Biographies and Obituaries, "K" Surnames
Early Residents of Seward Co., Nebraska
Note: If you have any obituaries, biographies, photos, or stories about early residents of Seward Co., Nebraska, please consider adding them to this website. --Alice
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Biographies and Obituaries "K" INDEX
KILZER, KIRKHUFF, KRAUS, KROEGER, KRUEGER, KRUSE, KUHNS, KUNERTKILZER, Margaret Flora, wife of Otto August IMIG, see: Margaret Flora (KILZER) IMIG
KIRKHUFF, Henrietta F., first wife of Abraham Wilson HAGEMAN, see: Henrietta F. (KIRKHUFF)
KRAUS, Barbara, wife of John George SCHERER, see: Mrs. Barbara (KRAUS) SCHERER
KROEGER, Carl F., husband of Sophia (ROST). This first biography is from pages 173 of the 1967 book, On A Bend of the River, posted here (with photo, see top of this page also) courtesy of the author, Jane Ramsay Graff. (Front sign: "KROEGER'S SHOE STORE", bottom of window: "RED GROSS[?CROSS?] SHOES")
SHOE STORES CARL F. KROEGER
KRUEGER, Henry W., husband of Mary (SCHUKNECHT). This biography is from W. W. Cox,
History of Seward County, Nebraska and Reminiscences of Territorial History, Part Two: Biographical, 1905, page 100:
HENRY W. KRUEGER
KRUSE, Henry H. This biography is from pages 208-209 of the 1967 book On A Bend of the River, posted here courtesy of the author, Jane Ramsay Graff.
KRUSE
No account of the past history of Seward County, during the past years would be complete without mention of two of the first homesteads in G precinct and their present owners and tenants. The Sampson Homestead in the 19th section, was purchased from the Sampson family in 1918 by Mr. and Mrs. Henry H. Kruse who lived near the community of Ruby. They and their eldest son Milton moved to the farm in 1920. Their second son William was born there in 1923. In 1945 Mr. and Mrs. Kruse purchased the adjoining east property, the former Roberts Homestead from Mr. Lee Nelson and Mr. Tom Wake. The Pape family had been owners before that. Mr. Kruse still resides in his home on the farm; Mrs. Kruse passed away Dec. 22, 1966. They would have celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary on June 7th this year.
KUHNS, Elizabeth, wife of Sanford STUTZMAN, see: Mrs. Elizabeth (KUHNS) STUTZMAN
KUNERT, Robert Carl, husband of Dolores (CAST) KUNERT, obituary from funeral pamphlet. Submitted by Ann Miller White.
May 13, 1929 — February 7, 2003
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[Surnames: KROEGER]
Carl F. Kroeger founder of
Kroeger's Shoe Store.
Carl was born June 16, 1849, in Bunde Westphalen, Germany, he immigrated to the U. S. in 1866 at the age of 17, spending a few years in Cleveland, Ohio, where he married. He was a boot and shoe maker. After he was married, he moved with his wife to the Seward area near Middle Creek. They lived in a dug out. Grandmother used to say that snakes hung from the ceiling. He hand made boots and shoes in Seward starting in 1871.
They also had drought and grasshoppers, the grasshoppers were so bad they ate the onions down into the ground.
Carl F. also was a charter member of St. John's Lutheran Church. Chas. and Oscar went into the store at an early age, Paul joined them in 1917 and is the last member of the second generation in the store. They piloted the store through the "dirty 30's" or the Great Depression. Allen, Herbert, and Victor make up the third generation. The store has been in 4 or 5 different locations.
This next biography for Carl F. KROEGER is from W. W. Cox,
History of Seward County, Nebraska and Reminiscences of Territorial History,
Part Two: Biographical, 1905, page 100:
[Surnames: KROEGER, MAYLAND, ROST]
Mr. Kroeger is an energetic business man and a splendid type of German-American citizenship.
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[Surnames: BEATY/BEATTY, KRUEGER, SCHUKNECHT]
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[Surnames: ANDERSON, KRUSE, NELSON, PAPE, ROBERTS, SAMPSON, TURNER, WAKE, WILLIAMS ]
by Berdine Kruse
It is also interesting to note that the new Centennial Park to be dedicated this year as part of Seward's Centennial celebration, was also included in the original Roberts Homestead. The Kruse family had requested that this parcel of land known as Oak Park be sold to a separate buyer and this was done to the Anderson Brothers, Lester and Harold "Bubbles" and their families. The Andersons' made their homes there, converting some of the former summer cabins into comfortable year round houses. They also built a large roller-skating rink, which provided many wholesome, fun-filled hours for the youth of the community.
Mr. and Mrs. William C. Kruse and son Jon moved to this farm in March of 1946. Three years later the house on the farm which was now 75 years old, barely withstood a test of the extreme elements of nature, so often seen in Nebraska. High winds accompanying the blizzard of 1949, buffeted the home causing it to sway on it's foundation. Many of the old cedar and pine trees, so long a landmark of the farm were blown down, or large branches [p. 209] torn out and blown into the surrounding fields. The decision was made to tear the old house down in the Spring of 1950, and so with the first wrecking beginning in May--the family moved into the new home on Oct. 9 that same year. The entire new home was built of the lumber of the old house, except for the doors, windows and trim. The carpenters found the wood in excellent condition. It was an easy task to frame the new house, as the boards were 18" to 24" wide without knots. A 8" square beam running the length of the old house was used as a basement stairway support in the new house. A brick siding was used on the new house. Mr. and Mrs. William Kruse and their three sons, Jon, Steven, and Tommy now farm both the original Sampson and Roberts Homesteads.
In 1951, a son, J. R. Roberts, Lincoln, Nebr., a daughter, Mrs. A. G. Williams (Maggie L. Roberts) of Mattoon, Illinois, and granddaughter and her husband, Mr. and Mrs. H. A. Turner (Margurite Williams) of the town Chaffee, Mo., of the original John N. Roberts, came to visit the old homestead. They were sorry to learn, that they had come too late to see the old house, the old barn was gone too, having been destroyed by fire, when struck by lightening. On visiting with the Kruse family, they were quite pleased and proud with the fact that so much of the original house was still in use. They were given some of the square nails used in the old home's construction as souvenirs. They remarked of the beautiful view of Seward, and the Blue and Lincoln Creek Valleys that had lured their father and grandfather to the site, and how it still remained. They told of the wagon trail going east and west, bordering on the north of the farm, which is now the county road connecting with Hillcrest Drive in Seward, and how this trail was used by north and west settlers to reach Seward, Lincoln and Nebraska City for supplies. They also told of the big Indian encampments in the bend of the Blue, where there were hundreds of wigwams or tee pees pitched, with many smoke fires drying racks of meat. The Indians could make themselves quite pesty by begging for food, especially meat. Mr. Roberts stated that they even offered to cart off any dead animals a farmer might have for the dried jerky. Mr. Roberts, who was 75 at that time, told of being one of twin boys born to the John Roberts family, in a log cabin that stood just west of the present Kruse home. This was in the Spring of the year. By the July 4th holiday their new two-story white frame home was ready to occupy. This large two-story, white frame house was a first for Seward County and was quite a show place and the site of many social functions. He said his father had sent to Brussels for the carpeting and lace curtains. One can imagine the contrast with the dug-out that the family had when they first came to Nebraska.
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[Surnames: BASHORE, CAST, COOK, DAVIDSON, HUNT, KINNETT, KUNERT, LEIF, NICHELSON, SMETTER, SWEET, WAMBOLD, WILSON, ZIMMER]
Robert Carl "Bob" Kunert died suddenly at Warren Memorial Hospital. He was born on his grandmother's farm to Joseph August and Charlotte (Hunt) Kunert, the third of nine children. As a young child, Bob attended David City Public Schools. In 1942 his family moved to Beaver Crossing where his father was employed by the Chicago and Northwestern Railroad. Bob was baptized in the Beaver Crossing Methodist Church in 1944. He graduated with the Class of 1947 from Beaver Crossing High School. On June 29, 1950 he was united in marriage to his high school sweetheart, Dolores Cast at Sacred Heart Catholic Church and to this union nine children, Janet, Stephen, Ronald, John, Cynthia, Mark, Cheryl, Sandra, and Teresa were born.
Graduating from high school, he was already working for Cyril "Stub" Wilson doing masonry work and continued until 1951 when he began a long career with Seward County Road Department. After he and Dolores were married, Bob worked part-time at the Christian Mobile Station in Beaver Crossing. As a county road crew employee, he graded roads southeast of Beaver Crossing and in the Cordova area. He also drove a gravel truck and worked in several other capacities on the Road Department before retiring on December 31, 1994. He acquired a large collection of tools and other items that he found by the side of the roads over the years.
Bob joined the Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Beaver Crossing and continued as a faithful member and volunteered whenever and wherever needed. He was also a member of the Beaver Crossing Volunteer Fire Department for more than 25 years. Bob served on the swimming pool board for nine years and was one of the six members when the pool was constructed. He was also a member of the board of directors for the Beaver Crossing Restaurant Corporation in 1977 and 1978 when the former Beaver CafÈ was built. He also served the village as building inspector for several years. In his retirement, Bob enjoyed many things, including purchasing a rug loom and making rugs for family members and for sale from donated jeans and other materials. He loved to walk and after his heart surgery he walked four miles every morning. Bob also loved working outdoors on his lawn and doing "Honey-do" and "Daddy do" projects for Dolores and his family. He enjoyed working jigsaw puzzles and word search projects and chili and popcorn were his favorite foods. On Sunday mornings after church he always tuned in to listen to the "Big Joe Polka Show". In 2000, Bob and Dolores enjoyed celebrating their 50th anniversary with family and friends.
Robert is survived by his wife, Dolores Kunert, Beaver Crossing, daughters and sons-in-law, Janet and Gerard "Jere" Leif, Cynthia and Stuart Kinnett, Sandra and Kent Smetter, and Teresa and Randal Nichelson, all of Beaver Crossing, Cheryl and Robin Wambold, Seward, sons and daughters-in-law Stephen and special friend Connie Bashore, Wilmington, Ohio, Ronald and Sue Kunert, Glenwood, Iowa, John and Judy Kunert, Beaver Crossing, Mark and fiancée Theresa Sweet, Topeka, Kansas, 23 grandchildren, 6 great-grandchildren, brothers and sisters-in-law Leroy and Lillie Kunert, Cedarville, California, Eugene and Barb Kunert, Hickman, William D. Kunert, Milford, Gary and Joyce Kunert, Lincoln, sisters and brothers-in-law and sisters-in-law, Herbert J. and Fran Cast, Overland Park, Kansas, Lois Jean and Darrell Zimmer, Sulphur, Louisiana, Tom and Becky Cast, Lincoln, Kenneth and Dolores Cast, Beaver Crossing, special friends, Hollis and Jackie Cook, Papillion, numerous nieces, nephews, cousins and a host of other relatives and friends.
He was preceded in death by his parents, Joseph and Charlotte, brother LaVern, sister, Wauneta Kunert, one granddaughter Emmaline Nichelson, sisters-in-law Eleanore Kunert, Jean Kunert, brother-in-law, Darrol Davidson.
Burial: Calvary Cemetery, Rural Beaver Crossing Nebraska
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