ZELLER
by Mona Taggart

Long before the opening of the Rosebud Reservation, Jacob Zeller journeyed across the ocean from Germany to the land of the free, America.

His first wife died at sea coming to the United States. He eventually married five times, with four of his wives dying, and had ten children. Only one wife survived Jacob.

His second wife, Kiest (last name), died in Menno from childbirth.

Wilhelm Zeller was born on October 6, 1881 in Menno, SD. Magdeline Elizabeth Hartz became his bride on October 19, 1904 in Menno.

Elizabeth was born on August 12, 1885, in either Austria or Hungary, and moved to Menno in 1890, at the age of five. Elizabeth's father, Valentine Hartz, and three children came
to the United States after being sponsored by a brother-in-law. Valentine's eldest daughter and husband journeyed to the United States before the family followed. Lizzy's
mother, Margaret (Stien) was a homemaker and is buried in Europe. The son was of army age and was their main reason coming to America.

Elizabeth was known to others as Lizzy or Lisa, and worked as a domestic for her uncle Emanuel Kosta's family to pay off the debt, before marrying Wilhelm. The Kosta had a
large family and owned a butcher shop. The couple resided in Menno on a farm for two years, before coming to Gregory and homesteading.

Wilhelm came to Gregory County, where he selected a homestead site and built a sod house in the early fall of 1905. The homestead site is located thirteen and a half miles
north of Gregory (NE 1/4 west of Section 35 Township 100N, Range 73, 5th PM).
Elizabeth, and the couples first son, Arthur, joined him in November. One of their cousin's, Kosta, brought them in a spring buggy after ferrying the Missouri River at Wheeler
Crossing.

The couple lived fifty miles from a railroad town, Bonesteel. As time went on the railroad would eventually come to Gregory.

Being accustomed to village or town living, Lizzy feared the Native Americans and prairie fires, especially when Wilhelm left early in the morning with a wagon load of grain and
came home late at night with supplies.

Life was difficult and lonely at times, but wonderful neighbors and a sod house, that was warm in the winter and cool in the summer, helped them make it through the early
years. The area soon flourished around them. Within two years, 1907, the couple built a two story house with the help of neighbors. In the early years, fences were added and
the couple planted 1,000 shade and fruit trees. Wilhelm helped build and establish the Lutheran Church in Dixon and was an elder until the time of his death.

The couple had six children, Arthur, Esther (Everett Messick), Lillian (Ora Whitmore), Viola (Rup Dewald), Ray and Reubin, who was born on July 11, 1922.

In 1912, they built the horse and cattle barn, and in 1924 they added on and remodeled the original frame home, which is still in the family.

Wilhelm started with shorthorn cattle and Lizzy raised chickens. Horses were used to plow the fields for planting of crops. Wilhelm and Elizabeth sold cream and eggs to Omaha
Cold Storage in Gregory. The children attended the Pochantas school. A barn was built in 1912. The house was eventually enlarged in 1924.

The dust from the dust storms in the 1930's blew in drifts as tall as the buildings. A lot of the neighbors went to work for W.P.A., building roads and dams, as well as cleaning out
ditches from the storms.

Viola advised that they were still scrapping dirt and cleaning up the boards of the buildings after Reubin and her were married. The picture of the Zeller homestead during
the dust storms has appeared in many publications through the years.
The drought, grasshoppers and dust storms almost took the land, but with their savings, hard work and perseverance the family kept their land, and their home, a haven for
all their children and generations to come.

Once a church from Platte brought a truckload of vegetables to be stored in the cellar of Wilhelm and Elizabeth. Wilhelm was to distribute them to all the neighbors in need at
that time. There was no feed for the cattle and the government bought them for very little, then drove them to a designated spot and shot them. It was illegal to skin the animals,
but many people did and sold the hides for monetary compensation.

The first tractor owned by the family was a Sampson and the second an IH 1020.

It was on August 4, 1941, that Wilhelm lost his battle with cancer in Rochester, MN. Wilhelm was known for being a self-sufficient farmer and a good handyman.

Reubin married Viola Eisenbraun from Colome, on December 16, 1944, in Gregory. "When Reubin and Viola were married and going on their honeymoon to the Black Hills, they
used one set of gas ration cards to get there, and stayed until the next set was valid to get home," explained Lynn (Wilhelm's grandson, Ormal's wife) Sugar rationing was hard
on a person's sweet tooth," laughed Lynn. It was noted that ration stamps were also needed to purchase shoes, and the speed limit was 35 m.p.h.

To this union, two children were born, Ormal, born on November 22, 1947, and Sharon, born on December 12, 1945.

Reubin and Viola planted a large shelterbelt. Viola and the children, hand weeded and hoed the small trees. Ormal has since planted an additional shelterbelt on the west side of
the original homestead.

Reubin and Viola sold cream and eggs either in Gregory to Keith Schlaht or at Dolezal's in Chamberlain.

The family continued with their Lutheran faith. Reubin farmed and ranched, was an avid sportsman and handyman. Viola was his helpmate and a homemaker.

"Once there was a blizzard with snow that filled ditches, roads and fields, level full. The neighbors worked together to try and clear the roads with a farmhand. About a week
later, a state rotary plow came out of Pierre to clear Highway 47. It was very interesting to see, as it had two motors, one for the truck and one for the plow," advised Ormal
(Wilhelm's grandson).

They were part of a rural phone company around 1949, party lines were used. For quite sometime they were northern most neighbor with the luxury of having phone service
and neighbors would come to use their phone.

"Later the rural phone companies rented North Western Bell's poles. During the rural phone company era, Reubin was a lineman and was paid $100.00 per year. Before
receiving the $100.00 a year, the linemen received $4.00 per month, before their wage was raised to $8.00 and $9.00 per month.

"He went out in all kinds of weather to keep the phones going because, he said, 'You never knew when someone would have an emergency,'" recalled Ormal.

Lights were possible from a Delco light plant that was located in the basement around 1952, before REC came to the area.

Lizzy lost her battle with cancer on July 13, 1964, in Gregory. She was an efficient helpmate, homemaker and seamstress.

Reubin and Viola raised Herefords, and in the 1950's and 1960's, Reubin also raised hogs. Viola also raised chickens until the 1970's.

The family boarded teachers. The teachers would also baby-sit for the couple when they went square dancing. The Zeller's square danced a lot back in the early years.
All the children in the family, including Esther's and Reubin's children all attended the Pocahontas School, half a mile north, and one mile west of the homestead and completed
high school in Gregory.

"The school was two miles off the highway. When we weren't boarding the teacher, she would stop at our house and Sharon would be the chauffeur and the three of them
(the teacher, Sharon and Ormal), would take the jeep and go to school. That was before Reubin would let Sharon drive," laughed Viola.

The family remembers taking short vacations to Colorado and the Black Hills, however, one of the more interesting vacations was recalled by Viola.

"When Sharon was three and Ormal was one, we took the milk cow to the neighbors and sold the chicken, and took off for a months vacation. We fixed the car, level in the back
seat with wood, so that the kids could play back there, lay down or whatever. We made a stool and put that between us in the front seat, so if they wanted to sit in the front. We
went to the West Coast and California," reminisced Viola.

The car was a Fleetline Chevy with a paper back, however, they survived the month long vacation with the kids. At night they would stay at a motel, and when Ormal would
get out of the car and run and run after being cooped up all day in the car.

Viola continued, "I think about that now. We really didn't have the money, we just did it. Reubin had a sister out in Washington, and I guess she kind of begged us to come."
"We also spent a lot of time down at the river, boating fishing and water skiing," added Ormal.
"We loved to fish," Viola stated about herself and Reubin.
"They did love to fish and dance. Ormal doesn't fish or dance," laughed Lynn. Viola asked Ormal, "What's wrong with you!"
Lynn added, "We ride motorcycles and that's about it. We're not really exciting people," smiled Lynn.

Reubin and Viola enjoyed square dancing and especially ballroom dancing. Viola recalled, "The neighbors would come play canasta until four in the morning and than walk
home."

Ormal made note that he remembered different individuals that would come and stay for several days.

Viola added, "The Blessings from Dallas had taken their son to Mitchell to school and a storm came up. They got as far as our place and had to stay for a couple of days and
nights. The electricity was off and I had a cookstove and we put a blanket up from the kitchen to the dining room. We kept the cookstove going to keep warm. When night time
came, I had all these flowers, so I said, 'I have to bring them in and save those flowers.' Before I knew it, they carried them all to the kitchen and I had a lot of them.'

She continued, "They Blessings) wanted us to go upstairs and sleep, we only had one bedroom downstairs, and the (Blessings) kept the stove going all night. We had a cistern
pump in the porch that kept the stool going. We were fortunate."

Of course, every child has to have that perfect partner in crime, and Ormal was no exception. Ormal's partner was Dennis Vedral who was his childhood friend and today the
two are still very close.

"Ormal and Dennis would shoot pop bottle rockets out of the bedroom window upstairs at traffic and from underneath the cattle panels," told Lynn. Viola made comment that she
did not know of this until now.

"I remember going to a pow wow and the kids went to the corner. All the traffic was going by the corner and they would throw firecrackers out as the cars came by and
then hide in the ditch," recalled Viola. Ormal claims not to remember that one and refused to fess up to the pop bottle incidents. "We need Dennis here to tell some stories,"
laughed Lynn.

Viola continued telling stories about Ormal. "I remember dad following Ormal and Dennis out behind the hog house and they were smoking. I thought it was kind of funny when I
saw dad walking that way," giggled Viola.

Ormal graduated from Gregory High School in 1966. He than went to National Guard training and then worked construction for two years, before returning to the family operation.
On May 25, 1968, Ormal took a bride, Lynn Durfee.

Reubin and Viola raised their two children on the farm homestead. The couple eventually moved to Gregory in 1983.

Ormal and Lynn then moved to the family homestead where they raised their three daughters, Amy (John Ford), born on February 23, 1969; Paula (Troy Sundquist) born on
August 5, 1971; and Holly, joined her sisters on July 29, 1978.

"I can remember the driveway when it would get slick. We would try and get up onto the road and wouldn't make it. We would have to back up all the way to the
garage and make a run at it," remembered Viola. trying to get out of the driveway. They would back up and take ten to twelve runs at it. It would be snow packed and slick,"
laughed Lynn.

"When we first moved there (the homestead), there would be people stopping along side the road taking pictures of this big old barn that said '1912' on it, painted in big letters. I
couldn't figure out what in the world those people were doing, then later, it must of been that they were taking pictures of the old barn, because when it was gone and the new
one (barn) was there, no one takes pictures anymore," stated Lynn.

Lynn added, "All the girls (Amy, Paula and Holly), still remember
The family homestead has grown from the original 160 acres to 560 acres. The north quarter was a relinguishment bought from Dahlgrens; the west quarter was
bought from Derringfields; and the 80 acres across the highway was school land that Reubin and Viola purchased.

Through the years, Ormal and Lynn have seen a continuous cycle of repairing, adding and removing old buildings. The old barn was burned purposely in 1991 and a new metal
replacement barn is now on the site.

"These guys (Reubin and Viola), did a great deal of removing, repairing and cleaning up after the dust storms. They worked very hard at that, much harder then we
have," acknowledged Lynn. Both Ormal and Reubin have served on the Dixon Township board through the years. Reubin has also served on various offices within the Lutheran
Church, as well as an elder, and also served on the school board.
Reubin and Viola have wintered away from Gregory for twenty-five years after retiring. Two years was spent in Texas, two years in Florida and twenty-one in
Arizona.

Cecil and Pearl Routh were their boating, fishing and traveling companions throughout the years and still remain close friends. "They were the other half of the team," stated
Viola.

Ormal and Lynn continue to live on the home place that was homesteaded by his grandfather, Wilhelm. They have no idea if the family farm will still be in operation in twenty-five
years, but hope the legacy continues through many more generations of Zellers.