BOYER, HASKLE D. AND ELVIA M. (FOX)

by Wilma Boyer Hotz

Entry F37 from the History of Hooker County Nebraska
with permission of the Hooker County Historical Society

Haskle and Elvia Boyer

Haskle Dennis Boyer and Elvia Mae Fox
were married at Seneca, Ne., June 15, 1920.
They began their married life in a one-room
frame house on a homestead 10 1/2 miles
southwest of Torrington, Wyo. A daughter,
Grace Eileen, was born May 27, 1921, and on
May 20, 1923, Wilma was born with Grandma
Sarah Boyer and Nellie Johnson in atten-
dance.

In March of 1924, Haskle drove a four-
horse team with a wagon-load of their
possessions and leading his saddle horse,
Stub, and a young shepherd dog, Tip,
returned to Mullen to farm the Hugh Boyer
homestead northeast of Mullen. Elvia and
the two girls came by train escorted by Hugh,
Haskle's father.

Haskle had attended the school of Agricul-
ture in Lincoln and graduated in 1917
president of his class and Captain of Com-
pany Min R.O.T.C. He was inducted into the
United States Army in October of 1917 and
assigned to Company M of 355th Infantry at
Camp Funston, Kansas. On June 3, 1918,
they left for England "on an old cattle boat,
The Baltic." According to his diary, the
soldiers underwent further training in France
from the last part of June until August 21,
when he mentions "front trenches near
Beaumont, St. Mihiel drive, Sept. 12; and
Meuse-Argonne, Oct. 8," Apparently he
spent his 26th birthday crossing the Meuse
river and a day later the Armistice was
signed. Haskle, with eleven other Company
M men, had passes to spend from No. 19th
to 27th in Southern France. To catch up with
their outfit, they spent 22 days hiking into
Germany where he served in the Army of
Occupation near Trier and "Saarburg". He
left Germany for Brest, France, and boarded
the ship, Leviathan, on May 15, 1919,
returning to New York on May 22. Then he
came by train to Camp Funston, arriving on
June 1, where he helped with discharging the
men - even writing up his own discharge
last. He returned to Mullen June 4, 1919.

Elvia had graduated from Hooker County
High School with her sister, Sylvia, in 1916
- the first four-year graduating class. She
taught school one winter "on the river
northwest of Mullen. " She attended business
college in Lincoln one term and then worked
in Citizens State Bank at Mullen until their
marriage. One of the stories she often tells is
about living for a summer on a place near the
Dismal river where she and sister, Sylvia,
raised a big garden, did lots of canning and
looked after cattle for her father, R.S. Fox.
During her high school days she roomed and
boarded with the H.J. Lowe's, who had
befriended them when the Fox family arrived
by covered wagon, probably in 1896 or 1897.
Elvia says she was born in a room at the back
of a building on the south side of Main Street
in Mullen on Christmas Day in 1897. She
always praised Mrs. Lowe for helping her to
grow up with high ideals, for she sorely
missed her mother, Ida Belle (Trester) Fox,
who died when Elvia was 8 or 9 years old.

On March 13, 1925, Grace died of pneumo-
nia and in September Doris (Mrs. Dale
Stauffer) was born. Phyllis (Mrs. Lee Homri-
ghausen) was born Oct. 25, 1927 and Gettie
(Mrs. Wes Sandall) August 25, 1929. That fall
Wilma began school at Virginia, Dist. 176,
about a mile south of Fay James home, where
all four girls received most of their grade
school education. Richard Hugh (Denny) was
born Dec. 22, 1933 and attended Virginia and
Reigle schools before finishing the grades in
Mullen Grade School.

In the spring of 1944, Haskle spent 36 days
in the VA Hospital at Hot Springs, S. Dakota,
after an appendectomy. That fall they moved
into Mullen where he worked at Johnson's
Store for a time, later moving to Lee Boyer's
turkey ranch for some time. He served as
assistant County Agent in 5 counties during
World War II, was Hooker Co. Veteran's
Service Officer from 1954 to 1975, and was
County Judge 1957 to 1965.

A highlight of their lives was a trip to West
Germany in 1971 to visit Denny and his
family. They were able to see the same towns,
even the same buildings, where Haskle had
been during the winter of 1918-1919, as well
as to tour Luxemburg and Holland.

There are sixteen grandchildren and pres-
ently eighteen great-grandchildren.