MACHLAN, WILLIAM RUSSELL AND EDYTHE E.

by Edythe Machlan Eggers

Entry F266 from the History of Hooker County Nebraska
with permission of the Hooker County Historical Society

Edythe and Russell Machlan 1959, 43rd anniversary

W.R. Machlan was born near Weldon,
Iowa, April 26, 1897 and Edythe Zepp was
born in Jamison, Iowa, November 7, 1897.
The two were married in Osceola, Iowa, April
16, 1916. One daughter, Claudia B. was born
to this union, in Weldon.

The Machlan family came by emigration
railroad car with all their possessions and
settled in Hooker County in the year 1919.
They rented farms for several years and then
bought the Marion Fox place, which was his
homestead, about 10 miles southeast of
Mullen, in the year 1928. The kitchen was the
original old claim and house which was very
cool in summer and warm in winter. The
other rooms were attached frame buildings.
The first electricity brought to the R/M
ranch was the purchase and installation of a
32 volt Delco Windcharger plant in 1929. The
wind generated electricity stored into large
glass batteries. Several years later the REA
lines were built and brought to the ranch.

Neighbors helped one another through
brandings, threshing, butchering of beef and
pork and other activities. Youngsters helped
with all ranch activities, riding for round-ups,
feeding animals, milking cows, and shocking
grain, mainly rye (grain was cut when ripe
with a binder and bundled, then ten or so
bundles were set up in a shock till threshing
time.) At these gatherings the women spent
many hours baking and cooking over the old
wood cookstove, preparing many vegetables
from their gardens, frying chickens and a
variety of other good fare.

Saturday afternoon found most ranchers in
Mullen shopping with their cream checks and
egg money. They would sit on benches
outside the stores, that were provided by the
merchants, to visit and exchange news.
Neighbors took turns on Saturday nights
entertaining for card parties, dancing and
square dancing and just to visit. Box socials
and barn dances were popular.

Neighbors in this neighborhood combined
their efforts and money to build their own
telephone line that was attached to fence
posts, which needed constant upkeep. Every-
one had his own code ring, the R/M ring was
a short and two longs. Anyone could lift their
receiver and listen to other parties talking on
the line when they heard the rings. A series
of five rings was a signal on the line by the
phone operator or someone else to listen as
this might be a special announcement con-
cerning a fire, death, birth or a need for help
as in illness. An accomplished German
pianist, an immigrant, Mr. Tschauder, would
ring this signal and invite everyone to listen
to his concert over the phone which was
looked forward to and enjoyed so much. He
later gave piano lessons in Mullen for several
years.

There were many hardships experienced
through the years, the severe blizzards of
1921 and 1949 which caused a great loss of
cattle. Ranchers were snowbound for nearly
a month in `49 before the national Guard
came to their rescue and brought supplies
and used their huge `Cats' to break trails over
the hills for travel. Another awesome and
dangerous spectacle was the sighting of
smoke over the hills which meant a prairie
fire was raging. This was usually in the spring
or fall when the grasses were dry and there
was apt to be a high wind. Most ranchers
plowed narrow strips of ground around their
property called `fire guards' for added protec-
tion if a `backfire' would be needed. Men
came for miles around to fight the fires with
wet sacks, shovels, cream cans of water and
their plows and horses. The women would be
busy making sandwiches and hot coffee to
take out to the men as they sometimes fought
through the night and for a day or two to
bring a big fire under control. Other hazards
experienced were droughts as in the `30's and
the grasshoppers.

The roads were sandy and many had to be
covered with hay to make them passable.
Many was the time that passengers had to get
out and push the car up a sandy hill or a sandy
spot. Many wire gates had to be opened
before going to a destination, Great are the
auto gates of today.

Russell and Edythe built up their cattle
herd of Herefords through the years and
increased their range acreage. Edythe raised
big gardens, turkeys, and chickens along with
helping with outside chores. Russell served as
president of the Hooker County Fair Board
and Mullen Co-Op, member of the Hooker
County School Board 12 years, belonged to
the Mullen Commercial Club, was active in
the Mullen Community Development project
and participated in the government's Agri-
culture conservation program for 25 years till
his death in September 21, 1961. After his
death, Edythe sold the ranch to the Runner
Brothers in 1963 with improvements of two
new houses, large machine building, and a
number of other buildings. She then moved
to a home in Mullen. Edythe married an old
friend of Iowa, Everett Eggers, Dec. 31, 1966.