CARPENTER, GEORGE AND GERTRUDE (THARP)

by Emily Carpenter King

Entry F64 from the History of Hooker County Nebraska
with permission of the Hooker County Historical Society

Eleazer Carpenter and family came to
Nebraska from Wisconsin with 2 covered
wagons drawn by 2 teams of oxen. They
settled on Plum Creek near what is now
known as Kearney, Ne. Eleazer was the first
postmaster of Majors which is no longer
there. His oldest son John rode horseback
with the wagons, herding the livestock they
brought along. They also brought chickens in
crates for eggs along the way.

John and Clara Anne McDonald eloped
and were married by a Justice of The Peace,
in Tuckerville without the blessing of Anne's
father. John worked with the gangs building
the Burlington Railroad as far as Whitman,
NE where Anne managed the Hotel and
cooked for the laborers. They later settled on
a homestead north of Whitman.

Their son, George and Gertrude Thart
were married Christmas day 1907 at the home
of his parents and moved to his homestead,
a sod house, north of Whitman, near the
Carver ranch where he worked. Their first
child, Georgia Marian, was born in 1909. She
lived only 4 days. She was buried in Survey
Valley Cemetery on the Curtis Ranch. Inez
was born in 1911. Neither birth was attended
by a Doctor. Another daughter, Emily was
born at the ranch home of George's sister,
Emily Manning, south of Hyannis, NE.
George rode horseback to town to get the
Doctor and he was on a call north of town. At
that time Doctors were few and far between.

When Inez was school age the folks sold
their place and moved to Mullen, NE where
a son, George Donnen was born in 1916.

George bought the livery stable from
George Hawley and Arthur Isom. It was a
good business until horses were replaced by
automobiles. On Saturdays, Holidays, Rodeo
days and other celebrations, wagons and
buggies would be lined up around 3 blocks.
The horses were unhitched and watered from
the big tanks and put in the barns where they
were fed hay and grain for 30 cents a day.

Some of the townspeople had milk cows
and the Carpenter kids had th job of riding
their horses and taking the cows to a pasture
about a mile south of town every morning and
back in the evening for milking. Every one
took part in the town and school activities
and helped in every way they could. The
basketball teams from other towns came on
the trains and stayed in private homes after
the games, returning to their towns the next
day. There were barn dances, box and pie
socials, all kinds of family entertainment. In
the winter the town would flood the livery
barn lot for ice skating.

Inez, Emily, and Don all graduated from
Mullen High School.

Inez married Lewis Folk. Has two boys and
2 girls including twins, and has 12 grandchild-
ren. Emily married Joe King and has 2
daughters. Don married Joy Taylor and has
1 daughter and 3 granddaughters.

George died in February 1939 and Ger-
trude in 1957.