News Articles - Hooker County, Nebraska -- presented by Genealogy Trails

Bridging the Centuries Nebraska People Whose Days Have Been Long in the Land

Men and Women Who Are Ahead of the Biblical Allotment of Life to Mankind--Patriarchs and Their Posterity

Seneca, Neb., Mar 8--[Special Correspondence of the WORLD HERALD]--

Peter Harvey, post office, Mullen, Hooker County, Nebraska, was born in Chester county, Pennsylvania, one and one half miles from Chadsford, August 28, 1815. He remember when General Lafayette made his last visit to the battle ground of the Brandywine, where he was wounded.

He is the father of eleven children, twenty-five grandchildren and eight great grandchildren. In 1835 he married Rachel Walter, who is still living.

In 1846 he removed to Maumee County, Ohio; thence in 1851 to Dallas County, Iowa; thence in 1857 to Lyons County, Kansas, thence in 1868 to Dallas County, Iowa; thence in 1878 to Pottawattamie County, Kansas, thence in 1897 to Idaho, and in the same year to Hooker County, Nebraska, near Mullen, where he now resides.

In 1881 he was apprenticed to a miller and followed that business for forty six years, or until 1878.

On his removal to Hooker County, Nebraska, in 1887, he entered a quarter section of government land, on which he now resides. He is hale and hearty and better qualified for a good day's work than many a younger man.

If there is enough land in the U. R. I. enclosure in Hooker County, when the fraudulent homestead

titles are canceled, a colony of Hungarians from Omaha, men who for the most part have been employed at the smelter and the Union Pacific shops, will take claims and settled upon the land.

The men who for the most part have been employed at the smelter and the Union Pacific shops, will take claims, and settle upon the land. These Men __becoming land owners came to these____ ___ Rev. George G. Ware, president of the U. B. I. ranch was on trial for conspiracy to defraud the government by means of fictitious homestead fillings.

If the colony can not get the sort of land they want in Hooker County. Most of the men who contemplate taking homesteads have been in the United States from eight to ten years, but a number of them did not know their intentions of becoming citizens until Thursday afternoon. At that time, sixteen out of the twenty five members of the Hungarian Society which holds weekly meeting at Lincoln Hall, went to the office of the Clerk of the federal circuit court, and there formerly declared their intentions of becoming citizens of the United States.

A year ago the writer removed from Hooker County, Nebraska, to Carter County, Missouri, hoping to secure a milder climit, a more fertile soil, a healthy county--the best water in the world--a fine fruit growing region "the land of the big red apples" and the "juscious peach;" a longer growing season, and all-in-all a veritable Garden of Eden.

On my arrival I was much disappointed, but was told that a man needed to remain here a year to judge fairly of the true state of affairs. This was reasonable, and I therefore remained quiet as I could the stated time, only to become more and more disappointed as the months went by.

The thermometer went to 15 degrees below zero early in January, and the moist atmosphere caused me to suffer more with the cold than we ever had done in Nebraska with 40 degrees below. With more and heavier clothing, we could not keep warm. We had plenty of wood, a good heating stove and a fairly warm house, too. We could work out of doors "with our coat off" less days than we could in Nebraska. In fact, nearly all of January and February was lost time. We sawed up a good quantity of summer wood and did just what we could be one without wading around in the damp snow or mud and slush. During five full months our horses and one poor cow were eating their heads off on 75 cent corn and $10 hay---the noted "winter blue grass" proving to be somewhere further on over in Kentucky. The wells were dry, the stock ponds (hog wallows) were also dry, and the "everlasting creeks" and the "living springs" are few and far between. Happy is the man who has one!

In the spring we got in our corn, April 1 to 10 and our early potatoes about March 20, to have them all cut down by frost about May 18, the very same that destroyed the Nebraska crops. Here it was worse because much of the crop had the freeze. And in the fall our fist killer frost came just one week later then the frost in Hooker County, Nebraska. We had two rainy seasons, one in June, when it rained constantly for two weeks, giving us much to much water, and one about the lst of July when much damage was done by overflowes and water spouts. Before, between and after these periods the skies were as breezy as they ever were in Nebraska, and in consequence our one "long growing season" was cut into two very short ones and another of the late potato, turnip, or late cabbage kind had any show.

On half the ground planted to corn we had a good crop, which cost--at 26 cents a day for the man, and for the team, more than the corn could not be bought for in the open market. Our potatoes yielded about three potatoes to the hill; our cow peas, six bushels from a bushel's sowing; our garden stuff was not one-sixth the crop of the same in Nebraska. But we got a fair crop of sweet potatoes and a tolerable one of early cabbage, which would not kraut nor keep. We also had a long season but a small crop of tomatoes.

We have no desire to prevent immigration, but we wish no one to come here by our influence hoping to better themselves.

Two years ago O. F. Hamilton, a lawyer of Mullen disappeared and until last Friday his whereabouts has been a mystery. At the time of his disappearance he was under bond to appear at the district court on charge of assault and the first impression was that his absence from the county was to evade the court. A few weeks after his disappearance an article appeared in the World Herald, from Sheridan, Wyoming, in which was detailed account of the reunion of the regiment of which he was a member in the civil war and in the list of those attending that reunion was the name of O. F. Hamilton.

Mrs. Hamilton who was apparently of the opinion that he was dead made some effort to unravel the mystery, received a letter through the post office stating that she was looking for a dead man but she would not find him as he was alive.

This statement together with the Sheridan article that appeared in the World Herald led many to think that Hamilton was still abroad in the land.

But upon investigation it was found that he never made application to the pension department for his pension.

This led to further investigation and the authorities of the state became interested in the matter, which resulted in an investigation.

The last seen of Hamilton was on April 26, 1908 when it is reported he went out the back door of the saloon in Mullen towards his home which was only two blocks away.

The investigation by the state authorities resulted in securing affidavits of parties who had made threats against the life of O. F. Hamilton and of offers of many to do him bodily harm.

Hamilton was not regarded by his townsmen as a desirable citizen. He became quite officious in assisting the government agents in looking up violators of the law on government land which made some bitter enemies among that class.

It is apparent that some one who knew of the circumstances gave a tip, as the stock yards where his body was found would not have been dug into by searchers otherwise.

Word had been received here that the body of O. F. Hamilton, who disappeared from Mullen two years ago, was found yesterday near the stock yards at that place. The indications are that Mr. Hamilton had been murdered.

Some time ago secret service men were sent out to investigate land frauds in that section of the country. Mr. Hamilton went with these government men and aided them in their investigations, and thereby incurred the enmity of number of people. At that time his property was burned, and he also received threatening letters warning him to cease his activity with the officers.

Several weeks ago a statement was sent to Governor Shallenberger by persons residing in the vicinity of Mullen, asking that an investigation be held concerning the disappearance of Mr. Hamilton. The statement was to the effect that many were of the opinion that Mr. Hamilton had met with foul play. The finding of the body showing evidence of murder having been committed shows that these suspicions were not groundless.

Custer County Republican, Broken Bow, Custer County, Nebraska, Published Thursday, April21, 1910

Since putting the �O. F. Hamilton�s Body Found� in type we learn the discovery of Hamilton�s body was through information of Frank Clevenger, one of the three he implicates. From his story it appears that Hamilton, with Harry McIntire, W. C. Rector and Frank Clevenger were in a room in the back of a building that had formerly been occupied as a saloon by McBride. The saloon being closed down, this room was used as a blind tiger and the men were under the influence of booze.

Clevenger claims that McIntire who formerly had rode the ranges for the U. B. I. cattle company killed Hamilton by striking him over the head with the stock of his revolver. He further states that through threats of death he and Rector were made to swear never to reveal the transaction.

The three men secured a mail cart and conveyed the body to a hole they had prepared near the stock yards where they covered the body under two feet of earth. From his story it was about 9 o�clock at night Hamilton was killed and about 1 o�clock in the morning his body was taken from the cellar where hid and buried.

Harry McIntire who has since been in the employ of the railroad company, and at one time deputy sheriff of Hooker county, was arrested at Seneca where he now resides and taken to Grand Island Saturday night for safe keeping until court convenes to try his case. Clevenger who gave the affair away was put under bonds for his appearance as a witness.

Rector who is an old man about 70 years of age, a Texas booze fighter and badly afflicted with rheumatism left for the west several weeks ago to seek medical treatment for his rheumatism. He will in all probability be found and brought back to answer for the part he took in the transactions.

Judge H. M. Sullivan who was at Mullen Saturday states that he made a thorough examination of Hamilton�s skull and there is no indications of it having been fractured in the least. He thinks that he must have died from the fright occasioned by the row as Hamilton was afflicted with heart trouble or that he was merely stunned by the blow on the head and rendered unconscious and buried before he came to life.

Custer County Republican, Broken Bow, Custer County, Nebraska, Published Thursday, April 21, 1910

Two Men and a Girl Killed Outright and Six Trainmen Badly Injured as a Result

Mullen, Neb., Aug. 23�Two freight trains on the Burlington & Missouri collided here early this morning, killing three persons and severely injuring six others. The west bound freight had sidetracked to allow the freight coming from the west to pass. The switchman was unable to close the switch on account of the key not working in the lock. The approaching train was signaled to stop as soon as he found that he could not close the switch, but the distance was too short for it to come to a stand still.

Miss Myrtle Wilgus, daughter of Charles Wilgus, living three miles southeast of here;

The car back of the engine of the east bound train contained about thirteen men who were beating a ride, and was completely tore to shreds, all escaping save the one above mentioned.

Six of the train men were badly injured, but not fatally. The wreck was cleared away sufficiently to allow the east bound passenger to pass.

Lincoln, Nebraska, January 20. -- One of the counties which pays in the smallest amount to the state treasury, if it is not the smallest of all, is Hooker County.

The amount turned in by the treasurer of Hooker for the last year's collection of state money aggregated $125.58.

This is made up of $76.32 of school land lease and rent money. $3.86 for the state school tax and the remainder apportioned among the other state funds.

The County treasurer of Hooker is postmaster, storekeeper and custodian of the financial affairs for his county, in which there are only about fifty voters. He is not bothered about the new rule of computing the commissions of county treasurers for collecting stat funds and transmitting them to the state treasurer for the reason that his collections are not large enough to be affected. He gets his 1 percent on all school money and 10 percent on other state funds, the aggregate of commissions on state collections last year being $5.10.

In addition to this he gets his allowance for mileage in coming to the state treasurer 's office to settle, and this amounts to $32.88, making his total received from the state for commission and mileage $57.96, which leaves the net sum turned into the state treasury by him $87.62.

From this small amount turned in by Hooker, the returns vary all the way up to that of Douglas, which during the last fiscal year turned into the state treasury $146,469. 76

St. Paul, May 7. -- A rehearing in the case of George G. Ware, plaintiff in error, against the United States, was begun today in the United States Circuit Court of Appeals.

Appellant was convicted below on an indictment of the Federal Grand Jury, under which it is alleged he conspired with two others to defraud the Government out of title to large tracts of land in Hooker County, Nebraska.

Exception was taken to the charge of the Judge to the jury, and the statute of limitations is set up as a defense.

When the case first came up for trial it excited much interest, because of the fact that Ware is an Episcopal Clergyman, located at Deadwood, South Dakota, and also has 200,000 acres of range and large herds of cattle.