went to Kansas for Christmas
that year, and then went on to Mexico after the first of the year.
For some reason the folks took John Harris, who lived on property
that Dad had sold to him. As I remember, he was pretty cranky
but guess we got along with him. Dad's brother Ben and his wife
Lena also went along. Ben was a pretty good guy to take along,
as he always looked at the bright side of things. I remember
stopping in SanAntonio, I guess because we stopped at the Buck-
thorn saloon, which was a place that had everything. JI came across
a post card from there recently, and it kind of jogged my memory
of the place. For some reason we did not stop at the Alamo,
but maybe it wasn't such a tourist attraction that it is today.
I remember going thru some jungle country on the way to Mexico
City. I guess the reason I remember it is because one place
we stopped for gas and they had a young tiger laying on the
window sill. Just like a house cat, except it didn't like for
anyone to touch it. Lucky for me it was tied up and couldn't
get to anyone.
We went to see the pryamids and various museums in that area.
We went as far south as Puebla. Dad had hired a guide as soon
as we got to Mexico City, and as I remember he was very good,
and kept things moving, and kept us away from the traps.
We had entered Mexico at Larado, and we must have came back out
the same way, as I remember we traveled thru the same towns on
the way back. One of the towns I remember, because on the way
down we found that the town partied most of the night, and when
we got up early the next morning to leave they had shut the
towns power plant down, and had no electricty. On the way back
same town, same problem.
Coming back across south Texas a fan blade came off and went thru
the radiator.(a comman problem in those days) As we were in the
middle of nowhere, Dad bought a lot of gum, and we all chewed
gum so Dad could keep patching the radiator until he could get
it fixed. After it was fixed, we had no more problems. I
remember that we stopped at Carlsbad Caverns on the way back. I
don't remember Ben being along there, so believe that he and
Lena must have returned to Kansas after we crossed back into
the US.
All in all, as I remember, Dad was very satisified with his trip
to Mexico. I still come across things that he picked up there.
219

[page 3]
Top photo is of Charley Johnson with one of the lumber trucks
at the first mill site at the Stunner location
Lower photo is of Dad running the plan@&r at the Stunner site.
The building directly behind the plafeer is the barn. -
As far as I remember this was the last time that the planer was
used at the mill. It was moved to the yard in town.
220

[page 4]
ee ae se ie ee mene pee
Top photo is Francis arriving at the Stunner mill with the
boiler from the PMB mine. AS you can see there is enough mud
to go around. The car is the 1938 Chev that Dad bought new.
The dozer on the little cat was built by Francis and Lillard
Elliot when Elliot first arrived in the valley. The dozer was
removed during the war years, as it had some problems. Francis
rebuilt it and installed it after the war.
These photos were taken in 1940
Lower photo is of the boiler after it was installed at the mill
and before a building was built over it. The big mill building
in the background would prove not to stand the extremely heavy
snows at that location.

[page 5]
i
i
Top photo is of the lower part of the camp at the Stunner location
This was probably taken in the fail of 1940. Snows could come
early and heavy. Dad made a trip after lumber and while he was
at the mill loading, it snowed so much that he almost didn't
-get out. When he crossed the bridge at Stunner the snow was level
with the banisters on the bridge. They got lumber caught at the
mill one fall, and had to leave the truck at Stunner and use the
cat and sled to get the lumber to the truck. One trip the cat
didn't want to start and Francis said that he and Charley thought
they were going to have to stay as it was getting dark. Laddie
kept going down the road and looking back as much as to say, come
on I'll lead you out. :
The lower photo is of the same location during the first part of
1941 when they went in to shovel off the buildings.

[page 6]
Top photo shows Dad at the left arriving below the main cabin.
It is the one to the right, where all the supplies for the
winter were stored. I do not know who the person on the right
is. It could be Darley, but do not know for sure.
The Lower photo is the front of the same buildings. To the feft
is the main cabin and the hump in the snow is the building that
was used for meat and food storage,

[page 7]
i
The photo at the left is
Francis shoveling one of
the buildings off. This
was soon after the first
of the year, so more snow
will soon take this snows
place.
The photo below is of the
lower part of the camp in
1995, The firstmill was
to the right of the photo.
The main cabin is the pile
of broken lumber in the
right of the picture. The
road in the right side of
the picture leads to the
upper mill site.(the last
one used)

[page 8]
PART FIVE - continued
At this point I will go into some of the property dealings that
took place during the early 1940s, and later.
First I must back up and correct something mentioned earlier. I
said that a Warranty deed had been issued in 1939 on the 160 acres,
and that is true, but I find that the deed was not recorded until
1945, which would indicate that the property was not paid off
earlier that the contract called for.
In 1940 Dad entered into an agreement on various properties that
were available for back taxes in Conejos County. He formed a
partnership with J.A. Rivera of LaJara. I believe that he had
known him from the time he lived in the Terrace. Rivera was in
the ranching business, or that is the way I remember it. He also
had quite an interest in mining. At the time he was County
recorder and was in a position to watch the tax roles. He was
not able to do anything about it, so he made a deal with Dad to
pick up the property that they would both be interested in. Dad
would get timber rights, Rivera. would get pasture, and Mineral
rights, and all other things would be shared equal. It was a
partnership that lasted for many years, and I do not ever remember
them ever having any problems between them.
One of the first properties that caught their eye was 800 acres
south of Jasper on top of Cornwell Mtn. 560 acres was in Conejos
Co. and the remaining part was in Rio Grande Co. A deal was
made with both Counties and they acquired the property. There
was no roads in the area, but the land was ideal for logging
if a road was ever built. Around the same time they got some
Patented mining. claims. In the deal was the old Pass Me By Mine,
the Asiatic Mine, and various claims. All in all there were
some 36 claims containing aprox. 480 acres in all. Some of the
land had fairly good timber and some had very little.
This completed their land deals until 4957 when 5 more claims were
added, These were in the same area so went along with the others
very well
Nothing was done with any of the aquired property until after
the war years. At that time Dad got some more claims in the Jasper
area, as well as a 40 acre piece along the main road above Jasper.
In 1945, Dad bought the property that joined on the west side of -
the home place in Monte. The front of the property went from
the NW corner of the home place west to the center of the canal
that is west, and followed the canal until it intersected with
the west line of the home place. As I recall, it contained
about 20 acres. I do not remember how much he paid for the
land.(it did not have any water tight)
225

[page 9]
PART FIVE ~ continued
By 1939 the lumber yard in town had both changed and grown to
a larger part of the business. In June of 1939, Dad and Francis
had formed a partnership under the name of Bockhaus Lumber Mills,
and in March of 1940, Dad and Ralph dissolved their partnership,
and Ralph operated under the name of Bockhaus Lumber Co. He
would sell roofing products, finish lumber, cement, oak lumber,
and other items connected with the business. The mills would
furnish native lumber both wholesale and retail.
As the Stunner mill was only furnishing spruce lumber, and as the
season was found to be short, there was a need for more timber,
and so they found a ranch NW of Pagosa Springs with lots of big
pine timber that was for sale. They signed a contract with the
Carlin Ranch, and in the fall of 1941 moved a mill onto the ranch.
It was to be steam powered, and Dad found a Case traction engine
in the valley. Ralph had a semi on the road by that time, and
he moved the engine close to the ranch. Dad put the traction
engine under steam and drove it the rest of the way to the mill
site. He made it to the gate of the ranch where he got stuck.
I remember going over with him on a weekend and helping him get
it the rest of the way to the mill site. It was a very large
engine, in fact it is the only one like it that I have ever seen.
It was a compound engine, and as I remember the driver wheels
were about three feet across. The engine was located where it
was to be used, and the wheels were removed. I remember the
wheels laying beside the road into the mill site for several
years, As I stated, it was a compound engine, which means that
it used the steam twice. First thru a small cylinder and then
thru a larger cylinder.
Francis had hired a man by the name of Joe Montano, and he had
proved to be a very valued employee. I cannot remember just
when he hired him, but he was working for them when they moved
the mill to Pagosa. As events were about to happen that no one
could predict or control, Joe would prove to be the best thing
that had happened to the Bockhaus Lumber Mills.
The timber at the Pagosa site proved to be all that they had
hoped for. It was large timber, and was easy to log. The land
was fairly level, at least as logging woods went. They did have
mud to put up with when it rained, and the area did get pretty
heavy snows in the winter. The road getting to the pavement
left a lot to be desired when the weather was bad, but all in
all it was working out very well, but events were about to
happen that would change both Bockhaus Lumber Mills and every-
ones Lives connected with both the mills and the family.
226

[page 10]
PART FIVE - continued
-Just as things were getting settled at the mill at Pagosa, the
uSwent to war in Dec. of 1941. In March of 1942, Francis was
drafted. The production of lumber was considered a critical
industry, and was generally left alone as far as the draft was
concerned, but Francis was drafted. Dad tried everything to get
it reversed, but nothing worked. One thing that worked against
them was that Francis was single. Dad always thought that his
troubleswith the Lumber Dealers, and the NRA had quite a lot to
do with Francis being drafted. As the years have gone by, I
have thought about it some, and at this point, knowing what took
place during those years, I guess that I have not formed an
opinion either way. It was a very bitter time for Dad, and
caused an enourmous amount of stress,
As the logging was easier, and the weather milder at Pagosa, it
. was decided not to operate at Stunner. Help became nearly im-
possibe to get, and Joe Montano became Dad's right hand. He did
the sawing, and anything else that needed to be done. Production
was not. great, but the mill kept operating.
Supplies became harder and harder to get as the war progressed.
Everything was rationed. Dad could only get, as I remember, about
five gallons of gas per week for the car. There was stickers
for the windshield of vehicles. The car had an A sticker, which
was for a small smauntas I say I believe it was 5 gal. per week.
Speed limits were set at, I believe 35 MPH. Meat and eveything
else was rationed. Most food did not bother the folks, as they
always had a big garden and mother canned a lot. One of the items
that bothered most was sugar, because of canning etc. During
the war was my first encounter with margarine. It could be
bought instead of butter, but it was in a bag, and was white.
With it came a little food coloring and you could mix it so that
it looked like butter. The folks had homemade butter, but did
not always have enough to keep up.
As for gasoline, I don't remember that it was a big problem, as
lumber was a critical item, Dad had gas for his truck and for
the tractor ete. With a little shuffling he could keep gas
enough. A bigger problem was tires for the truck. He could
buy tires, but they were synthetic, and didn't usually last
long enough to make it worth while to put on.
The truck that Dad had during the war was a 1940 Chev. that was
bought new by Ralph at the yard. Somehow Dad wound up with it.
It didn't have many miles, but had been used pretty hard. It
was only the begining of hard use. Dad didn't always take the
best of care of trucks, and parts became hard to get, so all in
all the old truck had a war of its own. It was nothing unusual
to have to stop and change a wheel bearing on something like
that on the way to Monte with a load of lumber. I am afraid
that with todays laws that truck would not make it very far
before it would be put off the road and the driver locked up.
Of course traffic was not a problem in those days, and wore
gut vehicles were a way of life.
227

[page 11]
Above - Ralph's long haul truck when he had
the lumber yard. Taken in 1941
Below left - Nellie Ford and Phyllis. Taken in
front of the lumber yard office in 1941 Nellie
was bookkeeper at the yard.
Below right - Ralph, Virgil, Francis, and Phyllis
taken during the war.

[page 12]
1 + Road into the 160 Acres. We always
S . refered to it as the Stunner Property
‘ 2 - Lily Pond where Dad built the Dam in
1917. There is a good road to it from on
top of Stunner Pass that this map does
Ss not show
3 - The Asiatic property
vaACL SN AY ; Ss

[page 13]
PART FIVE ~- continued
When the war broke out the Chevrolet dealer closed their doors,
which put Chev. owners in a bad position. C.L. Reagan had a
garage, where the city hall is, or was the last I knew, and he
kept parts. Somehow he could get parts that nobody else could
get. It turned out to be a good thing for Dad, as he was able
to get enough parts to keep the old truck going.
Strange things happened with Dad and the old truck. He had a
habit of carrying an old Wash tub on the back to keep such things
as tire chains, jack, lug wrench etc. He also usually carried
a jug of water, because the old truck would get thirsty quite
often. Once on the way back to the mill with the empty truck,
Dad looked back in the rear view mirror and saw smoke. coming
from the tub. He stopped and found that his jug of water was
_acting like a magnifying glass and the sun had set a coat that
was in the tub on fire. He was a little more careful with the
water after that.
During this period of time, the Stunner mill was left idle. [In
either 1943, or 1944, the mill was rented out. I remember it,
but don't have facts as to who rented. They cut a lot of logs
and not all of them got sawed, and were left decked in the woods.
During this time of the mill being rented, Ralph went up and
did some sawing for them. One thing that I failed to mention
about Ralph, was his unusual ability for math. When logs are
scaled in a pile, there is an allowance for an overcut. In
other words, it is planned that the mill will get more lumber
than what the scaling says, depending on how close the sawyer
watches the waste. Ralph woud watch.the lumber coming off the
mill.and keep track of the board feet in his head. At the end
of the day, he knew exactly how many board feet he actually cut.
I don't know anyone that could do that.
AS I said the mill was rented, and they cut more logs than they
sawed. I don't remember the details of why, but it will play
an important part in Dad's lumber operation later.
The mill at Pagosa struggled along, and help kept getting harder
to get, as more men got drafted. It looked as though Joe might
not get drafted, but in 1944, his luck ran out, as well as Dad's.
Joe was drafted and Dad did not have anyone to depend on anymore.
It turned out that Joe's luck ran out in more ways than one. He
went thru basic and was sent to Europe, where his first battle
was the battle of the bulge, and his group was blown out of a
boat, and he suffered wounds as well as a bad hearing loss. It
was his first and last battle of the war, and he wound up in
a hospital in England.
230

[page 14]
PART DIVE -— continued
The war years were not only a time of rationing, but also were
a time of saving everything for salvage. Mother always cut
both ends out of tincansand flatened them. All used tires were
sold for scrap. I remember that I made quite a bit of spending
money gathering up old truck tires and selling them. As I said
before, the folks always had a big garden and nearly always had
a milk cow and a steer that they could butcher. Dad and I got
the idea of raising some hogs, and we had hogs every where. I
had one that was raised by bottle and it got to be a pet, or may-
be I should say pest. It followed me like a dog everywhere. As
I remember, we made a little money out of the hogs.
Dad's old truck kept going, but as I think back, I don't know
how. Strange things happened to it. One time Dad had a load of
RR ties coming over Wolf Creek Pass, and after he crossed the top
of the pass, he went to slow down to shift to a lower gear, and
found that he had no brakes, He managed to get it into the lowest
gear he had, but he let the clutch out too fast and the clutch
fell apart. That left him freewheeling, so he drove the truck
into the nearest bank and got stopped. The only problem was that
there was a man riding on the load, and he got scared and jumped
off and slid into the truck and broke his arm. Just another day
in the life of the old truck.
AS I stated before, Ralph had trucks on the road that were part
of his lumber yard business. In the early part of the war, the
Govt. built camp Hale near Leadville. This camp would become the
training ground for the 10th Mtn. Div. that would become quite
famous during the war years. Ralph had trucks there hauling
building materials from the RR siding to the building area. I
don't remember just how long he had trucks there, but must have
been a fair amount of time.
The war years took their toll on the business, and before the end
of the war Ralph started his shop business in the building that
had been built for trucks some years before. He remained in that
business for many years. The building was added on to in later
years.
As for Francis, he trained for desert warfare, but never saw any
action in the desert. He finally wound up in England where he
waited for the Normandy Invasion. He had been trained at Fort
Knox for tank mechaines, and went with the 3rd Armored Div. thru
France, Belgium, and into Germany. He ran a tank recovery unit
and saw his share of bad things happen. He returned home in the
fall of 1945, and picked up where he left off in the sawmill end
of the business.
231

[page 15]
NEWS LETTER
War Price & Rationing Board Ne. 23<1
La Veta Hotel Building
Monte Vista, Colo.
Number 1 September 16, 1943
ARMED FORCES DENANDING MORE GASOLINE FOR INVASION
Allowance of gasoline for passenger cars has been ordered cut 20% through-
out the nation on *B" and "C! ration cards. Golorado is now conducting its
audit of Ration Boards, and the check-up on the Monte Vista Board was completed
by Federal Auditors Tuesday of this week. Motorists will be asked to return
stamps to their local board equiveiont to the reductions specified. Reductions
will also apply to noan-highway gascliuc, but in both cases sufficient gasoline
will be allowed for actual essential use.
USED TRUCK CERTIFICATES
. Effective September 15th, buyers ané sellers of used trucks, except sales
to dealers, must file a certificate with their local War Price & Rationing
Board, stating the description of the truck and the specific selling price. Woe
gasoline can be issued to the buyer until this certificate is on file with the
Price Panel.
Above, and continued on the following page,
Letter is a typical News
sent out by the Rationing board during the war years,
that members of the armed f
on leave were allowed five gallons for any one leave, Where
would that get them in todays world?
232

[page 16]
COMMUNITY SERVICE MEMBER APPOINTED
Mrs. Dorothy Still has been appointed Community Service Member by the
local Office of Civilinn Defonse to assist the loenl Ration Board in securing ©
voluntary help for registration and issuence of Ration Books.
LOST RATION BCOKS
Extreme care should be exercised by holders of Fation Books to keep thon
at all times ina safe place, as the issuance of duplicate books to take the
place of those lost or stolen is becoming more difficult, and oven under present
regulations it takes about 30 days to reissue a lost book.
CRILING PRICES ON POTATOES
The Maximum Coiling Price for San Imis Valloy potetoes during the month of
September is $2.25 por ewt. for USone grade, with - 10¢ per ewt. reduction for.
Commercial grade, and 30¢ per cwb. reduction for No, 2 grndes or lower. The
local Ration Board has a full time Price Clerk and any inquiries relative to |
Prices should be directed to Mrs. Mildred F. Scott.
SPECIAL GASOLINE RATIONS
There appears to bo much misunderstanding relative te Special, Rations of
gasoline. Due to the necessity of conserving gasoline and tires, the following
information relative to special rations is given for the guidance of the public:
In gonoral, special rations of gasoline can ba granted only to move an
_ automobile in connection with a bona fide change of the regular place of residence .
of the person entitled to the use thereof, or to obtain necessary nodical
attention or therenpeutic treatment.
In addition, in order to procure special rations to obtrin medical ottontion,
it is necessary to establish thet there ars no ensvortation
available which are rensonably edequnte, even though such othe? morns ef trans-
portation may not be so convenient, end may be moro expensive or require more time.
Members of the Armed forces on furlough, where such ration is needed for
transportation, may obtain not to exceed five gallons for any single oass, leave
or furlough.
BOOK IV TO BE ISSUED IN OCTOBER
Ration Book No. 4 will be issued sometime the latter part of October, the
exact date to be announced later. All appliconts in the onst end of Rio Grande
County who are under the jurisdiction of the Monte Vista Board will apply for
their books at the War Price & Ration Board office, in the La Veta Hotel Bldg. at
Monte Vista.
SPECIAL SHOE STAMPS
In general, adults are not eligible for special shoe stamps, allowing them
to purchase shoes in excess of those allowed on Ration Book I, except in cases of
those ongaged in occupations where the work is hard on shoes or destructive of
the matorial of which they are made.
TRANSPORT GASOLINE BOOKS BEING ISSUED
T-Books for Truck gasoline covering the fourth quarter are now being made
up at the Ration Board, and will be mailed to all truck owners to reach thom not
later than October lste
233

[page 17]
SSENISna TVIol{s0
BOIAUAS “IWN~A
S.LNSWLYVdad
AAYN 22 UVM
OES ‘ROVAGOd ZO INBRAVE
CHOAY O4 BSN BivAIUd YOU ALIVNDd
Above is a sample of the V mail during the war years. Service
men could sent regular air mail or V mail, which was a photo
copy of the letter and shrunk down in size. This christmas
card was sent in 1943, while Francis was in England waiting
for the Normandy invasion.
The following page is a letter that Dad received from an NBC
news Man. Dad took exception to the way he described the bread
that they were using in Germany. He probably didn't realize
how bad conditions were in Germany. Neither did the German
prisoners that were in Monte, as they had beén out of the war
for a long time, and things had changed, and not for the better.
234

[page 18]
NATIONAL BROADCASTING COMPANY, INC.
. RCA BUILDING - RADIO CITY Ag
NEW YORK 20, N. ¥.
Dear Louis Bockhaus....
Thank you for your kind letter.
You are technically correct about German prisoners NOT receiving their 80 rs
a day in CASH, No, it isn't actual coins, but it's paper money...scrip as ~
call it..ewhich is the SAME as money in what it will buy. And if they weit
untib the end of the war they will receive it in ACTUAL GERMAN marks, if ti
wish...OR...in much better US dollars ! .
As for the black bread...you say the use of that term makes if sound awful |
What do you thikk it IS ? I can assure you the present black bread being
served in Germany and other parts of Europe 15 awful ! Itts made of potato.
peelings and other refuse ! I KNOW hecause, you see, I have heen in Burope!
much more recently than you have, I only wish that our - soldiers and all th
rest of Europe had good “REN bread, as you call it. That just isn't true |
If you were to describe what they are getting to eat that way, you would be
misleading people far more than I was. I wish you could have eaten some of!
the BLACK BREAD... «GERMAN black bread...which I have eaten over there !!
And so...please don't think I am intentionally trying to mislead people.
Iam not. I am trying, as you say, to give the truth as nearly as I possi
can !! Anyway...thanks for writing..and if you want to know more about som
first hand experiences over there, try reading my war book, "From the Lané
Silent People" which you can borrow from your local library.
Sincerely...
235

[page 19]
PART FIVE ~ continued
During the war years the Govt. had a German Prisoner of War
labor camp in Monte Vista. They were theré for labor on the
farms and anyplace else that they were needed. Dad got to know
quite a few, partly becausehe knew German, and partly because
he needed extra help at the lumber yard. I remember that
there were some of them around at various times. They liked
to come out to the place because both Dad and Mother could talk
German, and partly because they were homesick and just liked
to get out among:; the local people. Most of them were really
nice guys, but of course they were a select bunch that were
put in that camp. War is strange, there the americans were in
Germany fighting, and Germans were in this country farming etc.
Doesn't make a lot of sense, but that is the way the war was.
At Christmas time Dad always cut trees, and he would take as
many of the prisoners along as he could. He didn't need that
much help, but they enjoyed getting out to the mountains. The
camp had some very talented people in it. One of them was a
master cabinet maker, and he built cabinets in Mothers kitchen.
He picked up various pieées of hardwood etc. around the place
and made beautiful things with them. He had very little in the
way of tools, but did beautiful work without them. It turned
out that one of them was from the area where Dad's Mother was
from. The folks used to hear from some of them for several
years after the war. One of them that came out to the placs was
pretty young and didn't know how to drive. He used to practice
‘driving the old truck around the place, and told Dad that when
theocean froze over, he was going to take the old truck and
Grive home to Germany.
In the spring of 1945, the war in Europe had ended, but of course
there was still no help available, so Dad decided that there was
logs decked at the Stunner Mill, and he and I would ‘cut as much
lumber as the two of us could. Also he made arrangements with
Glen Watson in Monte to go up and build another building over
the mill. This time it would be one that would stand the snows
of that location, or at least they would try.
Dad and Mother and I and my dog Betsy and old Dan went up for the
summer. By that time I had turned sixteen, and had bought my
first car. I bought a 1918 Cadilac from Ralph for the unheard
of sum of $75.00. It ran good, but it did like gasoline. It
was decided that I would not apply for a gas rationing stamp
because the war was coming to an end and Dad had plenty of
tractor gas, so that is what I used.
Things went pretty well for no- more help than there was. I don't
remember if there was ever any more than us or not. If there was
any other help, it was not for very long. We would skid a pile
of logs to the mill with the little Cat, and when we had a good
pile we would fire up the boiler and saw them out. Wasn't a
very fast operation, but we always had lumber to take to town
on the weekend.
236

[page 20]
PART FIVE - continued
Dad went ahead with his plans to build a new building over the
mill, and Glen Watson spent most of the summer with us while
building the new building. When it was finished, it was a very
nice sturdy building.
We continued to saw what lumber we could, but it was pretty slow
going. Dad would park the truck at the end of the mill, and as
we could, we would load it with lumber. After it was loaded, it
was pulled away from the mill and parked until we were ready to
go to town, usually on the weekend. One time after Dad got to
town, he complained about an awful smell in the oid truck, This
went on until he got back to the mill. He said that it was so
bad that he had to find out what was causing the terrible smell.
He’ finaly pulled the seat out and found that a pack rat had been
helping him out. The truck had been parked close to an outside
‘toilet at the mill, and the pack rat had been trading goodies
from the toilet for something that was in the truck. They always
like to trade something, but it looked that time as though Dad
had gotten the worst end of the trade. Anyway the truck smelled
better after that.
In August of that year, we went to Summitville and got timber for
them for the winter. As we had the little tractor, we could get
into some pretty tight places and stack timbers in the buildings
at the mines. During the process, I got hit under the chin, and
for some time couldn't hardly open my mouth. They still had a
store there, and I could eat ice cream, so kept their supply from
getting stale. Mother enjoyed staying up there as the house we
used had running water and a bathroom. The house in town didn't,
so it was a treat for us. When I got hurt, I had left the tractor
sitting in a pretty tight place at one of the mines, and Dad went
to move it back to camp. I hadn't mentioned it, but Dad never
had driven the tractor. For some reason he never did care to.
By the time he got the tractor back to camp, he learned to drive
ii the hard way. Even after that he still never did drive it.
In the fall of 1945, Francis came home from the war. He had left
a 1940 Chev. car at home thqt was nearly new. Dad had put it in
a storage just off the planer shed in Monte and blocked it up for
the duration of the war. When Francis came home, I got to get
the car out of storage and drive it at least part of the way to
meet him. As I remember he must have ceme to Pueblo on the train.
t remember that getting his car out of storage was a real treat
for me.
AS soon as Francis got home, he went right back to the mill. As
I remember he went to Stunner and finished the season there. As
soon as he could get the time, he gave the old truck some much
needed repairs, and the little tractor got a lot of new parts.
Tt had also been thru a war of its own, just like the truck.
237

[page 21]
PART FIVE - continued
In 1946 the mill at Pagosa was started up again, still steam
powered. This would prove to be the year that steam ended at
the mills. During the summer of 1946, Francis went to Denver
and bought a new Cat Diesel engine. In 1945 late he had bought
a fairly new truck in Wyo. from the Govt. so newer equipment
was showing up in the business. In 1946, I started hauling
lumber over Wolf Creek Pass with the old Chev. truck. It was
quite a bit improved, but still left a lot to be desired. I
was only 17 at the time, and as I think back that was pretty
scary. I wouldn' even drive a truck like that across the street
let alone haul lumber over a mountain like that today. The
dog that Francis had liked to go along, so he was with me at
times. Once about half way up the pass, I had to stop and water
the old truck, and all at once the dog jumped off the truck and
started barking and running for all he was worth up the road.
It took me by surprize as he never did that. I looked up the
road and there was a big brown bear crossing the road. I sure
am glad the dog stopped when I yelled at him, as I don't believe
that he was any match for the bear.
in 1947 the mill at Pagosa was moved a few yards from its old
lecation and its capacity was enlarged. I moved into the larger
truck and Francis had another truck and trailer hauling under
contract. Between the two of us we pretty well buried Dad with
lumber at the yard. Francis decided to start a boarding house
for some of the men, and one of the contract loggers wifes took
on the job. She was pretty young, and as I remember she wasn't
much of a cook. I don't believe that she ever had a meal with
out green beans andhominy. I was lucky, as I was on the road
every day and could eat in town. There were three of us bunking
in a cabin togther and my buddies wern't so lucky. On of them
was Roland Reinhardt, and the othe was Vernon Schultz. Vernon
worked for Francis for quite a number of years.
Late in the summer of 1947 the mill at Pagosa was shut down and
we returned to Stunner to complete cutting the logs that were
still decked from previous years. They probably cut some more
that same year, but do not remember. Roland had enough of the
cooking that summer, and he talked his mother into going along
to do the cooking. Boy could she cook. We ate pretty good as
long as she was at camp. Unfortunatly she was only there for
a short time as she returned to town when Roland started college
that fall.
When we returned to Stunner that summer, we moved the Diesel
engine along and replaced the steam engine, so that marked the
end of the steam age at the sawmills.
Francis got married in Dec. of 1947, and in the first part of
1948 we went back to Pagosa to do some logging across one of
the meadows on the Carlin Ranch. It had to be done while the
snow was deep so the meadow didn't get torn up. That had been
a heavy snow winter so Francis's new wife was in for quite an
experience. 238

[page 22]
PART FIVE -continued
Late in the fall of 1946 there was a lot of lumber at the mill
in Pagosa. It had been stacked to dry, and Dad and I went over
one weekend to pick up a couple of loads. He had his old Chev.
and I took the bigger truck. We got there late on a Friday
night and the weather was pretty good. We decided to wait until
the following morning to load the trucks. When we got up the
next morning it was snowing and there was a lot of snow on the
ground. We loaded both trucks light and chained up both trucks.
The one I was driving was a tandem with all 4 rear wheels driving
so I went ahead to break open the road. Dad followed with his
old truck. We finally made it into town, and there was no let
up in the snow. We both decided that we would leave the chains
on as Wolf Creek was reporting very bad conditions. TI went ahead
and when I got to the top of the pass, I waited for quite awhile
and Dad never showed up. I stopped a car and asked if they had
seen Dad's truck, and they said that he was stuck just above
the road camp. I didn't want to return with the loaded truck
so went on figuring that there was help at the camp. When I
got home I found that he had been gassed by the old truck and
that Ralph had went over to pick him up. The only thing that
saved him was that his window was open slightly and when he
ran into the snow bank the snow came in the window and revived
him. He walked to the camp, but was really sick. Once again
he made it in spite of an old truck trying to get him. The trucks
in those days had no fresh air heaters. Whatever got in the
cab got recirculated. Fresh air heaters were just a year or so
away.
In 1948, I bought a new Dodge truck and got a contract hauling
lumber fromthe mill at Pagosa to the yard in Monte. I bought
a bigger truck than they had been using, and.it workéd out pretty
well, or at least for awhile. By late Nov. I had probably about
20,000 miles on the truck when I had a little problem. I left
home probably about four in the morning to pick up a load of :
lumber. It was really cold that morning, well below zero. The
heater didn't work that well going down the west side of the
pass. When I got down off the pass and the engine warmed back
up and I got warm, I must have fallen asleep. 1 woke up just
in time to see the gaurd rail going under my front bumper. I
don't remember much after that, but it must have been a wild
ride. .I came to laying in a fence with the truck side of me,
and I still remember the front axié laying side of the truck.
Some people from out of state picked me up and took me into /
the clinic in Pagosa where I got patched up. I knew the patrol
and he told me that to be so unlucky, I was tbe luckest one
he had seen in awhile. He told me that there were two big pine
trees just ten feet apart and I had made it thru between them
without touching either one, He told me later that he wished
they would have checked me for carbon monoxide poisem. Again ;
no fresh air heater and the truck did have an exhaust leak.
239

[page 23]
Above - Looking toward the Carlin Ranch from the
mill at Pagosa after it was moved to its new location
in 1947,
Below - Inside the mill in 1947. Francis was
filing the saw.
240

[page 24]
241
Above - Pile of lumber that the contract hauler
had left sometime during the night. During the
summer of 1947 the yard at Monte was pretty well
covered up with lumber from the Pagosa mill.
Below - Phyllis on top of one of the lumber piles
that ware stacked and left to dry.

[page 25]
Above - Francis starting the Diesel enginelin
the mill at Pagosa.
Below - The same engine being moved into the mill
at Stunner to finish cutting the logs that were left
there from before.
i

[page 26]
Above -— Some of the logs still decked at the
Stunner mill (1947)
Below —- A load of lumber ready to leave the '
Stunner mill in 1947. Note-the outhouse to the
left is the ongthat the pack rat shared the contents
with Dad during the war.
243

[page 27]
Above and below - Cleaning up around the mill at
Pagosa getting ready to log across one of the
meadows at the Carlin ranch. In the top photo
inthe background is the boiler and engine used
to run the mill before the Diesel engine was used.
244

[page 28]
errr mene
Above - Hauling iogs across the meadow at the
Carlin Ranch, spring of 1948
Below. - Truck I wrecked in Nov. of 1948
245
8

[page 29]
Above - Dad, Francis and Lucy looking over the
damage from the winter snow. (Spring 1948) They
were never able to build a building over the
mill that would stand the winters at the Stunner
site. As far as I can remember this mill never
operated again.
Below - The same mill site as it was in 1995

[page 31]
PART FIVE - continued
After the war sometime, I am not sure of the date, Dad aquired
another team of horses. One of them was named Maggie, and I do
not remember the other one's name. They were a beautiful team
and worked well in the timber. Dad was hauling them from the
hills just above Cat Creek when Maggie's mate lost its balance
an fell thru the rack on to the ground and broke its neck. It
just about did Dad in, to lose a horse that way. They replaced
it with a horse named Mark. He and Maggie would last the rest
of the time the mills were around and beyond:. They were a
great team,
The horses that were from the San Luis Valley liked potatos. Dad
would get culls and chop them up and sometimes mix them with
grain. The horses thought that was a real treat. He used to
take potatos over to Pagosa and the horses over there would
not eat potatos no matter how you would feed them to them.
The first year Francis and Lucy were married, Maggie and Mark
were at the mill in Pagosa. One day Lucy looked out the cabin
door and Maggie was on the porch. It almost scared Lucy out
of her wits. All Maggie wanted was some potatos.
The timber at Carlins was about gone and the mill at Pagosa
was at the Palisade Lakes above the Carlin Ranch and was also
just west of town in Pagosa where Francis had bought Property.
Dad had very little to do with the Pagosa operation if anything
and concentrated on the Valley side of the operation. He had
a small portable mill that he used various places. He finally
built a heavy frame for it and built a building over the engine
and mill part. He could them simply load it on a truck and
move it to another location. It was powered by a White engine
from a surplus Half Track. He finally had something buiit by
White, and it worked out pretty well.
This little mill was on some of the property near the PMB Mine
in 1949. Dad and I were both there, as well as mother. We
stayed in an old school bus that Dad had picked up. That same
year or around that time he hired Claude McKenzie that had
worked for him years ago. The main. telephone line used to go
thru that property, and we cut the timber along it. The wind
caught a tree and put it thru the line. The telephone men
came out to fix it and one of them was pretty upset, as that
cut off teletypes etc from Frontier Airlines. Dad's answer
was, OK we'll leave the trees next to the line and this winter
when they blow down you can come out and fix the line. That.
pretty well settled him down, as the winter was a real problem
in those days. That was before snowmobiles. They had line
cabins in the area, but it was snowshoes to get to the cabins.
We never hear finch from the phone Co. after that, in fact they
came out after that and helped clear the timber along the line.
247

[page 32]
PART FIVE - continued
Thru the years, Dad had sold ceder posts. I find notes from
the time he was living in the Terace, where he had cut posts
and sold them.
He cut posts around the Arboles area for a number of years.
I cannot put a date on when he started there, but do know that
he bought or cut posts from that area during the war years.
I remember one year he also hauled pitch stumps out of the
Pagosa area. They were bought by people in the valley with
fireplaces. :
I remember one time Dad was making a deal to get posts from
a place near Arboles that was owned by an old batchler. The
area around there is pretty dry, and Dad had neglected to take
any water with him that day. As they were looking around,
‘Dad asked the old fellow if he had any drinking water. He said
that the water was not fit to drink, but he had some goats
milk that.was cool. Now Dad was not a big fan of goats milk,
but thought he would give it a try. He was about half way
thru, when the old fellow said, You might be a little careful
and watch for hairs. My strainer has a hole in it. Dad said
that was it for the goats milk, he had all he wanted.
After Dad made his little mill portable, and again I cannot
be sure of the date, but it must have been the spring of 1950,
he moved the mill to the Arboles area. He had been thinking
for several years that he could sell some squared ceder corner
posts. I believe that Claude McKenzie went with him. He cut
quite a bunch of them and they did sell pretty well. I remember
Mother was over there with him, and they stayed in the little
portabte cabin that Dad had built. Dad saved all the lumber,
or actually it was rough edge lumber, and thought it would be
good red ceder lumber. It turned out that it was not very
good lumber, and most of it was never used for lumber.
The area around Arboles was of interest to Dad for other reasons
as well as for posts. He had always had a great interest in
old Indian Ruins, and that area had a lot for him to look into.
At various times he would find old timbers from a ruin and
cut it and study. the tree rings. This was something else
that had always interested him. He always said that he could
tell a lot about the times from tree rings. I remember a big
tree that. was along the road below Jasper that had a big blaze
that Dad always wanted to cut a piece out of and study. After
his heart attack, we were up there, and the Forest Service had
cut that tree. Dad and I and Mavis were together and Dad
decided that we could load the piece in the pickup. April was
along, and she was just a little girl. She stayed in the pick-
up while we loaded the log. We finally got loaded, and found
that April had taken the key and we never did find it. We had
to hot wire the pickup, and by that time Dad was pretty tired.
We made it. home with no problems, but I don’t know if he ever
did get to study the tree rings on that log.
248

[page 33]
PART FIVE - continued
In 1950 Dad made a deal with Claude McKenzie to operate his mill
for him. They set it on one of the claims above the PMB mine
that had quite a bit of good timber on it, It was easy to log
and would hold the little mill for a season. It would prove
out to be a very sucessful season.
Also by 1950, Dad began looking at what could be done with the
800 acres of timber on top of Cornwall Mtn. First of all a road
would have to be built and that would be a major problem. He
had his old friend Darley give him his views on the matter.
Darley told him that he could lay out a road that was not terrible
steep by coming in from below somewhere to the east. I have
never known just what route he suggested taking. As it turned
out it didn't matter, because Dad had his own version of how
the road would be routed. He looked at the Mtn. from Jasper, and
-told Darley"Iwant the road to go right up that side of the Mtn”
Darley told him that he could lay out a road there but it would
be mighty steep. Dad said that was where he wanted it because
that was the shortest way, and Darley agreed.
To build such a road was going to be pretty expensive and who
could build such a road. First things first, it had to be laid
out and right of ways had to be acquired. It had to go thru
private property and forest service land both. The private
land belonged to the old Marion Mining Co. that had long since
closed, although some equip. etc. was still on the property.
The road was laid out and right of ways were done and recorded.
Now the problem of how to pay for the project.
In 1950 Francis bought a new Cat D6 to replace the old faithful
Twenty Two. One of the first jobs for it was to build a short
road for Dad where Claude was sawing. This was to be for the
next years operation. I had by this time gone to work for Ralph
but went up to build the road. It was in Nov, and had been a
very open fall. We took the Cat up to Stunner and unloaded it
and I took it on up to the mill doing a little road work along
the way. I didn't get all the way to the mill the first day
so walked on up and stayed all night with Dad. The next morning
we woke up to close to 2 feet of snow. I had went up not quite
prpared for that kind of weather. The road building was dropped
and I spent the next few days keeping the road open so they
could get the lumber out and the mill moved. We moved down to
just above Jasper where Dad wanted to build a road up to some
claims that he had that had a lot of good Douglas Fir timber on
them. Darley came out to lay out the road and started up thru
the timber, and everything was going fine. Dad looked at the
shortest way and wanted the road there. Darley said we couldn't
build it there, but started to lay it out. Sure enough I worked
for a day and couldn't get thru the rocks. Darley asked if Dad
would like to go his way now, and Dad agreed.
249

[page 34]
PART FIVE - continued
I built probably two miles of road and it was a whole new exp
erience for me. I had built some road, but not like this one,
as it had switchbacks and other things that I had never built
before, but with the nice new Cat and a little common gcenseé
we made it. I was over the road a couple of years ago and it
is still in pretty good shape.
Claude ran the little mill on two differant sites for two years
and it turned out to be a pretty good operation. In the fall of
1952 Claude moved to Farmington N.M. and again Dad had no mill
operator.
Francis moved his mill to Jasper in 1951, or at least that is
the year as I remember it. Tf asked Francis, and he is like me
and can't keep his years straight. He tried to get enough logs
‘from the various properties that Dad had, but his mill took more
logs than they could get. Most of the property had timber, but
did not have enough to satisfy the hunger his mill had for logs.
During this time he had Maggie & Mark and he used them so many
differant places that all you had to do was open the tailgate of
his pickup, and'Maggie would climb in. Those two horses were
the greatest pets anywhere.
During this period of time there was a big mill operating in the
town of Antonito, which was owned by a man by the name of Leon
Perry. I believe that he was from S$. Carolina, at least that
is what sticks in mymind. Dad had been in contact with him and
he wanted to look at the timber on Cornwall. Somehow I got
elected to take them in one Sunday. The only way in was over
the top from Kerr Lake. I had never been there, but was assured
that it would be no problem, They rented some horses” from Sky-
line Lodge in Platora and we proceeded. Now be assured that
TI am no cowboy or have I ever wanted to be. I soon found out
that the ones I was taking along were not cowboys either. I
also found that dude ranch horses were not the greatest horses
either. They had their own speed and that was slow. Anyway
we proceeded and went where we had been told, up over timber
line and down into the property. To my great surprise we came
out at the right place. Perry had gone ahead of us as he was
anxious to look at the timber. I kept noticing that it Looked
as though he was leaning over some what and it seemed that he
was getting worse. All.of a sudden the saddle slipped and he
was 90 degrees to the horse. We all got a good laugh, but for
some reason he never saw the humor in it. He was at a loss as
he had no idea how to tighten the saddle back up. As I said I
am not a cowboy, but I could figure that much out. No more
problem after that. He liked what he saw of the timber, and we
made our way back out. I said that dude ranch horses only had
one speed. That was true until they headed home and then you
couldn't hold them back. They knew whwere they were going and
they were in a hurry to get there.
250

[page 35]
i nN ¢
tae =
Gre fe,
ar
i a 1 - The old town of Jasper
v4Z ' 2 - Road that I built in 1950 - Dad had
Z=<— two mill sites at the end of this road
3 -Road Francis built in 1951 & 1952 up
the north side of Cornwall. Mtn. He ended h
1 \)) road at approx the X mark
,4 - Road built around the property to ge
i, at. the timber. (built by the loggers) G i
Gon 5 - Approx site of Francis's mill that he
Oar cle
er moved over from Pagosa. He never operated
fp ~ ~ ! 4
Lays Ge it again after it was at this location.
TS ORDA PF

[page 36]
252
Above - The remains of the 1950 Mill site above
the Pass Me By MIne. (taken in 1995)
Below - Part of the road I built in 1950 north
of Jasper. (see map #2 ~
+ ROR Tg
i
i

[page 37]
Above - Another view of the road built in 1950.
(taken in 1995)
Below - The remains of the first mill site north
of Jasper. Mill was at this site the winter of
1950 and most of 1957. (taken in 1995)
253

[page 38]
Above - Taken in the winter of 1952 at the upper
mill site north of Jasper. They had finished
cutting the timber at this site and left the mill
there for the winter.
Below - the same location taken in 1995.

[page 39]
PART SIX - The beginning of the end of the lumber business
As things progressed we can see that the end was coming for
the lumber business as far as Bockhaus family was concerned.
In Nov. 1951, Dad signed an agreement with Leon Perry for the
sale of the timber on Cornwall Mtn. He was to pay $1500.00
down and another $1000.00 upon completion of 1/2 of the road. By
the time the road had reached the First mill site, he would put
up a total of $5000.00. This assured Dad that he would have at
least some of the money to build the road.
Francis agreed to build the road. He was probably the only one
that could build the road at a cost they could afford. He started the
road late in the summer of 1951, and completed the job in 1952.
It was a major project for one man with only a Cat for equipment.
The road was 4 miles of 18% grade and built on a steep north
hillside, with one section of difficult rocky conditions. As I
look back, I doubt if Dad could have ever found anyone that could
have done the job as well and with the min. amount of equip.
In Oct. of 1952 the contract between Dad and Perry was cancelled.
They could not reach a mutual agreement over something, but at
this point, I am not sure what it was. Dad had until July 1953
to complete paying Perry back most of the money. In Oct. there
‘was an agreement signed for the sale of the timber to Ted Moen,
who was logging for the mill at South Fork, Orville Jackson, who
owned Jackson Lumber in South Fork. The agreement between Dad
and Perry was released the same month. In Feb, of 1953, the
contract was assigned to Earl Pearcy, who would be the one to
finally log Cornwall Mtn.
Shortly after the road was finished, I went with Bill Poley, who
was the forest ranger at that time, and his remark was, "I never
did believe that a road would be built up here, but if it was,
it would be built by a hard headed Swede, or a bull headed Dutch
man."
After Francis finished at Jasper, he never operated his mill
again. It was later sold and moved south of Pagosa, where Francis
and I had a partnership logging for his old mill. This lasted
thru the winter of 1952 and 1953. It turned out they didn't pay
their bills and so we didn't make much out of it. I returned to
operate Dad's little mill in the summer of 1953.
Francis operated an earthmoving business in Pagosa, and later had
the Gopher Hole Gift shop and Cafe. He later operated a Bee
supply business for as long as he was at Pagosa.
255

[page 40]
PART SIX - The beginning of the end of the lumber business
As things progressed we can see that the end was coming for
the lumber business as far as Bockhaus family was concerned.
In Nov. 1951, Dad signed an agreement with Leon Perry for the
sale of the timber on Cornwall Mtn. He was to pay $1500.00
down and another $1000.00 upon completion of 1/2 of the road. By
the time the road had reached the first mill site, he would put
up a total of $5000.00. This assured Dad that he would have at
least some of the money to build the road.
Francis agreed to build the road. He was probably the only one
that could build the road at a cost they could afford. He started the
road late in the summer of 1951, and completed the job in 1952.
It was a major project for one man with only a Cat for equipment.
The road was 4 miles of 18% grade and built on a steep north
hillside, with one section of difficult rocky conditions. As I
lock back, I doubt if Dad could have ever found anyone that could
have done the job as well and with the min. amount of equip.
In Oct. of 1952 the contract between Dad and Perry was cancelled.
They could not reach a mutual agreement over something, but at
this point, I am not sure what it was. Dad had until July 1953
_ to complete paying Perry back most of the money. In Oct. there
was an agreement signed for the sale of the timber to Ted Moen,
who was logging for the mill at South Fork, Orville Jackson, who
owned Jackson Lumber in South Fork. The agreement between Dad
and Perry was released the same month. In Feb. of 1953, the
contract was assigned to Earl Pearcy, who would be the one to
finally log Cornwall Mtn.
Shortly after the road was finished, I went with Bill Poley, who
was the forest ranger at that time, and his remark was, "I never
did believe that a road would be built up here, but if it was,
it would be built by a hard headed Swede, or a bull headed Dutch
man."
After Francis finished at Jasper, he never operated his mill
again. It was later sold and moved south of Pagosa, where Francis
and I had a partnership logging for his old mill. This lasted
thru the winter of 1952 and 1953. It turned out they didn't pay
their bills and so we didn't make much out of it. I returned to
operate Dad's little mill in the summer of 1953.
Francis operated an earthmoving business in Pagosa, and later had
the Gopher Hole Gift shop and Cafe. He later operated a Bee
supply business for as long as he was at Pagosa.
255

[page 41]
Above - Taken in the spring of 1953. Pearcy
wanted to clean the road so it would dry before
he moved into the timber. This photo was taken
at the same spot as the previous pictures. I
was taking my turn at running the Cat when this
picture was taken,
Below - taken farther up the road. Shows the road
as it looked before we started plowing the snow
off.
259

[page 42]
260
Above and below ~Two views of Cliff Lake on
top of Cornwall. In the lower picture Alan,
Mavis, and April are sitting beside a mound of
rocks. This is a witness corner for the actual
corner which is in the lake. To the left of
the photo is part of the 800 acres, that was
owned by Dad.

[page 43]
i
5 Above - Dad standing in the timber on top of
: Cornwall before any timber was cut. There was
no road into the property at that time.
261

[page 45]
get in. I had to make atrip. to N.Mex. to get it fixed. those
When they are not running they are pretty floppy, and you
would think for Sure they would never cut. After they are up
to speed, they stiffen up and are OK. If one gets a hot spot,
(blister) they have to be hammered back te the proper tension,
There are very few places to have that- done. Actually Ralph
tried doing some and he got pretty good at it. You have to
that the oil Was running out of the transmission, so he caught
it in abucket and poured it back in. I never dig ask how
clean the bucket was, I was sure I didn't want to know.
Stunner and lead then back, They had a favorite place across
the river where they would always go. Never had any trouble
Saw me coming. Tf couldn't see any differance in the grass,
but they must have thought it was better. I have to admit,
they did have good taste. when tp came to picking a place ©
to run off to.
had a little trouble getting things out. The mill stayed until
the next year. When it snowed heavy, Maggie and Mark were no
where to be found. 1 tracked them up higher, and when they saw
me they came running. There was about 18" of show, and they
didn't have anything to eat. I have always wondered about horses
after that.
262

[page 46]
PART SIX - continued
Maggie had another trick that took a little getting used to.
t don't.know if she did it to anyone else or not, but when I
would be putting the harness on her, and was working by her
front foot, she would standon my foot. Try as I might she
would not lift it off. In fact she would look at me as much
as to say, gotcha. It took a couple of times for me to get wise
to her, and if I hadn't been around her for awhile, I would
forget, and would have a sore foot again for awhile.
By the time fall came around, we had a pretty good amount of
lumber stored at the yard. Thru the fall and into the winter
we had pretty good luck selling. Lillard Elliot took a lot
of lumber and ran thru the planer he had. In fact during the
summer when I found that he was going to plane quite a bit of
it, I changed the size I was cutting so it would come out the
right size after being planed. When we began to run out of
some sizes of lumber, he wanted to get us to cut more.
Dad and I had looked at what to do about operating the mill
the next year, and between us we decided not to try. I went
to Los Angeles in Feb. of 1954 to attend school, and Dad sold
the little mili to Pete Lucero, who Lived below the Terrace
resevoir, close to where Dad had had a mill after moving off
the cliff site. The summer of 1953 turned out to be the last
time any mill was operated by Bockhaus Lumber Mills.
As for Cornwell Mtn. Earl had a fairly large mill on some of
Dad's property in 4953. They cut, as hear as I can remember,
about 100,000 board ft. per week thru the season. Ted Moen
and his son did the logging. ‘Eazl had a partner by the name
of Hoyt Brown. after they shut down that fall he went to
Calif. and worked in the oil field near Long Beach, in fact I
went down and visited with him while I was going to school
out there. I don't remember that he ever returned to-the valley
and the last I heard he was logging near Norwood, Colo. That
was Many years ago. After the first season, Earl operated his
mills in the woods. I don't remember if he had a mill of his
own, or if he contracted, or both. He later had a mill down
lower, and did some logging off the 460 acres near Stunner.
Moens also had a mill near Stunner at one time and logged from.
both the Forest Service and some off the lower part of the
Stunner Property. Earl. did his logging from the Stunner place
up high near where it topped over the hill. That area had not
peen logged at all during the time Dad had his mill on the place.
Dad had started checking timber in N.Mexico some time in the
eary 1950s. I cannot remember just what year he started that
job. It got to be a bigger job each year and had to have
help with it. The money was good, but it was a job with a
lot of hard:work.- :
263

[page 47]
264
1 - The Asiatic Mine Property - Lake De Nolda was named by Baker
2 - Location of the Pass Me by Mine
3 ~ Location of the 1950 mill site and also the last mill- site
in 1953. This was the last mill operated by the Bockhaus family.
4 —~ Location of a 1949 mill site.
Note - the road outlined here is part of the road built by the
US Army after the Civil War. It went on to Fort Lewis which was
located at that time at Pagosa Springs.

[page 48]
265
above - All that remains of the last mill set.
This location is just a few hundred feet north
of the 1950 site. (see map #4)
(taken in 1995)
Below - Taken from the. mill site, looking up -
the road built after the Civil War by the US
Army, on their way to Ft. Lewis.
(Pagosa Spgs.)

[page 49]
During the dater years that Dad check
Roelfs with him. That took a lot of
I Temember , they hag Some ki
Tees ag he haa for Many years, That
Was Something that he always enjoyed doing, He always Said that
! PPing, and he did his Christmas

[page 50]
Above - Taken inside the Methodist
after Dad had decorated it for
Christmas. Probably in 1950 or 51
Left - Dad's Christmas tree. It
was lighted and could be seem
for miles at night. 1948

[page 51]
PART SIX ~ continued
Dad continued checking timber thru the 1956 season in 1955,
there had been a bad fire thru some of the timber area, and
as I remember Dad was involved in the damage settlement with
the owners and the mills. I do not remember if there was a
lawsuit or not. I do remember going down there with Dad and
taking some pictures of the area. I do remember that it was
a pretty sad sight, as it is with most forest fires.
Dad suffered a major heart attack in the spring of 1957. He
was not working at the time. The doctors gave him very little
hope of pulling thru, but after some time in the hospital, he
was able to return home. He had other stays in the hospital,
but kept going although he never regained his health. I have
been trying to remember, but I believe Leroy Roelfs went back
to check timber for awhile after that. Anyway that was the end
of Dad's working days. Within a couple of years, he was able to
get back to the mountains but only for a short time. I will
go into that when I tell of the disposition of the property.
Dad wanted to go to Denver and talk with a Dr. who had been
inMonte years before and so as I was living in Denver, we made
an appointment with him. Dad just wasn't sure the doctors in
Monte were doing all they could for him. After a visit with
the Dr. in Denver, he felt they were. He was assured afteran exam
that he was probably in pretty good hands.
Mavis and I were married the summer of 1957, and we were in Monte
pretty often, sometimes as often as every couple of weeks, so
we kept pretty close tabs on how Dad got along. Mother did just
as she had always done, and made the best of things. She did
a fine job of looking after Dad. I am sure she had a_lot to
do with him lasting several years more.
in the winter of 1960-61, Dad thought that maybe a change to a
lower elevation might do him some good. He had the family in
Kansas rent them a house in Halstead, and Dad and Mother spent
the winter there. Sometimes, I wonder if maybe he might have
been a little homesick for the rest of the family as well a
wanting a change for the winter, AS TI remember, they flew back
and Mavis and I took the car back for them. I do remember that
Mother was past 75 when she took her first plane ride. She
seemed to adapt to flying pretty well, as she flew several times
after that. While in Kansas, Dad had another bad spell, and it
looked as though he would not pull thru that one. Ralph was
back there, and had started making plans for him to be shipped
back home for the funeral. Within a few days after that he
started getting better, and in the spring they flew to Denver,
and we took them home for the summer. Actually he had a pretty
good few months during the summer.
One thing that I failed to mention, was that while they were in
Halstead, they celebrated their Golden Wedding Aniversary., It
was pretty nice that they could do that where they were married
50 Many years before,
268

[page 52]
PART SIX - continued
By the fall of 1961, Dad was not doing well at all. He was
not getting enough blood flow to the brain, and his thinking
was at times pretty well confused. Mother finally could not
handle him and he was moved to Center, to anest home. It was
actually in a private residence that had been made into a rest
home, It was operated by Mrs. Hagen. He was not there very,
long, but do not remember just how long. He was not able to
recognize people at times, and other times was very good. I
had made one of our many trips to the valley one time, and If
went to see him. He was very alert, and we had a very good
visit. We discussed many things, and he talked about dying.
He assured me that he was not ready to die, but iff that was
what was in store for him he would have to accept it. I left
rather depressed, but happy that he was alert and that we had
such a good visit. It was only about a week later that he
-passed away, and was puried in the Monte Vista Cemetary. He
was buried near trees that he no doubt planted many years before.
Mother went to Pagosa, and spent a little time with Francis &
Lucy, and spent Christmas with us in Denver. I have been trying
to remember, but believe that she went to Halstead and stayed
with her sister for awhile. My mind seems to fail me at times
and I cannot remember simple things.
In 1962, we moved to Monte and bought the house from Mother.
She lived in an apartment in the back of Fern Devine's house
on Washington St. for sometime. She later moved to an apartment
on Adams St. that suited her much better. She seemed very
happy in the second place. She had given up driving sometime
before. She was never the worlds greatest driver, and as she
got older she just couldn't seem to handle driving. She was
at our place, and as she pulled ou of the parking place, she
ran into a tree. She decided that was the time for her to give
up driving. She learned to drive late in her life and never
did completly get the hang of it.
Mother always liked to go to the mountains, just to get out,
and she liked to go places where they had lived and worked.
Some time aroud 1965, we decided to go to the old Pass Me By
mine. We had a camper, and took it. Just before you get to
the mine there is a very steep hill, and while going up it
we broke an axle in the old truck I had. f looked things
over, and decided that I could let it roll down into a wide
spot and if I could roll out of that spot, we could roll all
the way back to Stunner. We tried it and sure enough we made
it all the way back to Stunner. I caught a ride back to town
to get the car, and towed the pickup home. I caught all kinds
ef guff about getting my mother in such a spot. She just
passed it off and said that she kind of enjoyed the day. It
rained while they waited in the camper, and she thought that
Was pretty nice.
269
TT

[page 53]
tried to leave Alan, but Mother couldn't keep track of him,
She enjoyed April, because she would do homework or just sit
and read. It gave mother much needed company, if it wasn't
Mother would never admit to liking dogs, but in her apartment
she always kept little tidbits for our dog Mopsy. Mopsy would
run into the apartment and sit and look at Mother. She would
then run to the refig. and if Mother didn't come out, she would
gO back and bark at her, Mother didn't fool anyone, she liked
Alan anda his cousin larry used to be around town, and they would
stop by Mother's, and have ice cream. Alan always said that
they inventeg ice cream with M&Ms at mother's place. He still
talkée about that now,
were sitting. He Said"if there Was ever an angel on earth,
she is it" The other one was said by Lillard Elliot at her
burial. He said,"They are buring the finest Woman tT have
ever known"
Dad died October 27, 1961
Mother died May 22,, 1985
270

[page 55]
Cemetary. Dad prob
where they are buri
ed.
271

[page 56]
272
Above - Dad, Mother and Mrs. Critchett on top
of Wolf Creek Pass, probably in 1951. Rev.
Critchett was pastor of the Methodist Church at
that time. (he took the picture)
pelow- Mother with April and Alan at our place
east of Denver around the 1st of Jan. 1962.

[page 57]
I
Fa
i
the area, (Clay Co. MO) Who the Hessel family was is explained
at the beginning of the information.
273
j
j
j
j

[page 59]
FING. -% qweweaser we:
aepledd by
nee 4 : : 3
Fiineral notice for Frank Botkhaus, :
a Loa bees Yeays:
Have not connected to our family qhaes ghee
Prank Meyers of S.D. was harried «.- i
to a Bockhaus no cohnection
here as yet either.
of Sern,
in otek

[page 60]
Y Roof DiaGeRs
TEGO
sy * ovthwest Iowa Genealogical Society
LeMars Public Library, 46 First St. S.W., LeMars, Iowa 51031
Dec 13, 1994
Virgil ‘Bockhaus
2326 H Rd
Grand Junction, CO 81505
g Dear Mr Bockhaus:
wm Sorry about the delay, our library was closed for remodeling...
oc
2+ have enclosed the marriage record that you requested, also the articles
@on the death of Frank Bockhaus. ,
900 Federa. Census Plymouth County, Towa Washington Two page 1848
1 GEORGE BOCKHAUS Head of household born June 1850 age 49 married 25 yrs
born Germany father & mother born Germany came to US 1876
in US 24 yrs natuaralized can read, write & speak English
Mary wife Avg 1849 age 50 married 25 yrs born fTreland father & mother born
Have not been able
Ne. has been looking
Kathy's Grandmother
Towa.
maha,
ster to
that I b
1910 Federal Census Plymouth County, Ia Plymouth Twp _ page 188.
MARIE BOCKHAUS Head age 75 widowed mother of 3 children, 1 living
, born Germany father & mother born Germany To US 1877 Housekeeper
Haas, Kate Foster daughter age 17 single mother of 1 child, 1 living i
porn Iowa father & mother born Germany
Meyers, Jennie Crand child age 5 born South Dakota father born Lux mother
Richter, Joseph Boarder age 45 single born Ger father & mother born Ger |
to US 1894 Railroad laborer :
Wallace, Harvy Boarder age 26 single born Il] father born MO mother born I”
Plasterer |
Haas, Hans Foster child age 1/12 born ta father born ?? “mother born Towa
around LeMars,
Kathy Henderson of O
a
Mi
a
ao
a
Ss
tin}
ta
omy
ie]
There were no Bockhaus' listed in the Plymouth County, Iowa cemetery files
3 No Bockhaus'. listed in the O’Brien County cemetery file
3 The following is from the Sinux County, Towa. cemetery filer.
4 BARBARA BOCKHAUS born 15 Mar 1850 died 19 March 1922 same stone Henry
© Berry BOCKHAUS,/born 1 May 1843 died 17 Oct 1920 same stone Barbara
n Both the above were puried Hope Cemetery at Hull, Iowa
Swe have very Little info on Sioux county but sometimes obituaries aid appear in
& Sthe LeMars newspapers for Hulil e
ev '
ockhaus’
t.
ee
ub
fis]
un
J
o
a
a
n
a
oO
u
ct)
G
el
oa
v
wn
oe
4
ily as ye
checked the History of Plymouth County, Iowa by Freeman and found NO Bockhaus'. |
hank you for sending the $15.00, we use any money we get to further our research
Sincerely,
wetty L Winterringer
Gorthwest Iowa Gen Soc
3 46 ist St SW
Bemars, Iowa 51031
to our fam
un
6
ist
m
go
29
Mm
Bu
3 Oo
os
Q
aa
information about some B
or info.
Misc.
w
0
S
q
i)
fe)
2
“ 275

[page 61]
PART SEVEN - A POTPOURRI OF MISC. STUFF
Through the years it seemed that whenever someone came drifting
thru Monte and needed a job or some help, they always seemed
to find Dad. He would pretty nearly always help them out. At
times it seemed there was always someone working around that
Dad had given a job to. At times I know that Mother was not
always in agreement with Dad on that subject, and I always was
of the opinion that he at times went to far, but as I look back
on things, I now believe that he probably did the right thing.
When the Spanish speaking people would be down on their luck,
they knew that Dad could be trusted to help them. I remember
many times when he would go to the bank and help them with a
loan. I don't know how many times he must have been let down,
but he still helped them. Some years after his death, I was
at one of the local coffee shops in town, and someone that knew
Dad told me that someone needed to pick up where Dad had left
off helping people. I have often thought about that remark,
and would have to believe that of all the things that Dad did,
and didn't feel like he had been successful at, he was after
all a friend to the less fortunate, and that probably made him
more of a success at life than anything else.
I often think back to the days of the lumber yard when they sold
a fair amount of lumber in Lariat. If Dad or Ralph went around
looking for someone and they were driving a car no one knew where
anyone was at. If they went to the same house when driving one
of the lumber trucks, the same ones knew where people were at.
It came down to the fact that they didn't trust most people,
but they did trust Bockhaus'. Somehow that doesn't seem to
bad a memory
I will mention a couple of men that Dad got acquainted with thru
the years, The first one was a man by the name of J.B. Gregory.
He was from Illinois, or at least that is the way it sticks in
my mind. He came there around the end of the war, but do not
remember for sure about the date. He wanted some work, and
preférred . to do work by the job. At the time the Pass Me By
Mine still had a big building that used to be a boarding house.
Dad wanted to tear it down and salvage the lumber. Gregory
thought that would be just the thing for him, and took the job.
He stayed up there and salvaged the lumber. He did a great job.
Dad got a lot of good lumber from the building. Later Dad bid
on tearing down a big flume above Del Norte, and Gregory again
took the job. They salvaged a huge amount of timbers and metal
from the job. Some of the timbers were used when Ralph added
on to his shop. The metal was used various places. Allinall
it turned out to be another very successful job. In 1947, the
Mine at Jasper had removed most of the equipment that was left
from their operation, and Dad made a deal to clean up some of
the buildings etc. There was a lot of big timbers and various
other lumber, so Gregory again took on the job. He stayed at
the mine in one of the buildings that was left. He worked in
to the late fall, and it got pretty cold. He said not to worry
he was fine. Dad went up to check on him and found him in the
cabin he was staying in. He had died sometime probably a day
276
or two before Dad got there.

[page 62]
PART SEVEN _ continued
As Gregory seemed not to have any relation that anyone could
find, Dad made arrangements for him to be buried in the Monte
Vista Cemetary. Later he sold what he could to pay for it.
He tried to get enough money to buy a head stone, but I do
not remember for sure if he did or not. I would guess that
he did.
Some years later Dad came across a man camping above Stunner.
His name was Elwood Smith. He had a World War 2 army ambulance
that he had made into a sort of camper. He stayed around the
area for many years and got to be a very good friend. After
Grgory had died, Dad had taken an old Willys truck that he had
and stripped it down to the frame, and made a pretty nice
portable cabin on it. After the last mill was shut down, Dad
let Smith live in it. He moved down just above Jasper. Later
DA@ needed the cabin in N.M, Mexico, and removed it from the
old truck frame. Smith got some lumber from Earl Pearcy and
built him another cabin on the old chassis. He lived at Jasper
for several years. After I got married and had a family, we
got to be very good friends with Smith. He liked our two kids
a lot, and they loved him. They called him Sniffy. He always
had hershey bars for them whenever they came up. Smith worked
some whenever Dad needed something done around the area, and
it just seemed natural to have him around. In 1961 he had a
heart attack, and Headlee Wright took him in to Monte to the
hospital. He seemed to get over it and was realeased. Mother
was with Francis and Lucy at Pagosa and let him stay at the
house for a few days. When they came home, they found Smith
had had another attack and died at the house. It was quite
a shock for mother, as it was just after Dad had passed away.
Smith was buried at Crown Hill in west Denver next to his mother.
He had some sisters there, and in fact came from a very nice
family. No one could understand just why he went off to live
in the hills by himself. He just wanted to get away from things
it seemed. He was going to come to Denver and be with us that
Christmas, so it was a real let down for our kids. They thought
he was the greatest person they had ever known.
One other one that comes to mind is an old Russian that showed
up. He wanted a place to build himself a small house. He was
a carpenter by trade, or at least that is what he said. Some
how he talked Dad into letting him build southwest of the house
out in the field. He built himself a pretty nice little house.
He always said that it was built just like a real construction
job. (his name was Wally Gall) He was differant than most,
but he wags a fair carpenter. He hadn't mastered all phases of
construction as Ralph found out. He had him help with the
building of his office, and he handed him an expansion bit and
told him to drill a hole for the lock. When he was done the
hole turned out to be to big. Walliy's answer was, well I drilled
it the size of the bit. He didn't know that he had to adjust
the bit. He later sold his little house to Dad, and he moved it
south of the house. It became known as the little house. Its
was still there the last I knew.

[page 63]
TOP LEFT - A view of part of
the flume above Del Norte
before they started tearing
it down.
LOWER LEFT ~ Part of the flume
that they have started tearing
down,
UPPER RIGHT _ This photo is of
J. B. Gregory working on the
tear down of the flume. a
big job that he handled well.
I have not been able to put
an exact date on this, but
believe it was 1947, but it
could have been started in
1946,
278

[page 64]
279
a et
The picture above is of J.B. Gregory. ;
Tt was found among his things after his
death. As far as tT know it was taken in
Tllinois. Do not know who the child
in the picture is.
i
i

[page 65]
280
(SNIFFY )
Above - April and Alan
wl
th their friend Elwood Smith

[page 66]
PART SEVEN - continued
When Summitville closed down in 1947, they had a mule they had
used in the mines that they didn't know what to do with. Ralph
told them that he would take her, and turn her loose in Dad's
pasture in town. (her name was Molly) As it was getting late in
the fall, they told him that they would leave plenty of food
in case it snowed before he got in to get her. We took one of
Francis’ log trucks to get her, and even though it was a six
wheel drive and chained up, we didn't get all the way in to the
mine, and had to walk the last couple of miles. When we got
to the tractor shed where she was supposed to be, she was gone.
We began to follow her tracks and she had already gone out.
She was later found south of town in a farmers field with some
of his livestock. She was smarter that we were. She knew she
didn't want to be up there in the snow. Ralph took her home
and turned her loose, but she didn't live very long after that.
dust couldn't take retirement I guess. :
The top photo
at the left sh
how it looked
in Nov. 1947
when Ralph anc
I walked into:
Summitville to
get Molly.
i
The lower one
Ralph in front
of the tracto”
shed, where M
was supposed
to be.

[page 67]
Thanksgiving 1956, at Pagosa Springs.
L to R Francis, Lucy, Richard, Mother, Dad, Mary,
Phyllis, Shirley, Ralph, and Larry.
The house is the one Francis was building with logs
from the mill above the Pass Me By Mine. The
building is still there. I believe it is a Real
Estate Office.
282
i
i

[page 68]
Above ~ All that remained in 1995 of a cabin Dad &
Mother stayed in when Dad worked at Jasper in the
1920s.
Below - Dad & Darley were coming down Cat Creek, when
they spotted a cub bear. He climbed the tree in the
picture, and Dad got up in the tree with it, and poked
it with a stick. We have always since called the
tree "Dad & Darley's Bear Tree?

[page 69]
PART SEVEN - continued
I stated before when we were at Summitville during the war, we
stayed in a house with running water and a bathroom. The folks
never had a bathroom until later. They had bought a pump, but
it was not used until after the war, when Francis hooked it up
and Mother had running cold water in the kitchen, In 1947
Lillard Elliot built a new back porch and added a bathroom.
For the first time they had hot and cola water, and an indoor
bathroom. That bathroom was always Dad's pride and joy.
After I went to work in Ralph's shop, Dad kept the truck that
I had bought. It was rebuilt after the wreck, but always gave
trouble. It was a case of the insurance Co, rebuilding one
that should have been junked. In either late 1951, or early
1952, Dad traded it in for a new 1952 Dodge truck. It was the
first time he hadn't bought a Chev. He liked the new truck so
well that he thought he would buy a new Dodge car. They were
Planning a trip back to Kansas, and Dad told Mother that he
thought they ought to buy a new car before they went. Mother
was pretty pleased about that, as the old Chev, was getting
pretty tired. When the time came to buy a car, Dad had thought
about it and decided that the old Chev. would make one more
trip. Now I never saw Mother get upset very Many times, but
that was one time when she put her foot down. She informed
Dad that if he didn't buy a car as promised, she was not going
to Kansas. I think it took Dad by surprise, and he bought the
new car. I remember when he went to the bank to borrow the
the money. They Said that was no problem, until Dad told them
that he wanted the money on a straight note, with no mortgage
on the new car. They said that they didn't do business that
way, but when it was all over, Dad got his way. It was the
last car the folks ever bought. After Dad passed away, mother
continued te drive until she had an accident, and decided that
she had better give up driving. TI was glad that she did, as
she had learned to drive late in life, and was never the best
driver in the world, and as she got older she didn't get any
better. At least she gave up driving on her own, and didn't
have to be forced to give it up.
upset. As I stated she got her dander up over the new car, and
i remember one other time. She got very upset about a group
from one of the churchs coming around. She kept hinting that
she wasn't interested, but they kept coming anyway. One day
they came to the door, and she made up her mind that was it.
By the time she got thru with them there was no doubt in their
minds that they were not welcome there. She always said that
she felt bad after that, but at least they were not bothering
her anymore.
284

[page 70]
PART SEVEN - continued
As I stated at the begining of this section, it is just things
that came to mind later, and is not in any kind of order, and
not about anything in particular.
South of where Ralphs shop was, there is an area that Dad used
for a garden spot. Before he used it for a garden, there was
a Silver Fox farm there. I believe that Harris raised them,
but that may or may not be correct. Before the war fur coats
were very popular, and Silver Fox was in high demand. After
they no longer raised Fox there, there wasa hog farm there for
awhile. That was about the time Dad and I raised our hogs
during the war. If remember that the pig I had that got to be
a pet was an orphan from there.
Somehow I acquired a Silver Fox, and had it after they were
no longer raising them there. As with some kids, I didn't
always do the best job of taking care of it. Dad thought I
should get rid of it and I agreed. We had made arrangements
to sell it to a place west of Pagosa, but the day before we
were going to take it over, it died. That was the end of my
Silver Fox raising.
In the early 1950s, Phillips Univ. from Enid, Okla. was looking
for a place to put a summer science camp. Somehow Dad, as
often happened, got involved. He helped them get a location
just above where Beam had his sawmill. I believe that the
property probably belonged to Fassett, but am not sure. The
one that was involved from the Univ. was Vernon Baker, also
a man by the name of Williams. Baker would become very much
a part of dealings with some of the claims above Stunner. I
will go into what happened to all of the property shortly.
In the mid 1950s, Dad was contacted by a lumber Co. from Ark,
that was interested in locating in Monte. Dad became involved
with helping them get located. That was Pleasant Lumber Co.
I am sure that there was times when Dad thought that he should
not have gotten involved with them, as there was a few problems
later. All in all, I guess that it worked out, as they have
been there for forty years now. Pleasant will be mentioned
some more when I get into the property.
Thru the years, Dad planted trees around town. He planted Blue
Spruce and pretty well covered the entire town with them. As
far as I know, the Blue Spruce at the old part of the Monte
Vista Cemetary were planted by him. iI can drive around Monte
and pick out trees that he planted many years ago. He would
dig them on Forest land and transplant them. I doubt if
the Forest Service would allow that anymore. I think it may
go back to his days of farming, but he was very succesful at
transplanting. He had very few failures.
285

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i
be
PART SEVEN - continued
Around the time Ralph's first daughter was born, I tried to
get them to name her Susie. Of course no one paid any attention
to that idea, so I looked for someone else to carry that name.
The folks always had some cattle around, some for meat and some
for milk. Around this time one of the cows had a calf and I
asked if I could name the calf Susie. As Mother and I were
pretty much taking care of the cows at that time, Mother agreed
that the new calf would be Susie. Now as Susie began to. get
bigger she also got pretty spoiled. After she became a milk
cow she had a few ideas of how things should be. When it came
time to milk her, all I had to do was bring out the grain bucket
and she was there. The only problem with that was that she
didn't come in to get milked, she came in to eat. You had to
be fast when milking her, because when she got done with her
grain, she was done with the milking too. She would turn around
- and walk out and leave you sitting there. If you didn't open
the stall for her to get in to be fed, she knew how to open the
gate herself and she was in waiting to be fed.
The place in Monte had quite a number of buildings on it, and
one of them was a small building that'was just across the ditch
south of the lumber yard. A man by the name of Bill Barger
lived in it. He passed away while living there sometime around
1939. I can't remember the exact date. After he passed away
and the building was no longer being used, one end was made into
a stall where they could keep a cow. The big advantage to this
was that there was electric lights, and in the winter it made
it a little better for milking. I remember one cold winter
night, Mother and I had finished milking and would leave the
cow inside out of the cold, not that it was much better in the
building. I noticed that there was a light bulb just above the
cows head and I suggested that it might be nice to leave the
light on to help keep the cow warm. Of course Mother was not
for that idea. Sometime later the light did get left on and
I can still hear Mother asking if I had left it on to keep the
cow warm. I hadn't, but I don't believe that Mother ever did
believe me.
During the time the folks had milk cows, they decided that they
needed to get a cream separator. It was on the old back porch
they had at that time, and when they first got it, I thought
it was great fun to crank it. It didn't take very long to find
out that it wasn't as much fun as I first thought and stayed
away from that job as much as I could.
Another job that I stayed away from as much as possible was
keeping the wood box in the kitchen full. It seemed that it was
always empty. The old wood cook stove was great in the winter
but not so great in the summer. One of the things I guess I
remember most and disliked most was getting the bath tub out
on Saturday night and taking a bath in front of the old cook
stove. Some things about the good old days were not so good
in my memory. One of them was the good old outhouse when it
was 40 below outside. I often hear people talk about having a
sears catalog out there, we were not that well off, we had a
Montgomery Ward catalog. 286

[page 72]
PART SEVEN - continued
At this time I will go into what happened to the mountain
property that Dad had. Some of it was involved in partnership
with others and became pretty complicated, especially after
Dad's death. I will start with the 1/4 section known as the
Stunner property, as it was probably one of the first to be
disposed of.
I need to back up a-few years, as there was one thing that
took place on that property that was rather interesting, but
had nothing to do with the property dealings. Sometime before
the war, I believe it may have been either 1939 or 1940, a group
of people from the Nazarene church in Monte Vista made a deal
with Dad to cut some timber which would be sawed into lumber
for a new church. They camped below the mill site on Forest
Service land. I have no idea what kind of deal they had, and
if they cut some timber from Dad's land or if they cut Forest
Service timber. I would guess that they cut from the Forest,
but this is only a guess. The minister at that time was a man
by the name of Paul Cobb. He later became an army Chaplin
during the war. I know that he was in England but do not know
what happened to him later. I remember while Francis was in
England, he wrote that he had seen, and that part was censored
from the letter. Mother wrote and asked if it was Paul Cobb
and he sdid that was right withottimentioning any names. That was
aproblem with mail coming from overseas at that time. Some of
the letter mightnot be there if they thought it was something
that shouldn't be mentioned.
As to what happened to this piece of property. As I stated
before Ted Moen cut some timber from the NW corner of tthe land
and this was as far as I know in 1955 and possibly 1956. The
contract was signed for cutting in 1955, but they may have cut
some after that. Earl Pearcy cut from the upper part of the
property, but I am-having a-problem putting a date on that, I
believe that it must have been after he was thru on Cornwall,
and that was 1958. In my mind I think that he logged off the
Stunner land in 1957 and probably in 1958. Sometime after
that, and again my mind fails me, Dad disposed of the property.
This was after his heart attack, and he felt that there would
not be any more timber taken off the property. He had an
offer from someone that wanted to buy, and I remember that we
discussed it at some length. He was in bad health and his
financial status was not the best, so he sold. As I remember,
he received $4000.00 for the property. I have no idea who it
was that bought it, but it sticks in my mind that it was some-
one from around Wichita, but this may or may not be correct.
Dad hated to get rid of any of his mountain property, but it
was something that he felt he had to do. .I have no idea who
owns the property now, but I do know that nothing has ever
been done with it. I have been up there several times, and
it just stays the same. The buildings of course were all crushed
by the snow long ago. The road is still in pretty good shape
except for wooden culverts that have rotted out, and the upper
end has a lot of trees that have been blown across the road.
287

[page 73]
PART SEVEN - continued
I will go to the property above Jasper next. Dad had gotten
a 40 acre lot just west of Jasper. Jasper Creek runs through
it and the main road to Platora cuts across the center of it.
During the time that Dad and Francis were in partnership, the
land was divided in half. Francis had the west half and Dad
kept the east half. Dad also found some mining claims north
of this area, and as they had quite a bit of Douglas fir timber
on them, he went to Rio Grande County, and made a deal to pay
back taxes and get title to them. He made the deal that if he
picked up the back taxes, that they would keep the taxes low
enough that he could keep them up later, after he had logged
them. I was never very well up on these claims, and did not
know just how they laid, in fact still do not.know much about
them,
First, what happened to these claims. As I told before, I built
a road into this area in 1950 and Dad and Claude McKenzie cut
the timber over a period of a couple of years. Dad kept his
end of the bargain, but the county continued with high taxes,
and as far as I know the property went back to the county for
taxes. During that time there was a lot. of prospecting being
done around Summitville, and the last I knew these claims were
picked up by some of those working that area. At the time
Darley was still around and he watched those things and kept
me informed as to what was going on.
As for the forty acres, Francis built a pretty good cabin on
his half when he had the mill there in the early 1950s. When
he moved the mill from there and after the Cornwall road was
finished, he solid his half to 2 of the people from Phillips
University. The last I knew, they still have the property.
The cabin Francis had is still there, but has been moved away
from the road. Across the road there is a very nice cabin
that is used every summer.
On Dad's half, Earl Pearcy had his mill on the SE corner the
first year he cut on Cornwall. During this time the railroad
in Alamosa was getting rid of a lot ofCabooses and a minister
in Center by the name of Wisehart had gotten one of them and
had no where to put it. Dad finally let him put on the west
side of his 20 acres. He told him to put it there and just
use it. He told him that they would figure out something
later. They made a pretty nice cabin out of it and everone
was welcome to use it, which a lot of people did.
While the mill was there, Earl built a cabin on Dad's propery.
Actually it was just a typical sawmill shack, but when he was
done it was left there. During this period of time Elwood
Smith moved his cabin on the property near where Earl had his
mill. He stayed there until his death in 1961. After his
death, and I do not know the date, Ralph took Smith's cabin
to the Santa Maria lake above Creede when he belonged to the
trout club there. It stayed there for some time, but wasn't
up to the clubs standards, and he had to move it. 288

[page 74]
PART SEVEN - continued
After Dad's death, Mother was at a loss as to what to do with
the mountain property. The 20 acres was finally deeded to me,
and I first had to find some property lines. Darley was the
expert and he started helping me find property lines. We first
started with the Jasper property. He helped me find what looked
like an old corner and I went from there. The first thing that
I found was that the cabin that was left from the sawmill
was either partly across the line or it could be completely
on the wrong side of the line. The land next to this land was
owned by Ted Larick and as we got along pretty well it didn't.
worry me to much, I considered what to do about the caboose
problem, and decided that I would divide up with them. They
got 10 acres, and I kept 10. Some of the same family still
own the Caboose, and a lot of people still use it including our
son Alan and some of his friends.
As for the cabin on the east line, I decided that I would tear
it down and use the lumber. We had it pretty well down when
Mavis got a call asking why we were tearing down a cabin that
belonged to someone else. We found out that the county had
put the cabin up for taxes as they had no idea whose it was.
After some hurt feelings the county agreed that they owed some
taxes back to the one that had been paying. I was talking to
Larick about what had happened and being the old cowboy that
he was, his answer was to thank him for paying the taxes, and
tell him to get off the property.
I kept my 10 acres for several years, and had the idea that
T would someday build a cabin there. As the years went by
my situation changed quite a bit, and I decided that the 10
acres would have to be sold. I still hate that it is gone,
but as the years go by, it is pretty doubtful that I would
have ever built on the property. Sometimes things have to
be done that we don't want to do, and selling the 10 acres
has to be one of them.
The next property I will go into is the Cornwall Mtn. land.
By the time Dad passed away, his partner Rivera had also died.
That left his share of all the. land Dad and Rivera had together
in the hands of someone else. Right away there was trouble
over the land that was still in their names. I guess that I
will have to correct a statement that I made about Mother only
getting upset a couple of times that I remember. Well add
another, because she told Rivera's relatives how she felt
about how they were treating her after Dad passed away. It
may have helped some, but not much. There were only 2 properties
that were still in the old partnership, and Cornwall was one
of them.
289

[page 75]
PART SEVEN - continued
one time thought about doing a cleanup operation and cut more
timber, but that didn't prove out. He was contacted by Pleasant
Lumber about using the road to move some Forest Service timber
to the mill in Monte. Dad made an agreement, but there was one
problem, The bridge across the Alamosa river had washed out
and would need to be replaced. Most of the bridge was still
there and could be replaced without additional material, I
had some vacation time that I had to use up, SOC agreed to stay
at the caboose and work on the bridge. Mavis ana I and the
two kids stayed there for several days.while we did the bridge.
It was early in the spring as we had to be Gone before the
river came up from Spring runoff. (Alan was only a year old)
Dad hired an old employee of his to help, and he brought the
truck out every day from town so he could bring anything we
were needing. Dad was a little better ana made the trip about
every day in the car. We got the bridge done without much bad
happening. The bridge lasted for quite a few years, but in
recent years washed out again.
Pleasant hauled logs off Cornwall for guite awhile, and Dad
got a fair income from it. I do not remember just how much
he charged, but both sides were happy with the deal,
I had made a deal with Marion Mining to clean up the old equip.
and what buildings were left, so we did that while the truck
Was going into town every day. I had planned on salvaging
some of the lumber, but while burning some scrap lumber the
rest caught fire. That made cleaning up the building pretty
easy, but didn't get much income from the lumber.
As I stated before, after Rivera's death the partnership went
Bad. Mother was at a loss as to what to do with Cornwall.
would take it. She deeded her interest to Ralph. He had no
idea what he was going to do with it. As there was a lake on
top, he tried fishing there, but as far as I remember never
had any luck. He finally had a chance to sell his interest
and decided he would be better off without Cornwall Mtn,
I have thru the years lost track of what has happened to the
property, but understand that it is still private owned and
used to go up to the lake, but whoever owns it now has shut
off the road. 1 understand that there is also problems with
property owners in the area over access to crossing the river
to get to the road. At this time, I haven't looked into any
of this. I know that there are a lot of new people in the area,

[page 76]
PART SEVEN - continued
At this point, I will try and explain what happened to the
mining claims that Dad had. First I need to back up and tell
a few things that took place with this property before Dad's
death. Both the Pass Me By mine and the Asiatic mine property
had big buildings that had been boarding houses when the mines
were operating. As I remember they were pretty much identical.
The one at the PMB was taken down in 1945 By J.B. Gregory. The
one at the Asiatic was not taken down until later. Some of
it was taken down in 1946, but as I remember it was not all
taken down that year. It was taken down by various parties
from town. Dad had sold a piece of land from the NW corner
of his west place in town to Claude McKenzie. He built a small
house there and some of the lumber came from the boarding house
at the Asiatic. Note; this piece of property in later years
was acquired by Bill Hamiliton, and as far as I know he still
has it.
In 1949, Dad and I cut timber from the property around the PMB
mine. We got about all that was available without spending a
lot of money getting to it. In 1950 Claude Mckenzie cut from
two claims above the PMB. Francis later cut what timber was
available in the area.
The Asiatic property had two lakes on it and was a very pretty
area. Dad and Rivera had talked about doing something with
the lakes. In 1946 I took the little tractor up and built the
east dam up. There was a small dam there, but was not much.
We also built a dam at the west lake. I don't remember if there
was any dam there before or not. As I remember there was not.
WE went back in 1947 and built the dams a little higher. Dad
also found out that the west dam was across the line on Forest
Service land. At the time it was not much of a problem, but
in later years it became a big problem. In 1947 while we were
working on the dams, Rivera pulled a few strings and got the
state to bring some fish up and try stocking the lakes. The
only way that they could do it was to also take part of the
load to the head waters of the Alamosa River. At that time
the road to the mine property was the road that had been built
around the turn of the century by the mines, and as far as
the mines it was passable, but on to the river was not much
more than a trail. After the state truck unloaded part of
the fish at the Asiatic, they went on towards the river.
Vernon Schultz was up there with me and we went with the truck
to help get the fish to the river. After we went a short dis-
tance fromthe west lake we started across a bog, and of course
got stuck. The one that was ramroding the operation from the
state was a little under the weather from the altitude and too
much beer. His solution was for the driver to unload some
of the weight, which of course was water from the fish tank.
The driver and both of us objected, but he reached over and
dumped most of the water in the mud hole we were already stuck
in. A big help he turned out to. be. Vernon years later talked
about that what a smart move that was. Anyway we got the fish
stocked where they were supposed to be.
291

[page 77]
PART SEVEN - continued
One of the people involved with the Phillips Univ. summer camp
along the Alamosa river was Vernon Baker. He was very interested
in the claims that Dad had and was trying some way to get an
interest in them. Dad at that time was not at all interested
in getting rid of any of the property, so Baker went to Rivera.
Some how and I still have never figured out how, Baker bought
Rivera's half interest in the claims. This took place in 1956,
but Rivera kept his mineral right for 25 years, after which he
had no claim to the property.
Baker's main interest was in the Asiatic property, which was
and still is a very prime piece of property. As I stated before,
the road was no bargain getting there, but that was about to
change. In 1957, the Forest Service built an all weather road
to the Asiatic for future logging. It continued on to the head
of the Alamosa River, and also hooked up with the Park Creek
road which made a complete loop to hiway 160 above South Fork.
Baker made a deal with Dad in June of 1958 to buy his interest
in the Asiatic property. I believe that that was around 15 or
16 claims. As I remember he didn't want to get rid of that piece
' of property, but his health was very poor, and he knew that he
would never do anything with it anymore. Thru the years, Baker
has inproved the lakes and cleaned up the property, and has
built cabins for the family. As I stated before, the west dam
is on Forest land, and they gave Baker a bad time. He tried
to get a use permit, but they would not cooperate. As the years
went by, they hauled logs from the upper Alamosa River, and
the long trucks could not make the turn back towards the Park
Creek road. The Forest Service needed to go on the Asiatic
property and make a loop so the truckscould make their turn,
Baker told them no way, unless you issue me a use permit for
the dam. After some time a deal was worked out and he had his ae
use permit.
As for the fishing, I have never heard how it is. I would guess
that Baker has it stocked, but do not know. There is plenty
of good water there. Unlike other mines in the area, this one
has good fresh water coming out of it.
A little side item, in 1951, at least I believe that was the
year, Francis was doing some logging at the Asiatic, and I took
the D6 cat and opened the mine up. A couple of days later,
Francis and I went in the mine. We could not get completely
to the back because of deep water in the back of the tunnel,
Everything is just as they left it when they were mining. All
the rail and pipe are in place, and as I remember there was
a timber car still on the track. Back in the back it looked
like there was some drill machines still there. Of course
within a few days the mine closed itself up again. The rail
and pipe etc. are all in good shape due to the pure water
on that side of the mountain. Not so on the PMB side. I will
go into that alittle later.
292

[page 78]
PART SEVEN - continued
The Pass Me By mine is the larger of the two mines. . Both had
been owned by the same Co. The PMB had operated first, and was
under lookout mountain. The dump shows that it is a pretty
long tunnel. The reports that I have heard is that it is about
one and a quarter mile long. I have also heard that at the
time it was being . operated, that it was one of the better
tunnels in the state. As far as I know it never produced any
mineral of value. Darley claimed that lookout mtn. does not
carry any ore, as it was burned out when it was formed. That
would explain the colors that it carries. All information that
I have ever heard about both the mines, was that they sold a
large amount of stock, and made their money from that. That
may or not be fact. I do know that they did sell stock.
During the early 1950s it was discovered that there was an
unknown amount of old dynamite still stored at the PMB. It had
been covered by dirt when the old powder magazine had caved in.
As I remember it was dated around 1906. In 1953 Dad became
worried about this and contacted the Dupont Co. They sent a
man in to look it over. He set a charge in the old powder and
set it off. It made a pretty big hole and lifted out one tree
roots and all. His comment after that was, if anyone ever asks
if old dynamite is dangerous, there is the answer.
The old mine has been caved in at the entrance for as long as
I have known anything about the property. It flows a pretty
big stream of water,and it is bad. It has so much iron in it
that it kills all living things anywhere it flows. We tried
several times to ditch it in one direction, but it is only a
matter of time before it fills the ditch with solids and goes
its own way, killing anything in its way. The water in that
area is all loaded with iron. It all flows into Iron Creek,
which explains how it got its name. Up higher on some of the
claims there is both good and bad water, sometimes coming from
the same area.
After Dad's death there was again the problem of what to do
with the property. There was only 5 claims that were still in
the old partnership. All the rest were in partnership with
Baker. That made things a little better, as he could be dealt
with. I was in constant contact with Darley, and he was still
able to get out and about. We made some trips together and
he got me started in the right direction for finding where
the claims were. I spent about all of my free time finding
the claim corners. Most of the ones with any timber left were
in a very inacessable area. All of the timber had been cut
where it was acessable. The Forest Service had laid out sale
areas around the claims, and they furnished me with estimates
and maps they had made up. At the time they had no plans for
any road building in the area, and had no estimate as to when
they would have sales in that area.
293

[page 79]
PART SEVEN ~ continued.
We decided that the first thing to do was to get the partner-
ship taken care of. Several things were suggested, one of them
was that Baker might buy the entire group of claims. Baker's
main interest was first the Asiatic, which he already owned.
As he was a geologist, his other interest was in the mines. After
some thought, he declined to buy the entire group of claims.
As the Pass Me By property had already had the timber cut, a
trade was made. He took the group of PMB claims and mother kept
the remaining claims. In some ways this was not a very good trade
as the claims that Baker kept had a road thru most of them. It
did however. clear up the old partnership on all but 5 claims.
The remaining claims went to the top of the hill at nearly timber
line and went on the other side for some distance. The. forest
Service had sold timber right up to the private property and it
had been logged. That left a strip of timber with a road all the
way to the private property. I contacted Orville Jackson in
South Fork, who owned Jackson Lumber. As he was a very succesful
mill operater, I thought that if anyone would be able to cut this
strip of timber, he would. We made a trip up to look things
over, and he said that he didnot feel that the timber was worth
him cutting. It was up pretty high, therefore, was not very
tall timber and probably ran pretty heavy with rot. The. timber
that had been cut up against the property showed the same problem.
While we were up there, he looked over the other property and
looked over the maps of the area. He felt as we all did that the
Property would not be worth logging until there were more roads
in the area. He also was concerned that even with roads in the
area, the land was steep enough that logging could be a problem.
Even if it was logged, there could be some erosion problems left
behind. None of this was a real surprise to me, as I had been
over the entire area several time, and felt the same way. The
Forest Service had mapped outroads into the area, but had no
estimate as to when they would be built. With all of this in
mind, the idea of logging the property was pretty much dropped.
After some time had passed, Mother decided that she would like
to just get out of her part in the property, and turned it all
over to me. AS time went on there did not seem to be much of
a chance of doing much with any of the property.
A man by the name of Louis Bass from the same area as Baker, was
interested in finding a place to build-a cabin in the area. We
went up and looked over the site where the last mill had been,
and he thought that would suit him just fine. I let him have
those two claims. He did a little road work and built a very
nice summer cabin on the site. The site needed a lot of clean
up, he left it the way it was. He said it didn't bother hin.
What to do with the remaining claims remained up in the air.
They were not accesable. The road thru the PMB property went
to far away to be of any help. Tt was the old road that had
been built after the civil war and after it passed the mine
it was in pretty bad shape. The lower part of the claims
weuld be suitable for cabin sites, but again no road.
294 294

[page 80]
PART SEVEN - continued
To build a road across Govt. property was getting harder each
year, and more expensive.
Taxes on this property had not been a problem, but that was also
changing. Conejos County had gotten by for years leaving this
property alone. As the years went by they were under more and
more pressure to get more revenue. They had no~ choice but to
start raising taxes on this property.
After Bass built his cabin, he became interested in the rest of
the property. After some time went by, the rest of the claims
were turned over to him. That left only, the five claims that
were in the old partnership. These were finally turned over to
Someone from the same area as Baker. At this time I cannot seem
to recall his name.
As to what has happened since, not much has changed. After some
years, the cabin Bass built went up for sale. The last time I
was up there, it was still for sale. I do not know 2f that in
cludes the rest of the claims or not. As for the five claims, a
cabin has been built where the PMB property joins the five claims.
Not the most ideal site for a cabin, but guess it has worked out.
The Forest Service has sold timber in the area, and roads were
buittin the area of the claims. The logging operation has left
quite amess and the roads were closed off after logging operations
were finished. After looking at the mess where the area was
logged, I am glad the claims were left alone. I doubt iff any
thing will ever be done with them. They look pretty good left
alone.
295

[page 81]
Above — View of the Asiatic mine taken in 1947.
The big building was the boarding house, and it
was almost identical to the one that was at the
Pass Me By Mine.
Below - View of the Dam at the lower lake at the
Asiatic. This was taken just after a top coat of
fill was added in 1947
i
t

[page 82]
297
Above - The west Lake
at the Asiatic taken
in 1947. This lake was
later named Lake Annela
by Baker in honor of
his wife.
Left - Dad checking the
Dam at the west lake in
June of 1948. A top
coat of fill was added
to this dam in 1947 also.

[page 83]
i
The picture above shows the dump at the Pass Me By
Mine. From the looks of the dump there ia a very
long underground workings. I have heard by some that
it is a mile or more deep.
The lower picture was taken from the PMB mine looking
acros¢ Iron creek to the last big block of Dad's
claims. When I was up there in 1995 there had not
been anything done with the property.
298

[page 85]
THE WHITE HOUSE
WASHINGTON
January 30, 1956
Dear Mr. Bockhous:
lam more than grateful to you, to Mr. Pearsoll
and Mr. McDonald, for combining to send me
the beautifully mounted ox shoes to hang in my
barn at Gettysburg, Iam delighted to have
them, particularly because they were found on
an old trail in Colorado. i
To all of you, my sincere appreciation of your
kindness in sending me an intriguing and interest-
ing gift, and for your hope that the ox shoes will
bring me good luck.
With best wishes,
a Sincerely,
Mr. Louis B. Bockhous
Monte Vista
Colorado
Dad, Al Persoll,& O.C. McDonald made up a nice framed set of
Oxen shoes and sent them to Eisenhower when he was President.
The letter above is the one Dad received. from Eisenhower.
Note - Eisenhower was familiar when the area, as he used to
go fishing with Ted Eckles who was a long time resident of
Monte Vista.
299

[page 86]
$2.00 1s Wo. 83473
STATE OF COLORADO
DEPARTMENT OF GAME AND FisH..
Resident Combined Fishingand Small Game Hunting License
ve
' is entitled to fish ‘and to hunt i. game in the State of Golorade, ts
conformity with law, during tl of 1928.
lecember 31, 1928, is not transferable,
cept to the person to whom issued
ial
F
cape lnke
” gator of eyes SEE of =. ot wate oh ;
ee
‘This License door not authG&zp transportation or sale,
Upon demand of any of shee ada to make such demand this
License must be immediately produced and tunity afforded euch =
officer to inspect and copy the
No fee is required for shi of game va within the State,
byt birds c or fish must bear conspicuously attached (Domestic Certificate,
sd
For information concerning fees for ‘Transportation Permits, which
axe required for shipments ont of the State, communicate with
BR. G. PARVIN, ~
Game and Fish Commissioner, State Capitol, Denver,. Cala,
be ee
o- rane ve
Form STA . {
4a Hereby Destgrtated a Fouesr Free Wanpen on the FEO.
_Grande. paneeeenecenee Nantowat Foussr to serve only on such days and
at such times during the season of 19@@us may be neceseary in the prevention and
extinguishment of Foarst Frnus and the enforcement of the sanitary regulations pro-
mulgated by the Secretary of Agriculture for the administration of the Forest,
He is also authorized to instruct campets and athers to use proper care with fire i
on the Forest and to require them to leave clean and sanitary camps, i
FOREST SUPERVISOR.
Above is a 1928 fishing and small game
license issued to Dad, and also a fire
warden card issued to Dad in 1930.
300

[page 87]
This last section is a history of the Hessel family. I received
this information just this summer from Shelley Lindsey, and am
very grateful to have received it.(1997) I never knew anything
about the Hessel side of the family, so it has been of great
interest to me.
As a matter of information, my mother's mother was a Hessel, Her
name was Kathryn’.Hessel. She was the daughter of Conrad Hessel
who came to this country from Germany in 1843, and settled in
clay county MO in 1847.
In 1949, we made a trip to MO, as mother wanted to visit her
aunt Tille. I have for some time tried to put in place who
Aunt Tillie was. .I am sure at the time I had it straight, but
time had erased that. After looking thru the Hessel information,
I at last have it cleared up. Tillie was married to Kathryn's
brother Louis. I remember her very well, as she was along in
years, as I remember past 80, and she was very active. She
still kept house for Anna and Elmer, and she stayed in an up-
stairs bedroom in the old house. Elmer as far as I know never
married. I can't remember if Anna ever married or not. When
we were there it seems to me as though Anna may have been working
outside the home, but do not remember for sure.
Tillie was really Louise Matilda, but the only thing I ever
remember any of the family calling her was Tillie.
I guess the reason I remember the trip back there so well is
because I had broken my leg that fall, and had a cast well above
the knee. I was on crutches.and could not bend my knee. It
made for some rather awkard. situations at times. Not very
far from the farm there was the old home place of the James,
That was where both Frank and Jesse were born. Dad found a
man in town that was related to them and also sort of looked
after the old home place. As it was winter and the place was
all locked up, he said for us to go ahead and go out and look
around all we wanted. That sounded fine, but I remember we
had to crawl thru a fence. That must have been a sight with
my leg in a cast and on crutches,but I wasn't about to let
that stop me from such an interesting mission. I would guess
that the place is a real tourist trap now.
301

[page 88]
302
HISTORY OF CLAY COUNTY. 473
in 1853, locating first in Lafayette county, but settled in Clay county
the following year. He died here in 1877 in the seventy-second year
of his age, His wife, who wasa Miss Brittyann Howe before her mar-
riage, lived to reach the age of 66, dying in 1870. They were both
members of the Old School Presbyterian Church, and are buried
at Mount Gilead, Clay county, Mv. They bad a family of five chil-
dren, four sons and one daughter; the daughter is dead.
JACOB HESSEL (pEcEasEp )
(Late of Kearney Township).
On the 13th of August, 1881, died at his homestead in this county,
Jacob Hessel, where for over 25 years he was known as one of the
highly respected and infiuential citizens of Kearney township. He
was aman who achieved success in life solely by his own exertions
and personal worth, and his intelligent appreciation of the conditions
and opportunities of life around him. From early circumstances but
little or no better than the average of those of the youths among
whom be was reared, he rose to a creditable degree of success in life,
both ia standing and influence. He came of a well respected German
family, and was the youngest of five children, born February 14, 1824,
in Germany. In 1845 he left the country of his nativity and came to
America, locating in Clay county, Mo., in 1846. He was a farmer
by occupation, but when the news of the discovery cf gold in Cali-
fornia reached the citizens of this county, he was drawn into the tide
of Western emigrants, and went to the golden coast of that far-off
Eldorado, remaining for three years. However, he then returned to
Clay county, and here made his home until his death. Successful in
the material affairs of life, he had accumulated 216 acres of land, all
of which is now under fence, and 160 acres are in cultivation and blue
grass pasture. On October 16, 1855, he had been married to one of
the fairest daughters of the old Fatherland, Mrs. Malix Bauman,
whose maiden name was Moeller. Their family consisted of seven
children: William is now in Denver, Col.; Louis is a student at
Central Wesleyan College, at Warrenton; Carrie is attending the same
school; Mary is living with her mother; Jacob died September 15,
1888; Edward and Henry live on the old homestead and carry on the
farming and stock-raising operations. They are enterprising and
progressive young agriculturists, and have achieved quite a reputation
iw the stock business, having sold during the past year two car loads
of cattle and one of hogs. Mr. Hessel was a member of the Bethel
German M. Ei. Church. His wife and her children are connected with
the same denomination.
CONRAD HESSEL
(Farmer, Post-ofllce, Kearney).
Mr. Hessel is another example of what energy, industry and perse-
verance, when intelligently applied, have accomplished for those of

[page 89]
4i4 HISTORY OF CLAY GOUNTY.
foreign birth who have seen fit to locate within the boundaries of this
country. Like many of the oldest residents of this county who have
become possessed of means and guined a competence sufficient to en-
able thein to pass their later year's in ease and retirement, is a native
of Germany, having been born there February 8, 1821. Other mem-
bers of this family have also settled in Clay county from Germany,
mention of whom is made elsewhere. The youth of Conrad was passed
as those of other youths of the country, aud when 22 years of age he
lett the place of his birth and emigrated to the United States, locating
first in Ohio, in 1843, and then in 1847 in Clay county, which has con-
tinued to be his home for a period of about 40 years. His beginning
in this county was indeed an humble one. Poor in purse, and by no
means thoroughly conversant with the customs of this country, he
commenced at once with characteristic thrift and industry to situate
himself comfortably in life, which he has done, though at a cost of
many years of hard toil and labor. The fruit of his success is now
seen in the handsome homestead which he owns, a beautifully culti-
vated farm of 525 acres. In 1855 he was married to Miss Christina
Heinz, and to them were born seven children: Fred, Kathrina, Eliza-
beth, Conrad, Louis, Barbara and Christina. Three of these are mar-
ried, viz.: Frederick married Miss Katie Weber, and is now engaged
in farming in this county; Elizabeth, wife of O. H. Weber, also a
farmer, and Kathrina, now Mrs. William H. Stein, whose husband is
pastor of the German Methodist Church at Hays City, Kas. Conrad
ig Superintendent of the Sabbath-school connected with the Bethel M.
. Charch, of which Mr. and Mrs. Hessel and their children are mem-
bers. His domestic life has been one of great contentment and happi-
ness, and he has reared a worthy family of children. A progressive
farmer and an intelligent citizen, he is held in high respect by all who
know him.
JOPRN L. HODGES ©
(Stock Trader, Post Office, Kearney).
It was as early as 1826 that the family of which Mr. Hodges was a
member settled in Clay county. His parents were among the pioneer
settlers of the county, and became well-to-do and highly respected
residents. of Fishing River township. His father, Judge Hodges,
served as an officer in the Black Hawk War, and was afterward elected
a judge of the county court for a number of terms, He was one of
the most popular men in the county, and was elected by au almost
uuaninious vote of the people. He died here in January, 1878. His
wife, whose maiden name was Louisana Lingfelter, of German descent,
died in April, 1881, inher seventy-seventh year. Judge Hodges had «
fine farm of some 400 acres, most of which is still in possession of the
family. He was a slaveholder before the war and a man of strong
Southern feeling, though he took no active part, on account of his
advanced years. Still, he enlisted in the State Guard, for home pro-
tection. He was an earnest and consistent member of the Old School
Baptist Church, as was also his wife. He was quite zealous for the
303

[page 90]
304
rately.
THE GENEALOGY OF SIX GERMAN-SWISS FAMILIES
A brief account of the lives of 30 German-speaking emigrant
ancestors and their descendants down to about 1920, supple-
mented by individual family histories and trees issued sepa-
The six family trees are complete through 1972.
Compiled by Orin F. Nolting
The Families
HARTEL NEUDECK
HESSEL NOLTING
———
IRMINGER WEBER
Contents
Our Ancestors Came to Clay County
Why They Came and What They Found
Their Life as Farmers
The Communities Where They Lived
Their Churches and Religious Life
Serving Their Country in War
Intermarriages and Longevity
The Arley Church from 1890 to 1920
Family Reunions, 1923-1946
Our Genealogy--Scope and Arrangement
Copyright 1973 by Orin F. Nolting
All rights reserved. No part of this report may be reproduced in
any form without the specific permission of the copyright owner.

[page 91]
Preface
This genealogy of six families that originated in Germany and Switzerland is
offered to descendants who are interested in their heritage. Thirty ancestors who
emigrated to this country more than 125 years ago constitute the first generation
since little is known about their families prior to departing for America. This gen-
eral history covers all six families which were bound together by intermarriages.
Brief histories of each family, along with family trees, although issued separately
are part of this genealogy.
The idea of preparing family trees originated with a review of the extensive
vital statistics recorded ina ledger book by my mother, Emelia Hessel Nolting,
during the 1930s. In addition to dates of births, marriages, and deaths, she collect-
ed letters, clippings, and photographs. The vital statistics she recorded were in-
scribed on specially prepared forms which were mailed to selected members of the
several families. They were asked to check names and dates, fill in missing in-
formation, and bring the record up-to-date.
Unfortunately, any records kept by our ancestors have been lost. Some brought
their Bibles, but it seems all except the Hartel Bible have disappeared. Information
about branches of some families was not readily available. This necessitated a
search of public records, correspondence and visits with older descendants, and
checking old church records, early newspaper files, and state and county histories.
Gathering and piecing together various bits of information made possible the de-
velopment of a fairly complete genealogy. While this history covers only the earlier
years up to about 1920, the family trees are complete (except as noted) through
ae 1972. The arrangement of the genealogy is explained in the last section of this
a general history. New names will be added with the passing years, marriages will
take place, and family members will die. Such changes, together with corrections
and missing data, should b e reported to the descendant whose name and address is
giveh in each-of the family histories, Hopefully, a decade or so from now someone
- will update this genealogy.
. Preparation of the family genealogies, a tremendously interesting task, could
-~ not have been undertaken without the assistance of many descendants; Iam in- ©
debted to my mother, who died in 1944, for the extremely useful information she
collected. Grateful acknowledgment is made for the generous assistance of family |
members who kindly supplied data for several branches of their family trees. Flora
Hessel, for example, prepared the entire record of the Jacob Hessel family. I want to
express ny sincere thanks to them and also to more than 4 hundred other descendants |
who supplied data for their families. Finally, Iam grateful to my wife, Mamie, for her
encouragement and help.in the preparation of this record and for-typing the final draft.
This genealogy provides a means of ascertaining relationships and also should give
us a better appreciation of our heritage. Though many of our forebears have passed
away and others are scattered far and wide, all of us share a common legacy of
memories and close ties that bind us together.
a 305
ye
. March, 1973 . Orin F, Nolting

[page 92]
The Genealogy of Six German-Swiss Families
Our Ancestors Came to Clay County
Twenty-four members and six in-laws of the families in this genealogy emigrated
_from Germany and Switzerland between 1842 and 1855 and settled in or near Clay
County. They formed two German-speaking communities~-one at the Bluffs (Mt. Zoar),
three miles southeast of Liberty, and the other at First Prairie (later renamed Arley),
10 miles north of Liberty. All of the first and most of the-second generation members
of four families have died. Many descendants of all six families live in the Arley
community and in the Kansas City metropolitan area, while others are scattered round
the country.
The first to reach this country were three families from Switzerland: Rudolph and
Susanna Irminger and their five children; Jacob and Catherine Marie Weber and two
children; and the Henry Miller family with four children. It seems these families met
on shipboard during the 40-day Atlantic ocean voyage to New Orleans. Changing to a
Mississippi steamboat they arrived at St. Louis in the autumn of 1842. The Webers re~
mained in St. Louis for the winter, while the Irmingers and Millers came up the Missouri
River with the intention of going to Weston, but the Immingers disembarked at Liberty
Landing and the Millers went to Andrew County, Missouri. The Miller family is not
included in this study, but two of the children later married into the Imminger and Weber
families. The Weber family came to Liberty Landing in the spring of 1843.
Four other families came from Germany. Frederick Hartel, age 34, came to First
Prairie in 1842. He was followed in 1845 by his parents and four brothers and sisters.
Also in the fall of 1842, Conrad Hessel and his sister Eva Barbara emigrated to Ohio. /
Eva married a Mr. Hoff in 1843 and moved to the Bluffs in Clay County, while Conrad
retumed to Germany ta get his brother Jacob. They made the trip to Liberty Landing on.
ships by way of New Orleans and St. Louis. William Nolting came from Germany in
1854, followed soon by Herman Neudeck,
Most of our ancestors were young when they emigrated to this country. Nearly two-
thirds were under 30 years of age. Of the immigrants, including in-laws, nine were i
under 20 years old, nine were between 20 and 29, three from 30 to 39, seven from 40 to |
49, and two were over 50 years old. Six were born before 1800, 22 between 1800 and
1839, and two after 1840. Abraham Hartel, 68, and his wife Mary Anelia, 67, were the
oldest. The youngest newcomers were the five children.of Rudolph Irminger, ages 3 to
13; the two sons of Jacob Weber, Samuel 17 and Henry 15; and Herman Neudeck, probably
about 10 years old. The elder Irmingers and Webers were from 43 to 48 years old.
“The 30 German-speaking immigrants in the six families were: BARTEL (8)--Abraham —
and Mary Amelia Hartel and their children, Peter, Elizabeth, Frederick, C Catherine, and | i
Jacab, who probably came from a small village west of the Rhine River in the vicinity of |
Worms in the present state of Rheinland Pfalz. Agnes Selle, wife of Louis Hartel, came,
With her parents from the Kingdom of Saxony in 1853 and settled near Cameron. HESSEL (
Conrad Hessel and his wife Gottliebin Heinz; Jacob Hessel and his wife Mary Bauman; a:
Eva Barbara Hessel, who married Frederick Hartel in 1845. Eva was a sister of Conrad .
and Jacob. The Hessels and Conrad's wife probably came from what is now Baden- /
. Wuerttemberg,. IRMINGER {10)--Rudolph Irminger, his wife Susanna Hoppler, and their’
306

[page 93]
five children, came from Switzerland. Rudolph was born in Wildegg 15 miles west of
Zurich in the Lenzburg district of Canton (state) Aargau. Three of Rudolph's children
married immigrants--John to Katharine Hammel of Darmstadt, Germany; Henry to Anna
Frances Miller from Canton Aargau, Switzerland; and Elizabeth to John Brenner from
Neuhofen, Bavaria. Anna Frances was a daughter of the Henry Miller family that came
over with the Irmingers and Webers in 1842. NEUDECK (1)--Herman Neudeck was born
in Germany and came with his parents in the mid 1850s. NOLTING (1)--William Nolting
emigrated in 1854 from the village of Eisbergen in Lower Saxony, Germany, and settled
at Dalton, Missouri. WEBER (5)--Jacob F. Weber and his wife, Catherine Marie, cane
from Switzerland in 1842 and with their sons Samuel and Henrysettled at the Bluffs.
Samuel in 1847 married Anna Emily, daughter of Rudolph and Susanna Irminger, and Henry
married Mary Hammel from Darmstadt, sister of Catherine who married John Irminger. —
Also prominent in the Arley community was the Neth family that emigrated from the
state of Baden-Wuerttemburg, Germany. The first was Michael Neth and his wife
Margaret and three children §lacob, Sr., Géorge, Sr., and Conrad), who came to Liberty
Landing in the early 1860s and settled in the Arley community. George Neth, Sr. married
Catherine Schmitt who had come from Germany in 1854 with her parents ,Werner and
Gertrude, and the three lived for a time with Conrad and Gottliebin Hessel.
The second Neth family was that of J. George Neth and his wife, Mary Sautter,
who were married in Oeschingen, Wuerttemberg, in 1864 and came to the United States
in 1888 with their young sons George, Adolph, and-Carl. Three other sons (QJacob, Jr.,
Conrad, and William) had come a few years earlier. Jacob, Je. worked on the farm of
George Neth, St., son of Michael. Conrad found employment on the Valentine Moog
farm and William worked for a time for Otto Weber. (The Neth family is not included in
this report: a family tree and history may be available later in 1973).
Since little is known about the forebears of our emigrating ancestors it seems
logical to consider the 30 persons who came from Europe as the first generation. Several
slight changes were made in surnames and English equivalents replaced German names.
The emigrant Irmigers as early as the 1860s added the letter "n". In recent generations
some Hessel and Hartel families have added an extra letter "1". William Nolting's
* name was Heinrich Fredrich Wilhelm Nolting. He dropped the first two names and
changed the spelling of Wilhelm. In other families such given names as Ludwig changed
to Louis, Johann Heinrich to John Henry, Maria became Mary, and soon. The spelling
of surnames in this genealogy is that used by most branches of the several families.
Why They Came to Missouri and What They Found
_.. Our ancestors left no record of why they decided to leave their homeland and come
to Missouri to settle “at the very frontier of westward expansion. They were among the
thousands of German-speaking people who emigrated during the two decades after 1840.
The situation in Germany, however, indicates they came in search of a better life, equal
of rights, and more religious and political freedom, They probably were disheartened al:
by the failure of the movement in Germany in the 1840s to create a republican form of
government. Widespread distress, poverty, and crop failures on farms added to their
woes.. In any event it seems they came with no expectation or desire to return to their
homeland. . . 307

[page 94]
4
There is another reason for the German emigration to Missouri. This was @ report
published in Germany in 1829 extollingin glowing terms the attractions of Missouri as
a place to live. It was written by Gottfried Duden, who was born in Mulheim in 1785
of wealthy parents. He believed Germany had an excess of population and he sought
to persuade Germans to come to this country where land was plentiful and cheap. Fail- _
ing in his attempts to obtain reliable information on conditions in this country, Duden -
decided to make a first-hand study.
Coming to Warren County in 1824, Duden bought 270 acres near Warrenton, Missouri,’
built a home, and farmed for three years. He retumed to Germany in 1827 to sell Mis-
souri to his countrymen, Some typical statements in his report were: "The State of
Missouri, on account of its clear sky, is much more conducive to good health than is
Germany.......There is no cause for fear of any kind of political hinderance...German
immigrants are always welcome here.....Even a foreigner may acquire land."* On the
grounds of the county courthouse at Warrenton is a large bronze plaque commemorating
the work of Duden "in promoting Missouri as an ideal spot and inspiring a large number
of Germans to emigrate to Missouri."
Our ancestors and thousands of other Germans came to Missouri in the 1840s. Mis-,
souri in 1821 had become the second state west of the Mississippi River. Clay County, |
organized in 1822, was on the frontier; what is now Platte Cownty was Indian territory.
The first settlers in Clay County probably came in 1819, chiefly from Kentucky, and
_ during the next decade more southemers arrived bringing their slaves. The first land
grants were made in the mid-1820s. Liberty, a small village, was the county seat;
formal incorporation came in 1829. Three-fourths of Clay County was a wildemess of
large oak, walnut, and other trees that sheltered bear, elk, wild turkeys, and deer.
The Missouri River was the principal trade route. On the bend in the river three
miles south of Libertya place known as Liberty Landing was established in 1826 where |
steamboats could unload and take on passengers and goods. On the bluff overlooking
the Landing the federal government in 1836 erected an arsenal consisting of 12 buildings
to sefve as_an outpost or fort. In the 1850s a tobacco warehouse and a hemp factory
were built at the Landing.** Mt. Zoar, also called the Bluffs, where our Swiss-bom
ancestors settled, was about a mile east of the Landing. .
Across the river was Independence Landing, a principal point of departure for
Santa Fe Trail traffic. Toward the end of the 1830s Westport Landing (at the foot of
what is now Grand, Walnut and Main streets, Kansas City, Missouri) became the head |
of trade to the southwest and Oregon. Among other developments was the imprisonment
of Joseph Smith, Mormon prophet, in the Liberty jail for four months in 1838, The first |
‘Negro slave auction in Liberty apparently was held in 1835 on the steps of the newly
built courthouse. Such auctions were held annually until 1859 or possibly 1861.
* Makers of America-Builders of a New Nation, 1801~1848. Encyclopaedia Brit-
annic Educational Corporation, 1971, p.125.
**Ruins of the arsenal at Liberty Landing are to be found on top of the bluff a short
distance west of Highway 291. Below these ruins across the railroad tracks on what was
formerly the bank of the river is a large rock where steamboats docked. This landing
place was partially destroyed in 1906 by government engineers but two large hooks
embedded in the rock seem to prove this was where our ancestors disembarked.
308 , oe

[page 95]
When our ancestors came to Clay County the frontier was about to be pushed west-
ward. The Oregon trail had been opened in 184] and Kit Carson and Jim Bridger served as
guides for wagon trains starting from Westport Landing or other points, going west on
this trail as well as on the Santa Fe and Califomia trails. The present site of Kansas
City, Kansas, was occupied by the Delaware Indians, and in 1843 the Wyandottes came
from Ohio. Westport Landing in 1845 became the port of entry to the Mexican border.
From 40 to50 steamboats a week landed men and goods at the levee for service in the
Mexican War (1845-46). But even as late as 1860 Kansas City, Missouri, had a pop-
ulation of only 5,000 compared with 3,000 for Weston. Other happenings in the 1840s
include the rains and flood of 1844, the founding of the Liberty Tribune in 1846, the
establishment of William Jewell College in 1849, and the gold rush to California in the
same year. Two of our ancestors, Conrad and Jacob Hessel, joined a wagon train on
the three-month or longer trip. The James boys, Frank and Jesse, were born in the mid-
1840s on a farm near Keamey. The population of Missouri jumped from 384,000 in 1840
to 682,000 in 1850.
Their Life as Farmers
Our ancestors supposedly came from small villages or farms in their homelands.
Their first concern upon reaching Clay County in the 1840s was to acquire farm land,
which the government sold at $1.25 an acre. Land bought from an earlier settler cost
up to $6 an acre. A160~-acre farm may have had less than 40 acres of tillable land be-
cause of the wilderness. The chief crops in the early days were corn, hemp or flax. and
tobacco. Farming was hard work--clearing land of trees, building homes, and planting
and harvesting crops.
Much of the government Jand in both the Arley (First Prairie) and MtZoar communities
was acquired by settlers during the years between 1825 and 1840. Itis believed, however,
that Conrad Hessel at’Prairie and Rudy Irminger at Zoar bought some land from the govern-
ment in the 1840s. The largest landowner in the Prairie area was David M. Bevins, born
in Kentucky in 1805, who had 5,000 acres. Bevins in the 1850s erected a large brick
plantation~type home-a mile east of Arley and had quarters for slaves near the house.
When Jacob Hessel died in 1881 he had 600 acres. In the Zoar community the largest
landowner in the first decade of this century was John Lindau with more than 500! acres.
Other large holdings at Zoar in the early 1900s were 300 acres for William Irminger and
240 for Samuel Weber. Fred Hessel in 1920 owned 1,250 acres in the Arley area and his
brother Conrad had 440 acres.
Life on the farm did not change much during the several decades prior to the First
_World War, About the time of the war the farmer's year began in the spring with the
planting of corn in early May; cultivated three times, it was “laid by" in early July.
By this time wheat and oats were ready to cut with a binder and the bundles were
shocked to dry. The threshing season started in late July. A steam engine pulling a
thresher went from one farm to another with farmers helping each other with bundle
wagons and pitchers. The bundles of wheat were hauled to the thresher, and the grain
was hauled to the farmer's granary. Hearty meals were prepared and served to the
workers by the farmers' wives. Meanwhile, hay was cut and stacked or put up in the
_ barn loft. By late August the farmer had a little free time to attend camp meeting at
vArley and Chautauqua at Plattsburg. Then in September wheat land was plowed and.
. 309
’ aon e

[page 96]
disked for sowing another crop of wheat, some of the com was cut and put in silos,
and later the remaining corn was either husked or cut with a corn knife or binder and
shocked. Aples were picked, crated, and stored in the cellar.
Miscellaneous farm chores included mending fences; cutting down trees and sawing
wood for the kitchen and the “front” room stoves; milking cows twice a day; feeding
horses, cattle, hogs, and chickens; and pumping water from wells for the stock. Hogs
were butchered in December by the farmer for his own use and hams and sides of bacon
were hung in the smoke house. During the slack winter months the farmer had some
free time to work on harness in his tool shop, to shell corn, and do other inside work. |
The farmer's young sons would set traps for skunks, muskrats, and possum. In early |
spring as weather permitted, the farmer prepared fields for planting corn and thus began
another year of sowing and harvesting. Sunday was always a day of rest and going to |
church; a farmer would not work in the field or do other work on The Lord's Day.
Weather was an important factor in farming. Often there was too much rain at the
wrong time, or not enough. Crops could be mined; wheat in wet shocks might sprout
and most of the crop lost. Mud was a part of life for every person. Children walked
a mile or more to school on muddy roads and farm feeding lots had deep mud. Roads wer |
often too muddy for wagons and for motor cars as well. |
The farmer's wife had a hard lot, what with cooking meals on a wood-burning
or kerosene stove, planting and tending a garden, gathering eggs and feeding chickens,
and sometimes working in the fields. She also sewed much of the clothing worn by her 7
children and husband. The younger children would assist her with these and many other |
chores, while the older children worked in the fields and helped with the stock. ‘
Farming was a good occupation up to the very end of the year 1920. During the
First World War and for two years after it ended the demand for farm prodicts meant
a good income for the farmer. Some farmers acquired additional acerage and most
farm families bought their first automobile. The boom came to a sudden halt at the
end of December, 1920, and for the next two decades farming was a somewhat less
attractive occupation.
The Communities Where They Lived
The prospect of the six-week trip by ship across the Atlantic apparently did not i
discourage our ancestors. They looked forward to a better life in Missouri. Upon
reaching this "promised land” they followed the pattern of other ethnic groups of
gathering in small settlements and holding on to their language and customs as long
“as “possible. “, '
At Mt.Zoar, Samuel Weber and Rudy Irminger established homes near each other.
Jacob and Mary Weber lived with their son Samuel. Marie died in 1851. The Rudolph
Irminger home was about a quarter of a mile to the south near the present Baptist Churcli
The Henry Weber and John Irminger families also had homes nearby, The first homes |
were log cabins “chinked with mud" and with clapboard roofs. Cabins had fireplaces
and tallow candles gave them light. Generally there was a spinning wheel and hand- |
_ braided rugs were spread on the floors. Later the log cabins were enlarged or rebuilt =
“ as sawed timber frame buildings.
310 : “ . i

[page 97]
“The Samuel Webers in the 1850s erected a brick house which stood until about 1930
when it bumed down. The church built near the cemetery in 1871 was abandoned at the
turn of the century when Henry Irminger and Samuel Weber moved to Arley, having lived
at Zoar 60 years. John Lindau bought their farms and the Lindau family lived in the
Henry Imminger home until sometime in the 1920s when they moved to Liberty. Henry
Weber died in 1882 and his wife in 1895, Henry's father Jacob having died in 1874. Joh:
and Henry Irmingers' parents, Rudolph and Susanna, died in the mid-1870s and John's
wife Katherine in 1894. After John died in 1904, only William, his son, and John Linda
continued to live at Mt.Zoar. The McKamins, who had come from Kentucky or Tenness:
left the Bluffs between 1906 and 1910 to live in or nearlola, Kansas. Members of this
family had married into the Imminger and Weber families. ©
The First Prairie (Arley) farm community had no fixed center until 1877 when the
present church was built. The early Harte! home had been located on a hill a short
distance southeast of the church site. Frederick and Eva Hartel and later their son
Conrad and his wife Elizabeth lived here. From 1845 until sometime in the mid~1860s
religious services were held in the homes of members. A two-room building, probably
erected soon after the Civil War ended, served as a residence for the pastor and a
place to hold church services. This small house across the road from the present
church building was used as the pastor's residence after the present church was built
in 1877. A decade or more later the small house, remodeled and enlarged by Rudolph
H. Weber, became the home of the Conrad Hartel family.
Meanwhile, William Hartel, soon after he married Elizabeth Weber in 1886, built
a house one-fourth mile south of Arley. He died in 1895 and in 1903 Samuel and Anna
‘Weber made their home here. The Henry Irminger family also left Zoar about 1903 and
lived in the house just south of the Hartel home at Arley. It seems Rudolph Weber did
much to develop the Arley community. In the late 1880s he built a two-story frame
structure across the road northeast from the church. He and his wife Sophie (married
1891) lived on the second floor and operated a general store on the first floor, A black-
smith shop was built just east of the Weber store. - ;
In 1893 Rudolph,believing a larger store building was needed, erected a brick build
almost directly across the road from the church. A three-room apartment was provided
above the back of the store building. The Edward Nolting family lived here from.19041
1914 and operated the general store which also served as a post office from about 1895
until a rural delivery route was established a decade or so later. The stere continued
in operation for some years. Business declined, however, and after standing unused £
several years it was destroyed by fire in 1949.
Many of the homes in the Arley community also were erected during the period from
_ 1885 to 1900. The Fred Hessel home,for example, was built in 1887. Most of these hc
are stiflin use. During the 1890s the church building was enlarged with the addition
of the north wing and the present parsonage was erected. With all this activity, Rudo.
Weber in 1893 believed a new name for the community was in order. His sister, Mrs.
Fred Hessel, suggested the name of "Arley" in honor of the one~year old son of the Ot
Webers. Thus the names of First Prairie and Bethel church were abandoned. The Rude
Webers in 1901 moved to Kansas City, Kansas, to enter the real estate business. ~~
The Mt.Zoar community was active for six decades, 1842-1903, when the Arley
. community became the main center of the Hartels, Hessels, Irmingers, Neths, Neudec
Noltings, and Webers. Nearly all of the earlier generation members had been farmers
. ’ . a“. ‘ “311°

[page 98]
8
or married farmers. The Hessel, Iminger, Neth, and Weber families lived to the west
and northwest of Arley. Some Hessel and Neth families also had farms to the south and
east of Arley while the Neudeck and Nolting families were also to the east. While many
descendants of the original immigrants still are farmers around Arley, others have enter-
ed occupations and professions that have taken them to all parts of the country. This
trend was especially strong after 1920,
The Bluffs also has been called Nebo by some early residents. The importance of
this area-in the history of Missouri was recognized in March, 1971, when the U. 8.
Department of the Interior, at the request of the state parks commission, placed Nebo
Hill in the National Register of Historic Places.
Arley area residents had close connections with three other communities. One was
Mt. Gilead, four miles to the east, where a public school (log cabin) had been built in :
1835. Nine years later a church was erected nearby, to be replaced in 1873 by the present
brick structure which is still in use. One of the leaders at Gilead was Alfred M. Riley, |
who was 20 in 1826 when he came with his parents to Clay County from Kentucky. Gilead
was the only public elementary school in Clay County to stay open throughout the Civil
War. Conrad Hartel was eight years old in 1861 when he came to the Gilead School after |
the Harsel school southwest of Arley closed. Four years later when the war ended Conrad |
attended the newly established school a mile west of Arley. In later years (1910-20)
Gilead was attended by children of rhe Edward Hessel, Walter Ne udeck, and Edward
Nolting families.
Another nearby community six miles to the east of Arley was the town of Kearney
founded in 1856 as Centerville. Twenty families lived there at the start of the Civil
War but only three were left when the war ended. Kearney began to rebuild in 1867
when the railroad from Cameron to Kansas City was under construction. Fred Hessel
in 1890 was one of the organizers of the Keamey Commercial Bank. Arley residents ;
traded in Kearney and came here to get the train to Kansas City and other places until
the arrival of the motor car and better roads.
The third community was Liberty, 10 miles south of Arley and three miles northwest
of Mt.Zoar. On the first Monday of each month farmers went to auctions held on the ;
courthouse square and to do business with county officers. When the farmers switched |
from horse-drawn vehicles to motor cars at the end of the first world war, Liberty began _,
to replace Kearney as a shopping center. Some family members lived in Liberty, includin |
- several Irminger families, the John Lindaus, and in later years the Albert and Milton ‘
Hessel families, Marvin Hessel, and others.
““"“"Tn retrospect, it seems reasonable, at least to this writer, to think of the first two
decades of the 1900s as the most memorable years. Many would. include the 1890s as. we),
During all or some of these three decades the Conrad Hartels, Henry Immingers, and
Edward Noltings lived in Arley. Down the road to the south were the homes of Fred Bauma!
Samuel Weber, Louis Hessel, Jacob Neth, Edward Hessel, and Henry Hincken. West
and north of Arley lived Fred Hessel, Otto Weber, Rudolph Irminger, Conrad Hessel, and)
others, while to the east were Ben Moreland, Walter Neudeck, and later Edward Nolting.
The homes of many of these families, built mainly in the decade or so prior to 1900, are |
still occupied by descendants.
4“ 312
- i

[page 99]
Their Churches and Religious Life
One of the most cohesive features in the lives of our forebears was the church as a
religious and social center. The sustaining force that gave them courage to press on in
spite of hardships was their faith in God. Among the prized possessions brought from
their homeland was the family Bible. Religion in both the Mt.Zoar and First Prairle
(Arley) communities was faithfully practiced in the church and lived in the homes.
Datly home reading of the Bible followed by prayer, usually at night before retiring,
waa a common family custom.
As faithful Christians holding strong religious beliefs our ancestors established
churches. In 1845, with the assistance of the Reverend Heinrich Neulsen, the Mt. Zoar
German M.E. Church was organized at the Bluffs, the highest point between Kansas City
and St, Louis. Charter members were Rudolph and Susanna Irminger, Jacob and Marie
Weber and their sons, Henry and Samuel, and also the five Irminger children--Anna, John,
Rudolph, Henry, and Elizabeth--all of them from Switzerland. Sunday services were held
in homes until 1871 when a small frame church was built across the road from the Samuel
Weber home and less than half a mile north of Nebo Hill where the Pleasant Hill Bap-
tist Church had been erected the previous year.
Baptisms and weddings were held in Zoar church, including the marriage of Fred Hessel
andKatharine Weber in 1880. For some 40 years it seems the same minister served both
the Zoar and Bethel (First Prairie) churches. The Zoar church had an active congregation
until the turn of the century. Many had died, and when Henry Imminger and Samuel Weber
moved to Arley in 1903 services were discontinued. The church was torn down in 1925
and the church bell became the property of Conrad Hartel.
Soon after the Zoar church was organized, Heinrich Neulsen went to First Prairie
to help establish the Bethel German M. E. Church. Charter members in 1845 were Conrad
and Gottliebin Hessel, Jacob and Mary Hessel, Frederick and Eva Hartel, Peter Hartel,
Nicholas and Katherine Frick, John and Elizabeth Fisher, and Gottlieb and Elizabeth
Loeffler--all of whom had come from Germany. Services were held in homes, as at
Zoar, fora Gouple of decades until a two-room house was built on a lot deeded by
Frederick Hartel. This house, enlargéd in the late 1880s, became the home of Conrad
Hartel. In 1876 a committee composed of Conrad and Jacob Hessel and Frederick Hartel
was authorized to raise funds for the construction of a church “in the Hartel and Hessel |
neighborhood." It was decided that subscriptions "unless paid immediately will bear i
_ interest at 10 per cent until paid." A total of $738 was subscribed with the Hartels,
Hessels, Irmingers, Webers, Baumans, and Fishers contributing about $600 of this
amount. Jacob and Mary Hessel deeded a half-acre of land for the site and the building i
-: -was.completed in 1877 at a cost of $730. The church was enlarged by the addition of the
north wing in 1895. Four years later the parsonage was erected on an adjoining lot
deeded by Fred and Mary Bauman.
The Zoar and First Prairie congregations were part of a circuit of German M. E.
churches which in the 1860s included Line Creek (near Parkville), Weston, and Cameron.
Weston was later transferred to another circuit, and in 1879 when Cameron was taken
out, First Prairie and Zoar were left as a pastoral charge. Prairie (renamedArley in 1893)
became a separate charge in 1895. When English language replaced German after 1917 the
. German conferences were merged with the English-speaking districts. 313
s

[page 100]
10
Two Kirchenbuchs (church books), now the property of the Arley church, contain
minutes in German of quarterly meetings held by representatives of the several churches
from 1862 to 1886 except for the last three years of the Civil War. Consideration was
given to assignment of pastors, selection of committees, designation of local preachers,
finances, and other matters. Minutes of meetings beginning with 1872 show that Central
Wesleyan College at Warrenton received the support of the conference, and plans for
building churches at Bethel and Cameron were discussed.
A typical meeting was one held at Zoar in 1862. The group elected as trustees John
Brenner, Conrad and Jacob Hessel, Henry and John Irminger, Frederick Hartel, and Henry |
and Samuel Weber. In 1865 after the end of the war several new names appear in the '
conference minutes through 1886, including Fred Hessel, Pred Hartel,Jr., Jacob Hessel,Jr.
Jacob Hartel, John Lindau, William Iminger, John and Louis Weber, Edward Hessel, i
Otto Weber, Conrad and William Hartel, George Neth, V. Moog, and Louis J. Hessel.
During the 1860s among the leaders at the Line Creek Church were Jacob, Peter,
and Mary Bauman; John, Henry, Phillip, Catharine, and Susanna Brenner; Christopher,
John, Eva, and Katarina Kiamm; and Phillip and Mary Elizabeth Groh (Brenner), Leaders
at Weston were John, Philip, Mary, and Catherine Hammel; Henry and John Schreck, and |
Louis and Catherine Heinz. At Bethel (First Prairie) the leaders were Conrad and
Gottliebin Hessel, Jacob and Mary Hessel; Frederick and Eva Hartel; Peter and Fred
. Hartel,Jr.;John, Carl, Henry, and Nicholas Frick; John and Elizabeth Fisher; and Fred
Bauman. Leaders at Zoar church (Bluffs) were Rudolph and Susanna Irminger, Henry
and Verana Irminger, John and Katherine Irminger, Samuel and Anna Weber, Jacob Weber,
and Henry and Mary Weber. At Cameron: William Stein, Adolph Selle, Carl Meyer, /
and Jacob Ulrich.
i
An important event in life, then as now, was the baptism of children. This generally
took place within three to six months after birth, and a rather complete record, from 1850 '
to 1870 inclusive, was kept in two of the old church books now belonging to the Arley
Church. The record includes date of birth, date baptized, church (Prairie, Zoar, Line
Creek, Cameron, or. WeSton), name of child, names of parents, and name of the minister.
Considering the role of the church and the Christian faith of our ancestors it is not
surprising that a good number were ministers. Three daughters of Henry and Verana
Irminger married ministers: Lylia to Elias C. Miller, Drucilla to George 8S, Roeder, and
Emma to Louis J. Hessel. A son of the Imingers, Louis H., was in the ministry. Amonr
others in the earlier generations who entered the ministry were William Hartel, Willem —
Joyce Hessel, Edwin O. Hessel, William R. Hessel, Walter Westover, and more recent,
Lowell R, Ditzen, Carl C. Hackman, and Elmer Lee Wilhelm. Several girls, in addition |
-to the three already named, married ministers: Irene Hartel to William H. Hackman,
Etta Hessel to L.W.C, Emig, Katherine Hessel to William H. Stein, Emma Hartel to
Jenn Tuschhoff, and Elsa May Hartel to Frank W. Clelland.
Since pastors generally served more than one church, it was the practice of the |
quarterly conference to designate local preachers and advisers. Local preachers were
lay church leaders who served without salary in the absence of the pastor which includec
_ Officiating at marriages and conducting funerals. "Advisers" supposedly admonished an|
, encouraged members in their Christian faith, Among those given one or the other of thes.
assignments were Samuel Weber, John Brenner, Henry Irminger, Valentine Moog, and
Conrad Hartel, 314 -

[page 101]
Hi
The Mt.Zoar and First Prairie churches had cemeteries close by. The Mt.Zoar
Cemetery is the resting place for Rudolph and Susanna Imminger; John and Katherine
Irminger; Jacob Weber; Henry and Mary Weber; Edna, daughter of Henry and Verana
Imminger; and six children who died in infancy--Juanita Lindau 7 John, Emma, and
Julian (children of the John Irmingers)? Martin Hammel; and Cloyd Irminger, young son
of Louis H. and Mary Irminger. Across the road are the graves of William Schreck, a
minister, his wife Lisetta, and the graves of Christina (two months) and Elizabeth (5 years
old), daughters of the Samuel Webers. Mary Hoff, who died in 1877, also was buried
nearby. Mrs. Jacob Weber, who died in 1851, was buried in the cemetery of the Pleasant
Hill Baptist Church on Nebo Hill.
Many of the first and second generation members of our six families were buried in
the Arley Cemetery. Among them are Frederick and Eva Hartel, Peter Hartel, Conrad
and Gottliebin Hessel, Henry and Verana Irminger, Samuel and Anna Weber, Jacob and
Mary Hessel, Fred and Katharine Hessel, Otto and Elizabeth Weber, Conrad and
Elizabeth Hessel, Louis and Matilda Hessel, Rudolph and Christine Irminger, Edward
and Emelia Nolting, and Edward and Ida Hessel. An older family burial plot ina
.wooded area back of the Louis Hessel home contains the graves of Abraham and Amelia
Hartel; Jacob and Susan Hartel; and Mary and Lydia Hessel, sisters of Fred Hessel,
who died in infancy; and William Neth, brother of George Neth, Sr.
Our ancestors left a legacy of their unwavering faith in God. They were strong in
their stand forrigheousness. Their actions and voices still ring across the years. Our
forefathers' example is our rich heritage. Perhaps this explains why so many descendants
are active church members.
Serving Their Country In War
Military service was something our ancestors probably did not expect in this
country. But when the Civil War began they joined the Union Forces, even though most
Clay County volunteers enlisted on the Confederate side. Among those from the Zoar
and First Prairie communities who served the North in Missouri infantry companies were Jol
H. Frick, Carl Frick, Phillip Hammel, Louis Hartel, Conrad Hessel, John and Henry
Imminger, Jacob Neth, Jr., Herman Neudeck, and Henry and Samuel Weber. John Frick
and Louis Hartel, too young to join up at the start of the war, volunteered in 1864 when
they were about 18 or 19 years old. Phillip Hammel, a private in Company B, 17th.
Missouri Infantry, was shot in the mouth in the skirmish at Lone Jack. Conrad Hessel
received wounds in both legs and Herman Neudeck was wounded. But all returned home
when the war ended.
“""~.~The only battle fought in Clay County took place at Blue Mills north of the Missouri
River and approximately a mile east of highway 291. More than 3,000 men, about evenly
divided between the two sides, were engaged in this skirmish which the Confederates
won, Sixty wounded Union soldiers were treated in William Jewell College classrooms
and moved next day to Kansas City hospitals.
' Guerrilla bands murdered and plundered throughout the war in Clay County. The
Office of the Adjutant General in St. Louis in August, 1862, issued an order requiring
all able~bodied men to join the state militia in order "to exterminate guerrillas that in-
fest our state." Volunteers were asked to bring their own guns and a "good horse."
Apparently our ancestors served in the Missouri state militia. . 315

[page 102]
“Neth. Victor went om to participate in the battlesof Chateau Thiery and Verdun. After
12
No state in the Union was more bitterly divided in its loyalties than Missouri. Pro-
slavery sentiment was strongest in the west and south parts of the state, while the St.
Louis area, where more than half of the inhabitants were foreigh born, was strongly pro-
Union, Families emigrating to Clay County from Kentucky and Tennessee had brought :
slaves with them. The German-speaking residents of the county had no slaves. They
also knew from their life in Germany that it was not wise to rebel against the government. |
The only record of Civil War experience left by our ancestors was written by John H. i
Frick. He wrote "Recollections of the Civil War", published in the July, 1925, issue of
the Missouri Historical Review. When the war started in 186] he was 16 years old and
lived with his parents on a farm six miles northwest of Liberty. He recalls having visited |
the wounded federal soldiers at William Jewell College after the Blue Mills battle. In
July, 1864, when he was 19 he joined the army and served under Captain John Younger.
Frick’s unit was sent east through counties north of the Missouri River to search for the
Confederates who seemed to elude the Union forces. Upon reaching Glasgow, however,
they encountered a strong Confederate force which was ready to fight. Frick's horse was
shot from under him and his unit was soon surrounded and captured. The captured
Union soldiers were taken to Jefferson City where they were put on a train (their first
train ride) to St. Louis. Here they were exchanged for Confederates captured by the
North and sent home by train which made a short stop at Warrenton. Corporal Samuel
Weber inquired at the station "can you tell us where the German institution is?" and
Frick reports he saw in the distance the Central Wesleyan College building, CWC having
been established only two months earlier.
The Hannibal and St. Joseph R. R. train took the Union boys to Cameron which was the |
nearest railroad station to Liberty. From here they walked to Plattsburg and rode in
wagons from this town to Liberty. Mustered out in March, 1865, Frick enlisted in the '
Missouri Volunteer Militia and encouraged others to join him, including Louis Hartel, |
Jacob Neth, and Gottfried Loeffler--all from First Prairie. By thistime the Confederates
were surrendering, but Frick did not get his discharge until July when he wes paid for the
total time served.
A half century after the close of the Civil War the beginning of the First World War
was a "trying experience" for the German-speaking Arley Community. But when this
country entered the war in 1917 among the boys who joined the armed forces were Arley
and Henry Weber, Victor T. Frick, Bertram and Clarence Hessel, Herbert Hartel, Victor
and James Irminger, Fred Neth (son of Jacob Neth, Sc) and Carl Fred Musbach. Both
’ Victor and Jim Irminger were with the 5th Regiment of Marines attached to the 2nd
Division, A.E.F. They fought in the Argonne and at Belleau Woods where Jim was
killed on June 23, 1918. Two other men were killed in battle--Fred Musbach and Fred
the armistice he served in the Army of Occupation at Koblenz for eight months. He had
been wounded in the Argonne fighting and was gassed ina later battle. Ina letter writte.
at the "front" in 1918, Victor told his mother that Tobe, a mule he had sold the goverment
a year earlier, was hauling water for his company. |
‘ Many family members served and some gave their lives in the Second World War, Kore
War, and in Vietnam, but since this report covers only the years prior to 1920, no attemp*
was made to compile lists of names. It is known that family members Glen Hartel, Marv:
. Lohmeyer, and Keith Peters were killed in action in the Second World War.
316 ’
j

[page 103]
13
Intermarriages and Longevity
Our six families from the beginning were brought together by intermarriages as well
@s through close church connections. This was especially true of the families at the
Bluffs and First Prairie. There were 17 intermarriages, the first in 1845 and the last in
1914, between members of the six families during the early generations. These inter
marriages are listed by surnames of the women:
Eva Barbara Hessel--Frederick Hartel 1845 - Sophie Neudeck-~Rudolph H. Weber 1891
Christine Hessel--Philip F. Weber 1891 Tillie Neudeck--Louis EF. Weber 1896
Elizabeth Hessel--Otto Weber 1883 Mary Jane Noiting--Louis H. Irminger 1891
Emelia Pearl Hessel--~Edward Nolting 1902 Dmcilla B. Weber--Conrad Hessel 1886
Lulu Susan Hessel--Ben F, Neudeck 1914 Katharine F, Weber--Fred Hessel 1880
Anna Emily Irminger~-Samuel Weber 1847 Elizabeth Weber~-William Hartel 1886
Emma Irminger-~Louis J. Hessel 1887 " “--Conrad Hessel 1898
Elizabeth Irminger--Conrad Hartel 1878 Ella Lydia Hartel--Geo. F, Neudeck 1901
" uv -~-Walter A. Neudeck 1904
There have been a few intermarriages in later generations as, for example, Eunice
Tuschhoff (a Hartel descendant) and Floyd Hessel. Some of the Neths intermarried with
the Hartel and Neudeck families. Intermarriages during the early generations outside
the six-family group were mainly with persons of German~Swiss descent as, for example,
the Heinz family of Weston, Missouri; Millers of Bolckow, Missouri; Selles of Cameron,
. Missouri; Leinharts and McKarnins of the Bluffs; Hammels of the Bluffs and Weston;
Baumans and Brenners of Line Creek near Parkville, Missouri; and the Fishers and Fricks
of First Prairie (Arley).
First generation families generally remained in the community after martiage, while
many members of third to sixth generation families are scattered across the country.
Large families of six or more children were common in the first and Second generation.
Louis J. Hessel (son of Jacob Hessel) was married twice and there were 19 children.
William Nolting was married four times and he was father of 13. Other large families
were those of Otto Weber, Samuel Weber, and Henry Miller, ll each; Henry Weber, Sr.,
10; John Brenner, Conrad Hessel, and Henry Iminger, 9 each; and Fred Hartel, Fred
Hessel, John H. Frick and Julius Kammeyer, 8 each. Third and succeding generation
families seldom had more than four children.
A total of 2,767 descendants and in-laws appear in the six family trees. Of 485 who
have died, 97 lived to be 80 or more years old; 38 others over 80 are still living. Forty-c
couples, including several still living , have celebrated 50 or more wedding anniversaries
“One couple, Samuel and Anna Weber, celebrated their 64th wedding anniversary.
Of the 135 family members who lived beyond their 80th birthday, 28 were 90 or more
years old, including eight still living. The oldest was Mrs. Radolph H. Weber (Sophie
Neudeck) who was over 99 when she died in 1968. Those over 90 still Hving are Mrs.
George A. Weber 95; Dr. Frank Kampschmidt 94; Albert Moore and Mrs. Gustave Nolting
93; Mrs. Kate Prick Ebeling 91; and Walter Jennings, Rudolph M. Weber, and Mrs.
-Edward F. Stein 90. The names of those who lived past their 80th birthday and also the
- couples having 50 or more wedding anniversaries are given in the individual family
histories. 317
“. 5

[page 104]
14 |
Most of the emigrant ancestors of our six families were born 140 or more years ago.
Upon coming to Missouri their Hfe on the frontier must have been a great change from
that in the old country. But their Nfe-style changed little during the remainder of the
19th century. Twenty-two of the original 30 emigrants died before 1900, The remaining
eight died during the first two decades of this century: Mrs. Conrad Hessel, 1900; John
Irminger, 1964; Mrs. Jacob Hessel and Henry Imminger, 1907; John Brenner, 1911; Mrs.
Samuel Weber, 1912; Samuel Weber, 1914; and Mrs. Henry Imminger (Aunt Franie), 1920.
Life on the farm began to change after the First World War when cars and trucks replaced
buggies and wagons and the airplane and radio were in the offing. The old way of Ufe
had come to an end when the last of our emigrating forebears died in 1920. The trend
toward urbanization was underway.
The Arley Church From 1890 to 1920
The Arley Methodist Epi scopal Church from 1890 to 1920, and even up to the present
time, has been the center of the social as well as religious life of the community. The |
church building, as already stated, was enlarged and a parsonage built in the early 1890s
A full-time minister served the congregation after 1895. Church records for this period
contain data on finances, membership, births and baptisms, marriages, and deaths. It.
seems the peak year was 1920 when membership reached 150 with 110 enrolled in Sunday |
School classes. The pastor was paid $1,350 and $490 was contributed to home and
foreign mission work. i
The young people always had an important role at the Ariey church. In 1893 a youth
group was organized and a constitution adopted. The Jugenbund in about 1896 became /
the Epworth League. The list of members ranged from 40 to 50, and an attendance re-
cord kept.. Among the names in the record are Barbara Hessel, Henry Hessel, Louis
Hessel, Lulu Hessel, Albert Hessel, John Eisler, Irene Hartel, Homer Hartel, George
Neth, Jr., Adolph Héth, William Neth, Edward Noiting, Minnie Neudeck, and Henry |
and John Moog. Secretaries during th
1890s were Elia Hartel, Emelia
Hessel, Minnie Neudeck, Anna
Sautter, and Emma Stroeter.
After the turn of the century
the church for a number of years
conducted summer school in-
struction in the German lan-
guage for young people. This .
was abandoned when this country
“@ntered the first world war. Sun-
day services were also changed
from German to English. Many of
the young people attended Central
Wesleyan College at Warrenton,
150 miles east of Arley. This
Methodist schook, founded by
German settlers in 1864, was
supported by German Methodist Arley German M. E. Church, 1908
churehes A close-by Baptist - (photo by Emelia Hessel Nolting)

[page 105]
PhS
supported school, William Jewell College at Liberty, did not appeal to Methodist
young people. At one time during the years between 1900 and 1910 a total of 17 Arley
young people were attending Central Wesleyan College or its academy.
An event of great significance in the Arley community from about 1895 to 1917 was
a religious festival held each year about the third week of August. This revival- of-
faith meeting sponsored by the Arley Church also attracted people from nearby
communities. They came to participate and to enjoy a time of fellowship and worship.
These gatherings were eight days in length, starting and ending on a Sunday. They took
place in a grove of giant oak trees near the home of Samuel and Anna Weber, less than
one mile south of the Arley church. A big white-top tent was put up at the south end of
the grounds, seats were laid, and platforms built for an altar and an organ. This was
the place for the revival services. Near the north end of the area a kitchen was built
and under the trees were two long tables on which to serve meals. On the grounds be-
tween the big tent and the kitchen some families erected tents in which to live during
the week. Since most of those attending came from nearby farms, someone in each
family had to go back to their home each moming and evening to milk the cows,
gather eggs, and feed the cattle, hogs, and chickens.
ARLEY CAMP MEETING (1909)--Far left of front tent pole~-Rev. Woestemeyer of
Ariey church, and behind him John Tuschhoff, Mr. and Mrs. Conrad Hartel, Will
Bailey, R. H. Irminger, Lulu Hessel, Louella Smith, Henry Moog. Front row: |
right to left: Helen Weber, Willow Nolting, Clara Weber, Anna Hessel, Second
row--third from right: Orin Nolting, Herbert Neth, Allen Neth, Casper Weber, —
‘Lawrence Irminger, and Elmer Hessel (partly hidden). Third row-- right to left:
Bert Hessel, Floyd Hessel, Grace Hessel. Further back between the two poles--
Fred Hessel, Mrs. Edward Nolting holding DeWayne (in front of back pole),
Victor Hartel. Right rear: Mrs. Fred Hessel, Mrs. Conrad Hessel; and Edith
Weber. Perhaps some older family members can identify themselves. 319

[page 106]
Every morning after breakfast an early prayer meeting and song service was held. .
Then at 11:00 a.m. and again on some afternoons services were held with visiting
ministers giving sermons. About six o'clock a bell near the kitchen announced dinner i
was ready, The menu included meat, potatoes, cabbage, beans, com on the cob, pie, p
cake, and watermelons. The food was served on large platters or in bowls which were
passed down the tables. At least four services were held on Sundays. Group singing ;
of religious songs was supplemented by quartets, duets, and children's choir.
Long sermons, usually in German, were followed by long prayers and invitations to
come forward to seek forgiveness from sins and renew religious vows. Some members
of the regular Arley Church congregation offered prayers seeking forgiveness from their
sins, for the welfare of their loved ones and the community, for all things Christian peopi-!
pray for. The Arley quartet, composed of Albert, Willlam, and Clarence Hessel, and ;
Lawrence Hartel, provided spiritual uplift as well as entertainment. Other members of |
the quartet were Homer Hartel, OlinHessel, and Willie Bauman. After the last |
Sunday night meeting the horse-drawn carriages and buggies, along with a few cars, ‘
Pulled out into the dusty roads to retum home. The last camp meeting was held in
August, 1917, when some farmers had only recently acquired their first motor car and
when the Arley M.E. Church abandoned German in favor of English services. Memories
of these camp meetings linger in the minds of those who had the privilege of attending.
Trustees of the German Methodist Episcopal Church at Arley in 1899 were Fred
Hessel, Edward Hessel, Conrad Hartel, Rudolph H. Irminger, George Neth, Sr. , Jacob |
Neth, Sr., and Otto Weber. Among the pastors serving the Arley Church (all of German
or Swiss descent) were C. H. Schnackenberg, 1892-94; H. 8. Hohenwald, 1194-99; ver, |
’ Crepin, 1899-01; John Klein, 1961-07; Edward Asling, 1907-09; William B. Woestemeyer, |
1909-12; R. D. Winker, 1912-16; Louis Irminger, 1916-20; and Charles L. Koerner, 1920- 26.
Peter Hartel was Sunday School superintendent for many years before he died in 1882.
‘Among others who sticceeded him were John Weber, Conrad Hessel, and Clarence Hessel.
i
Family Reunions, 1923-1946
‘The demise of the annual camp meeting led to holding a one-day family reunion to
provide an opportunity for clan manbers to visit together. But even in the early 1920s it
was evident to all that a great change was underway. Some families were moving from
farms to towns and cities. Many younger people planned to attend college and prepare
for a profession or occupation other than farming. These annual meetings were known
as the Weber-Irminger Reunions, probably because these two families were the first to
emigrate ‘to this country. However, descendants of the Brenners, Hartels, Hessels,
Neths, Neudecks, and Noltings were considered as equal participants because all
“Were related. ’.
These happy meetings, generally held on the last Sunday in July, included a dinner
with each family bringing food. German folk and religious songs were sung in German,
Mr. and Mrs. Conrad Hartel usually sang a duet, and Mrs. Conrad Hessel and R. H.
Weber gave readings remembered from childhood days. Another regular feature was the |
taking of a group photograph, and those attending signed their names in a record book.
Marriages, births, and deaths were reported and recorded in the minutes of each reunion
- by the secretary. A president and secretary were elected annually, and Albert Hessel,
for many years, was master of ceremonies. Among those who served as president were
Henry Iminger, Albert Hessel, Mafvin Irminger, and Victor Inminger. Secretaries were
320 . . i

[page 107]
u
Mrs. Louella Moore Robb, Mrs. Albert L, Hessel, and Willow Nolting,
The first get-together was in 1923. It was held at the John Lindau home three miles
southeast of Liberty (formerly the home of Henry Imminger). The largest of the earlier
meetings were in 1927 and 1928 at Red Oak Inn near Liberty with 300 attending. The
1932 and 1933 meetings were at Winnwood. The 1934 gathering at Brenner Ridge on the
farm of John Brenner (son-in-law of Rudolph Irminger) was attended by 150 faithful
members; in 1935 at the Arley M.E. Church with 250 attending; and at the 1936 meeting
on the William Jewell College campus a high of 300 attended. From 1937 through 1941
between 150 and 200 decendants and in-laws came to the reunions held on the grounds
of the 1.0.0.F. Home near Liberty to renew contacts and hear talks about the early days.
At the 194] reunion, with 175 present, tentative plans were made for a centennial
celebration the next year, but because of the war the next gathering was not held
until July 1946. Attendance was low, only 52, partly because of the polio scare.
Other factors were the apparent lack of interest among members of the fourth and fifth
generations, many of whom lived in distant states. Thus after 20 reunions the Weber-
imninger gatherings, which always held great interest for members of the first three
generations, came to an end.
Our Genealogy--Scope and Arrangement
This brief history of our ancestors has covered in a general way the eight decades
from 1840 to 1920. Unfortunately, information about events in the lives and work of our
forebears prior to 1900 is very meager. Our ancestors supposedly brought family Bibles
from their homeland, but it seems all except the Hartel Bible have been lost. Thus a
good source of vital statistics is not available. Surprisingly,some family members had
no knowledge whatever of their ancestors who came to this country. This is one of the
reasons for the preparation of this genealogy which enumerates by generations the
descendants of our emigrant ancestors, following the blood lines of the forefather of each
family.
This genéalogy treats our emigrant ancestors as the first generation because it is
futile to trace our progenitors prior to the advent of the family to America. An attempt
was made with the Nolting family on a visit to the village in Germany where William
Nolting was born. In nearby Hannover the local telephone directory listed more than
twenty Noltings and in the smaller town of Minden a dozen more had this sumame.
Sincé church and public records are available as far back as the i5th century, anyone
with determination and time to devote to such a task would undoubtedly be sewarded
with success.
’ The preparation of this genealogy began in early 1972 with the idea of making family
trees. But tracing names and vital statistics for five or more generations resulted in long
lists which seemed rather barren and uninteresting. Clearly, ancestors are more than
names and dates. They are personalities; their physical makeup as well as their
philosophy, ambitions, and good and bad qualities have to some extent been inherited
by descendants. Thus it seemed desirable, in order to make the genealogy more inter-
. esting and useful, to include some historical and biographical data-~such as their place
of origin, when and why they came to Missouri, where they settled and how they lived,
their vocations, their religious concepts, and who their children were and what became
of them. The chase for family facts, while intensely interesting, lead over wearisome
; 321

[page 108]
ie
ways. For example, many hours were devoted to a search for data about three of the
children of Abraham and Amelia Harte] with only partial success. Fortunately, however, .
thanks to the cooperation of many family members, fairly complete data on names of :
descendants and in-laws and vital stastics about them were compiled. A search of
church and public records, cemetery records, family records and letters, and corre-
spondence and interviews with dozens of descendants in all parts of the country provide
clues and bits of information which have been pieced together in this general history. ‘
This approach enables present generation members to look at their ancestors in.the
context of the times in which they lived and, also, hopefully, also adds a human
touch to the long lists of names in the family trees. _ :
A genealogy is built on names of people, and their names and their families are a
most precious property. Given names in most instances include middle names. For {
female in-laws maiden names are shown. The line of descent in each family is arrangec |
in a manner that keeps family units together through succeeding generations of each of |
the children of the emigrant ancestors. The family trees enable anyone to determine
relationships by blood or marriage. The order in which names are listed should enable
anyone to prepare a "tree" for his own family from his immigrant ancestor down thra
several generations io the present, Several kinds of printed forms are available for
this purpose.
Family trees in this genealogy follow the blood stream of the male ancestor. For
example, the Hessel family tree begins with two brothers, Conrad and Jacob. Their
_ sister, Eva Barbara, who also came from Germany, married Frederick Hartel and she is
included in the Hartel family tree. Conrad's name is listed first, followed by dates
of his birth and death. Next is the name of his wife and when she was born and died.
The third line shows the date of their marriage, followed by names and dates of birth of |
their children. For children who died unmarried the date of death also is shown, and
children (in more recent generations) of marriageable age are indicated as (8).
The third generation starts with the marriages of children of the second generation, .
in this example the children of Fred (oldest son of the Conrad Hessels) and his wife
Katharine. Referring to the Hessel tree it is noted that Fred Hessel's name is capitalize!
and underlined in the second generation. Below is the third generation with the name of.
their oldest child,Emelia Pearl, who appears in the Nolting family tree. Each of the ot} :
children of the Fred Hessels follow in order of birth, showing who they married and their!
children. The name of each of the Fred Hessel children is underlined in order to enable
one to identify family units. This arrangement of the family tree involves repeating the :
names of children when they marry. If they or their spouses have died, dates of death
are given here. When a new family is formed, the first spouse listed is a family
.- descendant and second an in-law. When no children are listed following a marriage th |
couple.is childless. The notation “further data unavailable" indicates information on ‘
children or marriages could not be obtained either because descendants could not be
located or family members failed to respond to repeated requests for missing data. The |
abbrevation "ec" is for circa or approximate, and "div." divorced. Errors in names and
dates should be reported, together with missing data and additions, to the family memt-,
whose name and address is given at the end of each of the six family trees.
The six family trees in this genealogy include 2,767 descendants and in-laws. The,
” Weber tree is the largest with 945, followed by Irminger with 571, Hessel 538, Hartel |
454, Nolting 165, and Neudeck 94.-. .
322 : . *

[page 109]
19
A Personal Note
Several family members who responded to my inquiries for information for the “trees”
asked about my life work and my relationship with the other families included in this
study. After graduating from the University of Kansas, 1 received a fellowship for
graduate study at Syracuse University and special work at the Institute of Public Admin-
istration in New York City. From 1929 to 1956, I was assistant director of the Internation:
City Managers' Association with offices on the campus of the University of Chicago, fron
1956 to 1967 executive director of ICMA, and after retiring 1 worked full-time for another
year doing research and writing for the Association.
From 1968 to 1971, I was
special assistant to the president &
of Public Administration Service, #
a nonprofit consulting organiza-
tion on the University of Chicago
campus. During these three years
Iwas also consultant to the Amer-
ican Library Association, taught
@ course in local govemment
management at the University of
Chicago, and made an extended
trip in 1969 to Australia and sev—
_@ral Southeast Asia countries to
do some work for the U.S. De-
partment of State in Bangkok,
Manila, and Seoul, along with
lecturing for three weeks at ae ae ee ee ee SUE
universities in Taipei and Tokyo. tley United Methodist Church ‘
(photo by DeWayne Nolting, 1969)
cee!
During the years from 1953
to 1971, my wife and I made 2) trips to Europe and three to the Middle East to study local
govermment, -visit with local officials, and participate in many national] and intemational
conferences, including those of the International Union of Local Authorities (The Hague).
Iwas the United States representative on the Executive Board of TULA for 14 years, ser-
ving as senior vice president from 1967 to 1971. (More details are in Who's Who in
America, 1962-63 to date). After 42 years in Chicago my wife and I retired again and
moved to Shawnee, Kansas, at the end of 1971. Most of my spare time in 1972 was de-
voted to preparing this report and family trees.
.-... My mother, Emelia, was a daughter of Fred and Katharine Hessel, and my father,
Edward , was related to the Hartels and Imingers. His mother was the daughter (by her
first marriage) of Eva Barbara Hessel Hoff, who married Frederick Hartel in 1845, and one
of his sisters, Mary Jane Nolting, married Louis H. Irminger in 1891. My mother's
Sister, Lulu Hessel, married Ben F. Neudeck.
Note. Among sources consulted were the files of the Liberty Tribune and the Kansas
City Star; record books of the Mt. Zoar and First Prairie churches from 1850 to 1886; and
. Historical Sketch of the Adley Methodist Church. The Liberty Tribune, 1947. l6pp.
a Additional copies of this report may be obtained from Orin F. Nolting, 323
6601 Blue Jacket Avenue, Shawnee, Kansas 66203. |

[page 110]
THE DESCENDANTS OF CONRAD AND JACOB HESSEL
By Orin PF. Nolting
The history of the Hessel family begins with two brothers, Conrad and Jacob, and
their sister, Eva Barbara, who came from Germany. They may have lived in Wuerttember¢
but there is no record of either their domicile or their parents. Conrad was 21 and Eva
27 in 1843 when they crossed the Atlantic and came to Ohio, Eva soon married a Mr.
Hoff, and in early 1844 Conrad went back to Germany to get his brother, Jacob, aged
20, while Eva and her husband moved to Mt.Zoar, better known as the Bluffs, near
Liberty, Missouri. Eva's child, Mary, was bom at the Bluffs in June, 1844, and her
husband died a few weeks later. For nearly a year efter Mary was born, a neighbor
girl, Anna Irminger, 15, helped Eva take care of Mary.
In the spring of 1845, Conrad retumed with Jacob by ship to New Orleans where they
chanced to meet Abraham Hartel and his wife and four children who were going to First
Prairie (later Arley) where their son, Frederick, had settled three years earlier (see
Harte] family history), The Hessel brothers happily gave the Hartels some news which
they apparently had not received, namely that their sister Eva was to marry the Hartel’s
son Frederick in July. The Hartels and Hessels travelled together by ship up the Missi
ssippi and Missouri Rivers to Liberty Landing. They came to First Prairie, and when Eve
married Frederick Hartel she and her year-old daughter, Mary, came to First Prairie.
(Mary was 23 in 1867 when she married William Nolting; see Nolting family history).
Conrad and Jacob Hessel in 1849 joined a wagon train in the gold rush to Califomia.
On the westem plains, a fellow Missourian by the name of Fail became exhausted from |
lack of water and was left behind to die. Some hours later water was found and the
Hessel brothers carried:some back to Fail who was revived sufficiently to rejoin the
train and later retuned to Excelsior Springs, Missouri. Upon reaching California,
Conrad sold his ox team at a good profit. Conrad and Jacob apparently found gold be-
cause after they returned about two years later they acquired much land in the First
Prainé community. Gonrad bought some land from the govemment at $1.25 per acre.
Conrad 34, and Jacob 31, were ready to marry and settle down by 1855. Conrad had
been informed about a “nice lady at Weston who would make a good wife." Gottliebin |
Heinz, 25, born in Wuerttemberg, Germany, had emigrated to Weston, probably in the
early 1840s, with her parents and several brothers and sisters. Conrad, according to<.
old record, "drove out to Weston in a wagon and got her.”
eee -Gonrad and Gottliebin had : nine children, two boys and seven girls. Two of the
girls died | died in infancy, ‘and Barbara, who died in 1950, aged 84, was a nurse for many
years. The oldest, Frederick, was 24 in 1880 when he married Katharine Weber,
daughter of the Samuel Webers at the Bluffs. Fred and Katharine had eight children, tw
of whom died when they were three to four years old. Emelia, the oldest, married
Edward Nolting, a farmer, and Lulu married Ben Neudeck, who had a position with the .
municipal utility department of Kansas City, Kansas {see Nolting and Neudeck family |
trees). Of Fred Hessel's four sons, Albert, a farmer, married Luella Smith, a minister’
daughter. Moving to Liberty and later to Kansas City, Albert was in the real estate
- business and active in the work of the Methodist church. In Kansas City he was with |
Swift and Company for many years before he retired. He was for 15 years secretary and
oof! later treasurer of the Kansas City Missionary Society and assisted in founding several ,
new churches, Milton, also a farmer at Arley, married Nettie Zimmerman of Lexington |
r

[page 111]
t
Missouri, The family moved to Liberty in 1934 where he was active in the real estate
business and operating the farm at Arley. Milton was president of the Federal Land
Bank Association of St. Louis when he died in 1954, Olin graduated from Central Wes-
leyan College in 1910 and attended the College of Medicine, Washington University,
St. Louis, one year. Upon visiting California in 1913, he decided to settle in Los
Angeles, and the next year he married Marguerite Bricker. He was with the Paul G.
Hoffman Studebaker Company 20 years, becoming vice-president. Leaving this
company in the mid-1930s, he had his own Studebaker agency in Beverly Hills for 18
years before he retired. He has been an active worker in the Temple Baptist Church
in Los Angeles for 58 years (deacon, trustee, and Sunday School teacher). He was a
founding member of the Beverly Hills Y.M.C.A. and served on the board for 50 years.
William, fourth son of the Fred Hessels, who married Anita Schroeder of Illinois in
1921, was a Methodist minister in Vermont, Arizona, and California for many years
before he died in Pasadena in 1961.
Fred Hessel, like his father Conrad., was a leading farmer in Clay County. At one
time he owned 1,250 acres of land. He was a founder of the Commercial Bank of Kearn
and was for many years its vice-president. At the time of his death in 1931 at the age
75 he was president of the Federal Farm Loan Board of Clay County and the oldest mem
’ CONRAD AND GOTTLIEBIN HESSEL FAMILY (c.1890 or latér)--Front row, left to righ
Gottliebin born 1830, Conrad, Jr. 1862, Elizabeth 1860, Frederick 1856, and Conrac
1821. Top row: Kathryn 1857, Barbara 1866, Louis 1864, and Christine 1869. Mary
1859, and Lydia 1870, died in infancy. 325

[page 112]
Hessel--3
of the board of directors of the Farmers Mutual Insurance Company. He had been a
member of the board of the Arley Methodist Church for fifty years. The Hessel home
was a favorite gathering place for relatives. Sunday after church it was not unusual for
20 or more relatives to be there for dinner. Only two members of the Fred Hessel
family are still living--Lulu 89 and Olin 84; and in-laws Mrs. Milton Hessel 80, Mrs.
Albert Hessel 84, Mrs, Olin Hessel 77, and Mrs. William R. Hessel 76.
Kathryn, the second child of the Conrad Hessels, in 1880 married Willlam H. Stein,
a German Methodist minister. They had eight children. Two died before they were a
year old. Edward was a fammer; William, a furniture dealer; Arthur,-a cattle rancher;
and Milton a truck driver. Emma married Louis Bockhaus, a lumber dealer; and Luella's |
husband, Will Lohmeyer, was a wheat farmer in Kansas. Of the six Stein children, Emma!
86, William 82, and Arthur 80 are still living.
Conrad, a farmer at Arley and fifth child of the Conrad Hessels, married Drucilla :
Bertha Weber in 1886. They had five children. Clarence, who married Elsie Wilkerson, ,
was a farmer. He later had a funeral home in Keamey for about 12 years after which he
was @ carpenter in North Kansas City. He was 83 when he died in 1971. Etta married
Laurence W. C, Emig, a Methodist minister in Massachusetts; Marvin, who married
77 FREDERICK AND KATHARINE HESSEL FAMILY (1903)--Front row: Emelia 22, Frederick 47,°|
.- William 12, Katharine 45, and Olin 14. Top row: Milton 16, Lulu 20, and Albert 18.
Elmer and Estella died in infancy, ~~ . ‘
aig

[page 113]
/ Fred Hessel, John Lindau, Lulu Lindau, William R. Hesse
s
a
Hessel--4
Marguerite Mitchell, had a funeral establishment in Liberty and later was with a
furniture store in Kansas City: and Bertram, who married Winifred Middleton, had a
farm at Arley. Of the five children, only Etta, 83, survives, and of the in-laws Mrs.
Conrad Hessels, a farmer at Arley, married Louise Matilda Smith. They had two child-
ren, Anna and Elmer, who continued to Ilve at the home after their parents died. Elmer
died in 1972. Louis died in 1947 and Louise in 1952. Two of the Conrad Hessel daughters
married brothers--Elizabeth to Otto Weber at Arley and Christine to Philip F. Weber of
Edwardsville, Illinois. These two families are in the Wéber family history and tree.
Jacob Hessel, brother of Conrad, was 3] in 1855 when he married Mrs. Mary Bauman,
29, of the Line Creek community near Parkville, Missouri. Her husband, Peter, had
died a year or so earller, and their son, Fred, was one year old when Mary married
Jacob. Mary's maiden name was Moeller and old church records give her first and
middle names as Maria Amalia. Jacob and Mary had seven children, three of whom
never married--William and Carolina who Hved in Denver until they died in the mid-
1920s, and Jacob, Jr., who was 25 when he died in 1883. Their son Edward, a farmer
at Arley, married Ida Stroeter in 1891, and they had six children. Leonora, the oldest,
taught in high schools and college for about 25 years before she was married in 1940.
Bernice, Grace, and Flora, retired and unmarried, llve in Kansas City, Missouri.
Bernice did some teaching! she and Grace were employed by Kansas City business firms.
AT THE FRED HESSEL HOME (1912 or 1913)--Front row: DeWayne Nolting, Herbert
Kammeyer, Mrs. Henry Irminger (Aunt Franie), Orin Nolting, Willow Nolting. Se-
cond row: Albert Hessel, Mrs. Julius Kammeyer, Mrs. Joseph L. Rea, Mrs. Con-
rad Hessel, R. H. Weber, Mrs. Fred Hessel, Mrs. John Lindau, Mrs. Henry Miller,
and Lawrence Shannon. Top row: Anna Irminger, Mrs. Albert Hessel, Ben F. Neudeck,
-Lydia Hessel (partly hidden), Lulu Hessel, Marguerite Mitchell, Marvin Hessel,
Mrs. Edward Nolting, Edward Nolting, Mrs. R. H. Weber, Lorenzo Lindau, Ed. Stein,
and Conrad Hessel.
This gathering honored six daughters and one son of the Samuel Webers (second sow).
ra

[page 114]
1
Hessel--5
Flora taught music and business in high schools in Missouri, Oklahoma, and Kansas
for 40 years. Mabel married Everett Smith who was a farmer and later worked in the
Veterans Hospital in Kansas City. The only son of the Edward Hessels, Floyd, a
farmer who lives in the home place near Arley, married Eunice, daughter of John Tuschhe |
4 minister,
Louis J. Hessel, another son of the Ja-
cob Hessels, was a Methodist minister.
His first wife, Emma Martha Irminger, was
a daughter of Henry and Verana Irminger at
the Bluffs. They had seven children. Wil-
liam Joyce was a Methodist minister in
Chicago for many years, and Edwin a Meth-
odist minister in South Dakota. Sylvia
Marie was a nurse at Cook County Hospital
in Chicago and at Leeds Hospital in Kansas
City. Louis and David were farmers near
Oklahoma City. Drucilla lived at home and
Emma Lydia lived with the Fred Hessels at
Arley. She was a teacher until her marriage
in 1926 to Lowell W. Howard, a teacher in
the Colorado school system. Mrs. Louis J.
Hessel died in 1904 at age 39, and in late
1905 Louis married Flora Ramseier, age 20.
They had 12-children. Herman died at age
2 and Alvin 4t 20. Lillian, unmarried, died when she was 43. The nine remaining
children married, and only Otto has died. No information about their occupations is
available. Revererid Louis J]. Hessel was 72 when he died in 1934 and his second wife, |
Flora, was 77 when she died in 1962. (continued on page 16)
EDWARD AND IDA HESSEL FAMILY (c.1902):
Ida,38, holding Grace 7; Leonora 10; Ed-
ward 42, holding Mabel 4, and Bermice 8. |
Floyd was born in 1903 and Flora 1906.
. : pe
. Mary Hessel 1865-1921 . Mary Albright 1868-1951
a Henry G. Hincken 1862-1927 Henry Hessel 1867-1958
328 Wedding picture 1892 “ Wedding pictire 1896

[page 115]
THE HESSEL FAMILY TREE 1821-1972
Includes 538 descendants and in-laws of whom 77 have died. Names of the
children of Conrad and Jacob who married are capitalized and underlined, and the
names of their grandchildren who married are underlined. Unmarried family mem-
bers are designated (S). For explanation of the scope and arrangement of the family
tree see the report entitled “Descendants of Six German-Swiss Families", p.17.
CONRAD HESSEL 2-7-1821 d.10~27-189 Mark Lee 7-28-53
Gottliebin Heinz 4-ll~1830 d.1-15-1900 Donald Gene H-20-55
Married June 14, 1855
Frederick 4-29-1856 Dorine Kathryn Hessel 17-17
Kathryn 7-7-1857 Richard Lee Sanders 12-16-16
Mary 11-29-1859 d.in infancy { Married December 23, 1942
Elizabeth 12-17-1860 Richard Gary 7-7-45 (S)
Conrad 8-21-1862 Pricilla Dee 9-3-48 (8)
Louis 5-31-1864 Kenton Lee 1212-58
Barbara 5-10-1866 d.1-1950
Chri stine 10-6~-1869 Vivian Barbara Hessel 8-30-18
Lydia ¢.1870 d.in infancy | Florestan Earl! Shull 5-16-16
| Married September 27, 1941
JACOB HESSEL 2-15-1824 David Earl 2-28-46
(for descendants of Jacob and Mary, p. 1) Thomas Rex 11-27-49
Carole Susan 2-27-53
FREDERICK HESSEL 4-29-1856 d.3-7-31
Katharine F. Weber 5-12-1858 d.5-9-47 | David Earl Shull 2-28-46
Married September 30, 1880 Edna Louise Hays 10-15-46
Emelia Pearl - 8+18~1881 Married May 3, 1969
Inlu Susan 6~11-1883 .
Albert Leslie 4-4-1885 Thomas Rex Shull 11-27~49
Milton Samuel 2-25-1887 Rebecca Ann Brownlee 5-26-51
Olin John - ~ J=1}-1889 Married August 15, 1971
William Rudolph. 8-4-1891 * 1895
Elmer Wesley 5-22-1894 d.-3-/ | Carole Susan Shull 2-27-53
Estella Lydia 6-22-1897 d.7-21-01 Michel Boyd Hamilton (7~1-53
Married February 27, 1972
Emelia Pearl Hessel 8-18-1881
(see Edw. Nolting in Nolting tree) Helen Grace Hessel 2-6-23
Joe E, Musgrave, Jr. 1-25-21
_. _-dttlu Susan Hessel 6-11-1883 Married July 5, 1941
(see Ben Neudeck in Neudeck tree) Pamela Jo 12~20-46
John L. 4-]-49
Albert Leslie Hessel 4-4-1885 d.H-30-65
Luella Claire Smith 10-20-1888 Pamela Jo Musgrave 12-20-46
Married December 6, 191] Jerry Frank Bowerman 1-20-45
, Marian Louise 8-18-15 Married August 26, 1967
Dorine Kathryn 1-17-17 Christi Dee - 10-1-70
. Vivian Barbara 8-30-18
/ Helen Grace ~ 2-26-23 John L. Musgrave 4~1-49
“ ; L Barbara Sue Able 9-25-47
Marian Louise Hessel 8-18-15 Married June 13, 1969 329
Elmer Lee Wilheim, Jr. 8-28-17 Halley Monica - 9-30-71
Married September 1, 1949 (continued)

[page 116]
Milton §. Hessel 2-25-1887 d.1l-18-54
Nettie Kathryn Zimmerman 9-21-1892
Married March 16, 1915
Dorothy Lucille 1-30-16
Virginia Lee 6-14-18
Betty Jean 4-18-20
Robert Frederick 1-39-24
Dorothy Lucille Hessel 11-30-16
Edward T. Brant , 4-28-14
Married July 12, 194!
Jerome Edward 12-]-46
Joan Lorraine 7-17-49
Jerome Edward Brant 12~1-46
Colleen Kay Barnhart 2-25-50
Married June 14, 1969
Joan Lorraine Brant 7-17-49
Christopher Sherman Kelly 4-7 —47
Married August 7, 1971
Virginia Lee Hessel 6-14-18
Edward W. Stevenson 12-22-13
Married November 19, 1942
John Edward 10-24-47
Suzan Kay 3-31-50
John Edward Stevenson 10-24-47
Jeanne Louise VanZant 9-15-47
Married September 6,_1969
Julie Lynne 2-27-72
Betty Jean Hessel 4-18-20
Russell Francis Symes 3-12-17
Married August 14, 1948
Cary Allan 2-28-51
Robert Frederick Hessel 1-9-24
-Jane Ramsey , 1-7-25
Married September 16 1944
Carolyn Lee 1-30-48
Steven Ramsey 12-8-51
Carolyn Lee Hessel 1-30-48
Michael Derouin
Married Jamary 24, 1970
330
Hessel--7
Olin John Hessel 1-11-1889
Marguerite Bricker 10-9-1895
Married June 30, 1914
Sylvia Jean 5-16-15
Olin John, Jr. 9-24-17
Harriett Katherine 3~16-20
Frederick Paul 12~28-25
Sylvia Jean Hessel 5-16-15
Evan K, Shaw 3-22-09
Married April 28, 1936
Sandra 12-30-37
Melinda 1-23-40
Susan 2-3-43 (S)
Evan Kenneth, Jr. 6-13-48 (8S) |
Sandra Shaw 12-30-37
Harold V. Allen 1247-31
Married June 30, 1957
Marguerite Jean 5-7-60
Gerald Evan 11-30-61
Robert Alva 5-12-64 twin |
John Harold 5-12-64 twin |
Melinda Shaw 1-23-40
Kenneth E. Avery 11-7-36
Married December 27, 1959
Kenneth Eugene, Jr. 12-20-60 i
Suzanne 12-27-63 |
Olin John Hessel, Jr. 9-24-17
Helen McNabb 6-12-17
Married March 25, 1950
Olin John III - 8-3-51
Robert Hoy 2-28-53 |
Harriett Katherine Hessel 3-16-20 i
Carl]. Ghormmley 12-18-18 |
Married September 11, 1941
Carl Justus, Jr.. H-29-42
Marguerite 9-14~47
John Miles 4-25-52
Thomas Bricker. 8-15-53 i
1
Marguerite Ghormley 9-14-47
Thomas John LePley 5-4-4]
Married August 31, 1969

[page 117]
_ “K KATHRYN HESSEL
2
Frederick Paul Hessel 12-28-25
Mary Jo Gill 5-25-24
Married February 14, 1952
Frederick Paul, Jr. 10-15-53
Ann Patrice 3-14-55
William Rudolph Hessel 8-4
Anita Schroeder
Married June 28, 1921
Eleanor Louise
10-3-1896
N-28-23 d, 2-14-25
Miriam Elaine 3-19-26
Martha Elizabeth 6-23-28
William Frederick 3~4-34
Miriam Elaine Hessel 3-19-26
John Ramon Slivins 3-30-16
Married September 4, 1955, later div.
Christopher Robert 9-30-57
2.Bernard H. Stark 8-13-26 d. 1969
Married December 22, 1963
(Christopher's surname changed to Stark)
Martha Elizabeth Hessel 6-23~28
William L. Morrison 11~3-28
Married May 3, 1958
Tanya 7-12-60
Kim 8-13-62
Melanie 12-19-66
William Frederick Hessel 3~4-34
Eleanor Rea Mulley
Married Jatiuary 15, 1967
David Bruce 12-27-68
7~7-1857 d.3-15-04
William H. Stein 9-26-1851 d.8-2-38
Married April 29, 1880
‘Edward Frederick 3-7-1882
* Emma Barbara 9-23-1884
., Mary -22-1886 d.9-30-1886
‘Luella Christine” ‘ 2-11-1888 —
William Conrad 3-6-1890
Arthur Louis 4~26-1892
Wesley J. 12-5-1893 d.4~28-1894
Milton August 8-22-1897
3-7-1882 d.12-16-28
. 10-22-1882
Edward F. Stein -
“Marie F. Oltmanns
/ Married March 18, 1915
Margaret Katherine 3-16-16 d. 3- -3~ 23
(continued) “
i
Hessel--8
Virginia Ruth 8-19-17 d.9~27~-30
Wesley Edward 6-26-21
Barbara Jean 1~28-26
Wesley Edward Stein 6-26-21
1,Mildred Loreen Mathews 2-3-20
-1891 d.10-l1-6]} Married March 11, 1940, div, 1953
Carol Loreen 10-Il~4]
Greggory Edward 4-22-43 (8)
2.Marietta Trimble 10-18-32
Married August 3, 1954
Alan Brent 7~6-55
Julie Lynn 5-30-57
Carol Loreen Stein 10-H-4)
Clinton Smith
Married (date unknown)
Bill Clinton 10-24-67
Barbara Jean Stein 1-28-26
Edward William Rose 7-30-15
Married April 15, 1948
Janet Sue 3-2-51
Patricia Jean §-23-53
Scott Edward 10-6-59
Keith William 12~18-62
Emma Barbara Stein 9-23-1884
Louis B. Bockhaus 10-23-1887 d,10-27-61
Married April 19, 1911
__ Ralph Lawrence 12-9~12
Francis L. g-l1-17
Virgil W. 4-26~29
Ralph L. Bockhaus 129-124
Mary J. Behil
Married September ll, 1935
Phyllis Ann 3-18-37
Shirley Jeanne 8-9-42
Richard Lee 4-446 (5)
Larry Alan 3-8-54
Phyllis Ann Bockhaus 3-18-37
Robert Butts 10-1925 d.3-2-65
Married December 18, 1960
Barbara Ann _ 3-22-62
E. Robert 7-5-63
John L. 11-8-64
Shirley Jeanne Bockhaus 8-9-42
Donald Tomberlin : 1-27-39 4°
{continued on next page) 331

[page 118]
ae
Hessel~-9
(cont. from previous page) Mildred Cleo Stein 3-12-20
Marteéd Marth 31, 1961 ; Eugene Bonham 1-9-15
Shelly Dawn 11-20-62 Married September 17, 1946
David Scott 6-3-67 Anita Marie 6-27-49
Michael James 2-28-68 David Ray 12-16-51
Marilyn Jean 1-31-57
Francis L. Bockhaus 8=11-17
Lucy P. Rash 8-11-18 Anita Marie Bonham 6-27-49
Married December 7, 1947 George Meyers §-5-48
Married August 30, 1969
Virgil W. Bockhaus 4-26-29
Mavis P. Chart 2-6-37 Audrey Marie Stein 5-23-22
Married c. July, 1955 l.John W. Thacker 7~18-22
April Dawn 7-14-56 Married June 6, 1944, div. later
Alan William 2-23-58 2.Joseph Feisthammel
Married April 16, 1971
Luella Christine Stein 2-11-1888 d.10-23-7
332 Eloise Anita 1-7-25 (continued on next page)
Will Lohmeyer 9-18-1884 d,10-12-52 Eloise Anita Stein 1-7-25
Married March 8, 1811 . 1. Donald F. Smith 8-11-22
Carl William le7-15 Married June 15, 1947, div. later —
Marvin Edward 3-14-17 Victoria Lee 5-2~48
Clarence Eugene 10-17-22 Daniel Kirk 9-19-49 (S)
: ; . Judith Kay 1-16-51
Carl William Lohmeyer 11-7-~15 Rhonda Lynn 11-15-53 J 4
Nerine Kinser Donna Joan 2-2-56 :
Married March, 1937 Kevin James 6-23-57 :
William James 8-24-39 Brian Douglas 12-5-58 )4
Marvin Arthur . - li-12-44 (8) Tamara Lorene’ : 3-25-60 |
2.Adam Ristad ;
William James Lohmeyer 8-24-39 Married in 1966 ;
Patricia Thomas 12-35-39 i
Married Jutie; 1955 ~~ ; Victoria Lee Smith 5~2-48
Terri Lynn 12-5-56 John Peterson
Michael David 12-31-57: Married August 19, 1971
Susan Denise 12-25-59
James Winston 1-10-65 Arthur Louis Stein 4-26-1892
1. Mabel Wright 4-26-1893 d.5-1960
Marvin Edward Lohmeyer 3-14-17 d.6-21-44| Married August 22, 1917
Wilma Tonn 10-27-26 Patricia Joanne 5-5-31 adopted |
~: --Married (date unknown) Constance Luella 6-10-35 adopter.
; 2.Lena Normhausser 5-28-97
Clarence E, Lohmeyer 10-17-22 Married March, 1961
Barbara Rees 2-15-32 ;
Married (date unknown) Patricia J. Stein 5-5-+31
1.Joe B. Meyer 1-22-31
William Conrad Stein 3-6-1890 Married December 16, 1950, div. later
Emilie (Millie) Oltmanns 2-10-1890 Pamela Sue 5-6-52
_ Married July ll, 1917 Cynthia Lynn 9-29-54
Mildred Cleo 3-12-20 ; (surnames to Bowling in 1962) |
Audrey Marie~ 5-23-22 - 2.Edwin C. Bowling . = 1-13-32

[page 119]
(continued from previous page)
Married May 5, 1962
Edwin F. 9-16-62
Lori Ann 1-20~65
Constance Luella Stein 6-10-35
William Dean Roller 4-4-30
Married June 20, 1954
Bradford Dean 8-2-56
Milton August Stein 8-22-1897 d.6-18-60
Gladys (surname unknown)
Married (date unknown)
ELIZABETH HESSEL 12-17-1860
(see Otto Weber in Weber family tree)
CONRAD HESSEL 8-21-1862 d.6-6-36
! Phyllis Lynn Hessel
: Arthur Robertson
Hessel--1i0
9-§-51
1-26-49
Married December 28, 1971
Barbara Ann Hessel
Edward Maxwell Vancil
Married October 27, 1951
Susan Marie
Beth Ann
Etta Barbara Hessel
12-13-1889
Laurence Wm. GC. Emig 3-31-1882 d.12~6-70
Married August 29, 1912
Katharine Mary
Barbara Ruth
Donald Wesley
Laurence Wilson C.
1.Drucilla B. Weber 7-23-1868 d.3-21-1896| Barbara Ruth Emig
James Bradford Rendle, Jr. 10-17-15
Married December 30, 1886
Clarence W. ll-1-1887
Etta Barbara 12-13-1889
Marvin Louis 7-14-1831
Emma C, 7~25-1894 d.6-1896
Bertram Conrad 3-1-1896 -4)
2.Elizabeth Weber Hartel 7-20-1860d 1-11/
Married November 10, 1898
Clarence W. Hessel 1-1-1887 d.5-2-71
Elsie Wilkerson 12-11-1898
Married October 4, 1922
Clarence, Jr. ~- 10-1-23
Mary Jane 7~11-26
Barbara Ann 2-10~28
Clarence (Dutch) Hessel,Jr. 10-i-23
Elma Corrine Shelton 4-4-2]
Married April 9, 1949
Laura Diane 9-6-5]
Janet Lyn li~b9-63
“Scott Weber ae i-30-61
Mary Jane Hessel 7-1i-26
Lawrence Carpenter Ford 6-9-25
Married October 20, 1947
_ Dolores Jeanne 1-20-49 (5)
Phyllis Lynn 9-5-51
Dorothy June . 3-22-57
Nancy Ann 3-7-60
David Lawrence 11-11-61
Janice Lee ’ 7-12-67 ~
Married April 14, 1942
Cheryl Lee
. James Bradford ,T
Cheryl Lee Rendle
Russell Benson
Married June 26, 1971
Donald Wesley Emig _
Elizabeth C. John
6-28-15 (S)
10-6~18
10-5-20
4-10-25
10-6~-18
5-16-45
3-24-53
5-16-45
4-7-44
10-5-20
3-4-22
Married September 4, 1943
Leslie Anne
John Laurence
Peter Wilson
Laurence W. C. Emig
Irene Walton
j-27-45 (S)
2-7-47 (8)
4-15-51
4-10-25 d.W-22-50
Married December 20, 1948
Marvin Louis Hessel
Marguerite Mitchell
7-14-1891 d. 1962
Married January 14, 1915
Bertram C. Hessel
Winifred Middleton
Married July 31, 1919
Howard Conrad
Nancy Nell
3-1-1896 d.6-27-33
7-25-1897 d.6~15-67
4-23-23
6-4-26
333

[page 120]
, Hessel-~]]
Howard Conrad Hessel 4-23-23 Mabe! Louise Hessel 11-26-1898
Betty Eileen Valdez 7-5-28 Everett E, Smith  10-1-1893 d.ll-15-63
Married February 14, 1950 Married November 3, 1923
David Conrad 3-29-56 Beth Elaine 71-26
Nancy Ann H-13-58 Ivalee Anna 11-22-30
Susan Elizabeth 8-21-60 Sylvia Louise 6~14-35
Michael William 8-6-63 Bernita Efleen 1-23-39
Nancy Nell Hessel 6-4~26 Beth Elaine Smith 7-126
Paul Chambers 7-16-21 Ruby D, Garrett, Jr. 125-16
Married August 23, 1948 Married November 1, 1952
Paula 5-21-53 adopted
Jule 4-12-58 Ivalee Anna Smith 11-22-30
Anne 8~21~61 Edward Yashinsky 6-20-31
Married January 9, 1954
LOUIS HESSEL 5-31-1864 d.12-18-47 Mark Edward §-5-58
Laura Matilda Smith 9-1-1873 d.12~31-52
Married June 16, 1898 Sylvia Louise Smith ; 6-14-35
Anna Gottliebe 8-30-1899 (5) Bruce Wallace Keller 1-16-35
Elmer Louis 7-13-02 d.12-9-72 Married June 22, 1957
t Bradley Wallace 2-20-59
CHRISTINE HESSEL 10-6-1869 Randal Scott 7-15-62
(see Philip F. Weber in Weber tree)
Berita Eileen Smith 1-23-39
RRARARAREA EERE EKER James Elmore Silvers 8-31-37
Married May 31, 1959
JACOB HESSEL 2-15-1824 d,8-12-1881 ! Donald James §-26-62
Mary Bauman 9-30-1826 d.2-1907 Steven Scott 4-18-64
Married October 16, 1855 7 ;
Willam 9-15-1856  d.2-1925 (8) Floyd William Hessel 2-7-03
Jacob, Jr. 4-27-1858 d.9-15-1883 (S) | Eunice Lorene Tuschhoff 1-12-10
Edward... 4-3-1860 | Married May 12, 1935
Louis J. 1-1-1862 - i Carol Sue 6~4-36
Carolina 12-5-1863 d,1924 (S) i Mary Lue 8-39-37
Mary 2-14-1865 H Elizabeth Ann 2-H-40
Henry 7-29-1867 | John Edward 7-15-43
i Floyd William, Jr. 4-10-50
EDWARD HESSEL 4-3-1860 d.3-15-31 Edward Lind 9-28-54
Ida C. Stroeter 1-18-1864 d.7~14-55
_ Married January 29, 1891 Carol Sue Hessel 6-4-36
, “Leomora Mae =“ 1-29-1892 Emery Schattinger | 4-30-40
Bernice Emily 7-1-1894 (8) Married June 12, 1965
Grace Elizabeth 9-2-1896 (S) Walter Wade 2-26-67
Mabel Louise 1-26-1898 Shane Adair — 9-13-68
Floyd William 2~7-03 Clay Emery H-28-69
, Flora Amelia 8-4-06 (S) :
. Mary Lue Hessel 8-93-37
Leonora Mae Hessel 1-29-1892 Don Allen Wallace 3-10-40 ;
,Herman Jacob Kloepfer 2-12-1898 Married October 7, 1961
“ Married August 1, 1940 Stephen William 7-2-63 d.7-8-63 |
334 nd , Scott Allen 6-18-64
Sheila Ann : 5-12-65

[page 121]
Married May, 1940
Elizabeth Ann Hessel 2-11-40
Donald Ray Ivy l-1-49
Married June 9, 1962
Bryan Keith 2-24-63
Bradley William 6-15-67
John Edward Hessel 7—15-43
Kathleen Ellen Nutt 7 -14—48
Married June 13, 1970
LOUIS J. HESSEL
1-1-1862 d.9-2
1, Emma M, Irminger 5-7-1865 d.3-4-04
Married August, 1887
(see pagelyfor second marriage)
Ruth Drucilla
William Joyce 8-1-1891
Sylvia Marie 4-5-1893
Louis Henry 7-17 ~ 1894
Emma Lydia 10-17-1895
Edwin Oscar 2-4-1897
David D. 9~22-1898
Wm. Joyce Hessel 8-1-1891 d.1-23-
1. Lydia Schoffler 9-11-1889 -d. 2-1
Married July 1, 1914
Joyce L. - 9-16-15
Borden 8-ll-17
2.Bessie Horn
Married December 31, 1934
Joyce L. Hessel 9-16-15
Sally Winter _ 4-3~-17
Married March 27, 1940
Carolin 12-8-4]
Barbara 11-2-46 -
Carolin Hessel 12-B8-4]
David’ Easterly Moore
Married September 5, 1964
Sara Ann 4-11-68
a ~Brettany -, 8-4-7]
Barbara Hessel 11-2-46
Barry Blackman
Married August 30, 1969
Borden Hessel
Ethel Laird
5-194]
1943
Lydia Patricice
Bordenia ’
6~15-1890 d,8-16-57(S)
7~30-01 d.6-1960
8-11-17 d.7-14-
we (continued on next page)
Hessel--12
(continued)
Borden 1945
Judy 8-19.46
(further data unavailable)
Sylvia M, Hessel 4-5-1893 d.12-6-56
Minor C. Gerard 1886 d.1969
Married (date unknown)
Louis Henry Hessel 7-17-1894
6-34 Anna E. Nabor 7-21-1900.
Married November 15, 1917
Evelyn Marie 1-19-19
Darold Hardy 1-15-20
Ruby Mae 9-25-22
Lenore Louise 3~15-~30
Albert Henry 1-28-32
Evelyn Marie Hessel 1-19-19
William Harry Simpson 7-14-21
Matiiliem Hoty 1 WAT 12-48 (8)
Daniel 3-7-51
60 Larry 1-10-55
5-19.
Darold Hardy Hessel U-J5-20 d.5-ll-70
Mary E, Orr 3-1-22
Married May 13, 1939 .
Michael Edward 2-27-40
Judith Ann 2-8-42
Shirley Dell 10-18-43
Kerry Susan 7-18-50
Kelly Darold l-29-51
Michael Edward Hessel 2-27-40.
1. Frances Bernadette Swain 10-5-42
Married April, 1961, div. 1-1970
Dawn Marie 4~19-62
David Marshall 6-30-63
Darold Michael 12-29-64
2.Judith Mosselman 10~21-46
Married November, 27, 1971
Judith Ann Hessel 2-8+42
Gary Johnson Crowell k 7-41
Married December 23, 196]
Christopher Hessel 8-4-64
58 Amy Elizabeth 4-29-68
Shirley Dell Hessel © 10-18-43
1.Albert William Silvers 2~20-42
335

[page 122]
(continued from preceding page)
Married June 13, 1961, div. 1966
Randall William 6-3-62
Barbara Lee L-27-63
Stephen Patrick 12-11-65
2.Robert Waller 9-25-25
Married July 26, 1967, Div, 11-1971
Robert Derek 9~20-67
Mary Elizabeth 5-22-70
3.Robert Trujillo 4-20-43
Married February 18, 1972
Kerry Susan Hessel 7-18-50
Vince Elliot Harris 5-9-4939
Married August 30, 1969 :
Kelly Darold Hessel 11-29-51
Cheryl Lynn Thomas 7-5 -53
Married June 13, 1970 —
Ruby Mae Hessel 9-25-22
Melvin Barstow 1~27-19
Married April 20, 1944
Barbara Ann 7-21-48
James Douglas 6-2-50
Lenore Louise Hessel 3-15-30
John Dewey Hall... §~8-28
Married April 2, 1950
Sandy Kaye 5-11-51
Gregory James 7-14-57
Sandy Kaye Hall 5-li-51
Jerry Crawford §-12-50
Married September 21, 1971
Albert Henry Hessel 1-28-32
Esther Luckis 12-25-30
Married November 21, 1952 :
_. Mary Sue 3-31-54
“ Cantlice Kaye ~~ 4-5-56
Peggy Kathleen 4-4.58
Emma Lydia Hessel 10-17-1895
Lowell W. Howard — 4-2-1900
Married May 26, 1926
Gloria 11-1927 stillborn
Roberta Lou 10-27-29
Lowell W., Jr. 10-10-34
336 “ . -
Hessel--13
Roberta Lou Howard 10-27-29
Jard A. DeVille
Married June, 1951
Jard Howard 515-52
Dorothy Louise -9-54
Jonathan 12-23-59
Lowell W. Howard, Jr. 10-10-34
Mary Bertholf
Married c. 1962, div. 1966
Lorri Leann H-9-63
Michael David 8-4-66
2-4-1897
Edwin Oscar Hessel
Hl
Mildred Alice Haussmann 9-30-10
Married June 21, 1934
Marlys Annette 6-9-38
Beth Audrey 6-22-42 (S)
Marlys Annette Hessel 6-9-38
Kenneth Lee Leiter 10-4-28
Married December 26, 1958
Stephen Christopher 12-24-53
Andrew Richard 10-8-63
David D. Hessel 9-22-1898
Cora Swanson 1-17-01
Married March 21, 1921
Dorothy Fern . 3-16-22
Helen Elnor 1-30-24 d.8~14-37,
Wesley Dee 6-1-28
Richard Lee 5-6-30 d.5-7-44
David Clyde 1-31-33
Mary Jane 8-15-36
John Lynn 10-21-38
Dorothy Fern Hessel 3-16~22
John L. Adams 10-9-2]
Married December 4, 1943
John Michael 5-11-49
David Patrick 11-5-52
John Michael Adams 5-11-49
Linda Johnson ~~ :
Married April 3, 1971
Wesley Dee Hessel 6-1-28
1-3-31
Ruby Dierksen
Married July 2, 1950
(continued on next page)

[page 123]
(continued from preceding page)
Helen Marie 6-26-52
Raymond 1-22-54
Sharon 1-15-56
Gary 10-29-58
Marvin 10-14-63
David Clyde Hessel 1-31-33
Cletha Jo York li-ll-33
Married June 3, 1954
Robin Ann 7-2-56
Susan Elane 11-5-58
Mary Jane Hessel 8-15-36
Robert Leland Stanford 1-19-36
, Married May 26, 1958
ia ; Gregory Dean 7-16-59
i. Stephen Hale 6-10-61
: Gena Gayle 12-18-64
: John Lynn Hessel 10-21-38
Delone Johnston 12-22-40
Married February 7, 1961
john Phillip
Ashley Ann
8-14-68
10-20-70
LOUIS J. HESSEL (first marriage p, 12 )
2.Flora M. Ramseier 7~14-1885 d. 8-15-62
Married September 28, 1905
Otto Paul 8-25-06
Herman Arthur 10-29-07 d.4-28-10
Ella Meta 7=20-09
Esther Minnie 5-28-11
Florence Bertha 10-29-12
Alvin Edward 9-9-14
Harold Fredrick 8-5-16
Lillian Evelyn 3-8-]8
Pearl Clara 4~23-19
Edna Elizabeth 5-7+%1
Henry Walter 3-30-23
“Clarence Conrad ‘H-7-27
8.4-13-35
d.5-10-6! (8)
Otto Paul Hessel 8-25-06 d.7-10-72
Cleo Morton 10-21-08
Married April 28, 1928
_ Lawrence Paul 1-9-29 d.in infancy
; Gene James 12-H-29 d.10-5~72(8)
‘g Alice Corrine 3-12-32
%, Rosemary $-2-33
, auline Dolores 1-19-37
“je “hur Ray 9-65-42
Ss
Alice Corrine Hessel
Martin Mathews, Jr.
Married April 27, 1950
Andrew Gene
Marilyn Gaye
Rosemary Hessel
Frederick Steven Flynn -
Married December ll, 195
Steven Michael
James Joseph
Pauline Dolores Hessel
David Nathaniel Haynes
Married November 1, 1952
David. Robert
Richard Gene
Arthur Ray Hessel
Vera
Hess@i-wist
3-12-32
10-14-26
10-8-48 adopted
1-13-52
§-2-33
4-2-24
Z
4-26-56
5-25-62
1-19-37
3-16-29
9-26-53
7-1-58
4-6-42
4-20-35
Married November 28, 1968
Ella Meta Hessel
Edward A. Meench
Married March 28, 1928
Florence Kathryn
Melvin Edward
Florence K. Meench
Elvin R. Goodrich
Married January 16, 1959
Mark
David
Denise
Melvin Edward Meench
Belva Jo Bowen
Married April 10, 1964
Kay Calverene
Michael Kent
Esther Minnie Hessel
Emest F. Frolich
Married August 14, 1937
Paulj.
Carolyn Ann
Norma Jean
Paul J. Frolich
Willa Mae Spiva
(continued on next page)
7-20-09.
414-1837
10-3-30
8-23-36
10+3-30
1-28-16
12-19-60
4-24-62
7-31-65
8-23-36
8-~1-45
2-3-65
4-13-67
5-28-11
12-28-09
W--41
3-30-43
8-13-47
H-H-41
4-11-44
337

[page 124]
Hessel--15;'
{continued from preceding page) Harold Fredrick Hessel 8-15-16
Married December 21, 1962 © Patricia Delozier 4422-32
Eden Charmayne 7-24-64 Married, 1955
Melodie Lorece 9-16-66 Harold Fredrick II 1-29-57
Eric Paul 10-17-68 Stephen Patrick 7-23-59
Carolyn Ann Frolich 3~+30~43 Pearl Clara Hessel 4-23-19
Ronald Oliver Collins 2-6-40 Walter G. Seebeck H-29-09
Married December Il, 1964 Married April 23, 1939
Ryan Dwane 9-12-65 Louise Faye 12-23-41
Celina Marie 11-15-66 Doris Lee 1-444
Alicia Gayle 8~23~70 Janele Elaine WW-3-53
Norma Jean Frolich © 8-13-47 Louise Faye Seebeck 12-23-41
Samuel J. Chestnut 5-1-48 Jerry L. Beasley . 2-26-42
Married May 6, 1966 Married June 26, 1964
Darla Sue 3~26-67 - Carole Renna 10-12-66
Angela Renee 8-27-68 Jana Michele 5-23-69
Florence Bertha Hessel 10-29-12 Doris Lee Seebeck 1-4-44
Clarence Car] Frolich 6-9-11 Robert J. Stahl 8-8-44
Married October 1, 1935 Married September 20, 1963
Bernice Jean 7-14-37 Karen Denise 12-15-64
Lucille Irene 6~9-41 Duane Lowen 4-6-67
Clyde Raymond 4-15-43
Donna Nadine 12-2-47 Edna Elizabeth Hessel 5-7-21
Ira Weldon Wade 10-3-14
Bernice Jean Frolich, 7-14-37 Married October 3, 1943
Gene Harris 3-12-38 Dennis Eugene 1-13-47 (8)
Married November 23, 1961 : Ira Weldon, Jr. ~ 9-6-48
Maton Gene 12-27-62 Janice Marie 5-10-51
~Pamela Lynn =~ 5-27-64 Allen LeRoy 10-25-55
Lucile Irene Frolich 6-9-4] Ira Weldon Wade, Jr. 9-6~-48
Leroy Walcher 9-24-41 Karen Haggard 10-19-50
Married October }, 1959 Married October 11, 1969
Lisa Carol 12-31-60 Ira Weldon III 2~25-71
Lori Ann 8-17-64
Janice Marie Wade 5-10-51
Clyde Raymond Frolich 4-15-43 Danny Meek 3-19-51
Roina Kay 10-11-43 : Married June 6, 1970 i
Married August 17, 1963
David Clyde 2-93-67 Henry Walter Hessel 3-30-23 :
Roma Renea 9-24-68 Lavora Belvin 9-17-25
Married January 24, 1947
Donna Nadine Frolich 122-47 Paula Jo 2-10-53
Gary Paul Ellis ll-2-47 :
‘Married May 13, 1968 Clarence Conrad Hessel -7-27
Gary Brian 8-16-69 Doria Alene Jones 1-22-27
Stacey Lynn 1-29-72 Married August 1, 1948
338 “ ° Linda Kathleen - 4-30-50
Charley Allen 9-28-52

[page 125]
Hessel--16
Linda Kathleen Hesse) 4-30-50 ' Married November ll, 1943
Wesley Lynn Tiliman Victor Eugene 12-28-44
Married January, 1970 Claude Henry 11-22-46
Tricia Neely 9-18-70
Victor Eugene Hessel 12-28-44
MARY HESSFEL 2-14-1865 d. 9-22-21 Linda Kay Shutt 9~14-44
Henry G. Hincken 12-6-1862 d.10~29-27 Married July 30, 1963
Married October 26, 1892 Victor Eugene, Jr. 3~28-64
Charles Michael 8-12-67
HENRY HESSEL 7-29-1867 d.4-8-58
Mary Albright 12-26-1868 d.6-7-51 Claude Henry Hessel 11-22-46
Married November li, 1896 Mary Ann Valente 2-12-48
Victor Elias 10-~4-1897 Married September 9, 1967
Selma Cleda 9~2-07 Tracey Michelle ll-7-69
Victor Elias Hessel 10-4~1897 d.10-9-70 Selma Cleda Hessel 9-2-07
Marianlu Chandler 4-18~12 Robert Lee Abnot 1~15-07
(continued) Married March 21, 1943
Mary Hessel, sixth child of the Jacob Hessels, was 27 in 1892 when she married
Henry Hincken, a farmer near Arley. They had no children, Mary died in 1921 and
Henry in 1927, Henry Hessel, seventh child of the Jacob Hessels, was a farmer near
Holt, Missouri. He married Mary Albright in 1896 and one of their two children, Victor,
was a prominent physican and surgeon in Los Angeles. Selma and her husband, Robert
Abnot, live in San Gabriel, California.
All of the children of Conrad and Jacob Hessel and their spouses have died. Of
the 40 grandchildren of Conrad and Gottliebin Hessel, 13 are still living and so are 24 —
of the 27 grandchildren of Jacob and Mary Hessel.
Longevity. Twelve members of the Hessel family lived to be 80 or more years old,
and nine others over 80 are still living. Those who have died: Mrs. Edward Hessel,
91; Henry Hessel, 90; Mrs. Fred Hessel, 89; Laurence W.C. Emig, 88; William H.
Stein, 87; Louis Hessel, 86; Luella Stein Lohmeyer, 84; Barbara Hessel and Clarence
W. Hessel,83; Mary Albright Hessel, 82; Albert L. Hessel and Elizabeth Weber Hessel,
80. The nine family members over 80 still living are Mrs. Edward F. Stein, 90; Emma
Stein Bockhaus, 88; Etta Hessel Emig and OlinJ. Hessel, 83; William C. and Emilie
Stein, 82; and Mrs, Milton Hessel, Leonora Hessel Kioepfer, and Arthus L, Stein, 80.
Six Hessel couples lived to celebrate 50 or more wedding anniversaries: Etta and
.. . Laurence W.C. Emig, 58; Albert and Luella Hessel, 54; Henry and Mary Hessel, 53:
Louis and Laura Matilda Hessel, 52; and Fred and Katharine Hessel, and Emma and
Louis Bockhaus, 50. Among the couples still living, Olin]. and Marguerite Hessel
have celebrated their 58th anniversary and William C. and Emelie Stein their 55th.
RKEEKRERERERESE
Additional copies of this report may be obtained from Orin F, Nolting,
6601 Blue Jacket Avenue, Shawnee, Kansas 66203.
Copyright 1973 by Orin F. Nolting
All rights reserved. No part of this family history may be reproduced 339
in any form without the specific permission of the copyright owner.

[page 126]
. ' Heges]—~17
Our Heritage
The two poems below express the philosophy of our ancestors, and perhaps should
have been included in the general history covering all six families, or in the Weber
family history, The poem entitled "Life® was written by my grandmother, Mrs. Fred ;
Hessel, probably in the early 1920s. Her brother, bouis Weber, is author of "Memories
of Homs* written two years before he died.--0.F.N. .
LIFE
Our life is like a shador, Could we have & bright and smiling face
Which soon will pass away} And a kind word for everyone;
Or we may say a journey, Not mention the faults of others;
We came not here to stay. But think what have I done.
Some lives are very, very short. | To make this world grow better
And some we think quite long; To drive away the gloom,
So many are full sOrron, And lend a kind and helping hand
But few are filled with song. At morning, night, and noon.
We were put here for a purpose If we see a sister or brother
There is work for everyone. In need or in despair,
But if we stand back idly Let us quickly go and help them
Our work will be left undone, And if need be give clothes to wear.
Before we leave our room edch morning Let's tell them how Jesus loves them
Let us not forget to pray. And wants them to be good, |
And ask the Lord to bless us . These very words may touch their heart
' And lead us through the day. And cause them to turn to the Lord.
That we may be a blessing Now, if we would be happy,
As on through life we go. Let this our motto be--
Knowing that we shall also reap Forget ourselves and live for others
Whatsoever seed we sow. . And God's glory we shall see.
Le -——lirs, Fred Hessel
.MEMORIES OF HOME. “6
My Home, Sweet Home,-near Liberty, _ . ’ Again "tis eighteen sixty-three,
Will always be most dear to me, : - * 2 Tenter good od W. 5. C.
Near eighty years have passed away -.. ' Ht stands supreme on college hill,
Since first I saw the light of day; ' ; « The pride of Liberty ’tis still. —
Oft in my dreams has come the joy . vi J teach again the Nebo school
Of being just a farmer’s boy. - ’ And give my pupils just one rule— -
J hear agsin the whippoorwill, . "Tis this: “Be good and do,what’s right,
He sweetly sings just o’er the hill; : And learn your tasks with all your might.”
The katydid, with voice so clear, . . I kneel beside that old arm chair’ !
Proclaims aloud that summer’s near. ~ And lisp with joy my evening prayer;
‘Out on an oak there sits anowl; - . * "Phere comes to me, and O, what bliss,
. .--Jdust now I hear his mighty howl. ; _. The joy of my dear mother’s kiss; ° |
Her eyes grew dim—one summer day
Thé cricKet cricks, the Skeeter sticks,
She said “Goodbye” and passed away.
This makes me feel like throwing bricks. .
Just overhead the flying bats - : Beneath the sod she sweetly sleeps,
Are catching unsuspecting gnats. .  ~ : Where evening star its vigil keeps. | ,
J take my trusty, faithful gun . to . ‘And when at last J cross the bar, . ‘
And shoot some rabbits on the run; I hope that from some heights afar,
I stand again with line and hook : Perhaps from heaven’s celestial dome, a
Down by the murmuring, crystal brook; Pll view again my Home, Sweet Home. :
With one well planned and dexterous swish’). se . :
> Tjerk my line and catch my fish. - xan City, Kas, 2. bonis We
._ I hoe the beans and ploug! ecom. «7 r . i
: < And listen for the dinner horn. aan : The Liberty Tribune, Mey, 19 a
me et
7 REG R REESE
Missing data, edditions, and corrections in the Heasel "tree® may be reported to |
Mrs. Edward T. Brant, 627 Migesissippi, liberty, Missourt 61068, or to Mise Flora Hessz!
9090 Grand Averue. Ksdeiman flter. Miarsoes ALI
340

[page 127]
i
i
INDEX
A
ASTATIC PROPERTY, 291,292 ,296,297
BACKHAUS,
CATHRINA,3,12
DORA,3,10,18
HENRY & DORTHEA,1,3,9,24
HENRY (Jr),3,11,19,31,33
MARY,3,14,73
BANK,1lst. Natl. La JARA,174,175,183
BAUM,4,78
GRAVES ,91-94
BEAM, J.W.153,172,202,203
BEAR TREE, Cat Creek,283
BOCKHAUS
ALBERT ,74,77,84,85
ART,4,76
BEN,74,79
BILL,74,77,1637167
FRANCES,74,77(see also Penner)
GRAVES, 86-89
LOUIS B.,77,80,95,96,97First House,i29,Land N. of M.V.
128,131,132,134
LOUIS B checking timber NM,256,266,268
LOUIS B fifty yr. aniv. 268
LOUIS B final years, 268,269,270,271
WALTER ,76,77,83
WILLTAM H 3,17,18,19,73
BOCKHOUS
ERVIN,1,25,26,27
FRED & FRIEDA,1,15,16,24
FREDDIE,1,25,26
MILTON,1,25,26
NETTIE,1,6,26,28,79
BOSHART, LESTER,3,8,
BRUSH CAR,152
CHURCH
METHODIST, DORCHESTER ,2,5,30
CORNWALL MIN. 225,249, 250,255,256, 257,258,259, 260,261,263,
266,290 _
CHRISTMAS TREES 189,266,267
341

[page 128]
INDEX - continued
DULITZ
ADOLPH,1,3,12,29
CATHRINA, 1,29
DEHNING,5,22
DARLEY
WARD, 126
WILLIAM M,195,204,205,249
E
EISENHOWER(President),299
F
FALK
EMILIE,3,32
ERNST, 34
MINNTIE,130
WILLIAM, 34,35
FORD TRUCK(model T),190,193
. FLUME(above Del Norte) ,276,278
G
GALL, WALLY ,277
GERMANY
BARUM,3,7
DIRSBUTTEL,5,7
GRANT CAR,193,194
GREGORY, J.B. 276,277,278,279
HALSTEAD, KS,4,73,81
HESSEL, information,301-328
FAMILY TREE,329-340
HORSES
FRANK, 208
MAGGIE & MARK,247,250,262,263
OLD DAN,203,208
IOWA
DORCHESTER, 1,5,20,21,22
DORCHESTER, CEMETARY, 23
LeMARS,1
342

[page 129]
INDEX ~ continued
J.
JASPER
CABIN, 283
MINE ,188
PROPERTY, 288,289
JOHNSON, CHARLEY, 207,214,220
K
KUMPH, EDNA,2
LADDIE, 204,205,206, 208
LILLY POND(BAM) ,159,160,161
LOHMEYER
CARL,98,
CLARENCE, 98
MARVIN, 98
WILLIAM, 98,181,182
LUJAN, ELLIS,153,158,188
MAXWELL. CAR, 169,176,187
MEXICO TRIP,219
MINING CLAIMS,225
MONTE VISTA
HOME PLACE,196,197,225
LUMBER YARD,226,228,241
REALITY,125,133
SUGAR FACTORY ,126,127,135,136,137
N
NAZARINE CHURCH(PAUL COBB) ,287
P
PARKSTON,SD,51
PASS ME BY MINE PROPERTY ,293,294,298
PENNER
FRANCES ,5,80,91
FRANCES( ARTICLE) ,52-72
PHILLIPS UNIVERSITY,285
343-

[page 130]
INDEX - continued
‘SAWMILLS
ARBOLES, 248
DEL NORTE, 215
* JASPER, (Francis) 250
JASPER, (1951-1952) 250,252,253,254
PAGOSA SPRINGS, 226,227,230,238,240,242,244,247
PASS ME BY MINE AREA, 247,249,252,256,262,265
TERRACE RES* .,188-192,195,197,198,202,208, 209,210,211
STUNNER, 215,218,2207224,230,237,238,242,243,246,287
WORL RANCH, 207,212,213
SCHOOL DIST. #18,169,177,186
SMITH, ELWOOD,277,280
SOUTH DAKOTA HOMESTEAD,4,36750
STEIN
ART,99
BILL,98
EMMA ,98,102
FAMILY ,103,104
GENEOLOGY ,111-124
GRAVES ,106-110
KATHRYN,98,SEE ALSO HESSEL
LUELLA, 88
MILTON ,100
WILLIAM H.,98,101,105
SUMMITVILLE MINES,201,202,237,281
T
TERRACE DISTRICT,138,139,140,141 -
HOMESTEAD ,142-149,150,156,184,185
IRRIGATION DISTRICT,153,172,173,187
THREASHING MACHINE( PATENT) ,169,178
W
WEBER, EARL,1,2,26,28
WAR YEARS,227,230,231,232,233,234
PRISON CAMP,236
344

[page 131]
Boiler
mill abo
1940 or
The pers
copy of
have the
thought
rom the PMB set up at Bockhaus
ve Stunner, Date either
41, not sure which.
on in the picture you sent a
I believe is my mother. I
same picture, and have always
it was her.
yy