CLARDY, DODGE AND ANNA (MAIRE)

by daughter Ruth Clara Boyer

Entry F71 from the History of Hooker County Nebraska
with permission of the Hooker County Historical Society

Anna and Dodge Clardy, 1962.

Dodge Clardy was born to Benjamin and
Elizabeth Murphy Clardy, in Blue Hill, Nebr.
on Sept. 1, 1894.

On July 4th, 1909, he and some boys found
a five pound sky rocket that the city had
supposely shot off - so he being the oldest
lit a match to it and put a can over it. They
waited some time to see what would happen
and when nothing did, Dodge went to it and
just as he started to lift the can it exploded
- blew his left arm off and injured his eye.
He had a necktie on and they picked pieces
of it out of his chest, Dr. said no way could
they save him but his Sunday School teacher
went to prayer for him and God spared him.

He came to Sandhills in 1911 with his folks
and homesteaded southwest of Mullen. Later
married Ann Maire in 1915 and four children
were born.

Bennie who died at a young age.

Ruth married Bob Boyer.

Otto killed in action in World War II in
1945.

Bob lives in Wenatchee, Washington,
retiring Febr. 1, 1987, from working twenty
years for the City of Wenatchee.

Dodge was handicapped but he wouldn't
let that stand in his way - he worked on
construction driving four head of horses on
a road scrapper when they were building high
bridge south of Mullen.

He worked for Bill Bramer and Roy
McCully for quite a while pitching hay up to
4 loads onto hayrack and off feeding cattle
and milking 8 to 10 cows night and morning,
quite a job with one hand.

He worked as janitor of the court house for
sometime.

He was night watchman on the bay in
Tacoma, Washington, during the war taking
the same oath as the soldier boys did.

After the war he worked in a lumber mill
- jacking lumber.

His wife passed away in 1963.

He is now living in Mullen, Nebr., by
himself, and is doing pretty good for being 92
years old.