Help identify

Hazel Green country school

This photo is from Vern and Kay Erenberger and shows children in front of Hazel Green School.  The Erenbergers recently celebrated their 65th wedding anniversary.  Kay said that this is the first time they met.  Kay is the small girl on the left in the front row and Vern is the boy in the suit at the far right of the second row.  We could use some help with the identities of the other children.  Be sure to click the photo to enlarge it!

 

IDENTIFIED: 
Front row: from left -1- Kay Erenberg; 2-Theresa McNamara, 3 unknown, 4 unknown, 5 unknown; 6-Kenneth Erenberger

Second row: 1 unknown, 2 unknown, 3 unknown; 4 unknown; 5-Donald Erenberger (face toward camera); 6-Vern Erenberger

Back row: 1 unknown; 2 unknown; 3 unknown; 4-Donald Erenberger 5 unknown; 6 unknown, 7-Gene McNamara; 8 unknown

Identities needed

These photos of children in Ely were donated to the ECHS recently. We hope someone will be able to help identify them.

Please click on a photo to enlarge it.  If you can identify someone, please open your email, address it to HistoricEly@yahoo.com.  Go back to your browser & copy the link; paste the link into the email and then identify the child you know and his/her position in the photo.  (For example:  Photo #1 -  Name Surname - 3rd from the left in the back).  Thank you for your help!

Click each photo to enlarge it.

Photo #1

Photo #2

From Don Elias, who formerly lived in Ely, but now lives in Minnesota:  I believe these photos are not of "school children;" they are actually photos of "church children."  The background of these 4 photos is the present brick building that was used as a school [Jappa School] for many years but I think the photos are of the children who attended Sunday School in the school building during the time when the old wooden structure of St; John's Lutheran Church was being torn down and replaced by a brick building.  I think this occurred about 1950.

Photo #2 has 4 young men in front who are (left to right)

Carl Jensen who now lives in Texas and whose family lived with their grandpa Monroe Hemingway

John Tessman (I think) about who I have no current information

Carl Klinsky who was the son of Willie and Stella Klinsky and he passed away at a young age

Gene Erenberger who the son of Milo and Rosemary Erenberger

In back is Martha Krob Phillips and Roger Trpkosh whose family lived with their grandma Lizzie Clark and also died young

Photo #3

From Don Elias:

Photo #3 has in the front row (left to right) [Jappa School in the background]

Larry Trpkosh who was the grandson of Lizzie Clark and died young

Joan Tessman 

Karen Clark who was the daughter of Andy and Grace Clark

Rita Becicka who was the daughter of Leonard and Viola Becicka

Mike Albaugh who lived with Forest and Ann Fuhrmeister

The back row has:

Lavina Nederhiser (I think)

Nargi Rayman Steinbrech

Marilyn Jensen Cook

Elaine Jensen (I don't know her married name - she had a clothing store in Solon many years ago)

Norman Rayman (I think)

Photo #4

From Don Elias:  Photo #4 -  I cannot identify the adult or any of the children except that the boy in the front row on the left looks like a Trpkosh.

Photo #5

From Don Elias:  [Jappa School in the background]
Photo #5 - The 3 girls in front are

Joan Tessman (I think)

Rita Becicka 

Karen Clark

The boys in back are

Larry Trpkosh

Marvin Stastny who was the son of Hubert and Margaret Stastny 

Page Worley (although I don't ever remember him with that much hair) who was the son of John and Katherine Worley and later the husband of Shirley Worley. 

Norman Rayman (I think)

Denny (or Bruce?) Erenberger

Mike Albaugh

More work at Facklers Grove Cemetery

The "Kershner" Area

The Kershner area as it appeared August 8, 2015 after considerable work had already been done.

Left , William J. Kershner; middle, Michael Kershner; and right, Rebekkah Kershner.

These stones were originally under ground and broken in several pieces.

Workers found the pieces by probing with rods and unearthed them.

They were later cleaned, pieced together as best possible and re-erected in the cemetery.

(Click the photos to enlarge them)

William J. Kershner

The support on the repaired Michael Kershner stone was removed.  

Rebekkah Kershner

The "Dennis" Area

Work continued on the Dennis burial area.  The Isaac and Mary A. Dennis grave stone was placed back on its base.  Two manufactured bases were set in the ground in preparation for returning other stones to their original placement, including the grave of Mary Ann Dennis' mother, Catherine Haynes. (Click photos to enlarge them.)

Arlen Nickolan (center), who has restored several pioneer cemeteries near

Riverside, Iowa, came to lend an experienced hand.  Jeff Ward on the left.

Readying the stone for placement back on the base.

The Isaac and Mary Anne Dennis stone is now on its base.

Jeff is setting a manufactured base in the ground.

Cowboys terrorize Ely in 1900

Thanks to Ely resident, Rob Smith, for finding and sending in this article.  It is s story of some young men who delivered a number of broncos to the Ely area from a Montana ranch.  All was fine until they began drinking in the town of Ely.

From the Cedar Rapids Republican
September 29, 1900
"They had the whole town terrorized, compelling people to close their places of business, making them get down on their knees in the street .... They refused to be arrested ..."

Read the story by clicking the below image to enlarge it.

Facklers Grove Cemetery Update

Work has continued through the summer at Facklers Grove Cemetery. The "Vornholt" area has been completed.   Work on the "Kershner" area is in progress, and the "Dennis" area has been surveyed to determine what needs to be done.  Most of this has been accomplished by Clary Illian and Jeff Ward.  Below are photos showing some of the progress that has been made.

We once again thank all the individuals who have contributed funds toward the restoration of this pioneer cemetery.  We especially want to thank volunteers that have contributed their manpower (or woman-power!) to this project.  We have much that is still left to accomplish!  If you wish to volunteer to help us with the labor, please call Barb at 319-848-4074.

(All photos can be enlarged by clicking on them.)

The "Vornholt" Area

This area is the farthest east in the cemetery.  Gravestones have been cleaned,
repaired where possible, with bases leveled and stones reset.

The original gravestone of H. William Vornholt and his wife Elizabeth C. Vornholt was moved by family to Oakland Cemetery in Solon, Iowa some years ago.  ECHS had a plaque made to indicate their place of burial at Fackler's Grove Cemetery.

Jacob H. Vornholt

Son of H.W. & E.C

Died Aug. 11, 1878

2yr 3mo 13dy 

Clara E. Zobel

Born August 5, 1898

Died Aug. 6, 1898

(The infant's parents were Edward Zobel and Emmeline Vornholt Zobel,

daughter of H. W. Vornholt.)

Charlie Vornholt

Son of H.W. & E. C. Vornholt

Died July 29, 1878

Aged 14 yrs 7ms.16ds.

Catherine F. Vornholt

Daughter of H.W. & E.C. Vornholt

Died Aug. 6, 1878

11yr 6mo 22dy

A relative, Sharon Farnsworth reported that "Three of the children who died in the summer of 1878 of Yellow Fever, Charles, Catherine, and Jacob are buried with their parents in Fackler Cemetery."

See a photo of the H.W. and E.C. Vornholt family in a previous blog post.

The "Kershner" Area

The "Kershner" area was excavated and leveled earlier in the summer by a work crew of volunteers.  Two of these gravestones were under ground.  They have been cleaned, repaired, bases leveled and stones reset.  The two stones with blue tape will have tops attached soon.  On the left is the gravestone of Rebekkah Kershner, daughter of M. & Mary M. who died November 1, 1848, aged 10 years.  The middle stone is her father Michael Kershner.  The stone on the left is Michael's son William James Kershner.  Find-a-Grave listing.

The "Dennis" Area

The "Dennis" area has been partially excavated and work will begin soon to reset the bases and repair the gravestones. Clary Illian and Ed Vavra are washing a stone to increase readability.  To see Dennis family members buried here, please go to the Find-a-Grave website.

This stone was mostly buried. It is the one being washed with water in the photo above.  It is the gravestone for Catherine Haynes, who died at age 83 in 1882.  Catherine Haynes was Mary Ann Dennis' mother.