Mt. Zion is a small cemetery outside of Newton, Iowa. For decades, farmers and their families have buried their loved ones there, allowing them to enjoy their eternal rest surrounded by the farm ground that they had spent their entire lives tending to. It was one such burial that brought the gravediggers there that day. …
In the early 1900’s, a Nebraska schoolteacher visited an unspeakable atrocity upon the students under her care in Sarpy County. Or did she? Sources ‘Holly Hatchet’ scared all but two pupils away. Sioux City Journal, 8/30/1983 Body Found in Brush. The Lincoln Star, 12/24/1903 Quintanilla, James. Hatchet House and the Killer Teacher. http://www.designinglife.biz Lefevers, …
Jeffery McCain was going to school. Jeffery, or Jeffy, as everyone called him, loved school, especially reading. Books allowed him to visit places that he would have never dreamed existed outside of the boundaries of Sarpy County, Nebraska. His favorite was an oversized atlas called Lyteman’s Guide to World Geography, which was full of colorful …
Charles Strelow couldn’t watch over his hidden fortune all the time, so he bought a dog. Trained to be vicious, it looked like the end when Charles left the farm. But fate intervened. What happened to the hermit’s sentry? Sources Reverses In Chicago Realty Led Two Strelow Brothers To Hoard Their Money and …
I hate movies where the dogs die. I always have. As a kid growing up in the 1980’s, I could watch the greatest action heroes of the day slaughter armies of bad guys and not bat an eye. Kill the dog – the movie sucked. Without question. These feelings have carried over into my research. …
Charles Strelow lived as a virtual hermit. For decades, there were stories of a small fortune hidden on his Nebraska farm. In 1925, authorities were shocked to discover that the legend was true. Sources Releases in Chicago Realty Led to Strelow Brothers to Hoard Their Money and Become Hermits. The Lincoln Star, 11/20/1925 …
Episode 23: The Strelow Brother’s Hidden Fortune Read More »
Theodore Strelow had been born in Germany, but had come to Nebraska nearly fifty years prior. He and his brother, Charles, lost no time in buying a farm and settling in. The two were very successful, and they lived a relatively simple, quiet existence that centered almost exclusively on farming. They were very frugal and …
The wind howled, and the dog howled, too. The air was cold, turning the Nebraska plains into a frigid tundra where no man wanted to stay for long. This was especially true for the dog’s owner, a Cass County, Nebraska farmer named P.M. Nord. Nord stood in the backyard, yelling for the dog to come …
Sod houses and dugouts were dwellings that faded away on the prairie. Many pioneers also passed through history, the stories of their lives forgotten. Hear the short tale of how one young couple met their sad end in Nebraska. Sources Cut Their Throats. The Nebraska State Journal, 1/15/1895 Sad Nebraska Suicide. Fremont Tri-Weekly …
Pioneers who rolled across the Midwestern Prairies during the 19th century came with big hopes and dreams. But they had to survive the dangers of the wilderness first. They needed food and water, but they also needed shelter. Pioneers absolutely needed a place where they could stay safe from the harsh winters and raging thunderstorms. …
