Nebraska's Cowboy Trail: A User's Guide

Nebraska’s Cowboy Trail A User’s Guide -----------------------keith terry ☛ Illustrations

by richard schuessler & steven valish ☛ University of Nebraska Press • Lincoln & London

Partial funding provided by the University of Nebraska at Kearney Office of Graduate Studies and Research / Research Services Council © 2008 by the Board of Regents of the University of Nebraska All rights reserved Manufactured in the United States of America

Library of Congress Cataloging-inPublication Data Terry, Keith, 1958– Nebraska’s Cowboy Trail: a user’s guide / Keith Terry; illustrations by Richard Schuessler and Steven Valish. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references. isbn-13: 978-0-8032-9460-8 (pbk.: alk. paper) 1. Cowboy National Recreation and Nature Trail (Neb.)—Guidebooks. 2. Hiking— Nebraska—Cowboy National Recreation and Nature Trail—Guidebooks. 3. Bicycle touring—Nebraska—Cowboy National Recreation and Nature Trail—Guidebooks. I. Title. gv199.42.n22t47 2008 917.82—dc22 2007037203 Set in Minion by Bob Reitz.

For my wonderful wife, Lisa, who does love a good adventure. She assisted me in the development of this book, and it is better because of her suggestions.

Contents

Preface - - ix Acknowledgments - - xi Introduction: Planning for the Trip - - xiii part 1 - - 1 Norfolk to Battle Creek (10 miles) - - 2 Battle Creek to Meadow Grove (8 miles) - - 11 Meadow Grove to Tilden (5 miles) - - 15 Tilden to Oakdale (7½ miles) - - 19 part 2 - - 23 Oakdale to Neligh (6 miles) - - 24 Neligh to Clearwater (9 miles) - - 29 Clearwater to Ewing (11 miles) - - 32 Ewing to Inman (13¾ miles) - - 35 part 3 - - 41 Inman to O'Neill (8 miles) - - 42 O'Neill to Emmet (8½ miles) - - 47 Emmet to Atkinson (10 miles) - - 51 Atkinson to Stuart (10 miles) - - 56 part 4 - - 63 Stuart to Newport (10⅓ miles) - - 64 Newport to Bassett (11⅓ miles) - - 68 Bassett to Long Pine (10 miles) - - 72 Long Pine to Ainsworth (9 miles) - - 76 Arabia through Thatcher to Valentine (13 miles) - - 80 Notes - - 89

Preface

I like to go to places I have never been before, and they don’t have to be exotic or expensive. A brilliant blue alpine lake, a breezy coastal path, or a bustling Saturday morning swap meet are all exciting destinations for me. Seeing new things is good for the mind and liberating for one’s spirit, and travel is a welcome escape from the “routine” that, like a vacuum, tries to pulls us in each day. My wife, Lisa, and I have traveled to Europe many times, and there it is very common to see locals walking or riding bicycles to shop, to work, to the train station, everywhere. In fact, many don’t have cars, or if they do, they seldom drive. Europeans can be found cycling or strolling on ribbonlike paths that meander through the countryside, and they move along with just the birds, the breeze, and the horizon to keep them company. Each time I see this, I imagine they must be making the short journey on that path to the next town to visit the open-air market, to patronize a favorite pub, or to call on a friend. I personally think it would be wonderful to be able to trek on a wellused trail through a thickly wooded forest, beside a country meadow, or along a shimmering shoreline and a very short time later be in another little burg. I also enjoy learning about very old stuff such as arrowheads, postcards, musical instruments, household items, and firearms. When I see and touch these things, I can’t help but think about the men and women who used them so long ago. I believe that when I hold a very old object, I connect for a few moments with the former owner: we both felt the weight of a heavy iron tool or the smooth texture of a well-worn coin, and together we understood the meaning of the romantic passages in a book of poetry or the stimulating phrasing in a patriotic essay. The two of us shared similar sensations or emotions

relating to these things and it’s as if the events happened simultaneously—yet I was on one side of a doorway and he or she was nearby but on the opposite side. It is intriguing to think that I can see and handle objects that have come through that opening, from the past to the present, but the door prevents me from going through it into the long-ago and talking with the people who made, possessed, or used them. If I could speak with those men and women, I would inquire about the artifacts they left behind and I would also ask about their lives and the world as it was. What was it like to build a castle or live in a log cabin or sail aboard a tall-masted wooden ship? How did it feel to be a soldier fighting at Gettysburg, to be a pioneer walking the Oregon Trail, or to discover that the earth travels around the sun? How many craftsmen did it take to build the pyramids, the Parthenon, or Notre Dame? Who were they and how long did it take in each case? Whenever I can travel somewhere new and learn about those who lived in that place years before, I am thrilled! The combination of new vistas and tangible history is truly stimulating. I believed for a long time that walking or cycling to engage in an adventure in my homeland was impossible because of a lack of developed rural paths or the immense distances one would have to travel to get to a new and interesting place. After discovering Nebraska’s magnificent Cowboy Trail, I now know that my beliefs were unfounded. This hiking and biking trail was, in its past life, a train line, and there are lots of interesting and friendly people; tidy, small communities spaced closely together; and beautiful bits of scenery along its length. The trail’s communities are not only picturesque and inviting places but also fascinating sources of history, and the railroad often played a role in personal sagas in those towns. Throughout this book, I have weaved into the descriptions of the way the true tales of queens, criminals, stars, soldiers, and inventors who traversed this route at some point in the past. Like the scent of perfume worn by someone unseen but nearby, their intimate stories of living, loving, struggling, and dying still linger all along the train line on which they so dearly depended. Take care to think about these men and women as you use the Cowboy Trail, and breathe in their stories. x - - Preface

Acknowledgments

I am indebted to those who have helped me locate materials for this book. All of them could have chosen to ignore my requests for assistance but not one of them did. First, thanks to my contacts who provided me with clues to past events that happened in their hometowns. From these I was able to research the details given and develop complete stories. These people were extremely valuable in this regard: Don Kloppenborg of Emmet, Nebraska; Audrey Olson of Newport, Nebraska; Dr. George Strassler of Neligh, Nebraska; and Mary Bott and William Seipel of Stuart, Nebraska. The professionals in the C. T. Ryan Library at the University of Nebraska at Kearney were also very helpful, especially Sheryl Heidenreich, Trudy de Goede, Diana Keith, and John Lillis, as was Stan Dart in unk’s Department of Sociology, Geography, and Earth Sciences. Several librarians in the Reference Room at the Nebraska State Historical Society were extremely accommodating, but I want to express my appreciation specifically to Matt Piersol. He was a great teacher, especially in the beginning when I did not know how or where to begin searching for information. I sincerely appreciate the assistance of all these fine people who took my project as seriously as I did, and I am grateful.

Introduction Planning for the Trip

Nebraska and the Cowboy Trail

The Route

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the cow b oy t r ail stretches 321 miles across the northern part of Nebraska. It begins in Norfolk, in the northeast area of the state, and extends to Chadron in the northwest. The trail follows the route of the old Cowboy Line, which was used by the Fremont, Elkhorn & Missouri Valley and later the Chicago & North Western railroads between about 1870 and 1992. Nebraska geography changes dramatically from one end of the state to the other, and this adds to the adventure. In the east the soil is black, rich, and fertile and supports a wealth of grasses, flowers, and trees. In the west sand is abundant, the environment is more arid, and very different plants thrive there. In between, the transition from one to another is gradual and there are plenty of interesting sights for trail users. Because of these changes, each of the sections of the trail

is interesting and attractive in its own way, and I can’t say that one is better than any other. Because the Cowboy Line was originally intended for trains, you’ll find that the entire route is relatively flat, which makes the journey quite pleasurable. Where there were hills or valleys in the surrounding geography, the engineers who developed the course many years ago cut straight through the grade, built bridges, or bypassed problem areas. For example, the path in Norfolk is 1,518 feet above sea level and at Thatcher, west over 180 miles away, the trail is at 2,664 feet above sea level, which results in an average change of just over 6 feet per mile. As I said, inclines or declines along the trail are few and these will be almost imperceptible. My journeys take me from Norfolk through Battle Creek, Meadow Grove, Tilden, Oakdale, Neligh, Clearwater, Ewing, Inman, O’Neill, Emmet, Atkinson, Stuart, Newport, Bassett, Long Pine, and Ainsworth. This is a continuous and relatively smooth-surfaced 144-mile stretch of the trail. The next section of the trail that is surfaced begins 32 miles west of Ainsworth at Arabia, a ghost town. It is 13 miles in length and leads into the city of Valentine. In total, walkers and cyclists have over 150 glorious miles of the Cowboy Trail to explore today. The Nebraska Game and Parks Commission’s long-term plan is to convert the entire 321 miles into a usable hiking/biking path over the next several years. Renovating 1 mile of the trail costs approximately $30,000 and involves removing the iron rails and wooden ties, scraping off the aggregate stone filler, rebuilding or repairing bridges, adding signage, and spreading and compacting the new stone surfacing. I have traveled on some segments before they were completed and would advise you not to repeat my error. On some unimproved sections the path can be very rough and often the grass is quite high, making it hard to see what hazard might be lurking ahead. On others the path has had the consistency of a sand dune, making it very difficult for walkers or bikers to get any traction at all. Currently, there are two unsurfaced sections of the trail. As mentioned earlier, one is 32 miles long and is just west of Ainsworth and the other is 132 miles in length and runs from Valentine to Chadron. Both will open bit by xiv - - Introduction

bit in the future, and when they do, this will result in lots more fun for all trail users. To accommodate those souls exploring the trail, I describe in each chapter of this book where a person can camp, get a place to sleep, find a grocery store, or purchase a hot meal in the towns along the way. You will also find descriptions for a few destinations that are within 20 or 30 miles of the trail. These places have been highlighted because they are Nebraska treasures that will complement your holiday adventure and add to your enjoyment of the area. I make it clear which businesses I have visited or stayed in, because I offer a review of the establishment. I don’t provide details on the hotel franchise operations that exist in the towns along the way, as I think you can easily get information on them from the Internet. There are lots of small motels along the route that don’t have a Web presence and probably aren’t found in many national directories, so I have provided phone numbers for these rural inns. Look for them in alphabetical order by town in the “Names and Numbers” section at the end of each chapter. If you visit a nearby attraction or patronize a motel, restaurant, or pub along the way that I have not, I would appreciate reading your comments about the place. You may e-mail those to me at [email protected]. I believe that walks of 10 to 15 miles or rides of 20 to 30 miles per day are manageable, but keep in mind that many of the towns on the trail are very small and have limited services; this more than anything else should dictate the length of your daily journeys. You should also consider the levels of fitness and the ages of those in your party during pre-trip planning. By the way, walking or riding to a turnaround point and renting a car one-way to carry you back to your starting place is not really an option, given that rental agencies do not exist here in great numbers. Trail Composition There are two types of surfaces on the trail: pavement and crushed limestone. In the communities of Norfolk, O’Neill, Ainsworth, and Valentine, the trail is actually paved like a sidewalk, which is a real Introduction - - xv

treat for cyclists. Generally, the paving starts at one side of these towns and ends at the other. In Norfolk, however, the paving stretches approximately 2¼ miles outside of the city limits. The majority of the surfacing on the trail is crushed rock. The largest stones are actually about the size of a green pea and the filler is a limestone dust. Generally, this material is well compacted and is pretty smooth. When walking at a comfortable pace, I can usually cover about 3 miles per hour. I have ridden my bike on this surface after heavy rains and the surface remains quite firm, but the moisture in the aggregate does slow me down a bit. The best speed I can consistently maintain on the trail when it is dry is 9½ mph and about 8 mph when it is wet. En route, you will cross many bridges, all of which have been modified for hikers and cyclists. Some of these are no more than ten feet long and some are much longer. All have been fitted with sturdy side rails approximately four feet high and all have plank flooring. No need to worry about anyone of any age getting a foot or wheel caught between the planks or slipping between the boards on the side rails—it isn’t going to happen. Several of these bridges cross slow-moving and quiet rivers or creeks. Others cross wetlands, ponds, or depressions in the earth. Throughout the length of the route, the path is ten feet wide regardless of whether the surface is pavement, crushed limestone, or bridge planking. Two people can walk or even cycle side by side and chat without any problem. Packing and Prepping No matter how you choose to explore the trail, take plenty of water. You’ll find places to refill bottles in any of the small towns along the route, but I have never seen a single spigot or pump in the countryside between any of them. You should also carry a raincoat just in case the weather changes. Taking along a cell phone isn’t a bad idea either, but remember that the trail traverses a very sparsely populated part of Nebraska—so don’t be surprised if your reception is poor or nonexistent in some places. When the trains were consistently in use, xvi - - Introduction

the shoulders immediately on either side of the tracks were cleared of trees so the locomotives could pass without being obstructed by fallen branches. Still today, you’ll find very few stretches of the trail that are shaded, so pack a hat and sunglasses. When riding the trail, I rely on a Trek 800 Mountain Track, a pretty simple bike with, figuratively speaking, no bells and whistles. I have considered installing dampeners on my front forks and seat post, but not having them has never stopped me from going. I do have liners inside my tires to protect the tubes from stickers. These are a must. The Nebraska countryside comes complete with scenic views, lots of wildlife, and tough, pointy thorns that will eventually work their way through the thin rubber in the spaces between the treads of a mountain bike tire. If you don’t line your tires or have an alternative form of protection in mind, you’ll find yourself spending more time fixing flats than riding. I carry a tube repair kit but have never had to use it. Common sense dictates that you always wear a helmet. Nebraska Weather Prior to planning your Cowboy Trail adventure, you need to consider the temperature. Nebraska is a land of extremes; in the summer the mercury can rise to above 100°F, and in the winter temperatures can drop way below zero. Having lived in the state for some time, I suggest that you not even consider a hiking or biking adventure here between November and March. During the “window of opportunity,” the high and low temperatures average about 63°F and 38°F in April and October; in midsummer, expect average highs of 87°F and lows of 64°F. These figures are for Madison County, where Norfolk is located. For more detailed information, go to http://arc.norfolkne.com/nclimate.htm. Check the forecast before leaving for a day on the trail, especially between April and October. During these months, it would not be uncommon for a thunderstorm or tornado to develop, and they are dangerous. If you get caught in one of these, stay close to the ground; don’t hide under a tree, as that greatly increases your risk of being struck by lightning. I would probably hunker down on the north bank of the trail, because the weather in the state generally comes from the Introduction - - xvii

southwest and the embankment might give me some protection from strong winds and debris. In the case of a hailstorm and as a last resort, I would take my chances and hide under one of the many bridges along the way or any cover I could find. Flora and Fauna Nebraska is home to numerous varieties of colorful wildflowers, and an appreciation for these can enhance a trekker’s day on the trail. One will see colors ranging from white at one end of the continuum through yellow, pink, red, blue, and on to purple. I have taken care to describe some of the flowers I have seen along the way. Plants here don’t all blossom at once, so you may not see each one I write about unless you stagger your trips throughout the growing season. No matter when you visit, though, you’re guaranteed a unique presentation of colors and textures. Trail users will also learn quickly that there is a lot of wildlife to be seen in the northern part of the state. The largest animals you will spot in unfenced land will be deer, which usually flee as soon as they become aware of your presence. You might also see prairie dogs, foxes, squirrels, and raccoons. There are lots of different kinds of large birds such as heron, grouse, pheasant, turkey, geese, ducks, and owls. Smaller birds will include meadowlarks, red-winged blackbirds, killdeer, doves, crows, robins, and many, many others. In all the time I have spent on the trail, I have seen only a couple of snakes and they were quite small, nonpoisonous, and easily spotted right in the middle of the path. Keep in mind that there are poisonous snakes in the area, but if you keep to the trail you probably won’t have an unpleasant encounter with one, since they tend to like shady places where they can escape the midday heat. In the cooler months and before they become dormant, they seek underground dens or caves where they congregate with other snakes to share body heat and stay warm. Getting Started When I travel the whole route, I usually start in Norfolk, which is about 2½ hours northwest of Omaha, and travel west. Obviously, xviii - - Introduction

you can start anywhere along the route that you choose; don’t feel as though you have to do the whole trail in one trip. I have often traveled there just to ride or walk a section or two for fun and exercise, and to relax. U.S. Highway 275 and the Cowboy Trail basically parallel one another as they proceed west from Norfolk. At O’Neill, 275 becomes Highway 20 and this extends to the end of the existing surfaced trail in Valentine. On your first trip, I’d suggest beginning at the trailhead in Ta-Ha-Zouka Park in Norfolk. From Omaha, follow 275 northwest through Valley, Fremont, and West Point until you arrive in Norfolk. From Lincoln, travel north on Highway 77 through Ceresco and Wahoo and change to 275 in Fremont. Interstate 80 is the main thoroughfare in Nebraska, so if you are coming from Colorado, Iowa, or other states, take i-80 to Lincoln and then proceed north to Fremont where you’ll connect with Highway 275.

Introduction - - xix

Nebraska’s Cowboy Trail

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Part One

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Norfolk to Battle Creek

10 miles

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if you are lo oking for a way to get yourself in the right frame of mind for exploring the Cowboy Trail, you might consider taking a ride on the Fremont Dinner Train. In this way, you can experience firsthand real rail travel before striking out on the route used by so many for so long. It is operated Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays on 15 miles of track between Fremont and Hooper, Nebraska. En route, diners are entertained by actors and actresses performing murder mysteries, melodramas, and even uso shows. The dinner train departs from the depot in the city of Fremont, which is approximately 75 miles southeast of Norfolk. You’ll find the phone number and Web address for the dinner train under “Fremont” in the “Names and Numbers” section at the end of this chapter. With a population of about 24,000, Norfolk offers all the services necessary for a trail adventure. There are shopping malls, restaurants, banks, fast food joints, pharmacies, and gas stations. Andrew Bicycle and Fitness, on Norfolk Avenue, has just about anything a cyclist may need, including bike rentals. One block west and north of this bike shop, at 5th Street and Braasch Avenue, and just a few yards south of the train tracks, is a quiet little corner with bushes, benches, and shade trees. This is about where the city’s depot used to be. If you had been here in July 1903, you would have seen hundreds of excited people, including farmers and shop owners, young and old, men and women, arriving on trains 2 - - Norfolk to Battle Creek

from towns all around Nebraska. The station would have been a very busy place, as community leaders from north, south, east, and west had made arrangements for chartered locomotives and passenger cars to transport them and others from their towns to Norfolk for three days of competition and celebration.

☛Long Ago, Right Here Firefighting was serious business in the early twentieth century, since the day-to-day existence of any town depended on men who could successfully contain and extinguish a blaze using the “modern” equipment available at the time. It required fit individuals who were coordinated and could pull a hose reel and pump water by hand for long periods of time. Tournaments were organized to showcase the abilities of local volunteer units, and these probably served as an incentive for firemen to keep themselves and their equipment in fine form. At least sixteen firefighting teams, some with as many as two hundred members, and their supporters from towns throughout the state of Nebraska spilled into the streets of Norfolk thanks to overflowing train cars.1 For three days, the men competed for cash and prizes in contests that included attractiveness of dress uniforms, foot races, the wet hose race, a hose coupling contest, and ladder climbing.2 On July 23, the last evening, a huge parade made its way down Norfolk Avenue between 1st and 10th streets. There were many very imaginative and fanciful floats, including one that carried the king of the celebration and another bearing the queen.3 They were accompanied by teams of horses, police, three bands, all of the tournament’s firefighters, fifty members of a flambeau club carrying roman candles, city officers, and many others.

The city of Norfolk has lots of hotels, but I have provided details for the smaller, less-well-known facilities that are located within 1½ miles of Ta-Ha-Zouka Park, the location of the trailhead. Half a mile west from the intersection of U.S. highways 81 and 275 are the Eco-Lux Norfolk to Battle Creek - - 3

Inn, a Holiday Inn Express, a Hampton Inn, and a White House Inn. Half a mile east from the same intersection are a Super 8, the Norfolk Country Inn, the Villa Inn, and the New Victorian Inn. I have stayed at the New Victorian Inn, which is very clean and has a swimming pool and a hot tub. Each room has a small microwave and fridge, and overnighters get a deluxe free hot breakfast. The time I stayed, there were hard-boiled eggs, yogurt, coffee, tea, juice, milk, cereal, pastries of all sorts, bagels, biscuits and gravy, muffins, and fresh fruit. Jeff, the manager, told me that bikes can be stored overnight in a shed on the property and that, for those customers exploring the trail for a few days, automobiles can be left on the New Victorian Inn lot. My suggestion for the night before a trail adventure is to go to the New Victorian Inn and check in, then walk 50 yards straight across the highway to Michael’s Cantina and sup on tasty Mexican food and refreshments. Set the alarm to rise early, fuel up with the hotel’s breakfast, and then begin your journey. You won’t be disappointed with either the hotel or the restaurant. The Elkhorn Valley Museum and Research Center is located in the city of Norfolk and features items belonging to its favorite son, entertainer Johnny Carson, such as his six Emmy Award statues, many photos, and some scripts that he personally wrote. Additionally, the museum houses one of the only Square Turn tractors still in existence. This brand of tractor was produced in Norfolk between 1913 and 1925 and was built so that it could actually make a square turn, allowing farmers to work their land more productively and plant seeds right up to the corners of fields. The use of other brands of tractors, which relied on traditional steering mechanisms, had resulted in large spaces in corners being left fallow. There are some very interesting displays worth seeing here, and the museum is only about 3 miles north of TaHa-Zouka Park on Highway 81. You should allow ninety minutes to see everything. The cost is $4 for adults, $3 for seniors (fifty-five and older) and students age thirteen through college age, $2 for youngsters ages five through twelve, and kids under five enter at no charge. Ta-Ha-Zouka Park is approximately ¾ mile south of the intersection of highways 81 and 275, and it is the easternmost entry point for 4 - - Norfolk to Battle Creek

the trail. The exact origin of the Omaha Indian word “Ta-Ha-Zouka” is unclear, but some suggest it was the name of the first Omaha chief to enter into a treaty with Spain and whose name also meant “elk horn.”4 The park has a campground and a special parking area for hikers and cyclists right at the trailhead. You can leave a car there free of charge for four days while you are on the trail; if you need to keep a vehicle there longer, you must request an extension from the park superintendent. The camping area is very well shaded and costs range from $6 to $9 per night. It has toilets, showers, and fresh water. The first mile of the trail out from Ta-Ha-Zouka Park is absolutely beautiful. It is smoothly paved and partly shaded, and it parallels the Elkhorn River. There are plantings of new trees, benches for viewing the water, and a few picnic tables along the sides of the path. Beside the trail, the grass is well groomed. The trees along this winding trail are tall and close together, making the interior of the woods dark and cool, reminding me of the Black Forest in southern Germany. Soon the trail moves away from the river and the trees and out into the open. Quail can be heard frequently—all you have to do is listen for their familiar whistle, which sounds as if they are saying, “Bob White . . . Bob White.” In fact, I have been surprised by coveys of quail when they erupt from their cover beside the path and jet off into some thick green cover. The panicked, rapid flapping of their wings usually makes my heart skip a beat. About 2¼ miles out from Norfolk, the pavement ends and the crushed limestone surfacing begins. Away from the city, the trail passes weedless stretches of corn and soybeans, tidy farmhouses, and herds of black cattle. It is not uncommon to see deer standing at the edge of fields. You’ll cross several refurbished train trestles in this area, the longest of which is about 300 feet long and located approximately 4 miles from the trailhead. It spans a wide and slow-moving part of the Elkhorn River that is bordered by trees and grassy banks. This old soldier is a massive iron structure whose red paint has mostly flaked away, and its belly supports the wooden-planked passageway and side rails. Norfolk to Battle Creek - - 5

The combination of the rusty steel girders and the smooth timbers is an impressive sight and the scenery frames it perfectly. Continue traveling west and shortly you’ll arrive in Battle Creek. Of all of the towns along the path, I think the people here have done the best job of marketing their community to trail users. At the point where the trail intersects the main road into town, there are signs that face the route and point the way to the grocery store, the pool, parks, and the library where one can access e-mail. As you approach the main road into town, Fourth Street, you’ll pass a few tall, gray, cylindrical grain bins on your left, or south. Then, there are a couple of very long tan metal buildings and next, an expansive graveled parking area for trucks. The Battle Creek depot was sandwiched between that parking lot and the trail and was just a few steps east of Fourth Street. It was at this station, and after some struggle, that a young farmer eventually departed on the train bound for the county courthouse 30 miles away. He was on his way to obtain paperwork so he could marry his sweetheart, but the trip wasn’t an easy one.

☛Long Ago, Right Here It was March 1903 and John Shipley, a thirty-one-year-old Battle Creek farmer, had met the woman of his dreams. She was Maud Carr, a young girl of seventeen who lived with her parents in town. Charles and Susan Carr consented to the marriage so the two lovers could proceed with their plans to be united.5 John needed only to travel to Madison, Nebraska, the county seat, to get a marriage license. Spring weather in this region is unpredictable, and the same was true during John and Maud’s time. Massive amounts of rain and melting snow caused creeks and rivers to rush out of their banks, and ice flows successfully splintered many bridges. One newspaper reported, “People on the north side of the river are cut off from all intercourse with towns on the south side.”6 As luck would have it, Shipley’s parents owned property north of town and on the far side of the Elkhorn River.7 Since he couldn’t use Norfolk to Battle Creek - - 7

the overpass to get to town, he probably paid Ed Keeler for assistance. Keeler had an entrepreneurial spirit and started operating a ferry at the crossing north of Battle Creek when the bridge was swept away.8 Once reaching terra firma on the opposite side, Shipley had to walk about 2 miles into Battle Creek to the train depot. The Cowboy Line train route included a number of other bridges on either side of Battle Creek that were also susceptible to damage, so service during this violent spring flooding period was pretty spotty.9 Shipley couldn’t have had any way of knowing whether the train would be operating when he left home, so making his way into town was an act of faith. After reaching the Battle Creek station, Shipley was able to secure passage east to Norfolk even though serious flooding had occurred in that community as well, causing some residents to move to higher ground. He made it to Norfolk, traveled south to Madison, acquired a marriage license on March 14, 1903, and returned by retracing his steps—by train, by foot, by ferry. Four days later, John Shipley and Maud Carr were married in the home of her parents. The local paper reported, “Besides relatives there were present about 18 invited guests. Immediately after the ceremony a splendid dinner was served.”10 John probably enjoyed sharing the tale of his labors to get a license with those who were present that night and those he would meet ever afterward.

To get to downtown Battle Creek, which has a population of 997, turn left or south onto Fourth Street. Go three blocks and turn left at the “Welcome” sign. Immediately you’ll see Tilly’s, which looks like a convenience store but actually has a large selection of groceries. Farther down Main Street you’ll find a service station, McD’s Steakhouse, and the library. Friendly and talkative locals hang out at the Fight’n River Saloon and the Coyote Bar and Grill. If you turn north or right onto Fourth Street from the trail and go about ½ mile, you’ll arrive at a historical marker that tells how Battle Creek got its name. At the marker, trees block the view to the west, so you should move a few hundred yards farther north where you can 8 - - Norfolk to Battle Creek

easily see Bunker Hill.11 This high spot was the site of a Pawnee Indian encampment where the incident that led to the naming of the town took place long ago. During the turbulent nineteenth century, Plains Indians were being squeezed out of their traditional hunting lands and being forced into much smaller and less attractive parcels to make room for thousands of whites who were moving westward. In 1859 settlers near Fremont, Nebraska, complained to the territorial militia that horses belonging to the Chaui band of the Pawnee and led by Head Chief Petah La Shar had damaged some crops and braves had killed a cow. The soldiers tracked the Indians and overtook them about 60 miles from Fremont on a branch of the Elkhorn River.12 Realizing that something was amiss, the Indian leader wrapped himself in an American flag he had been given two years before and, with his interpreter, met with General John Thayer, the commander of the regiment. After learning the charges and conferring with his sixteen chiefs, Petah La Shar and the rest surrendered one male from the tribe.13 Thayer was satisfied and the Chauis were repentant. The Pawnee War was a fight that never happened and the place where it didn’t occur was named Battle Creek, in honor of the nonevent. Continue traveling west of Battle Creek 2 miles on the trail and you’ll come to the Bit o’ Country Inn bed and breakfast. Watch for the small sign mounted on the fencepost on your left. If traveling by car from Norfolk, take Highway 275 west 10 miles and turn south on County Road 121, which will take you toward Battle Creek. Drive approximately 2 miles, then turn right (or west) on McAllister Street. Go for 1½ miles and watch for the sign and the home on the left. Proprietor Mary Wacker is a delightful person, a pleasure to talk to, and she makes a mean waffle for breakfast. She maintains a 200yard path that leads directly from the trail to her beautiful farmhouse, which is clearly visible to the south. Her comfortable home is situated in a small grove of shady trees and has a great wraparound deck perfect for relaxing after a day of riding or walking. The three rooms are very clean and tidy; you’ll share a bathroom. If you are a stargazer, I highly recommend a walk into town from Norfolk to Battle Creek - - 9

the Bit o’ Country Inn for dinner. If you wait until dark to return on the trail, you’ll find that it is quiet, the country air is refreshing, and, if it’s clear, you’ll marvel at the spectacular number of stars that are visible in the sky. Be sure to take a flashlight, as there are no lampposts to illuminate the path underfoot.

10 - - Norfolk to Battle Creek

Battle Creek to Meadow Grove 8 miles ------------------------------------------------o n t h e l e g b et we e n Battle Creek and Meadow Grove is more pretty countryside, with fields, ponds, and wildlife. In fact, I have seen Great Blue Herons here and they’ll often be spotted among the reeds at the edge of ponds. Don’t expect them to stand still for lots of photos, because once they realize they aren’t alone, they’ll become nervous and fly away. These birds have tremendous wingspans and look like bluish-gray b-52s when they are in the air. In addition to the views of the countryside and the wildlife are some manmade items standing close to the pathway that are gnarled and gray and are part of the trail’s history. These are ancient telegraph poles. Sometimes the only thing that still stands is a vertical post but many still possess a crossbar, making them T-shaped. The wire connecting one pillar to another was removed long ago, but you can often still see the glass insulators on the horizontals that held the cable. Through the wires of these posts were carried train dispatches and other kinds of correspondence using Morse code. The posts also served as mile markers for train crews, and the large metal flags with numerals that are attached to the poles mark the mileage from the place where the line commenced. As the original railroad line was the Fremont, Elkhorn & Missouri Valley, the origination point was Fremont, Nebraska, so milepost 0 would have been there. Appropriately spaced between the mile markers were quarter-mile posts that had a single horizontal metal band wrapped around the pole at the train Battle Creek to Meadow Grove - - 11

engineer’s eye level, and half-mile and three-quarter-mile markers had two and three rings, respectively.14 Many of these poles still exist all along the trail today and serve as reminders that we are not that far removed from a time when sending a message required the assistance of a middleman who could “speak” the language of dots and dashes. Many years ago, when railroaders approached the settlement of Deer Creek, they could see a meadow on one side of the tracks and a grove on the other, and that was supposedly the impetus for the name change. Those using the former train route can see Meadow Grove’s most distinctive feature today from quite a distance: its water tower, which looks like a colossal golf ball perched atop a huge tee and whose base is partially obscured by clusters of elm and cottonwood trees. The former location of Meadow Grove’s train station is easy to spot since there is now a long red-and-white steel building standing there. It is situated on the left or south side of the trail and very near to the central part of this town and its three hundred residents. I really like the old metal sign with faded letters bearing the words “Meadow Grove” that’s positioned in front of the structure. I can’t help but wonder if it was here when the community bade farewell to soldiersons whom she would never embrace again.

☛Long Ago, Right Here The Schinck brothers operated their own business in Meadow Grove until Frank was notified that he had been drafted and was to report on April 26, 1918, for service in the Great War.15 Two days before departing, the young people of his hometown threw a farewell party for the thirty-year-old at his brother’s home. There, they shared refreshments and wished him a safe return at the conclusion of the war.16 Two days later, he apparently left the Meadow Grove depot on the train with the other local draftees to go to the county seat, Madison.17 From there he was sent to Camp Funston in Kansas and became a member of Company M, 355th Infantry, American Expeditionary Force.18 Before long, he was shipped to New York, in June he was in England, and in September he was sent to the front in France.19 12 - - Battle Creek to Meadow Grove

Just seven months after leaving family and friends, Frank Schinck was killed. He died November 5, 1918, from wounds received in action, and his death occurred just six days before the end of fighting with Germany on November 11, 1918.20 Unfortunately, it would take almost three years before he would be returned home. Such delays were common and involved many factors, some under the control of the U.S. government and some not. One reason this happened was because the American military didn’t have much experience fighting in foreign lands and there had not been extensive planning for the repatriation of World War I dead before the start of the war. In fact, Congress did not authorize funding for the return of its fallen sons until 1921.21 A second delay was because some foreign countries’ infrastructures had been so heavily damaged in the fighting that the living were barely able to exist; so the dead, who had to be located, disinterred, and transported, had to wait until repairs to water mains, roads, bridges, and power lines had been carried out.22 A train carrying Frank Schinck’s remains arrived in nearby Tilden, Nebraska, on Friday, September 16, 1921. At his funeral on Monday, September 19, an estimated 1,500 to 2,000 people attended the service.23 The procession to the Catholic cemetery in Tilden that rainy day certainly must have been memorable. It was led by one hundred former soldiers, sailors, and marines in uniform. Then came a firing squad and officers, color bearers, and guards. The caisson, drawn by four black horses, was next and carried the flag-draped casket. Behind this came the pallbearers, the American Legion, the women of the Legion Auxiliary, and finally the Meadow Grove Fire Department. At the end of the convoy, there were approximately three hundred cars filled with relatives and friends.24 Frank Schinck, the volunteer fireman and soldier, was treated as a hero when he finally made it home.

The place where Frank and John Schinck operated their blacksmith shop is very close to the path and on the way to the city park. Turn right or north onto 2nd Street when you arrive at the red and white Battle Creek to Meadow Grove - - 13

building. Continue across Main Avenue, stopping halfway up the next block. On the east side of 2nd, between a green clapboard house and the alley, you’ll see an empty lot. The Schinck’s shop was here but unfortunately burned down just a few years ago. Still visible are parts of the first course of blocks for the south exterior wall and the cement pad that constituted the floor. The city park is very close by now. Continue going north to Pleasant Avenue, turn right or east and then go straight ahead about three blocks. This is a perfect place for a breather since it has toilets and picnic shelters, but keep in mind that camping is not permitted here. Millstone State Wayside Area is also located in this town. To get to this park, turn right onto 2nd Street from the path and go north five blocks to U.S. Highway 275. Turn right or east, and ⅓ mile later you’ll find the park on your right. The place is small and simple and has a couple of covered picnic shelters, a pit toilet, and a spartan campground. For stays of a few days, there is no set fee for camping, but a donation can be made to the village clerk at 208 Main Street. There is a Sinclair gas station with a tiny selection of drinks and snack food located at the intersection of 1st Street and Highway 275. The Café is on 275 between 3rd and 4th streets. There are no hotels or B&Bs in Meadow Grove, so be prepared to camp if you decide to overnight here.

14 - - Battle Creek to Meadow Grove

Meadow Grove to Tilden 5 miles

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from mead ow g rove it is a short distance to Tilden, a community of 1,100 and the next town on the route. The trail runs parallel to U.S. Highway 275 the whole way and is separated from it by about 40 yards. Be sure to take time to appreciate the colors of the hairy vetch wildflower with its tiny lavender and white bell-shaped flowers and the waist-high Plains sunflower with just a dab of white coloring in its dark brown center. Tilden’s original name was Burnett, but the village’s mail was continually being mixed up with that intended for another Nebraska community named Bennett. To eliminate the mail-sorting problem, postal officials decided in 1887 to name the town after the Democrat who had run for president against Republican Rutherford B. Hayes ten years before: Governor Samuel J. Tilden of New York.25 Tilden won by popular vote but Hayes was named president after winning 185 electoral votes to Tilden’s 184.26 Sunrise Park will be one of the first places you’ll come to when arriving in Tilden. It’s on the left or south side of the trail and is accessed via a short wooden bridge. This campground is microscopically small but clean and has running water, flush toilets, a picnic shelter, and grills. The cost is $6 per day, and you can sign in at the city clerk’s office. The Tilden depot was just west of Center Street; watch for a narrow brick building with a white metal roof. You’ll know you are at the Meadow Grove to Tilden - - 15

Plains sunflower

right location when you see the sign on the trail-side of this place that reads “cva—Central Valley Ag.” The station was positioned between this structure and the trail in what is now an open area with a gravelly base. On the platform of this depot, a group of spectators learned an important physics lesson, and the variables included a steam locomotive’s mass, speed, and energy.

☛Long Ago, Right Here A fast-moving and destructive blizzard raced across the plains in January of 1888. It was later referred to as the “School Children’s Storm” because of the predicaments faced by many young people who were caught in it on the way home. The morning of January 12 was described by many who lived at the time as clear and comfortable. However, in the early afternoon they could see disaster charging toward them on the horizon. The temperature dropped rapidly and a light rain quickly changed to skin-stinging sleet and then to snow whipped by strong winds. Young and old were in fields and on roads away from shelter and most were completely unprepared. As a result, the subzero temperatures and white-out conditions caused a significant loss of life. Many tragic and humorous stories were shared by survivors afterward. The following story was told by a man named E. G. Effinger. On the morning after the storm the countryside was thrilled by the sound of the first train whistle that had been heard for three days and all who were not engaged in digging themselves out of drifts hastened to the depot. The train which came in consisted of an engine with a v-type snowplow, a coal car loaded with scrap iron, and a caboose. It came to stop a little east of the depot and the track men who had been picked up along the line from Norfolk attacked a fourfoot drift which had formed between the water tank and the depot. The drift had formed diagonally across the track and was so hard that it was necessary to square it to avoid derailing the engine. When the men got back in the caboose the train backed up about a mile, Meadow Grove to Tilden - - 17

then came ahead at full speed. By this time the platform, which was about four feet above the ground, was well filled with women and girls. When the engine hit the drift it threw snow onto the platform so that many of the spectators were completely covered, only feet and petticoats marking the places where they had stood. Those of us who had been out of reach of the huge blocks of snow hurried to the rescue and dug them out. No serious accidents were reported, but it was noticed that the ladies were not quite so friendly after the experience.27

About 60 yards farther west and right beside the path is a covered picnic shelter and a wonderful spot for a break. It is nestled between a couple of tall evergreens and has tables and benches, a water spigot, and a bike rack. If you need sustenance, across the highway is the pdq convenience store, a café called the Udder Shoppe, and the Branding Iron Steakhouse and Hotel. Go south of the trail on Center to Second Street and you’ll find a Thriftway food market and A Lil’ Bit Country and the Player’s Club bars. Also located here is a Sinclair gas station, the town’s very nice, new public library with free Internet access, the city park with its wonderful swimming pool, and four lanes o’ fun at Bob’s Bowling.

18 - - Meadow Grove to Tilden

Tilden to Oakdale 7½ miles

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the pat h run s be s id e U.S. Highway 275 almost all the way to the town of Oakdale. Along the path, there are more of the hairy vetch plants with their diminutive flowers, and if you pay close attention and scout the edges of the trail where it meets the tall grass, you’ll discover an abundance of miniature pale-pink wild roses. These are only about six inches tall and the flowers themselves are about the size of a fifty-cent piece when fully opened. After you locate one, you’ll become accustomed to picking them out of their surroundings, and you’ll find that they are one of the most common plants along the route. You should also be able to easily locate plenty of lead plants. These are bushy shrubs that have tiny blue-gray flowers arranged around a central stalk, and the tips of each appear to be dipped in gold. Once reaching the east end of Oakdale, you won’t be able to miss a grain facility with several massive, gray, cylindrical storage bins and a small, one-story house-turned-office out front. The sign in front of the headquarters reads “Farmers Pride.” This is the intersection of Third Street and Wilson and the place where the station was once located. In fact, if you look in the nicely trimmed grass between the sign and the trail you can easily identify the top surface of the depot’s cement footings. These supported and leveled the staging area as well as the building that housed the passenger waiting area and baggage room. Here, it’s easy to picture excited people standing on the platform waiting for a friend or relative to arrive. In fact, Henry Torpin Tilden to Oakdale - - 19

Lead plant

from Oakdale met the train here many times in order to pick up his grandson, Darryl.

☛Long Ago, Right Here He spent his summers with his grandparents in Oakdale traveling by train from Los Angeles, California, where his mother lived. Even at the age of twelve, Darryl was writing about his adventures on these journeys; and in a lengthy letter published in the Oakdale newspaper in 1914, he described much of what he saw and heard during one entire trip starting in California and passing through Nevada, Utah, Wyoming, and then Nebraska.28 In 1916 Darryl convinced a recruiter that he was old enough to go to war, and he was enlisted at the age of fourteen.29 He was assigned to Company D of the Sixth Nebraska, which was stationed at Camp Cody, New Mexico, for several months of training.30 Within two years, the sixteen-year-old and the rest of his unit were shipped to France via New York City and Southhampton, England. He continued his correspondence with his grandparents during the war, describing his experiences in battle at the front. In one such letter, he said, “We were continually under fire from German aeroplanes and bombardment guns . . . it sure was terrible. I helped carry twenty-six wounded men from the front lines to the rear in mud a foot deep. It rained all the time. . . . My hand was struck by flying shrapnel, but only scratched. My canteen was shattered.”31 Darryl F. Zanuck soon returned to the States but spent most of the rest of his life in California. His experiences traveling the world, witnessing conflict firsthand, and writing about what he had seen served him well later in life. He went on to a career in film and produced classic motion pictures such as The Longest Day, The Robe, Tora! Tora! Tora! and The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit.32

One of the first businesses you’ll see when arriving in Oakdale is Mr. S’s Gas and Groceries on the opposite side of the highway. To get to Tilden to Oakdale - - 21

the main area of town, continue west a short distance and turn left off the trail onto Hohman Street and head south. At Third Street is Centennial Park, which has a picnic shelter, water, tables, and flush toilets. Continuing on, you’ll come to Fifth Street where there is a public library, the community center, the Hi-Lo Place bar, and not much else. Judging from the architecture of some of the buildings downtown and the homes that line the streets, one can see that this was once a very busy place. Now, this town with its 337 residents is pretty quiet. Names and Numbers Battle Creek Bit o’ Country Inn: (402) 675-6845, www.bitocountry.com Fremont Fremont Dinner Train: (800) 942-7245, www.dinnertrain.net Norfolk Andrew Bicycle and Fitness, 309 Norfolk Avenue: (402) 379-1441 Eco-Lux Inn: (402) 371-7157 Elkhorn Valley Museum and Research Center, 515 Queen City Blvd.: (402) 371-3886, www.elkhornvalleymuseum.org New Victorian Inn: (402) 379-3035 Norfolk Country Inn: (800) 233-0733 Villa Inn: (402) 371-7000 Tilden Branding Iron Steakhouse and Hotel: (402) 368-5392 City Clerk’s office: (402) 368-2232 (weekdays) / 368-5803 (weekends)

22 - - Tilden to Oakdale

Part Two

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Oakdale to Neligh 6 miles

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west of oakdale , the path veers off into the countryside. No longer audible are the whining tires on the highway’s pavement. At this point you are moving between lush green fields and the only sounds you hear are the songs of the quail signaling their mates, the leaves on cornstalks being fanned in the breeze, and the crunch of the trail’s grit under you. Look for the slender red-violet blazing star plant growing in the tall grasses beside the path. Just 2 miles northwest of Oakdale, you’ll cross another trestle with views of the Elkhorn River, and it is wide and beautiful here. This is a very pretty spot where one can stand for a long time listening to the water’s tales about its travels and the things it has seen as it approaches, whispers softly, then slips by. About a mile beyond the river, the trail passes behind the Antelope Country Club, which serves as a sign that Neligh is just a short distance ahead. Once you reach the southeast side of town, it is easy to spot the Starlight Drive-In on U.S. Highway 275. It is one of the few outdoor movie theaters still operating in the Midwest. Neligh is a tidy community of 1,600. The trail is very nicely incorporated into the perimeter of Riverside Park, the town’s recreational hub. I think the view of the town from the park, with the hiking and biking path between, is idyllic. This part of Neligh must have been 24 - - Oakdale to Neligh

Blazing star

laid out by a designer of those charming miniature villages so popular in department store windows at Christmastime. The campground is in the park, so stay on the trail until arriving at the well-marked entrance on the left. Here, tent sites are $5, electrical sites are $10, there is plenty of shade, and the showers are good and hot! Just inside the main entrance to Riverside Park, look for the stone memorial on the right dedicated to Neligh’s most famous four-legged public figure.

☛Long Ago, Right Here Shade On was born June 22, 1894, on a ranch owned by John Kay of Ewing, Nebraska.1 From simple beginnings, this standardbred horse would rise to become the most famous harness racer in Nebraska at the time, in spite of the fact that an accident as a foal left him with one front leg shorter than the other.2 John Kay and Shade On traveled the country competing in races in the middle and eastern United States. As a pacer, Shade On was the top money winner in the country in 1899 and en route won the classic Chamber of Commerce Stake in Detroit, earning $5,000 as well as a $1,000 purse in Peoria.3 At other times, he was victorious or placed in Omaha; Indianapolis; Hamline, Minnesota; Sioux City, Iowa; Lexington, Kentucky; and Nashua and New Hampton, Iowa.4 Considering the distances Shade On and Kay traveled to compete, especially during the animal’s peak years of 1899 and 1903, Kay must have depended on the train for fast and safe transportation rather than on other methods of transport available at the time. In fact, when the champion was leased for the season in 1900 to John Hussey of Louisville, Kentucky, the editor of the Ewing paper noted the departure, saying, “The noble animal was loaded into the baggage car of Wednesday morning’s passenger [train].”5 In 1904 John Kay moved his family and his horses to Neligh and eventually had constructed a massive barn with stables just west of the entry to Riverside Park.6 Shade On’s racing days had ended by the time Kay moved his operation but he continued to earn fame as a sire. 26 - - Oakdale to Neligh

He produced twelve colts, some of which, such as Shady G, Speed On, and Shady Beattie, were also U.S. or European champions or substantial money winners.7 It is likely that these horses were transported by trains departing from the Neligh station. On July 23, 1911, Shade On died. When he was buried near the entrance to the park, reportedly near the stone marker that exists now, some of John Kay’s spirit went along with him, for he apparently loved the animal tremendously. When the horse was buried, it was with “all the ceremony befitting a thoroughbred. His beautiful blankets and other fittings were carefully placed about him as he was lowered to his grave near the training barn. With characteristic reverence, his owner ordered special excavation to allow the once flashing legs to rest in an extended position, uncramped and at peace.”8

Neligh’s downtown area is a five-minute walk from Riverside Park. Amenities there include the Thriftway Market, Daddy’s Country Café, the Heritage Bank with an atm, a drugstore, and several other services. Although I have not had a chance to try this place, friends have highly recommended the Imperial Steakhouse and Lounge. Both the Dew Drop Inn and the White Spot are pleasant and the refreshments are good and cold. The Deluxe Motel is directly across the highway from Riverside Park. The room in which we stayed was clean and comfortable and appeared to have been recently renovated. The mini-fridge and microwave in the room were handy. The West Hillview Motel is about nine blocks north of Riverside Park. To get there, stay on the pathway, turning north on the last road that can be accessed via the trail, which is N Street. The motel is at the top of the hill on O Street. A Subway restaurant and a Pizza Hut are nearby. While you’re in town, I recommend visiting the Neligh Mill, situated just west of Riverside Park. You should allow at least an hour to tour the three floors of the flour and feed mill, which was constructed in 1873 and was in use until 1969. The mill undoubtedly put the town on the map. Its location next to the line was critical because product Oakdale to Neligh - - 27

could be easily and efficiently loaded onto railcars for eventual shipment throughout the United States and even England. Inside the massive structure with its timber flooring, you’ll see steps and handrails worn smooth from decades of activity by hard-working people. There are also turbines, sifters, tubes, grinding machines, and other interesting pieces of hardware on each floor. Because the whole operation was powered by water from the river outside, it is fascinating to see the inner workings of the facility and its elaborate system of pulleys, drive shafts, and wide leather belts. If you are interested in seeing an example of man’s mechanical ingenuity, this is the place for you. Admission is $3 for adults and $1 for kids. Four hundred yards west of the mill you will come to a series of mammoth grain bins on the right side or north of the path. Peeking out of the ground between the path and the bins are the cement footings for the old depot. Cherished possessions of all kinds were sent from and received at this station, including many of the champion racehorses owned by John Kay.

28 - - Oakdale to Neligh

Neligh to Clearwater 9 miles

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not long after you leave nelig h , the smooth trail rejoins U.S. Highway 275, and about ½ mile from the western edge of town you cross Hail Creek. On your left are green fields and pastures and off to the right or north, well beyond the pavement, is a long ridge of gently rolling hills. Three miles from Clearwater, the line jogs to the south into a cool, shady wetland area. Many animals can be spotted in and around this oasis, and a careful listener will be able to hear quail and meadowlarks. Upstream for the next few miles, there are quite a few of these marshy spots. In fact, between Neligh, Clearwater, and just a bit beyond Ewing, the South Fork of the Elkhorn River and flows from several creeks such as the Antelope, the Cache, the Snake, the Pebble, and others eventually empty into the Elkhorn. The wetland where you are now, just east of Clearwater, exists as the result of the river’s increased volume and its meandering nature, both of which have caused oxbows and small green pools to form. Downstream, the channel travels in a southeasterly direction where it makes its way to the Platte River. The bluffs north of the trail form the northern boundary of the Elkhorn River Valley, whose main part averages about 1½ miles in width, and the ridges of the valley rise 150 feet above the waterway. The wetland soon dissolves into grassland, and your only companNeligh to Clearwater - - 29

ions are distant tranquil farmhouses and curious cattle grazing just beyond the fence. You’ll know this segment is nearly complete when you cross Clearwater Creek ½ mile east of town. The first place you’ll see after arriving in Clearwater, the “Gin Rummy Capital of Nebraska,” is a Shell convenience store across Highway 275 to the north. At Main Street is a tall metal arch with signs attached to it that list the years the Clearwater High School Cardinals have won state championships or that the community was awarded Rodeo of the Year honors. The town’s train station was located just a couple of yards farther west between that arch and the trail. In fact, on one of our last visits, my wife found a small patch of charred ground, 15 feet south of the trail, and about halfway between Main Street and the electronic “Clearwater” sign located 150 yards west. There appeared to be bits of melted glass and iron there and we wondered if these might be the last remaining traces of a raging depot fire that dearly cost one early-twentieth-century family.

☛Long Ago, Right Here The decade of the 1920s was a prosperous one for many as the stock market boomed. Just a few years before, the nation had geared up to enter World War I and in the process expanded its ability to manufacture more and cheaper products of all sorts. During the war Americans learned to live without many things, so it isn’t surprising that in the twenties, when the standard of living was much higher, they were keen to spend to live comfortably. Due to a number of unwise governmental trade policies and risky practices among a number of lending institutions, the bubble burst on Tuesday, October 29, 1929. The Great Depression had begun and would last for ten long years. Just before noon on Sunday, November 12, 1933, a fire broke out in the northwest corner of the train depot in Clearwater. It is believed that a ventilation hole in the foundation had become clogged with leaves, and a spark dropped from a train that passed just a few minutes before the fire was discovered ignited the material. A gale estimated at 50 mph was blowing, and this fanned the flames ever higher. Not only 30 - - Neligh to Clearwater

was the depot in danger of being lost but many of the community’s nearby businesses and homes were threatened due to embers, sparks, and other debris being carried in the gusting wind. While firefighters from Clearwater bravely battled the blaze, help from the neighboring towns of Elgin, Ewing, Neligh, and Orchard was summoned. After two hours, the station built in 1881 had burned to the ground. There were no other significant property losses in the village except for those of the train agent’s assistant, Joe Hague. He lived on the top floor of the depot with his wife, and except for the clothes they were wearing that day, they lost everything including approximately $100 in pennies, nickels, and dimes that they had stashed in their apartment. Why keep their cash at home? Well, the Hagues were probably like many other Americans who did not trust banks, since nearly half of the nation’s banks had failed by this time. The day after the fire, Joe collected ashes from the building and washed them in a sieve to recover what coins he could. The local newspaper publisher reported, “They resurrected about $20.00[;] some of the pennies were melted and run together but the most of the coins were all right.”9 Considering that this was a time when unemployment rates were as high as 30 percent, Joe Hague probably felt lucky to have a job. However, his family’s loss of $100 must have been devastating. The equivalent dollar amount today would be approximately $1,400.10

Turning left or south from the trail onto Main Street, you’ll come to Jo’s Market, which has a large variety of items, the Town and Country Hardware store, the Citizens State Bank, the public library, and the Water Hole bar. A few blocks farther south is the city park, which has a playground, covered picnic tables, and flush toilets. Three blocks west of Main Street on the highway is the L Bar B Steakhouse and Lounge.

Neligh to Clearwater - - 31

Clearwater to Ewing 11 miles

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more colorful w ildflowers ad or n the shoulders of the trail between Clearwater and Ewing. You can see hoary vervain with its tiny purple flowers surrounding the base of a central green spike. Stretching toward the sun are clusters of lemon-colored stamen in the centers of white meadow anemone. Be on the lookout for the gold variety of the prairie coneflower, too. Ewing was originally named Ford, which was the last name of the earliest settler to arrive in the area in 1870. Later, the name Ewing was adopted in honor of another early settler who also happened to be the community’s first postmaster.11 Today, the town has a population of 420. The Two Rivers Motel is on the east edge of town and on the opposite side of U.S. Highway 275. The six clean rooms appear to have been 32 - - Clearwater to Ewing

recently renovated and each has a small microwave and refrigerator. The owner provides you with continental breakfast items that you keep in your quarters. Schmidt Park is a short distance farther west and situated very close to the trail. It is a great place for a break or lunch. To get there, stay on the trail until after crossing the South Fork of the Elkhorn River on a wooden bridge. At the first opportunity, turn right and go to the shoulder on the other side of the highway. You’ll immediately see a covered picnic shelter with several tables, and there are clean flush toilets here, too. Getting to Ewing’s business district is simple. Continue on the path until you pass a very large green steel building. Just beyond that, the trail intersects Oak Street, a paved road that isn’t well marked. To be sure this is the correct place to turn, look right across the highway; if you see the very large letters rts mounted in white diamond-shaped cutouts at the top of a brick-faced building, you are at Oak Street. Turn right onto Oak, go to the stop sign, and carefully cross Highway 275 to Nebraska Street. Here you’ll find an atm at the Farmers State Bank, Larry’s Market, the post office, the Broadway bar, and the Southfork restaurant and bar. Ewing’s depot was situated on the north side of the trail and a few yards west of Oak Street in a wide, dusty, graveled area that serves as an access road for some local businesses. Stations were busy places not only because of passengers that were coming and going but also because commodities such as food, clothing, cattle, and lumber were being regularly retrieved by residents with their wagons and trucks. This place was different from nearly all others in one very significant way: nearly a hundred years ago, some anxious customers were coming here to pick up equipment for their experimental airplanes.

☛Long Ago, Right Here In late 1902 two bicycle builders and inventors from Ohio, Orville and Wilbur Wright, demonstrated that their gliders could carry a human in sustained and controlled flight. Only five years later, the seven sons of Nebraska farmer Martin P. Savidge began their own experiments to Clearwater to Ewing - - 33

understand flight. The initial attempts by these inventors and adventurers consisted of jumping off a windmill with a parasol and later, with a sheet of canvas tied with ropes at the corners.12 In the process of improving their designs, they constructed miniature gliders, then enlarged them to accommodate the family cat, then made them big enough to carry a human passenger down the steep barn roof and over a small creek. By 1910 George, John, Joe, Dave, Phillip, Louis, and Matt were experimenting with powered flight, and they were heavily dependent on the railroad in these endeavors. At least two of their engines, a Maximotor from Detroit and a Hall-Scott from St. Louis, were shipped to them via rail and arrived at the Ewing depot.13 Their plane design was bi-winged and made from basswood, hollow steel tubing, wire, and muslin. An old mowing-machine seat served as the cockpit, two wheels were located near the left-and rightcenter of the craft, and one more was under the nose. The motor was positioned between the wings and just behind the pilot.14 The boys eventually constructed three different planes with wingspans of forty feet, thirty-five feet, and twelve feet.15 On May 7, 1911, four years after starting the project and eight years after the Wrights successfully flew their powered machine for the first time, Matt Savidge piloted the brothers’ aircraft during its first public demonstration and Nebraska’s first successful airplane flight. Almost immediately, the Savidges started a five-year barnstorming tour with their plane in the South and Midwest. Matt introduced sky writing to the region and carried the first airmail shipment from Clearwater to Ewing.16 Their days of flying ended abruptly. On June 17, 1916, while testing a newly constructed plane, Matt crashed and was killed instantly. The parents and sisters of the boys begged the remaining six to abandon their work on the planes for fear that others would die. According to George Savidge, “The planes were dismantled, the engines boxed, and the propellers and wings stored in the hayloft of the barn.”17

34 - - Clearwater to Ewing

Ewing to Inman 13¾ miles

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outside of ew ing and north of the path are large groves of tall trees and, occasionally, open pastures. In the distance, a cowboy on horseback ambles among the cattle in his herd and shouts instructions while a calf bawls for its mother. To the south, grasslands seem to reach to the very end of the earth, and these prairie blankets are woven with a range of different-colored fibers—jade, red, gold, umber, olive, tan. A mile or two farther and one can see why this is known as “hay country”: the fields are dotted with hundreds upon hundreds of massive round bales of rolled grass. The incredible size of the bales and the enormity of the meadows will cause you to feel quite small. Here, it is easy to imagine that you are in a land of giants and the hay bales scattered about are brown, green, and gold balls used by them to play a game on nicely groomed greens that roll on and on. Midway between Ewing and Inman is the eastbound turnoff onto U.S. Highway 20. If you take the turn, you’ll find ancient evidence of rhinos, camels, giant tortoises, and three-toed horses at the Ashfall Ewing to Inman - - 35

Fossil Beds State Historical Park about 20 miles away. This place will interest young and old. Here, you will learn how, over 10 million years ago, ash from a volcanic eruption in Idaho covered Nebraska and the rest of the plains. Clouds of suffocating ash caused the deaths of these animals at a prehistoric watering hole and all are found as they were when they finally succumbed. The Rhino Barn shelters a massive number of extremely well-preserved fossilized remains, and the paleontologists working there and elsewhere on the grounds welcome your questions. Picnicking is allowed here, campsites are available nearby, and the nature trails in the park are worth exploring. Look for contact information for this park in the “Names and Numbers” section at the end of this chapter, under “Royal,” the name of the closest community. There isn’t much to see in Inman except the main street, which is wide, dusty, and unpaved, and looks as if it could have been the setting for a Hollywood western. Every time I’m there, I fully expect to see Grace Kelly and Gary Cooper from High Noon leaving town on their buckboard, having just defeated Ian MacDonald (aka Frank Miller) and his pals. Inman may be a small place with just 148 citizens, but it is not lacking in conveniences; so if you need something to quench your thirst or a snack to nibble on, you’re in luck. Stay on the trail until you get to the “Welcome to Inman” sign, turn left or south onto Main Street, and go about 200 yards. On the right is a small white building with a white awning over the entry. This is Sawyer’s Service, the local grocery store. 36 - - Ewing to Inman

Don’t walk in expecting this place to be like the shiny white market in your hometown. It is compact and a bit rough around the edges; it smells as though someone’s cat marked the front door several times, and there are coyote, possum, fox, and badger pelts hanging on the walls inside. The owner, Cleo, is exceedingly friendly. The store has refrigerators with cool drinks, microwavable sandwiches, canned and frozen foods, and sweets. There are tables inside if you need a place out of the weather to eat or drink your purchase. I am guessing that many years ago there were probably many places in the Midwest just like this. There are a few barbecue grills, covered picnic tables, and a lone Port-a-Potty at Inman Park. Go south straight past Sawyer’s and watch for the signs. Altogether, it’s about 400 yards from the path to the park. Back at the trail, and west a few steps beyond the “Welcome” sign, is where the Inman depot was once located. It was from here that a local physician boarded the train in answer to a call for help.

☛Long Ago, Right Here The wind was blowing fiercely in central Nebraska on a chilly evening in March 1923 and the combination of the gusts and snow caused tremendous destruction in the region. Sleet, hail, and freezing drizzle accompanied the winds, adding weight to communications and power lines and causing many of them to snap. Hundreds of telephone and telegraph poles that held those cables were also downed and massive snowdrifts across roads halted traffic.18 In Stafford, 6 miles from Inman, twenty-two-year-old Lucille Hutton was laboring to give birth to her second child. She was having difficulty, and her husband, Thomas, was concerned. He was the town’s railroad agent, and he used this asset and his connections to his advantage. The nearest physician was Dr. William W. Noyes, who resided in Inman with his wife, Hattie, and their five children. Like many early doctors, Noyes had once made house calls courtesy of a team of horses Ewing to Inman - - 37

and a buggy, but now he had a Model-T Ford to reach the sick and injured. Because of the storm and the road conditions, the car would be of no use in getting him to Stafford on that cold March evening.19 Thomas Hutton sent word to Dr. Noyes that his wife was in labor and that he was greatly needed. Since Thomas had been a telegraph operator early in his career, it is quite likely that he wired the depot agent in Inman, who had the message delivered to the physician.20 Noyes made his way to the Inman depot because the train was the only real option for traveling the 6 miles to Stafford during the blizzard. Express trains usually stopped only in larger communities, but in emergency cases they could be hailed.21 The local “railroad dispatcher rose to the occasion and flagged down the east-bound No. 3 flyer” and Dr. Noyes boarded it. Robert Hutton was shepherded into the world that night thanks to community support and the careful supervision of Dr. Noyes.22

If you travel west 75 yards on the trail beyond Main Street, then turn to the left or south and walk roughly 75 feet to the line of cottonwoods and tall grass, you can see the remains of what was probably Inman’s sidetrack or “siding.” Sidings were common in towns along the route; they were safe places for locomotives to pull off the main line and not block express trains that might be coming through. Once on the siding, employees could refuel the locomotive, refill water tanks, and load and unload passengers and freight. The depot was typically sandwiched between the sidetrack and the main line. Here, the Cowboy Trail is on the main line north of the old station and the siding was on the south of the building. Names and Numbers Ewing Two Rivers Motel: (402) 626-9989

38 - - Ewing to Inman

Neligh Deluxe Motel: (402) 887-4628 West Hillview Motel: (402) 887-4186 Royal Ashfall Fossil Beds State Historical Park: (402) 893-2000, http://ashfall .unl.edu

Ewing to Inman - - 39

Part Three

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Inman to O’Neill

8 miles

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althoug h this seg ment of the t r ail , like the last, is situated next to the highway, it too is visually appealing, and because there is very little traffic it is quite peaceful. Dotted gayfeather, a wildflower shaped like a green torch with a soft purple flame, dots the shoulders of the trail, as do yucca or small soapweed plants with their white blossoms covering a long central stalk. There are also plenty of sunflowers. Approximately 2 miles southeast of O’Neill, the trail crosses Dry Creek via a wood-planked bridge. Just after passing under that structure, the waterway immediately merges with the Elkhorn River. Below is a clean sandy beach, a good spot for a rest and a bite to eat. It’s also a perfect place to pull off your shoes and socks and soak your feet. A very short distance away, you’ll cross the Elkhorn where it turns southeast to meet Dry Creek. The first and last things you’ll see of O’Neill are the short sections of trail featuring green-colored cement, subtle reminders to users that this is the “Irish Capital of Nebraska.” This town is the largest you’ll pass through west of Norfolk, and it is truly an oasis: you’ll find everything you need to recover from your day or to resupply for the next few days. 42 - - Inman to O’Neill

Dotted gayfeather

Stay on the trail until arriving at Fourth Street. You can’t miss it: this intersection is the original location of the O’Neill train depot and is now the Circle G Western Wear and Tack store. This sturdy woodand-brick building is extremely attractive, which makes it one of the highlights along the route. Whether you’re in the market for cowboy duds or not, I would suggest that you go and take a peek inside just so you can say you’ve been in a real depot where a real rainmaker once stood.

☛Long Ago, Right Here The summer of 1892 was a dry one in O’Neill, and the corn crop was in danger of being lost because of the lack of rainfall. On Thursday, August 4, 1892, Professor Frank Melbourne of Cheyenne, Wyoming, arrived in the city at 1:30 pm, probably by train, having been invited via telegram. Melbourne was a “Rain Maker”: he claimed that, for a fee of $3,000, he would “cause Jupiter Pluvius to open up the flood gates and sprinkle a long suffering people” with ½ inch of rain before four days had passed.1 The city fathers were consulted and a contract was immediately drawn up and signed. Melbourne commenced his labors that night in the cupola of the courthouse. Within six hours of starting, thunder, lightning, and Inman to O’Neill - - 43

wind rolled through the area but without the company of significant rain. There were promising moments over the next four days, but the clouds were stubborn and rebuffed his efforts. His time had expired but Melbourne refused to quit, and he continued with his work on Tuesday. Later the same day, he emerged and announced that dry days were at an end and that a shower would soon arrive. One did.2 An inch of rain gently fell while Melbourne departed O’Neill on the train for his next job in Grand Island, Nebraska.3 The hiring of a rainmaker may seem a bit odd, but ten months later the people of Crawford, Nebraska, about 300 miles west of O’Neill and near Chadron, were reduced to using an even stranger method to end a long dry spell. This method was based on the observation of many at the time that it often rained after a military battle involving artillery. One newspaperman wrote, “After discussing various plans it was decided to raise a fund, buy the necessary explosives and secure the services of a detachment of cannon and troops from Ft. Robinson and bombard the air. Two cannons have been kept busy all the afternoon about two miles from town endeavoring to make it rain and the outlook is favorable.”4 In Kansas the same year, a farmer whose crops were destroyed by a cloudburst during the harvest season attempted to sue the rainmaker who caused the storm.5

Those wanting to see the actual building where Melbourne toiled will be disappointed to learn that the courthouse that stands now in O’Neill was built in 1936 and replaced the one in which the rainmaker worked his magic. There really aren’t many local businesses south of the Cowboy Trail in O’Neill; however, if your plan is to stay overnight, there are a couple of places down that way you might want to consider. Turning left or south from the trail at Fourth Street, the first place you’ll come to is the Elkhorn Motel, which has mostly long-term tenants but occasionally has rooms available for short stays. The next place is Carney Park, about 50 yards from the trail, and it is a fine place to camp. It is nicely maintained, it has flush toilets and 44 - - Inman to O’Neill

showers, and the camping is free (but donations are accepted). On one of my visits, a rodeo was being held in the arena at the park. If you have never been to one of these and would like to see beautiful horses, big belt buckles, brawny bulls, tough cowboys, and pretty cowgirls, you’ll have fun here. Look online at RodeoNebraska.com to schedule your trail adventure to coincide with such an event in O’Neill. Many other businesses can be found along Fourth Street north of the depot, and also along U.S. Highway 275 east and west of Fourth. Turn right or north off the trail and shortly you will see a couple of bars and a Mexican restaurant named Tia Zia’s. Four blocks from the path in the same direction and then east on the highway, you’ll find many more local merchants. Torpin’s Rodeo Market, a Sunmart grocery store, a couple of convenience stores, Pizza Hut, McDonald’s, Subway, Dairy Queen, and a few more bars are within one mile of the turn. Also along here are the Carriage House Motel, the Elms Motel, a Holiday Inn Express, and a Super 8. The Elkhorn Motel is a bit farther away and closer to the east edge of town. Turn west onto the highway at Fourth Street and within ½ mile you’ll find the Sack and Save Market, a couple more convenience stores, a laundromat, and two more pubs. Back at the junction of Fourth Street and the highway, and painted smack in the middle of the road, is the “world’s largest shamrock.” This is also the location of the Golden Hotel. It was built by land developer and lawyer Thomas Vincent Golden, who wanted to construct a hotel in O’Neill that would be architecturally beautiful, long-lasting, a credit to the town, and a catalyst for progress. His dream was completed in 1913, one year after breaking ground, at a cost of $50,000. It had fifty guest rooms, each with a private telephone, hot and cold water, and other modern conveniences. The only lumber used in the entire structure was for doors and windows, making it virtually fireproof.6 Even though many changes have been made inside the hotel over the years, it is still a cool place to stay, and modern-day guests will recognize details Golden incorporated into the design—such as the iron and polished marble staircase and the elaborate floor tiling—as soon as they enter the front doors. Current owner John Fernando is intent on Inman to O’Neill - - 45

restoring the hotel to its former stature, and he enjoys talking about the intriguing history of the building with his guests. The time I stayed there, the price of the room included a voucher for breakfast at the Blarney Stone Café, just a few steps away. The meal consisted of toast, eggs, sausage or bacon, and hash browns. Another bonus is that there is free bicycle storage in the basement of the hotel. My suggestion for a convenient and fun night on the town is to check in at the Golden Hotel, then walk ½ block west to Dougherty’s Pub for refreshments and a retelling of the day’s adventure. Afterward, walk back toward the shamrock, turning south at Fourth and going ½ block to Tia Zia’s for some tasty Mexican food. You’ll have fun in O’Neill!

46 - - Inman to O’Neill

O’Neill to Emmet

8½ miles

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t h e t r a i l rol l s t h ro u g h the south side of O’Neill and eventually takes you out into the countryside. Out here the most prominent sound is made by the long prairie grass bowing in the breeze, seeming to say, “Shhhh,” suggesting that there are others needing to be heard. Now, quail are singing and red-wing blackbirds chatter while hovering in the breeze for several seconds just before alighting on abandoned telegraph posts. Splotches of color large and small are scattered all around the trail here, from the pink of the showy milkweed to the yellow of the prairie coneflower. The textures vary, too, with great patches of soft, ferny wild asparagus and jagged hoary vervain. Scattered along the grasslands south of the way are flat water tanks that sit at the base of dutiful windmills quietly turning in the breeze, and their open prairie companions, round-bellied cattle. To those with a quixotic imagination, these tall, vigilant sentinels appear to stand guard silently while scanning the horizon, and at their feet their four-legged charges casually drink from the sparkling pool, knowing they are well protected. The 77 residents of Emmet seem collectively to have a pretty good sense of humor. Out on U.S. Highway 20, which has replaced Highway 275, is a sign that points the way to the business district and also indicates that this place is the “Home of Dan Finnigan.” Finnigan was apparently quite an athlete in the early 1900s; he once was asked to deliver a telegram to a home near O’Neill and, being without a horse, O’Neill to Emmet - - 47

he literally ran the note to the recipient. The really interesting part of the story is that he left at about the same time as the train and he is reported to have outrun it in the process of transporting the message.7 Stay on the trail until you get to Main Street. Turn right or north and you’ll see the sign for the Emmet Hay Company and Post Office, which serves as a multipurpose facility. You can buy a soda or bottle of water here, sit down at the table for a breather, or use the toilet and shower. If you find that you need to unburden yourself after spending time on the trail, you can meet with Joel, the Countryside Baptist Fellowship preacher who keeps an office in the back. Terry, who runs the post office, said that if you show up around 3:30 in the afternoon, you can get in on a hot game of cribbage with several locals who congregate there during the week. After leaving Emmet, you can’t see north or south of the trail very far because there are cedars, cottonwoods, bushes, and other kinds of vegetation crowded together and growing high on each shoulder. One does get occasional glimpses of the grasslands that stretch to lines of tall green trees in the distance. Proceed west out of town 2½ miles until you get to four very long and narrow buildings that run parallel to the trail and have white corrugated-metal roofs and, depending on the time of year, open or canvas-covered sides. These structures house lots and lots of hogs, and you might smell them before you see the buildings; it will be an unforgettable experience. The north-south road that crosses the 48 - - O’Neill to Emmet

trail west of these structures is 482 Avenue: it was at this place on the rail line, seemingly in the middle of nowhere, that area connoisseurs would exit the train in order to stock up on a concoction referred to in some parts of the country as Old Stingo, Happy Sally, Jump Steady, or Panther Whiskey.

☛Long Ago, Right Here Nebraska had its share of problems related to liquor and moonshine during the Prohibition era, which lasted from 1920 to 1933. This may have been due in large part to the fact that it was a vast and sparsely populated territory, which made discovery of brewers and brewing difficult. Another factor may have been the ample supply of available corn, an important ingredient in moonshine. Finally, federal census records show that the state’s population consisted of many who were born in Germany, Ireland, England, Czechoslovakia, and Poland. Wine, beer, and whiskey were staples in their diets and customs and, for these people, being forced to do without an occasional sip was unnatural. Emmet is situated in Holt County, and in the ’20s and ’30s there was a large immigrant population there. Sheriffs in the county, much like the rest of the country’s law enforcement officials, were kept busy executing the ban and at the same time were attempting to protect residents from acquiring liquor that could possibly prove harmful to their health. Production of booze went underground when it was banned and it was sometimes made by those interested in generating the greatest profit with the least investment. This being the case, the quality of the drink was not always of the highest standards. One recipe used to create the mash for a really pleasing punch included “50 pounds of hog feed, 50 pounds of cornmeal and five pounds of yeast. Add enough water to fill the barrel and let it stand until you cannot bear the smell any longer. Then distill it and add 1 pint of 100-proof alcohol marked ‘for external use only.’”8 During the thirteen years of Prohibition in Holt County, there were O’Neill to Emmet- - 49

approximately forty-one arrests for possessing moonshine, fifteen for possessing a still, and another fifteen for possessing mash. Additionally, there were six arrests for transporting illicit liquor and twentyseven for providing or selling the same. There were also twenty-six arrests for possessing “whiskey,” “alcohol,” and “liquor,” but depending on who wrote the complaint for the docket, these terms may have been used to mean the same thing as “moonshine,” suggesting that this might ultimately have been the drink of choice.9 “Con” O’Connell was reputed to be Emmet’s premier moonshiner, and a warrant to search his property exists in the Holt County courthouse, suggesting that county officials may have been suspicious of him at one time. The story goes that one day a week, a small group of O’Neill residents would board the train and exit it 2½ miles west of Emmet near O’Connell’s place. From this point, they would walk ½ mile south on the dirt road to his farm to make their purchase of White Lightnin’. Con’s recipe was apparently quite strong, so he cut the mix by half-filling a quart jar with water dipped from the horse tank and filling it the rest of the way with his concoction. Satisfied customers would make their way back to the tracks and wait for the next eastbound train to return home.10

50 - - O’Neill to Emmet

Emmet to Atkinson 10 miles ------------------------------------------------mov ing just ahead of t r ail users bound for Atkinson will be mourning doves who, as if playing some sort of game, will wait until you are close, then lift off and fly farther ahead, sometimes halting in a shaded spot. They’ll repeat this over and over again. Watch for piping plovers or killdeer, too. These birds look very similar to one another but you probably won’t be able to get close enough to tell which they actually are. They’ll assume you are a predator and will run for long stretches just ahead of you, sometimes feigning an injury, with the purpose of leading you away from their nests. Be sure to keep your eyes down on the path when you see this behavior, because killdeer and plovers scratch tiny depressions into sandy or graveled surfaces to lay their eggs. If you are lucky, you may see a clutch with two or three grape-sized eggs about the same color as the trail surface. Along the edge of the highway and thickly tangled in fence lines are vast stretches of hairy vetch. When seen from a distance, the flowers of the plant lend a purple hue to these areas. Masses of papery yellow fourpoint evening primrose also blanket the edges of the way. Just as you enter Atkinson on the southeast side of town, you’ll see the First Stop gas and convenience store on the opposite side of the highway and ¼ mile later, right beside the path, there is a Shell station and Rhonda’s Café, both located in one building. Just behind this place on the trail is a small, wooden-planked bridge, which makes it easy to access the store. Beyond Rhonda’s are many newly planted maple, spruce, cottonwood, and pine trees lining each side of the trail in the central part of town. In a few years these will be tall, shady, and beautiful. Emmet to Atkinson - - 51

Fourpoint evening primrose

Soon, you’ll cross both Madison and State streets at the same time, and about 100 feet past that intersection on the right or north side of the trail, you can see portions of the old railroad station’s footings. These cement supports are about ten inches wide and level with the surface of the surrounding turf and run parallel to the trail. Places where journeys begin or end are often associated with emotions involving joy, sadness, frustration, and anger, and over the years depots have been mute observers of these personal stories. The depot in Atkinson was no different, as it bore witness to a drama that unfolded here over the course of several days.

☛Long Ago, Right Here According to Boyd Planck, the station’s ticket agent, at 1:30 on the afternoon of Tuesday, June 29, 1943, a tall, heavy-set transient with a closely cropped beard and striped pants entered the depot office in Atkinson. He confronted Boyd, who was alone at the time, and said, “This is a holdup, give me the money.” Station employees typically sold tickets to passengers and collected fees for freight being shipped so it was common knowledge that cash would be on the premises. Planck, a U.S. Navy veteran, retorted, “The hell I will.” The railroad employee said the intruder did not hesitate; he reached toward Planck, pressing the muzzle of the gun he had been concealing against the ticket agent’s chest, squeezed the trigger once, and fled. Just across the tracks and south of the depot, young Betty Dierks, an employee of the Nite and Day café, was hanging laundry behind the eatery when she heard an odd sound. She didn’t realize at the time that it was a gunshot. She later told police that from where she was working, the station was in full view, and she hadn’t heard any commotion nor had she seen anyone enter or leave the station. The wounded Planck struggled to telephone the town’s operator, Anna Coufal, and told her that he had been shot. Coufal immediately contacted local physician W. J. Douglas, who was the first to arrive. The doctor administered first aid on the scene and then had Boyd transported by ambulance to his office where he took two x-rays to Emmet to Atkinson - - 53

locate the bullet and dressed the wound. He determined that the projectile had entered Planck’s body just above his heart and then traveled upward, lodging against the inside of his fourth rib. Immediately after interviewing Planck and obtaining a description of the attacker, Sheriff Peter Duffy organized a large group of men who loaded into automobiles and raced into the countryside around town hoping to encircle the assailant and cut off his escape route. Once positioned, they worked their way back into the community on foot searching for him. About two hours after the shooting, Betty Dierks found the gun, a .38-caliber nickel-plated revolver with a rubber grip, in the high grass about 35 feet south of the depot. One cartridge had recently been fired and fingerprints were clearly visible on the weapon. Meanwhile, Sheriff Duffy and Patrolman John Meistrell continued their investigation until late Tuesday evening. Additional special agents from the railroad arrived early Wednesday and Thursday to conduct their own inquiries. Over the course of the next several days, the gun was sent to the state’s fingerprint lab, the powder burn on Planck’s shirt was examined, and the bullet’s path and the wound itself were considered.11 On July 8 ticket agent Boyd Planck told authorities he had made a mistake. He admitted he had been battling a heart ailment for a number of years and decided that “ending it all” would be better than living with his affliction.12 Some may criticize Planck for initially causing harm to himself and lying to others, but during the investigation he had at least two opportunities to place the blame on suspects brought before him. A less honorable man could have avoided the shame and embarrassment of his error by accusing innocent people. Boyd did not do this. After recovering from the wound, Planck continued to have health problems. He died just nine years later at the age of sixtyone as the result of a heart attack.13

Several yards beyond where the depot used to be, there is a small but very attractive picnic shelter with a water faucet situated directly 54 - - Emmet to Atkinson

beside the path, and this is a comfortable place for a snack. If you haven’t packed anything to eat or drink, it’s not a problem, as most of the local businesses are just steps away on or very near Main Street, which is visible from the shelter. Within just a few blocks you’ll find Braun’s iga, Lech’s Super Saver grocery store, the Triple F Restaurant, the Centennial Laundromat, the Roundup Bar and Grill, the Someplace Else Bar, and the West Holt Medical Clinic and Pharmacy. At the public library, you can access the Internet free of charge. If you stop nowhere else in this area of town, go to the R. F. Goeke (pronounced “go-key”) Variety Store. Here you can buy yarn, cough drops, gardening gloves, jigsaw puzzles, brooms, blenders, and piñatas. The best buys, however, are in the back at the soda fountain and Silver Comet Diner. There is an authentic 1950s-style lunch counter with cushy red vinyl–and–chrome spinning stools, fun music from days gone by, and several shiny topping dispensers with all sorts of tasty treats. I highly recommend the Peanut Butter Fundae—chocolate ice cream, peanut butter and fudge sauce, with whipped cream and a cherry on top. Atkinson has a nice big city park with picnic shelters and tables, flush toilets, a playground, a water spigot, and huge shade trees. To get there, turn right or north off the trail at Main Street and go five blocks to U.S. Highway 20. Nearby, you’ll see a Subway sandwich shop and the Wheel Inn Motel and rv Park. The rv park features showers, restrooms, full hookups, and cable tv. One-quarter mile west of the main part of town on the trail is the turnoff for the Atkinson State Recreation Area. Locating the turn is easy—just watch for the massive grove of evergreens on the left of the path protecting the outside of a peaceful cemetery. Turn left here and travel south of Highway 20 about ½ mile. This little campground has sixteen electrical sites ($9 per night) and the cost for tents is $5 per night. There are a few tables, pit toilets, and a picnic shelter. The grounds are partially shaded and can provide a moderate amount of shade on really hot days. The Elkhorn River runs right beside the camping area and spills over a small dam nearby.

Emmet to Atkinson - - 55

Atkinson to Stuart 10 miles

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a b o u t 4 ½ m i l e s f ro m at k i n s o n , U.S. Highway 20 ambles away, leaving a trail user to continue undisturbed by vehicle noise for a while. At this point, there are dense green fields on one side of the path and a wooded area with several large ponds on the right. This site, known by locals as the Five-Mile Pit, was once excavated for its sand and gravel for roads and buildings, but now nature is slowly reclaiming her own. The changes in flora in this segment signal that the land is much different from that seen in the eastern part of the state. There are many Plains sunflowers, small soapweed, and Flodman’s thistles, but now there are a few tall common mullein with their soft-as-lamb’sears leaves here, also. Farther on and about a mile from Stuart, tall elm trees line each side of the way as if saluting those who have journeyed so far and welcoming visitors to town. The central business district in Stuart is on the north side of Highway 20, so the trail crosses it just as you enter town. You’ll see the typical services along the highway at this point including the Pit Stop convenience store, Southside Mini-Mart, and the Tasty Foods DriveIn. The Stuart Village Inn hotel is in this area, too. Stuart’s train station once stood between the trail and the main building for the William Krotter Company lumberyard. This one-story white building with the red horizontal stripe is only a few steps north of where Main Street intersects the trail. It was from this depot that one of Stuart’s shopkeepers, fed up with a local outlaw, left on a train as an ordinary citizen but returned a few hours later as a lawman. 56 - - Atkinson to Stuart

Small soapweed

☛Long Ago, Right Here Ask any longtime resident of the northwest or north-central part of Nebraska if he or she has heard of Doc Middleton and without a doubt the answer will be yes. Depending on your subject’s point of view, he or she will either smile or grimace when asked the question. Middleton, aka James M. Riley, roamed the territory in the late 1800s and was considered by some to be a midwestern version of Robin Hood.14 There are plenty of stories told of his generosity to laborers, settlers, women, and others. In one such story, he and a partner happened upon an immigrant family in a covered wagon on the trail to Long Pine. It seems that one of their two horses drank too much at a spring and died a short distance later. Without the second animal, they could not proceed. After eating dinner and chatting with the family, Middleton and company departed and returned later with a gift of a black horse to serve as the missing half of the pulling team.15 While he endeared himself to this needy family, he was despised and reviled by ranchers and farmers, as he had a talent for horse stealing and little respect for the law. It is quite possible that his act of generosity toward the immigrants came at the expense of someone who he believed had livestock to spare. On one of his trips to Stuart, he stopped at the Scirving Brothers Hardware Store and inquired about a new shotgun he had heard about that could hold six shells. John Scirving, a small Swedish man, took out the weapon, loaded it and provided the requested demonstration. Middleton asked for the gun so that he could try the same thing for himself and, after working a shell through the mechanism, asked, “But will the d—— thing shoot?”16 He pointed it toward the thin ceiling and fired a round. Immediately after the terrific blast from the gun, a shriek was heard coming from above. In those days, proprietors often lived above their stores so as not to pay for both a place of business and a residence, and to keep an eye on their stores and inventories after closing time. In this way, the Scirvings were no exception. John informed Doc that his wife and young daughter were upstairs and that if either of them were hurt, there would be serious consequences for Middleton. Scirving rushed up to the apartment 58 - - Atkinson to Stuart

and was told by his wife that she had been brushing daughter Nellie’s hair, and when it came time to add the ribbon, both realized that it was still in the dresser. Just after Nellie rushed away to get one, the floor blew up right where the young girl had been standing. John Scirving, relieved that his family was safe yet angry that the gun had been fired, returned downstairs to the store and confronted Middleton, saying, “When the train going east at 9:15 leaves town I will be on it going to O’Neill and when I return this afternoon on the 4:30 local I will be a deputy county sheriff, and if you are yet in town I will put you in jail,” at which point Doc snickered and said, “I will be waiting for you.” Scirving returned in the afternoon wearing a badge. He immediately retrieved a double-barreled shotgun from his store and went looking for the outlaw. He hid around the corner of a building and surprised Middleton as he emerged from an alleyway, at which point John jammed the shotgun into Doc’s ribs and informed him that if he didn’t drop his guns, he would be blown to bits. Doc complied. He was taken to the local jail where he was locked in one cell and the clothes he was wearing were placed in another. This was done on the assumption that no self-respecting outlaw would attempt an escape without his accoutrements, and separating him from them would make a late-night departure doubly difficult. A further demonstration that Doc Middleton was hated by some but loved by others is the fact that at 6:00 the next morning, the jail doors were all found to be locked but the desperado and his clothes were gone. A check of the livery stable revealed that his horse and riding gear were also missing. Apparently, someone had a duplicate set of keys and felt obliged to help the cowboy get out of town.

At Main Street, turn right off the trail to get to an Affiliated food store, an Ace Hardware, the post office, the library, and the Tri County Bank with its 24-hour atm. The Central Bar is in this area also, where inside one can see some interesting displays of the brands used by local ranching families to identify their cattle. The place has cold drinks and good cheeseburgers. Atkinson to Stuart - - 59

The Sisters’ House B&B is at 412 Garfield, so continue going north on Main Street, pass St. Boniface Catholic Church, and turn right on Fifth Street; it will be on your right. The Sisters’ House was built in 1910 by the matriarch of the Flanagan family. Mary Flanagan owned the land and had title to the home but in 1916 her husband, the local financier, became ill and later died. She sold the home to the St. Boniface Catholic Church in 1920 for $16,000 and the institution opened it as a convent for its nuns one year later. For the next seventy-four years, up to seven sisters lived there at any one time. More than a hundred different women called the place home until the last two left in 1995 when it was sold to its present owner, Mary Bott. One might think the former home of Catholic sisters would include rooms that would be cramped and austere but that is not the case here. The bedrooms are large, comfortable, and very tastefully decorated and the woodwork throughout is a beautiful, rich chocolate brown. The main floor features sunny spaces, beautiful antiques, and wide openings between rooms with swinging french doors that feature cut-glass panes. These are the features one might expect to see in a turn-ofthe-century home of a banking family rather than a home occupied by nuns. When I stayed there, the continental breakfast was fantastic and included biscuits and sausage gravy, cinnamon rolls, bagels, sliced bread, several kinds of cereal, mixed fruit, juices, coffee, tea, cream cheese, and jams. This is all included in the price of the room. Mary, the owner, is a bit of a local historian, a savvy entrepreneur, an accomplished interior decorator, and a perfectionist when it comes to making your stay comfortable. Stuart Park is located at Seventh and Main streets and just a few blocks beyond St. Boniface. It has a playground, picnic tables, shelters, fresh water, flush toilets, and plenty of shade. There is also a small campground with electrical hookups, and sites cost $5 per night. Place your money in the box at the entrance. If you turn left or south onto Main Street from the trail and travel 75 yards, you’ll arrive at the entrance to the White Horse Museum. This place, originally a private residence, served as a hospital and later as a 60 - - Atkinson to Stuart

home for the aged, until it was purchased to house materials important to the Stuart area. Some of the most significant memorabilia come from the nearby White Horse Ranch. Best known around the world between 1930 and 1960, the 2,400-acre ranch near Naper, Nebraska, 20 miles north of Stuart, was where the American White Horse Registry was started. The original owners, Caleb and Ruth Thompson, wanted to establish a unique and magical breed of equine that would attract attention wherever they went and would draw visitors to the ranch. The Thompsons, along with their talented pure-white steeds and their troupe of young riders, toured the country wowing audiences with pageantry, tricks, and jumping routines. The horses were featured extensively in a variety of magazines including Life and Weekly Reader and were subjects of a Warner Brothers short film. Over the years, too few visitors stopped at the once-popular attraction and too much work was required to keep the place in tip-top shape. In 2006 the gates to the White Horse Ranch were closed for the final time. There are three floors of interesting displays in the main building of the White Horse Museum, and most of the items seem to come from the late 1800s up to about the 1960s. Inside there are glass cabinets with military clothing and equipment, century-old guest registers from a local hotel that visitors can examine page-by-page, coins, Indian beadwork and arrowheads as well as displays of ladies’ fashions, telephones, typewriters, furniture, and more. There are seven smaller structures nearby including a well-preserved log cabin originally built in 1874, an agriculture and vehicle building with some wonderful horse-drawn buggies and firefighting equipment, and a blacksmith shop. Admission is $3 for adults, $2 for seniors, and free for children under five. Plan on at least ninety minutes to see everything. Names and Numbers Atkinson Wheel Inn Motel and RV Park: (402) 925-5117 O’Neill Carriage House Motel: (888) 246-6835 Atkinson to Stuart - - 61

Elkhorn Motel: (402) 336-3216 Elms Motel: (800) 526-9052 Golden Hotel: (800) 658-3148 Stuart Sisters’ House B&B: (402)924-3678; (877) 773-3390, www.thesistershouse .com Stuart Village Inn Hotel: (402) 924-3133 White Horse Museum: (402) 924-3168, www.stuartwhitehorsemuseum .com

62 - - Atkinson to Stuart

Part Four

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Stuart to Newport 10⅓ miles

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as you leave stua rt, you’ll travel quite a distance among beautiful, tall elm and locust trees that shade the trail, and the slightest breeze causes their leaves to dance noisily on the ends of the branches and limbs. U.S. Highway 20 is way off to the south, so the sound of cars and trucks subsides and the gentle rustling of the foliage takes its place. You can hear the calling of large, shiny-faced black cows and the click-click-clicking of anxious squirrels warning others in their clans about the presence of strangers. North of the trail lie seemingly endless corn-and soybean fields with their perfectly uniform rows, and on the south are fertile grasslands highlighted with an occasional auburn-colored pony. It is possible you’ll see wild turkeys ahead of you on the path or you may surprise some that have been foraging in the ditch beside you. These large, dark-colored birds have distinctive red beards, the easiest thing to spot when the birds are hiding or running just beyond the trees that line the path. Unlike many other segments of the trail that are as straight as a string, this one has some parts where the trail gently bends around tree-filled curves that block a longer view and make one wonder what is ahead. Travelers will enjoy these nice surprises as the changes in scenery become more varied and interesting. Newport, with an official population count of 136, has very few services. Stay on the trail until reaching the main north-south thoroughfare, which is 2nd Street. The train station was located just west of 2nd Street and baby-steps north of the trail in the flat grassy space. Products of the typical kind were regularly shipped by rail from New64 - - Stuart to Newport

port, but on one occasion a very unusual commodity was loaded and sent to Omaha from this place.

☛Long Ago, Right Here Many politicians and businessmen took note of the success of the 1893 Columbian Exposition in Chicago and sought to duplicate it in a locale in the western United States. The idea mushroomed, and in 1895 the Trans-Mississippi Congress, which represented the states of Colorado, Missouri, Utah, Texas, Minnesota, Wyoming, California, and others, met in St. Louis to “discuss measures designed to promote the commercial and material interests of the territory they represented.”1 At that gathering, a delegation from Nebraska drafted a proposal and chose William Jennings Bryan, a very popular and articulate politician from the state, as their spokesman. He proposed Omaha as the site for the event as part of the resolution, which was later unanimously adopted. Three years passed, and on March 9, 1898, at a meeting of the TransMississippi board of directors based in Omaha, $500 was budgeted for the building and maintenance of a typical sod house. It was to be situated next to the elaborate Nebraska Building on the grounds of the exposition.2 A “soddy” was constructed of blocks of turf and was often built by homesteaders on the Plains primarily because trees were extremely scarce on the grasslands. If a settler was industrious enough to cut sod and stack it to create walls, and then devise some sort of efficient roof, at least his family would have some protection from the sun, wind, snow, and rain. The objective behind the construction of the sod house and its placement next to the Nebraska Building was to contrast the thirtyyear development of the state from its frontier beginnings to its more modern and comfortable condition as it existed in 1898. The task of gathering materials and shipping and building the structure was assigned to Mrs. Mary Bowser, a longtime resident of Newport, Nebraska. The board members felt that since she “had resided on the Stuart to Newport - - 65

prairies of Nebraska for years, and [was] living in a sod house a part of the time, she was peculiarly fitted for managing this work.”3 Bowser recruited Addison Q. Morrison from her community, who supervised the harvesting of the turf near Newport.4 On May 9 and 10, 1898, citizens from that town loaded four train cars with sod that were transported to Omaha. Mary, the driving force behind the idea, departed for Omaha and the expo on May 10, 1898, and Morrison left the next day.5 The Trans-Mississippi exposition opened June 1, 1898, and closed five months later on October 31. There were buildings erected by and named for participating states, each housing elaborate displays of materials produced, mined, or grown in those places. Other structures were dedicated to displays of electricity, engines, bees and their products, dairying, fine arts, plants, and fruits, to name a few. There were also ornate structures erected by companies to advertise their beer, whiskey, tobacco, fences, and shoes. Additionally, fountains, a lake with gondolas, a working scenic railway, a Chinese village, and a Native American encampment could be found on the grounds. At the conclusion of the exposition, the board members, writing about the sod house and the intent to show the development of the state’s people, said, “The success of this exemplification of our advancement was noteworthy as attested by the remarkable interest in the Sod House manifested by all visitors coming to the State Building or to that part of the grounds.”6

North of the trail on 2nd Street is the post office and across the street is Myrna’s Market. Her store looks dinky on the outside but is more like Dr. Who’s tardis on the inside. The place is huge, with plenty of fresh fruit, cool drinks, and picnic grub. Myrna is a very pleasant person, and she knows a great deal about the history of the town and is willing to tell you about it if you ask. While inside the store, take a peek up high at the walls at the interesting collection of old farm tools on display. Newport was once known as the largest prairie-hay shipping center 66 - - Stuart to Newport

in the world. In a twelve-month period between 1901 and 1902, well over forty-nine million pounds were shipped from the Newport depot, and this didn’t include the hay that was kept or sold in the local area. The publisher of the local paper at the time estimated that at nine tons per railcar, that amount would fill nearly three thousand of them, and when connected car-to-car, the train would be 20 miles in length.7 Evidence of this once-important industry is still clearly visible near the trail. South of the way about 100 yards and on the west side of 2nd Street is a very small, light-yellow building with a flat front façade that extends up above the peaked roof. This was the Elkhorn Valley Hay office, which belonged to W. H. Allen, one of the local “Hay Kings.” In front of the building and at ground level is a wooden platform that covers the weighing mechanism. Drivers sitting atop huge mountains of neatly stacked bales of hay on horse-drawn wagons would coax their charges forward until the load was on the timbered stand. One of Allen’s employees, observing the process from the window inside the office, would read the still-visible scale once the cargo was positioned and record the weight. Across the street and a bit closer to the trail is another small, but structurally interesting, office that belonged to a competitor of Allen’s named Joseph Gilg. Here, too, the scales are still visible in front of this white building. One hundred years ago, when men such as Allen, Gilg, and others were buying, selling, and shipping tons of hay, Newport boasted ten massive hay barns to store all of this prairie grass. Unfortunately, though, most of these no longer exist, as some burned down, some were moved to other locations, and some collapsed under the weight of their own giant roofs. South of the trail almost ½ mile is Highway 20 and Heller’s Lounge and Steakhouse, and just a few steps away is an atm. Sunny’s convenience store is about 400 yards east of Heller’s on the highway.

Stuart to Newport - - 67

Newport to Bassett

11⅓ miles

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about 1½ miles we st of new p ort , the trail emerges from between rows of cottonwood and cedar trees out into the open and runs alongside U.S. Highway 20 for a short distance. On either side of the trail in the fields are literally hundreds, maybe thousands, of huge round bales of prairie hay, an important feed supplement for cows, horses, donkeys, sheep, and other animals during long, cold winter months. Eventually, the path arcs away from the highway and adventurers are treated to views reminiscent of those in the movie Dances with Wolves. The low hills gracefully climb and fall, and the gently bending green and gold grasses that adorn them soften their appearance. Looking to the south, a person can pick out lush green patches that dot the dry and sandy prairie. These wet areas vary in size from those that cover acres to some that are only a few feet across. It is a bit of a surprise to see these shallow emerald-green oases in such a dry place, but they are fairly common. Often they form when a natural underground water supply, produced by rain, melted snow, or lake runoff, is near the land’s surface. The groundwater seeps into these depressions in the earth, and for those that have existed for many years, vegetation takes root over time. The highway is far off in the distance and this means one is likely to see more Nebraska wildlife. Don’t be startled when several grouse explode from the tall grass beside the path and take to the air. More turkeys can be spotted here, too, and they seem to like to tease and taunt by staying just far enough ahead on the trail that you can’t get a good look at them with the naked eye. Just over a mile from Bassett, the trail diagonally crosses well-used, unpaved, and unmarked North Third Street. To get your bearings, 68 - - Newport to Bassett

look to the southwest ¼ mile and you should see a white house, barn, and shop with a grove of tall trees serving as a background; in the foreground is an extensive rust-colored, metal-paneled corral. Continue west ¼ mile until you cross the north-south lane leading into the farm. Once there, pause a few moments and scan the landscape nearby. Look at the trail, the banks lining it, and the grasses. Listen to the sound of the wind and the birds and smell the scents in the air. It was right about here in this quiet, lonely, and nondescript place that a young criminal did those things—looked, listened, smelled—right before he took his final breath and shut his eyes for the last time.

☛Long Ago, Right Here Pioneers had few possessions of any significant value, but the three things they did own that were of considerable worth were their land, homes, and animals. The mid-to late 1800s saw the rise of claim jumping, where thieves would forcefully drive settlers from their homesteads. Horse stealing was also a popular pastime. One entrepreneur who was engaged in the latter occupation was Kid Wade. “The Kid” was actually Albert Wade, described as “a young man of less than 25, of rather slender build, and medium height . . . and a face inclining to angular and sharp features, on which the beard scarcely yet grows. . . . The facial expression is one more fitting a levee loafer or sneak thief than one denoting the higher aspirations of a horse thief.”8 The young man had been operating in the Niobrara Valley north of Bassett and Long Pine for some time. After one of his heists, he fled with his booty into Iowa but was captured near Le Mars by a vigilante group from Nebraska. This organization, like many others in the state, was made up of residents and landowners from the area where the crimes were committed. The people in these groups typically had limited patience but were generous with retribution. The vigilantes had nasty reputations and were feared by even law-abiding citizens. Albert “Kid” Wade was eventually taken to O’Neill and then Long Pine with the purpose of allowing the public to interview him regardNewport to Bassett - - 69

ing his captors’ conduct, and he certified that he had been treated well. By the time he got to Bassett, he was under the control of the sheriff of Holt County, Ed Hershiser. Around midnight on February 7, 1884, a band of masked men raided the hotel where the sheriff was holding Wade and promised violence if anyone followed them. They then departed, taking Albert with them. The next morning, Kid Wade was found a mile east of Bassett hanging by his neck from a railway whistling post beside the train tracks.9 The identities of the masked men were never clearly established.

Once you arrive in Bassett, you get the feeling that the citizens are working hard to reinvent the town; there is an artsy feel that is evident in many ways here, which is pleasing. The central part of town is squeaky clean. Stay on the trail until you get to Clark, the main north-south street in town. Just as you pass the base of the water tower on your left, you’ll see a restored brick building bearing the name “The Bassett Creamery,” although the lettering is a bit worn and a little hard to read. Inside, you’ll find washrooms intended specifically for trail users. The city’s leaders have chosen not to put a “Public Restroom” sign out front for various reasons, but the mayor has assured me that they want walkers and cyclists to enter and use the facilities. A few steps farther south on Clark is Allen’s Pizza Place, Sanger’s Market, the Kaleidoscope Art Gallery, and a pristine Phillips 66 gas station originally built between 1913 and 1919. Right behind this is a western-style mall complete with a boardwalk featuring tables and some artwork produced by local high school students. Some communities might have chosen to leave this as an empty lot sitting on their main street, but the folks of Bassett have created an attractive outdoor gathering spot. The Corral Bar, just a few steps away, has tasty French Dip sandwiches, cold drinks, and chatty locals. About 200 yards south of the trail is the Bassett Lodge. If you are looking for the chain-hotel experience with sterile white cookie-cutter rooms, electronic door locks, and refrigerators, then this is not 70 - - Newport to Bassett

the place for you. However, if you like to experience the atypical and would like to try a grand old inn with arched doorways, an antique phone system, curved exterior and interior walls, and glass block accents, then this is the ticket. Originally built in the early 1930s, it is being restored, not remodeled, to its original condition by partners Mike Skulavik and Randy Goeke. You can sense the history of the building when you enter the swinging front doors and are given a room key retrieved from a rectangular mail slot behind the old-time check-in desk. The Range Café is in here too and features breakfast, lunch, and dinner, a full bar, and an ice cream counter just as authentic and enjoyable as the one at the R. F. Goeke Variety store in Atkinson. The rooms are equally aged but clean, comfy, and quiet. This is a perfect place to recuperate after a long day on the Cowboy Trail, and for cyclists staying here, there is no charge to secure bikes in the basement overnight. On Highway 20, ½ mile south of the trail, are the Cornhusker MiniMart, a Shell convenience store, a nice public park and swimming pool, and the Ranchland Motel.

Newport to Bassett - - 71

Bassett to Long Pine

10 miles

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to me, it seems the 10 miles of trail from Bassett to Long Pine are slightly inclined, although the angle is very, very slight. Another thing you should notice is that a gradual change has taken place in the geography in the last 70 miles . . . watch for the subtle signs. The wetlands, wildflowers, and farm fields have given way to endless expanses of grassland with very few trees. Geographically, you are in the Nebraska Sandhills. Just underneath the thin grass cover are dunes, some as high as 400 feet and 20 miles long, which have formed during the last 8,000 years.10 Underneath the dunes is the Ogallala Aquifer, a huge underground fresh-water reservoir whose northernmost point is in southern South Dakota and whose reach extends as far south as Texas. This massive supply of H2O, the result of rainwater percolating hundreds of feet down through the sand, is critical to the vitality of America’s breadbasket. There has been a great deal of discussion about this resource among those who want to protect it and those who want access to it. The major issues concern the possible depletion of the aquifer through massive crop irrigation in a semiarid environment and contamination of it as a result of pesticide use to protect investments in seed. A third area of debate centers on the impact of establishing large farms with huge herds of cattle concentrated in fairly small areas and the potential for animal waste to seep into the aquifer.11 The trail, embedded within the unique ecological landscape of the 72 - - Bassett to Long Pine

Sandhills, will eventually lead you to Long Pine, Nebraska, whose population is 348. Turn right or north off the path once you get to Main Street and you’ll immediately see the original Long Pine jail, which looks more like a medieval bear trap than something meant to billet people. The use of this type of enclosure may seem inhumane, but like in other towns on the frontier where law and order hadn’t clearly been established, life here was rough. In fact, a man named Jesse Crawford was probably held in this jail briefly before being tried for second-degree murder after he became involved in a disagreement involving a local businessman and a homesteader one winter day.

☛Long Ago, Right Here In January 1882 John Berry, manager of Berry Brothers stage line, and Bartley Kane were arguing on the main street of Long Pine. Kane, a farmer as well as a Berry employee, was angry about his wages and, at some point, made some not-very-complimentary remarks about his employer’s business. Crawford, one of Berry’s drivers, was sitting nearby and overheard the comments. He took exception to what was said, selected a nearby “scantling” (a two-by-four), and whacked Kane in the head with it, killing him.12 Crawford was arrested, transported to West Point, Nebraska, in Cuming County, approximately 180 miles away, and jailed.13 At the time, Long Pine was in unorganized territory and there was disagreement about whether authorities from Holt County, the nearest organized district and 30 miles from Long Pine, could prosecute him for any crime. Three years earlier the Nebraska Supreme Court ruled in a similar case involving I. P. Olive and Frederick Fisher, who had committed a felony in unorganized territory. According to one newspaper account, “Olive was releas[e]d by the supreme court on a writ of hab[eus] corpus, the supreme court holding that the district court had no jurisdiction over the unorganized territory.”14 Crawford’s lawyer, Moses P. Kinkaid, attempted to use the Olive case as a precedent to protect his client in this matter. Of this, said one publisher, “If Holt county officials have no power to arrest, examBassett to Long Pine - - 73

ine and try men for crimes committed in the unorganized territory a premium will at once be placed on crime. All that will be necessary to avoid punishment will be to entice your victim beyond the county limits and shoot him.”15 It seems that the court recognized its earlier error, and as a result Kinkaid was unsuccessful in his attempt. Crawford eventually pleaded guilty to manslaughter in Cuming County and was sentenced to five years of hard labor in the penitentiary in Lincoln, Nebraska.16

A bit farther north on Main Street, you’ll find the Sandhills Lounge, the Anderson Market, the Speed-Wash laundromat, the post office, an atm, and Jeanie’s Restaurant. Six blocks north of the trail and one block west is Heller Memorial Park. It is functional and not very fancy but is a good place for a break. It has a few tables, a gazebo, and some shade. The Pine Valley Resort has several tiny, clean cabins situated on a hillside under cooling evergreens just above Pine Creek. To get there, go 1 mile north on Main Street from the trail until you get to U.S. Highway 20. Go straight across the intersection and up the hill about 100 yards. The Long Pine State Recreation Area is a perfect place for campers. Travel ¾ mile west of the intersection of Main Street and Highway 20, then turn left or south. Watch for the sign marking the entrance to the park, which is about 200 yards from the highway turnoff. This is a very attractive and well-groomed campground situated within two areas of a wooded valley with Long Pine Creek acting as an eastern border. It features twenty-eight nonelectric campsites, picnic shelters and tables, fire rings, grills, and pit toilets. Costs per night are $8 for trailers and rvs and $6 for tents. If you don’t have a Nebraska park sticker, an additional $3 charge is levied for a daily entry permit. Put your money in the drop box in the campground. Another place you might consider for an overnighter is the Long Pine Railroad Bunkhouse, which is beside the trail and on the west side of Main Street. This place features single beds, air conditioning, 74 - - Bassett to Long Pine

and shared bathrooms. In fact, there are two small white buildings here, and the one nearest the path with the brick platform is situated where the original depot used to be. When one takes into account the distance between Long Pine and West Point and the time it would have taken to move a prisoner on horseback, there is little doubt that Jesse Crawford was transported by train from this depot to West Point for trial. Long Pine happens to be home to the highest railroad bridge in the state, and the view from it is truly spectacular. It overlooks a beautiful green valley with clear Long Pine Creek at the bottom and softly bending grasses along the ridges. The bridge is about ½ mile west of town and is part of the trail. You can walk or ride right to the middle to take in this remarkable view; then continue on across to resume your explorations.

Bassett to Long Pine - - 75

Long Pine to Ainsworth 9 miles

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out of long pine, the trail section to Ainsworth seems brand new, or at least extremely well-maintained. The landscape surrounding the trail reinforces in me the notion that I am on a real adventure. There is a beauty here that is different from what exists near Norfolk and the change is stimulating . . . there is no repetition or sameness. Don’t think for a minute that this is wasteland. On the contrary, this sandy environment supports an extensive variety of plants. In fact, 2 or 3 miles east of Ainsworth, there are many patches of wild asparagus growing along the side of the road. You’ll also see plenty of low-growing prickly pear cacti capped with dainty yellow flowers and Flodman’s thistles with their hourglass-shaped green heads and tufts of tubular violet flowers protruding from their tops. I have seen hawks perched atop power poles and tan-colored two-inch lizards sitting on the pathway on their hind legs, noses in the air. Before I can get close enough to see them well, they scurry off into the grass. If I were to paint a picture of the landscape here, the brushstrokes would be long and smoothly blended together, and the color palette would be mostly limited to tan, olive, and gold. There are oceans of knee-high grasses, gently rolling hills, and occasional patches of sand that have been blown bare of vegetation by the wind. This is the landscape I imagine when I picture roving bands of Indians or herds of buffalo moving across the plains. 76 - - Long Pine to Ainsworth

Flodman’s thistle

Once you reach Ainsworth, you’ll find that the trail is smoothly paved all the way to the city limits on the other end of town. The community is named for Captain J. E. Ainsworth, the construction engineer who was responsible for the development of the railroad line in this area; the first locomotive arrived here in June of 1882.17 Today, the taupe-colored structure with brown trim at the intersection of Main Street and the trail is the Farmers Ranchers Cooperative, and the depot would have been located in the red gravel lot on the west side of their building. The city’s station accommodated passengers of all sorts through the years, including the man who would eventually become our country’s twenty-sixth president.

☛Long Ago, Right Here In 1900 the governor of New York and candidate for vice president of the United States on the Republican presidential ticket, Teddy Roosevelt, was touring the country by train and stumping for his running mate, William McKinley. Roosevelt visited many of the communities along the Cowboy Line and made brief stops with his entourage to speak. Running against McKinley and Roosevelt at the time were presidential candidate William Jennings Bryan from Nebraska and his partner, Adlai Ewing Stevenson. One of the stops he made was in Ainsworth. A stand had been constructed not far from the tracks, and as soon as the train arrived, Roosevelt’s group was escorted to it. One newspaper reported that more than two thousand people turned out to hear him speak and there was “unbounded enthusiasm and ringing cheers.” Roosevelt had just begun to speak, according to one reporter, when he “was interrupted by several specimens of Bryan democracy who shamed themselves and our people by their gross, ungentlemanly conduct. Then Teddy commenced an effectual process of tanning their hides, which stopped their clammor and brought forth tremendous applause from the great crowd. Republicans never resort to such rowday methods [sic].”18 McKinley and Roosevelt were elected to office at the end of 1900, 78 - - Long Pine to Ainsworth

but less than a year later McKinley was assassinated. At that point, Theodore Roosevelt became president of the United States.

Turn right or north on Main Street and you’ll quickly find the Depot Café, the post office, Link’s Drug Store, the Silver Circle Bar, and the Longhorn Bar. Continuing ½ mile farther north will get you to U.S. Highway 20, and at the intersection is the Ainsworth Inn B&B. Also at the junction of Main Street and Highway 20 is the city park where you’ll find the Ainsworth Tourist Center and Sellors-Barton Museum. These two organizations are housed together in a structure that is old and new at the same time. Inside the part that is a log cabin, there are lots of antiques including quilts, ladies’ fashions, pioneer household items, and furniture. Surprises such as dinosaur bones, arrowheads, Civil War weapons, and WWII memorabilia are displayed in the more modern half of the building. There is no fee to tour the museum, and it’s worth a forty-five-minute stop. East on the highway a short distance from here are a Super 8, a Comfort Inn, a couple of convenience stores, the Red and White Market, a Subway sandwich shop, and a Pizza Hut. West of Ainsworth, the trail is unsurfaced, and as I mentioned earlier, I don’t recommend that you attempt to walk or ride portions of the trail that are not completed. You can, however, load up your belongings and drive west on Highway 20 a short distance to the point where the next usable section of the trail begins.

Long Pine to Ainsworth - - 79

Arabia through Thatcher to Valentine 13 miles

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thirt y-t wo miles from ainsworth on U.S. Highway 20 is the entrance to Arabia Ranch at mile marker 212. It will be on the north side of the road; the sign for the place hangs horizontally between two tall poles straddling a gravel lane. Once you see that entrance, travel ½ mile farther west on the highway and then turn right into a small parking area. You will be able to spot the trail just beyond it. The 13-mile journey into Valentine is historically quite interesting and very picturesque. There are more yucca plants, yellow prickly pear cactus, and white, paper-thin prickly poppies along the high banks that line the trail. A few remnants of ancient wooden railroad ties rest on the hillsides. The train line reached the now nonexistent town of Arabia in 1882, which was named by a railroad employee who thought the vast stretches of sand around here probably looked a lot like the desert in Egypt.19 This has always been primarily ranchland, so the town of Arabia, which was situated along the north side of the trail, was never really very big. At one time, the community did have a post office, stockyards, a general merchandise store, and a section house for maintenance crews and their tools. All that remains today are several massive cement supports that would have served as the foundation for the water tank for the steam locomotives. They are easy to find without your needing to step off the trail: they are at the western80 - - Arabia through Thatcher to Valentine

most end of the parking area but on the opposite side of the path. Once the town died, the place was eventually absorbed into the holdings of the Arabia Ranch landowner. As you leave Arabia, you part company with the highway and travel cross-country for a time through a truly picturesque part of the state; the rolling sandhills and the long grasses are lovely. It is very peaceful here except for a few excited birds happy to have some human company. Farther on down the trail, approximately 8 miles from Arabia, was once the town of Thatcher. In addition to the distance, there are a couple of other indicators you can use to locate this site, since almost nothing of the town still exists. The first sign is that the trail will leave the hills and will be much closer to the highway, which in fact will be visible about 200 yards to your left or south. The second sign that you have reached Thatcher is that the trail will cross a well-used narrow lane that leads to a cluster of white farm buildings and a couple of houses up the hill to your right. The railroad line stretched to this place in 1882 also, and it too was home to a number of businesses including five saloons, a store, and places to eat.20 Just like its neighbor, it had a depot, stockyards, and a section house. About 2½ miles from your ultimate destination, you’ll arrive at the appropriately named Valentine High Bridge. The structure, originally built in 1910, is ¼ mile long and 148 feet high but seems much higher Arabia through Thatcher to Valentine - - 81

than that. From the center of the structure, there are picture-postcard views of the lush valley channeling the Niobrara River. Cottonwood, ash, and cedars on the rolling hills, the winding waterway with its rippled sandbars, and a lonely patch of dirt supporting a single tree in the middle of the channel make this a memorable sight. That little island in the river, on the north side of the bridge, can be used as a landmark for sighting-in the location of the “Big Cut.” Scan the east bank of the river just south of the island and you’ll easily find a slope nearly absent of trees. Follow this crest back to the east a few hundred yards until it disappears into a canyon. The hills in there aren’t composed of stone but rather are part of one immense sand dune. It was in that area that work commenced in 1882, and it took three hundred men using a giant steam shovel over a year to scoop a path for the rail line through the sand, creating the Big Cut.21 The work gangs cleaved the obstruction and developed the horizontal ridge leading to the river in order to gradually lower the railbed to the level of the wooden bridge that was in use from 1883 until 1910. While the first bridge was functional, it posed problems for railroaders. The steep incline through the Big Cut required that additional locomotives were sometimes needed to serve as “pushers,” and 82 - - Arabia through Thatcher to Valentine

this was especially true during cattle shipping season.22 At other times, a train would be divided and half its cars would be pulled up the hill, requiring a return trip, or a second locomotive, and twice as much time.23 The taller bridge that exists now was built to eliminate those problems. A pair of settlements sprouted on either side of the Big Cut. Together, these tent towns were referred to by some at the time as “Hell’s Half Acre.” They were apparently rough places meant to serve the needs of the rail laborers, who were salty men of many nationalities. There were eating shacks, several saloons, a store, and a “sportin’ house.”24 Part of the Big Cut is on the Borman Bridge Wildlife Management Area, which is Nebraska Game and Parks property, so you don’t need permission from a private landowner to go see it. The ngpc boundary extends southeast ²⁄₅ mile from the middle of the High Bridge and then straight east about ¹⁄₁₀ mile. This means you basically can walk over and stand in the opening of the cut without leaving stateowned land. (For a map of the area, go to the “Borman Bridge Wildlife Management Area” link listed under the city name “Valentine” in the “Names and Numbers” section at the end of this chapter.) The easiest way to get there is to scamper down the northeast bank of the trail before you get to the High Bridge, cut across the field until you reach that horizontal ridge, and walk southeast on it into the canyon. The hike to the Big Cut is a short but strenuous one and should not be undertaken unless you’re wearing good hiking shoes and long pants. The ground is soft but uneven, and the leaves of yucca plants are sharp and can be painful if you carelessly walk into one of them with bare legs. Keep in mind that this is a hunting area, so make sure that you wear bright colors and make noise as you walk through to alert hunters to your presence. It is very peaceful and beautiful in the interior of the cut. The steep-angled ridges on either side are now covered in tall grasses, yucca, cedars, and cottonwood trees. Steam locomotives pulling heavy coal cars last ran through here nearly one hundred years ago, and on the ground are cinders that were left behind along the way. Arabia through Thatcher to Valentine - - 83

It is poignant to think that here in the Big Cut and at Arabia and in Thatcher there were structures built and occupied by men and women for very real purposes and that people walked about in these places talking, laughing, and crying. Yet today there is very little evidence suggesting that anyone ever existed here or that what happened so long ago was important or valued or is even remembered. The trail enters Valentine, with a population of 2,800, just behind the Prairie Village shopping center, which has an alco discount store and Henderson’s iga grocery store. This town and its businesses have been catering to rodeo enthusiasts, hunting and fishing devotees, and tourists of all sorts for years, so you can find just about anything you might need here. Traveling ½ mile west of the shopping center on Highway 20, one can find a Pizza Hut, a McDonald’s, the Bunk House café, Jordan’s West Side Café, and a handful of convenience stores. There is also a Super 8 Motel and the Valentine Motel and rv Park. The Dunes Lodge and Suites offers microwaves, refrigerators, Internet access, and a continental breakfast. This hotel is newly remodeled with very clean and spacious rooms, some with Jacuzzis for an additional charge. One-half mile east of Prairie Village are a Sinclair convenience store, the Yum-Yum Chinese restaurant, and a Holiday Inn Express. The Trade Winds Motel has refrigerators and microwaves as well as a continental breakfast and Internet access. The trail stretches to the other side of Valentine and passes through the community’s tidy downtown area. I recommend that no matter how tired you may be at the moment, continue on the path a short distance until you get to the central part of town. It is worth the wait. Move west on the trail starting behind the Prairie Village shopping center, and at the first intersection you come to, look directly across the street to see the continuation of the now-paved path. Stay on the trail for another ½ mile until you arrive at a very nice green space with an attractive picnic shelter. This is a perfect spot for a break as it is just steps away from the downtown area. The good folks of the city created this place, the Valentine Cowboy Trailhead Park, especially for trail users. The original depot would have been situated in the gravel parking area a few feet north of this recreational square. It was from 84 - - Arabia through Thatcher to Valentine

here that industrious people in Valentine shipped hundreds of railcars full of ice to make life more comfortable for people in the Plains states.

☛Long Ago, Right Here This story starts during the winter in the city of Valentine, and more specifically at Lake Minnechaduza, which is ¾ mile farther north on Main Street and then ¼ mile west. In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, local citizens and business owners welcomed the chilly temperatures because it meant that the lake would freeze and that its ice could be harvested. A prolonged, hard winter was needed to freeze the water to make it good and thick. Without that, the amount of food that could be stored by a family the next summer would be minimized and Valentine’s economy would be impacted due to the loss of sales during the ice harvesting period. Cutting and moving blocks from the lake was intensely laborious and much like quarrying stone. The actual process used at Minnechaduza involved measuring the thickness of the ice to determine if it was safe for man and beast to tread upon. If it was, a checkerboard pattern was etched onto the surface of the ice, then a special horsedrawn plow was used to partially cut through the surface on the markings. Finally, the cut was completed using a handsaw. The blocks were manually separated from one another with a heavy steel bar and floated to a trough where they would be hooked up to and pulled up a chute by teams of horses to a storage house at the top of the hill.25 Once there, the ice was stacked, then packed in straw, hay, or sawdust for insulation, which would ensure that it remained solid and cold throughout the summer. In the spring, ice was sold locally to merchants, townspeople, and soldiers at nearby Fort Niobrara and much was shipped to other communities along the rail line. It was used to keep beer cool, to store ice cream, and to cool drinking water on trains and in restaurants.26 It was also used to keep meat, eggs, milk, and cream from spoiling in homes and on farms. Arabia through Thatcher to Valentine - - 85

Ice from Valentine was shipped to meet the demands of midwesterners who had had milder winters. It was loaded onto trains and sent to Sioux City, Iowa; Deadwood, South Dakota; Casper, Wyoming; and Lincoln and Omaha, Nebraska.27 In fact, in early 1908, 350 train-car loads of ice from Lake Minnechaduza had been shipped, and one newspaper editor noted the value of this by saying, “The railway annual ice harvest is quite an item in a financial way to this community as the pay roll for the work each year averages something like $2,375.00 and a greater portion of the help is local. Take this amount together with that expended by W. D. Clarkson in filling his ice houses, it will be seen that sufficient cash to buy considerable family necessities is put into circulation through the ice business, and every little bit helps, you know.”28

Very near Trailhead Park on Main Street are the Peppermill Steakhouse and Lounge, the Coach Light Inn restaurant, a Subway sandwich shop, Mike’s Taco Casa, a Dollar General discount store, the Red Front department store, and a Comfort Inn hotel as well as pubs, pharmacies, and banks. Be sure to look at the intricate stone-and brickwork on the front of the First National Bank of Valentine; it is very impressive and a true work of art. Valentine attracts thousands of tourists each summer who go there to float down the beautiful Niobrara River. This stretch of water is included in the nation’s Wild and Scenic River System and is a real treasure. The scenery is spectacular, the water is clean, and you’ll get to see loads of wildlife along the way. A popular stop 14 miles east of town on the river is Smith Falls, which at 70 feet is Nebraska’s highest waterfall: it is a natural beauty. Smith Falls State Park is here, too, located on the north side of the Niobrara and accessible via a footbridge. There are campsites, showers, modern toilets, and a small camp store. Campsites can be reserved up to a year in advance. If you have never been on a float trip before, you really should do it to relax, soak up some rays, and just have fun. There are several different outfitters in Valentine who can provide a full range of services 86 - - Arabia through Thatcher to Valentine

including pickup/drop-off service at the river, complete overnight camping adventures, and knowledgeable guides. These companies provide the amphibious conveyances, too—kayaks, canoes, giant inner tubes, and life jackets. For an extensive listing of outfitters as well as other places to stay, eat, and be entertained, look at the city’s Web address, listed at the end of the chapter under “Valentine.” Some state park information is listed separately under the same heading. Another attraction approximately 25 miles southwest of Valentine is Merritt Reservoir. This lake is large and beautiful and is a haven for fishermen, boaters, and skiers. I have camped here many times and especially enjoy gazing at the billions of stars sparkling in the night sky. Because there are no nearby city lights to obstruct your view, you’ll experience the heavens as never before. It is possible, without a telescope or binoculars, to see the Milky Way, and if you are patient and it is a cloudless evening, you might even spy a manmade satellite as it passes overhead. It’s true! One of these lonely orbiters will look like a tiny, bright point of light sailing in a laser-straight line between you and the stars. What you are actually seeing is light from the sun illuminating the surface of the object, and typically you’ll only be able to spot one a few hours after sunset or before sunrise. At other times, satellites are within the Earth’s shadow and are not detectable. Names and Numbers Ainsworth Ainsworth Inn B&B: (888) 237-0954 Bassett Bassett Lodge: (402) 684-3376 Ranchland Motel: (402) 684-3340 Long Pine Long Pine Railroad Bunkhouse: (402) 273-4120 Long Pine State Recreation Area: (402) 684-2921, www.ngpc.state.ne.us/ parks (Select “Sandhills” then “Long Pine sra” from the list on the left of the screen.) Pine Valley Resort: (402) 273-4351 Arabia through Thatcher to Valentine - - 87

Valentine Borman Bridge Wildlife Management Area: http://mapserver.ngpc.state .ne.us/website/gpc_land/viewer.htm (Select “Major Highways” and “ngpc Properties” in the “Layers” palette under “Vis”; enter “Borman Bridge Wildlife Management Area” under “Search gp Land by area name” and select “Cherry” in the “By County” box, then click “Find.” In the pop-up window, scroll down to “Borman Bridge Wildlife Management Area” and click “See on Map.” The Valentine High Bridge and the Big Cut will show up in the lower left portion of the Borman Bridge wma map. The old rail line is still faintly visible running north and parallel to the Cowboy Trail. Use the zoom-in tool to get a closeup of the Valentine High Bridge and Big Cut area.) City of Valentine: www.heartcity.net Dunes Lodge and Suites: (800) 357-3131 Merritt Reservoir State Recreation Area: (402) 376-3320, www.ngpc.state .ne.us/parks (Select “Sandhills” then “Merritt Reservoir sra” from the list on the left of the screen.) National Park Service–Niobrara River: (402) 336-3970, www.nps.gov/ niob/index.htm Smith Falls State Park: (402) 376-1306, www.ngpc.state.ne.us/parks (Select “Sandhills” then “Smith Falls sp” from the list on the left of the screen.) Trade Winds Motel: (866) 899-1600 Valentine Motel and RV Park: (800) 376-2450

88 - - Arabia through Thatcher to Valentine

Notes

part 1 1. “Tourney of Firemen Is On,” Norfolk (ne) News, July 21, 1903. 2. “First Races of the Meet” and “The Parade This Morning,” Norfolk (ne) News, July 21, 1903; “Championship Belt Arrives,” Norfolk (ne) News, July 17, 1903. 3. “The Parade This Evening,” Norfolk (ne) News, July 23, 1903. 4. “Ta-Ha-Zouka Park,” Nebraska History Magazine 16, no. 4 (October–December 1935), 252. 5. Madison County, Nebraska Marriage Records, book 6, page 101. Nebraska Historical Society Reference Room. 6. “Bridges Washed Away,” Battle Creek (ne) Republican, March 20, 1903. 7. Nebraska County Atlas and Plat Books, Platbook of Madison County, Nebraska. Plat of Deer Creek, Township 24 North, Range 3 West, page 10. Nebraska Historical Society Reference Room. Date 13,044, department 917.82 Ev2, box no. 4. 8. “Bridges Washed Away.” 9. “High Water,” Battle Creek (ne) Republican, March 13, 1903. 10. “Married,” Battle Creek (ne) Republican, March 20, 1903. 11. Charles C. Zimmerman, Centennial Reminiscing: A Story of the People of the Community of Battle Creek, Nebraska 1867–1967 (Battle Creek ne: Battle Creek Improvement Club, 1967), 8. 12. Robert Bruce, The Fighting Norths and Pawnee Scouts: Narratives and Reminiscences of Military Service on the Old Frontier (Lincoln: Nebraska State Historical Society, 1932), 12. 13. Luther North, Man of the Plains: Recollections of Luther North, 1856–1882 (Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 1961), 7. 14. From an e-mail received from Gene Zimmerman, Fremont, Elkhorn & Missouri Valley Railroad Historical Society, August 10, 2005. Zimmerman worked as a telegrapher, ticket agent, and freight agent for Union Pacific Railroad from 1942 until 1984.

15. “24 Men Soon Go to Camp,” Madison (ne) Star-Mail, April 12, 1918. 16. News briefs, Meadow Grove (ne) News, April 26, 1918. 17. News briefs, Meadow Grove (ne) News, April 19, 1918. 18. “Frank J. Schinck Gives His Life in Defense of Human Liberty,” Meadow Grove (ne) News, December 6, 1918. 19. “War Hero Laid to Rest,” Meadow Grove (ne) News, September 23, 1921; “Funeral of Frank John Schinck, Oversea War Hero,” Tilden (ne) Citizen, September 23, 1921. 20. “Funeral of Frank John Schinck.” 21. Michael Sledge, Soldier Dead (New York: Columbia University Press, 2005), 136. 22. Sledge, Soldier Dead, 144–145. 23. “War Hero Laid to Rest.” 24. “Funeral of Frank John Schinck.” 25. Elton A. Perkey, “Perkey’s Names of Nebraska Locations,” Nebraska History 59 (Summer 1978): 295. 26. Ari Hoogenboom, Rutherford B. Hayes: Warrior and President (Lawrence: University Press of Kansas, 1995), 294. 27. W. H. O’Gara, In All Its Fury: A History of the Blizzard of January 12, 1888 with Stories and Reminiscences (Lincoln ne: Union College Press, 1947), 209–10. 28. “Los Angeles to Oakdale,” Oakdale (ne) Sentinel, July 17, 1914. 29. Mel Gussow, Don’t Say Yes until I Finish Talking: A Biography of Darryl Zanuck (Garden City ny: Doubleday & Company, 1971), 13. 30. “Darryl Zanuck Writes,” Oakdale (ne) Sentinel, September 21, 1917. 31. “Oakdale Boy Sees Real Fighting,” Oakdale (ne) Sentinel, December 27, 1918. 32. Gussow, Don’t Say Yes, 299, 300, and 301.

part 2 1. “Death of a Famous Horse,” Neligh (ne) Leader, July 28, 1911. 2. “Death of Shade On 2:08¼,” Horse Review, August 2, 1911. 3. “Harness Racing Revival Reminiscent of Kay Stables,” Sioux City (ia) Journal, July 13, 1947; Neligh (ne) Leader, July 21, 1899 (this article was in the untitled local news section). 4. “Death of Shade On”; “Death of a Famous Horse”; “Clipped from Exchanges,” Neligh (ne) Leader, June 26, 1903. 90 - - Notes to pages 12–26

5. “Local Items,” Ewing (ne) People’s Advocate, March 8, 1900. 6. Richard Crabb, Birth of a Giant (Philadelphia: Chilton, 1969), 118. 7. Neligh (ne) Leader, October 28, 1904. This article was in the untitled local news section. 8. “Harness Racing Revival.” 9. “FIRE!” Clearwater (ne) Record, November 17, 1933. 10. This Web site can be used to convert dollar amounts from one year to another. Choose the base year table. Find the conversion factor for 1933 for estimating values in the most recent year possible—2004. Divide the dollar amount to be converted by the conversion factor of .070. See http:// oregonstate.edu/dept/pol_sci/fac/sahr/sahr.htm. 11. A. T. Andreas, History of the State of Nebraska (Chicago: Western Historical Co., 1882), 986. 12. John Lee, “Aviator Recalls 1st State Flights,” Lincoln (ne) Star, July 22, 1963. 13. Duane Hutchinson, Savidge Brothers: Sandhills Aviators (Lincoln ne: Foundation Books, 1982), 129 and 153. 14. Bud Pagel, “Airborne Daredevils of 1911,” Omaha (ne) World-Herald, March 10, 1963, section G. 15. “Savidge Brothers Pioneer Plane Builders in Nebraska,” Elgin (ne) Review, January 22, 1953. 16. Lee, “Aviator Recalls 1st State Flights.” 17. Pagel, “Airborne Daredevils of 1911.” 18. “Rain and Snowfall Saturday Extended Over Entire State,” Kearney (ne) Daily Hub, March 5, 1923. 19. Sarah O’Donnell, Foot Prints on the Prairie: Inman-Stafford Community History Including Southern Valley (Clearwater ne: Clearwater Record, 1968), 55 and 92. 20. 1920 Federal Population Census, Holt County, Nebraska, Inman Township, sheet no. 2a. 21. O’Donnell, Foot Prints on the Prairie, 92. 22. 1930 Federal Population Census, Holt County, Nebraska, Inman Village, sheet no. 3a. No official birth record for Robert could be acquired, but the census of 1930 shows three children in Thomas’s family, and Robert was listed as being seven years of age on his last birthday. His birth year of 1923 makes him the Hutton child closest in age to the actual date of the event described. Notes to pages 26–38 - - 91

“Population Increase during the Night,” O’Neill (ne) Frontier, March 15, 1923. The correct publication date for this edition of the paper was misprinted on the front page and should actually be March 22, 1923.

part 3 1. “The Rain Maker,” O’Neill (ne) Frontier, August 4, 1892. 2. “And Then It Rained,” O’Neill (ne) Frontier, August 11, 1892. 3. “Melbourne Here,” Grand Island (ne) Independent, August 12, 1892. Melbourne and Jones departed O’Neill either late in the evening on Tuesday, August 9, or sometime August 10 for Grand Island, Nebraska, approximately 112 miles away. They arrived in that city on the evening of August 11. It is highly unlikely that in 1892 the two men could have used any conveyance other than a train to travel that distance in such a short period of time. 4. “Bombarding the Skies,” Lincoln (ne) Nebraska State Journal, June 15, 1893. 5. “Sued for Making Rain,” O’Neill (ne) Frontier, July 20, 1893. 6. From an e-mail received from Kaye Linn Albrecht, March 13, 2006. Albrecht is the great-granddaughter of Thomas Vincent Golden. 7. From a personal interview with Emmet, Nebraska, resident Don Kloppenborg, August 17, 2005. A recording of the interview is in the author’s possession. 8. Esther Kellner, Moonshine: Its History and Folklore (New York: BobbsMerrill, 1971), 122. 9. O’Neill, Nebraska, Holt County Courthouse, County Court Office, Criminal Dockets, books F, G, H, and I. 10. Interview with Don Kloppenborg. 11. “Find No Trace of Man Who Shot, Wounded B. W. Planck Tuesday,” Atkinson (ne) Graphic, July 2, 1943. 12. “Boyd Planck Admits That Gunshot Wound Was Inflicted by Self,” Atkinson (ne) Graphic, July 16, 1943. 13. “Boyd Planck Rites Monday Afternoon,” Atkinson (ne) Graphic, February 29, 1952. 14. Harold Hutton, Doc Middleton: Life and Legends of the Notorious Plains Outlaw (Chicago: Swallow Press, 1974), 9. 15. Hutton, Doc Middleton, 79 and 80. 16. Boyhood Memories of Ivan McKay in Stuart, Nebraska and Vicinity 1870’s to 1901, chapter 12. The original handwritten accounts were produced by Ivan 92 - - Notes to pages 43–58

McKay. The staff of the White Horse Museum in Stuart typed and published the material cited here from the originals. The pages in this document are not numbered.

part 4 1. James B. Haynes, History of the Trans-Mississippi and International Exposition (Omaha ne: Trans-Mississippi Exposition Committee on History, 1902), 12. 2. The Report of the Nebraska State Board of Directors of the Trans-Mississippi and International Exposition, November 11, 1898, Nebraska Historical Society Archives, rg42, series 6, box 8. 3. Report of the Nebraska State Board. 4. “Bucking the Trail,” Bassett (ne) Rock County Leader, February 10, 1938. 5. “Local News,” Newport (ne) Republican, May 13, 1898. 6. Report of the Nebraska State Board. 7. “49,544,806 Pounds,” Newport (ne) Eagle, July 25, 1902. 8. “The Border Terror,” Omaha (ne) Daily Herald, February 13, 1884. 9. “Kid Wade Hung,” O’Neill (ne) Holt County Banner, February 12, 1884. 10. Ann Bleed and Charles Flowerday, eds., An Atlas of the Sandhills, Resource Atlas No. 5a (Lincoln ne: Conservation and Survey Division, Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources, University of Nebraska–Lincoln, 1990), 1. 11. The Great Plains Symposium 1995: The Ogallala Aquifer (Kansas City: University of Missouri), 4–4. 12. Lillian L. Jones, comp., Days of Yore: Early History of Brown County, Nebraska (Ainsworth ne, 1937), 34. 13. “Nebraska Items,” Norfolk (ne) Journal, January 13, 1882. 14. “Must Be Tried,” West Point (ne) Progress, February 16, 1882. 15. “Jesse Crawford, Indicted for Murder in the Second Degree,” O’Neill (ne) Frontier, February 9, 1882. 16. “Sent Up for Five Years,” West Point (ne) Progress, March 23, 1882. 17. Progress on the Prairies, Ainsworth–Brown County Diamond Jubilee (Ainsworth ne: Ainsworth–Brown County Diamond Jubilee, 1958), 45. 18. “Roosevelt and Dolliver Make Speeches,” Ainsworth (ne) Star-Journal, Thursday, October 4, 1900. 19. Charles S. Reece, A History of Cherry County, Nebraska: The Story of Its Organization, Development and People (Simeon ne: n.p., 1945), 96. The Notes to pages 65–80 - - 93

text in Reece’s book actually indicates that the railroad employee thought the sandy environment looked a lot like the Arabian Desert in Asia. The desert mentioned is in Egypt. 20. Reece, History of Cherry County, 98. 21. Olive Van Metre, North Country (Norfolk ne: Norfolk Printing, 1977), 25 and 26. 22. Reece, History of Cherry County, 100. 23. Van Metre, North Country, 30. 24. Van Metre, North Country, 26; Wayne C. Lee, Wild Towns of Nebraska (Caldwell id: Caxton Printers, 1988), 110. 25. Marianne Brinda Beel, A Sandhill Century, Book 1: The Land (Valentine ne: Cherry County Centennial Committee, 1986), 129. 26. Charles Barron McIntosh, The Nebraska Sand Hills: The Human Landscape (Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 1996), 172; Sarah O’Donnell, Foot Prints on the Prairie: Inman-Stafford Community History Including Southern Valley (Clearwater ne: Clearwater Record, 1968), 55; Beel, Sandhill Century, 129. 27. “Local News Paragraphs,” Valentine (ne) Republican, January 9, 1900; January 17, 1898. 28. “Local News Paragraphs,” Valentine (ne) Republican, February 7, 1908.

94 - - Notes to pages 81–86