A Blast from the Past (Final): Harold Warp’s Pioneer Village

…and finally, my last post about our tour/exploration of Harold Warp’s Pioneer Village in Minden Nebraska.  I’ll end this series of posts with the very late lunch/early dinner we had on the way back to Omaha.

There were a few items and collections that I’d missed or skipped over before…and I’ll mention other exhibits and collections that we just didn’t take photos of.

This is a 1934 Harley-Davidson Model VLD.  With the onset of the Great Depression, sales of motorcycles were hard to come by.  In an effort to cut costs and increase sales, Harley eliminated chrome trim, substituting black paint.  This model had its shift lever mounted on the gas tank.  A total of 4,527 Model VLD’s were built, selling for $310 each.  A 1934 H/D VLD sold this year through Hemming’s Auctions for $21,000.

We didn’t tour the second floor of the building where motorcycles, bicycles and more are on display but I’ve seen photos of both…and the floor is jam-packed with goodies.

This beautiful red 1905 Buick Model C is the oldest Buick in existence!  It is equipped with a 2-cylinder motor that produces 22 HP.  Its frame is made of wood and it was built in Jackson Michigan (my hometown).  The price tag for the Model C back in the day was $1,200. (About $42,000 in today’s dollars)

This is an illustration showing the huge Buick manufacturing plant in Jackson Michigan that I borrowed from the Internet.  Buick built automobiles in Jackson from 1905 until 1912 when it focused all its operations in Flint Michigan.  Jackson was the home of 25 different car manufacturers from 1901 until 1954.  Buick is the only brand name to have survived over the years.  As a youngster, I knew that some auto manufacturing was happening in Jackson, but most of it was related to parts and accessories.

…but, once again, I digress...

Back to the exhibits at Pioneer Village.  This is a 1914 2-passenger Saxon.  It cost $395, the equivalent to $11,696 in 2022, and it was billed as “A Good Low Priced Car”.  This particular version includes a couple of options…electric lights and an electric starter.  A total of 7,000 of these cars were built in the first year of production. 

In 1914, a Saxon roadster was driven 135 miles a day for 30 days straight.  Total miles covered was 4,050 and it averaged 30 miles per gallon.  It was among the first cars that ‘christened’ the then new transcontinental Lincoln Highway…primarily US Hwy 30 today.

The Saxon Motor Car Company was located in Detroit Michigan and it was in operation from 1914 to 1922 when it over expanded and got into serious financial difficulties.  In 1917, Saxon built 28,000 cars, making it the seventh largest car maker in the USA.

This is a 1909 E-M-F 30.  Note the lap robe on the seat for warmth...  This 2-seat coupe was built in Walkerville Ontario although the company had plants in the USA as well.  The E-M-F Company produced cars from 1909 to 1912.  The name E-M-F came from the initials of the 3 founders of the company.  The E was for Barney Everitt, an auto-body maker.  The M was for William Metzger, who had been with Cadillac.  Finally, the F was for Walter Flanders, who had worked for Henry Ford as his production manager.  The company was folded into the Studebaker Company which shortly afterwards, stopped using the EMF brand name.

Exhibits at Pioneer Village pertaining to Native American culture are limited as the focus of the museum is the growth and progress of the country from 1830 into the early 1960s.  Much of the 'progress' and innovations noted came at the expense of Native Americans.  Nevertheless, I did note this showcase of Native American artifacts in the main building at Pioneer Village.  Included are pottery items, tools, beads, a ceremonial headdress and what appears to be 2 ceremonial tomahawks.  That item at the front of the case is a hide scraper.

The Algonquian people created the tomahawk.  The word Tomahawk is derived from Powhatan ‘tamahaac’.  Originally, Native Americans would use sharpened stones secured to wooden handles using strips of rawhide.  The tomahawk quickly spread from the Algonquian culture to the tribes of the South and Great Plains.

As I’ve emphasized several times, there is little that Harold Warp and his Pioneer Village didn’t collect that is representative of European American life, growth and expansion beginning in 1830. 

The “Cigar Store Indian” in the first photo once stood in front of a Chicago Cigar factory.  It was wheeled out to the sidewalk every day from 1875 until 1902.  It was found in a Chicago basement 50 years later.  These ubiquitous carved wooded sculptures actually became popular with the demise of ship’s figureheads.  American tobacconists started buying the figureheads…especially American Indians…to advertise their shops.  At one time, there were over 75,000 “Cigar Store Indian” sculptures across the USA.  They lost their popularity in the early 1900s.

The cast metal Native American (unfortunately covered by signs) was cast in the true likeness of an Indian chief in Wisconsin.  A lumber executive made friends with the chief and had the cast made ca. 1850 to keep peace with the tribe.  The goal of course was to cut as much timber from the tribe’s hunting grounds as possible.  The figure is wearing a capote.  A capote is a wool blanket fashioned into a sort of coat to provide a means of dealing with harsh winters and they served as winter outerwear for First Nations.

This is the last automobile, I promise!  It’s a 1915 Moon touring car with a “double cowl Delaumay-Belleville” body design.  This style, it was claimed, “is usually associated with higher priced European models”.  It even had Spanish leather upholstery!  Three models were available ranging in price from $1,395 to $1,750 for the 6-66 combination touring and club roaster.

The Moon Motor Car Company, founded in St. Louis Missouri in 1905, had a venerable reputation among the discriminating auto buying public.  One early model…a true luxury car…sold for $3,000 or about $94,500 in todays dollars.  The company came to be known for fully assembled, easily affordable cars using high-quality parts.  They were expensive to build with the intensive hands-on attention to detail.  The company built both cars and trucks, almost 60,000 vehicles in total.  The company went out of business in 1930.  It is said that Moon autos were exported to 47 different countries.

This Peddler’s Wagon was recovered from a shed in Wisconsin where it had been stored for about 70 years.  Two mature trees had to be cut down to remove it after all those years.  Peddler’s wagons were very common between 1840 and about 1880 as they sold, bought and traded products with settlers across the mid-west and plains states. 

S.W. Kerr’s daughter learned that Harold Warp had recovered the wagon and that it would be on display at Pioneer Village.  She was very happy to learn that her dad’s wagon had found a home and would be there for all to see.  Her family was from Hurricane Wisconsin…named after a local mine.  Back around 1900 the town had a cheese factory, sawmill, blacksmith, grist mill, post office and the S.W. Kerr General Store.

Mr. Kerr would use a 3 horse hitch on the wagon and he’d roam the countryside selling and trading.  He’d sell or trade groceries, kerosene, dry goods, clothing/shoes, hardware and more.  He’d obtain eggs, animal hides, wild rabbits, crates of chickens and other farm products in exchange for the offerings on the wagon.

Note: Laurie ran across this video on Facebook of a horse powered threshing machine at a 'threshers' gathering from earlier this year.  Very interesting to see just how it was done before engines were used... Check it out at: https://www.facebook.com/reel/324172843619987.  You'll need to copy and paste this in your search bar.

OK…The last building we explored was the Hobby House.  It is the only building where Mr. Warp didn’t try to display collectibles in chronological order.  As I’ve stated many times, Harold Warp collected just about everything.

How about the ‘button collection’!  There are wooden alphabet letters hanging on the wall with each letter covered with 200 to 300 buttons.  There also is a miniature rocking chair, wheelbarrow, wind mill, water well, a star and a covered wagon…all made with wood and covered with bunches of buttons.  My favorite was the ‘button dress’.

So what other Pioneer Village items didn’t I feature?  How about outboard motors, dolls, tools, patches, snowmobiles, several more aircraft, parking meters, gas pumps, seeding and planting farm equipment and one of my favorites, a very large collection of horseshoes.

Any other weird and wonderful exhibits?  Well, yes there are!  The Hobby House has this huge collection of pens as well as salt shakers, ashtrays, pencils, liquor decanters, mechanical banks, nightcaps and spittoons. 

Other items that we didn’t feature in our tour include Currier and Ives prints, the William Henry Jackson paintings, the carousel animals, radio and TV vacuum tubes, fishing trophy mounts and fishing equipment, porcelain figures, famous American figurines…and more!

The Television Show, “American Pickers” visited Pioneer Village and bought a few surplus items earlier this year…and it was featured on one of their shows.  The Pioneer Village is now operated as a 501(c)(3) Foundation and is able to receive tax-deductible donations.  The goal is to restore and improve Pioneer Village.  State grants have helped and surplus/duplicate items have been auctioned off to raise money so the Village can move forward.  Other auctions are planned and hopefully, they will provide needed funds.

To view a short but interesting video that provides an overview of the Village’s collections, just go to https://www.bing.com/videos/riverview/relatedvideo?q=Pioneer+Village+-+art+collection&mid=E0D55AEDE0D7C8CDA408E0D55AEDE0D7C8CDA408&FORM=VIRE.  It provides a nice overview of the Village’s plethora of objects on display…

My family and I highly recommend a visit to Harold Warp’s Pioneer Village.  If you are a collector, a car buff, a farmer, into history or just like to tour museums, you will enjoy your visit.  Admission is amazingly low at $15.00 per person…especially given their huge and impressive historical collection of Americana.  Website: Home - Pioneer Village - Minden, NE.

…moving on down the road toward Omaha, we decided to stop for a late lunch in Hastings Nebraska.

This is Kitty’s Roadhouse Bar and Grill on US Hwy 6 in Hastings.  A grill or restaurant has been located on this spot since 1958.  In 1958 it was named “Kitty’s” and when the new owners took over in 1972, they decided to stay with the familiar name…and they just added “Roadhouse” to it.

The bar and dining area is over the top colorful and eye-catching.  The racing theme dominates.  I thought that the gas pump draft beer feature was something different, or at least I’d never seen it anywhere else. 

Kitty’s Roadhouse offers sandwiches, broasted chicken, pizzas, salads and steaks.  A couple of appetizers caught my attention.  They were “Shrimp Jammers”, 7 jumbo shrimp stuffed with Monterrey Jack cheese and served with Sweet Thai Chili. ($12.99), and; the “Junk Yard Combo Platter” (Full order $17.99/Half order $12.99).  The combo platter included deep fried mushrooms, cauliflower, corn fritters, onion rings, mini tacos and French fries.

However, since it was too early for a dinner with appetizers, salads, steaks and/or chicken, we all decided to have cheeseburgers with fries.  At Kitty’s, you design your own burger combo.  In keeping with the racing/auto theme, burgers are listed as an F-150, F-250 and F-350…with 1 through 3 beef patties. 

In this case, it was double 1/3 lb. burger patties (F-250) on a grilled bun with pickles and onion. ($9.99) Add tomato and lettuce ($.49), cheese ($.69) and French fries ($3.99) and this burger platter cost $15.16.  The burgers and fries were both above average and we were ready to hit the road back to Omaha with full stomachs… To see more about Kitty’s Roadhouse in Hastings Nebraska, just go to Kitty's Roadhouse|Hastings,NE|Wood-Fired Pizza| Broaster Chicken (kittysroadhouse.net).

Just click on any of the photos to enlarge them…

Thanks for stopping by for a visit!  Happy Halloween! 

Take Care, Big Daddy Dave

A Blast from the Past (#5): Harold Warp’s Pioneer Village

…and our visit to the Pioneer Village in Minden Nebraska continues.  So many buildings crammed with antiques and collectibles and I was getting generally tuckered out!  What didn’t Harold Warp collect for his museum?  He was focused on many items but whimsy pops up here and there as well.

By this point, I’m not 100% sure that I’m correct as regards which items were displayed in which building.  Both Laurie and I were taking photos.  Hopefully I got it right!

Where next?  This is Pioneer Village Building #15 which features antique tractors and trucks.  It is home to 100 early farm tractors and other items, including Dave Buick’s first gasoline engine.

This is a 1919 Ford Model-T Knickerbocker Forma Tractor.  This ‘make do with what you have’ tractor was invented by Walter Guilder from Ohio.  An engineer, Guilder owned an 80 acre farm that his brother worked for the family.  Walter had noticed all kinds of truck modifications of Model-T Fords, so when looking at buying a ‘real’ tractor ($1,200), he decided that if they could be made into trucks, why not a serviceable tractor.

A negative article on these types of conversions in “Gas Review Magazine” stated “You can’t make a real tractor out an automobile any easier than you can make a draft horse out of a jack rabbit”.  In 1916, Guilder signed an agreement with the Knickerbocker Motors Company in Poughkeepsie New York, to manufacture the necessary part for the conversion kit.  The idea was that farmers could ‘easily’ change over their family’s Model-T to a tractor for work on the farm over the weekend, and then change it back to take the family to church on Sunday.

These kits sold well enough that Sears, Roebuck and Company as well as Montgomery Ward and Company, (my former employer), included them in their respective catalogs.  Prices seemed to have ranged from $178 to about $300 although some other complementary devices were also offered.  They included a better engine cooling system for the autos used for this purpose.  Many conversions using similar kits were used with various auto brands throughout the 1920s and 1930s.

This eye-catching tractor is a light-weight OilPull Tractor that was made by the Advance-Rumely Thresher Company in LaPorte Indiana.  The company built these 15 to 25 HP tractors from 1924 through 1926.  They were described as ‘being adapted to lighter power requirements on the farm’ and as being ‘compact in construction.

The Advance-Rumely Company was a pioneering manufacturer of threshing machines, large tractors and other agricultural equipment.  The company was founded in 1853 with threshers as their primary product.  Later, they moved on to tractors and steam engine manufacturing.  In 1931, the Allis-Chalmers Manufacturing Company purchased Advance-Rumley.

The collection of a mind boggling list of items continues.  This photo shows a line of antique trucks…but against the opposite wall there is a long line of lawn mowers.  What didn't Harold Warp collect?!

Now on to a couple of those early trucks…

This awkward looking vehicle is a 1908 Randolph Power Wagon.  It and other early trucks were ‘inspired’ by the introduction of an earlier ‘power wagon’ that was introduced by the Grabowsky Wagon Co., aka the Grabowsky Motor Co.  That company was founded in 1900. 

The advertising for Grabowsky’s Power Wagon claimed that it could ‘do the work of 3 or more horse-drawn wagons’.  Other companies, such as Randolph (shown above), Reo and Mack soon jumped on the bandwagon.  This particular truck was purchased by a publisher in Chicago to deliver his newspapers.  Despite this purchase, horse-drawn wagons still delivered newspapers well into the 1920s.

When William (Bill) Durant put together the General Motors Company in 1908, it was done through the purchase of existing manufacturers.  The Randolph Company was one of the companies folded into GMC.  Consequently, the Randolph Power Wagon was the first GMC truck, with the Randolph name being by the company in 1913.

With that gigantic bulbous hood, this 1913 7.5 ton Mack truck is an ungainly looking ‘beast’.  Back in the 1910s and 1920s Mack trucks were considered to be the most rugged on the road.  The company stuck with a chain drive instead of a shaft drive which other truck makers had adopted.  Mack trucks also utilized solid rubber wheels vs. the pneumatic wheels used by other manufacturers.  Trucks like this one were primarily used to deliver coal to homes and businesses in the cities.

Mack Trucks, Inc. not only build trucks but also buses and trolley buses.  The company was founded in 1900 in Brooklyn New York as the Mack Brothers Company…and eventually all 4 Mack brothers were involved in the business.  The company built its first truck in 1905.  Originally, their vehicles were called “Manhattan” trucks, etc. but in 1910 they switched to “Mack”.   Today, Mack Trucks is a subsidiary of AB Volvo...

This rather primitive looking truck was built by the Republic Motor Truck Company in 1920.  It was acquired by Harold Warp for Pioneer Village in 1954.  It had a cargo capacity of 4 tons…had a 4 speed transmission, ‘4-wheel’ brakes and a handbrake.  Its 6 cylinder motor produced 36 HP.  An ad for Republic Trucks stated that “Standard equipment includes a speedometer, ammeter, air cleaner, gasoline strainer, electric head and tail lamps, a front bumper, radiator guard, front fenders and a horn”.  What a great deal!

The Republic Motor Truck Company was based in Alma Michigan and they built commercial trucks from 1913 until 1929.  By 1918, it was the maker of 1 out of every 9 trucks on the road in the USA.  During WWI, Republic was one of the major suppliers of “Liberty trucks” used by American troops during the war.  Over 3,000 dealers served the company in the USA and there were additional Republic dealers in at least 56 foreign countries and colonies. 

At the end of WWI, Republic had an annual production capacity of 30,000 trucks a year.  The bad news was that a postwar depression plus the return of thousands of Liberty trucks to the United States, combined to bring about a major decline in demand for new trucks.  The company closed in 1929.

Laurie took this photo of an old-time threshing machine that is on display in Building #14, the Antique Farm Machinery Building.  In this case an ox is providing the power for the machine.  Most animal driven threshers were powered by horses.  Before such machines were developed, it was all about hand threshing, a very labor intense function.  About 25% of total farm labor prior to animal driven and motor driven threshing, was taken up by this activity.  The first threshing machine was invented ca. 1786 by a Scottish engineer named Andrew Meikle.

Building #14 is 265 feet long and it shows the equipment that was part of the evolution, of cultivating, seeding, harvesting and threshing crops.  This has to be a must stop for anyone who is involved in or was involved in farming. 

Building #20 has a rather inauspicious entrance.  Once again, never judge a book by its cover.  This is the Agricultural and Steam Tractor Building.  This 2-story structure contains more than 500 agricultural tools and implements…all of which contributed to America’s enormous farm economy.  The second photo is intended to give viewers an idea of the size and scope of this collection.

Important Note: Given the exhaustive collection of just about anything from America’s past, one item in the second photo deserves special note!  That would be the church pew or railway style waiting room bench in front of the faux horse.  Pioneer Village must have sewed up the market for benches like this.  They are everywhere almost every building and, for some of us, they are truly important if we have any hope of touring all or most of the village.

This is a 1917 Aultman-Taylor steam tractor.  It is the largest of the 3 sizes the company offered, producing between 30 and 60 HP depending on the application.  In 1955, it took 2.5 days for this tractor to cover the 50 miles between the farm where it came from and Pioneer Village.

The Aultman-Taylor Machinery Company of Mansfield Ohio began with the C. Aultman Co. that was founded in 1859.  The company built steam engines and threshing machines and it wasn’t until ca. 1910 that the company began building steam tractors.  The company was taken over by the Advance-Rumely Thresher Company of LaPorte Indiana in 1924

This is another Advance-Rumely Tractor.  In this case its a 1918 Advance-Rumely Oil Pull Tractor.  It is equipped with a 2 cylinder engine that developed between 20 and 40 HP.  I noted a ‘slick’ marketing advertisement posted by this tractor.  It was taken from a 1907 copy of “The Threshermen’s Review”.  The snazzy byline reads “Why are Rumely goods selling so well?  Because it pays to have them.”  Wow, how advertising has changed over the years!  The Rumely Oil Pull was a line of farm tractors developed by the company starting in 1909, which was sold from 1910 to 1930.

The Advance-Rumely Company of LaPorte Indiana was was best known for its threshing machines and big tractors.  Of interest to me was the Oil Turn line of tractors.  To start one, the farmer/operator had to step out of the cab onto that large iron rear wheel, then climb onto the flywheel and use his bodyweight to get it turning.  Then he’d have to quickly get back in the cab to adjust the choke to keep the engine turning.  Talk about dangerous and sometimes frustrating work!

Hundreds of these old steam powered tractors have been saved, rebuilt and shown at fairs and tractor shows.  Watching a 10 to 20 ton tractor belching smoke and clanking along is still possible.  Check out the National Threshing Association’s annual show in Fulton County Ohio.  The next show/exhibit will be in June of 2024.  Website: National Threshers Association, Annual Steam Traction Engine Show.

Thankfully, this building was small and touring it was easy!  This is the former Pony Express Black Hills relay station.  Originally called the “Pumpkinseed Relay Station”, it was moved to Pioneer Village from Bridgeport Nebraska.  Harold Warp only paid $100 for it.  The Pony Express route covered 1,966 miles and the riders could complete the trip in just 10 days!  The Pony Express only operated from April of 1860 until October of 1861, when it was supplanted by the completion of the coast-to-coast telegraph system.  Nebraska had 565 miles of the Pony Express’s route along with 38 relay stations.

This is a replica of a Pony Express saddle and Mochila.  It was crafted in 1961 based on the schematic for the original saddles.  The saddle itself was built to minimize weight so it wasn’t the most comfortable for the riders.  The riders themselves couldn’t weigh more than 125 pounds!  The Mochila fit over the saddle and it could quickly be transferred from horse to horse as needed.   

To emphasize just how expansive Pioneer Village is, there are 26 buildings plus a bandstand.  The Household Appliance Building shown above is one of those that we skipped because we were overwhelmed and tired.  Plus we had a significant drive ahead of us back to the family home in Omaha.

The Home Appliance Building (#24) features the evolution of washing machines, stoves, refrigerators, bathtubs, and much more.  The Valentine Diner was closed during our visit and the Steam Powered Merry-Go-Round was under repair.  But we also skipped: the Country School (#7); the China House with china, pottery, cut glass, etc. (#9); the Blacksmith Shop (#21); the Pony Express Barn (#22), and; the Horse Barn (#12).

We did visit one more building and then we discovered that there was yet another portion of the main building that we hadn’t seen.  Those last stops, plus a couple of interesting ‘collectibles’ that I’d missed in previous posts, will be included in the final edition of our family adventure.

Just click on any of the preceding photos to enlarge them…

Thanks for stopping by for a visit! 

Take Care, Big Daddy Dave

A Blast from the Past (Part 4)

…continuing with our exploration of the almost unbelievable personal collection of American artifacts and historical objects at Harold Warp’s Pioneer Village.

This is the point in my story where the number of exhibits and items on display began to overwhelm our senses.  Our visit was beginning to feel like a visit to a prairie or country version of the Smithsonian Museum complex…amazing but too much to really see and appreciate in a single day.

This large steam locomotive was built by the Baldwin Locomotive Works in 1899.  An H-4 Mogul type (2-6-0), it started life with the Burlington and Missouri River Railroad as #343.  When the Burlington and Missouri Railroad was folded into the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad in 1902, it was renumbered as #1229.  Then it was converted to a K-10 Class ten wheeler (4-6-0) in 1914 and it was renumbered once again.  It’s last run took place in October of 1953…from Hastings NE to Alma NE.  It looks like that lady didn't want to be included in my photo...

Harold Warp used to watch locomotives steaming by the family homestead when he was a boy working in the family fields and dreaming about a better life.  After he purchased this locomotive in 1954, after doing some research, he learned that it was the one he used to watch as he worked on the homestead…

This is a ‘busy’ photo… I’ll start with the Lowell Depot.  This depot was located at Lowell Nebraska at the western end of the Burlington and Missouri River Railway from around 1870 to 1880.  When it was restored, they found 7 worn out floors in the depot, each on top of another.  The floors were worn out because the depot was at the end of the line for 10 or so years and taking the train was far and away the easiest way to get from one place to another.  Harold Warp’s mother, Helga Johannesen came through this depot in 1878 when she and her brother arrived from Norway, heading for their new family homestead in Kearney County Nebraska.  The Johannesen homestead was close to John Warp’s, and the couple wed not too long after Helga’s family arrived.

In addition to the variety of smaller railroad paraphernalia under the roof next to the depot, that little locomotive with the old caboose is the ‘cousin’ to the fancier one on display in the main building of Pioneer Village.  This is H.K. Porter (0-4-0) #912…now #2.  Both little Porter Locomotives belonged to the Huntsville and Lake of Bays Transportation Company in Ontario Canada.  The locomotives transported passengers from one big lake to another…a distance of 1.125 miles…to connect with steamboats at either end.

The St. Paul Lutheran Church was built in 1884.  It was the first church in Minden and it has the original pews, pulpit and baptismal.  In 1951 Harold Warp dedicated the newly relocated church to his sister and her husband. 

In the summer, 30 minute non-denominational worship services are conducted every Sunday.  The services are conducted by clergy from various Kearney County churches. 

The second photo shows the church at the other side of the well shaded village green or common.  Note the tree with a sign on it telling visitors what type it is.  Also note the number of buildings in the background.  This museum goes on and on...

Did I mention that there are 28 buildings full of antiques, collectibles and memorabilia at Pioneer Village?  The good news is that I’m not going to show you the majority of the items on display.  As a matter of fact, I’m just scratching the surface of the 50,000 plus items on display.

Just look at the sign displayed above.  This building contains several different ‘shops’, (more than the sign indicates), set up as they might have been many years ago.  Then there are the crafts on display, musical instruments, antique furniture (with original prices), a former U.S. Senator’s Washington office and much, much more.  I decided to limit my photos for this part of Pioneer Village to just one example.  Pianos, viewing machines of various types, old vinyl records, record players…and the list goes on.

This huge livery stable certainly grabs visitor’s attention.  It was built in Minden back in the days when almost everyone traveled by horse, either on horseback or with a buggy or wagon.  This 2-story barn is full of related items such as saddles, harnesses, fly nets, a harness shop and even a set of huge logging wheels. 

Both Laurie and I took photos of ‘horses’ intended as fun rides for kids.  It appears that they could still mount up on the first 2 horses.

Again, we didn’t explore both floors of the stable…but our son or grandson checked them out for us.  We did note a huge collection of wagons and carriages along with other horse-drawn conveyances that were displayed on the first floor.

Another building…and even more automobiles!  This is a 1928 Chevrolet Utility Coupe.  Cost: $680.  I love the flyer/marketing effort that went with this automobile.  It reads: “Is Your Wife Marooned During the Day?”  It goes on to push for 2 car garages with new homes and plugs this auto as the ‘ideal extra car’.  “The wife finds it of everyday utility for shopping, calling, taking the children to school in bad weather, etc.”  

This model Chevy was a success with 1,193,212 of them being built.  I don’t know how successful the ‘wife’ marketing campaign was but there is no doubt that it took place in a completely different era in our history.

The Kaiser Motors Company, (formerly Kaiser – Frazer), was known for its daring designs.  The company was founded in 1945 and it only lasted until 1953.  While the Big Three automaker were trying to meet the post-war demands for cars, they didn’t have the time to create new and different cars.  They just relied on retooling the popular cars they were already producing. 

Since Kaiser – Frazer was trying to break into the market, they could take a chance and develop new designs…and then hope that they’d sell.  Kaiser engineers designed a 4-door sedan with a rear ‘trunk’ door or doors, that when opened transformed the interior into a large cargo area.  While the company’s design used 2 rear doors rather than one, the concept is similar and the company gets full credit for the first ‘hatchback’ automobiles. 

This 1949 – 1950 Kaiser had a 6-cylinder engine and the company built 95,175 of them.  FYI: The Kaiser Frazer Owner’s Club International has about 2,000 members.  See Kaiser Frazer Owners Club International – Member's Portal for KFOCI (kfclubmembers.com).

Ah…nothing like a nice family picnic or trip!  In my pre-Boomer and in the following “Boomer years”, many if not most families went on picnics or family trips that involved camping, cabins, cooking your own food, etc.  I remember many local Sunday picnics and at least one memorable road trip.

Please note that this 1950 Chevrolet Deluxe Sport Coupe is equipped with an early attempt to provide air conditioning.  The window mounted ‘car cooler’ consisted of a canister filled with water, with an air intake at one end and a tube leading to the car’s interior at the other.  As the air entered the intake, the water inside the canister would evaporate, producing moist, cool air which would blow inside the car.  While these units did work, they weren’t very helpful in areas with high humidity. 

This car, with its 6 cylinder motor and 2-speed ‘Powerglide’ transmission, cost $1,408 new.  It was donated to Pioneer Village in 2002.

I included this 1928 Graham-Paige coupe for 2 reasons.  Early Graham-Paige automobiles are not very common and in addition, this is a perfect example of an auto that was collected and preserved, but not restored to original condition.  Those collectors or auto addicts that love to restore old cars would lose their minds at Pioneer Village. 

The second photo, borrowed from the Internet, is of a fully restored 1929 Graham-Paige 612 Tourer…quite a contrast from the preceding auto.

Graham-Paige was founded by 3 brothers, Joseph, Robert and Ray Graham.  The brothers started out selling glass windows and after that successful company was purchased by Libby Owens Ford, they started building truck kits and then trucks…eventually selling their truck company to Dodge.  The Graham-Paige Automobile Company was founded in 1927 with the purchase of the Paige-Detroit Motor Car Company.  The Graham-Paige Company produced cars until 1940.  Its automotive assets were purchased by Kaiser-Frazer in 1947.

The following photo is just a bit mind blowing!

This is a view down the long center aisle of one floor in “Building #18”, the Antique Auto Building that focusses on Chevrolets and other automobiles.  There are 2 floors in the building and each floor is 265 feet long.  There are 50 Chevrolets on the first floor alone while the second floor holds what Pioneer Village calls ‘orphaned cars’ such as the Kaiser-Frazer and the Graham-Paige.

In addition to this building full of cars…and those on display in the main building, Building #17 with 22,400 sq. ft. of space, is home to antique Buicks, Cadillacs, Dodges, Chryslers, Oldsmobile’s and more.  Then there is Building #19.  Like Building #18, it has 2-floors and it is 265 feet long.  It houses Fords, Lincolns, Mercury’s and Edsel’s on the first floor.  My better half and son confirmed that the second floor of Building #19 is loaded with motorcycles, bicycles, snowmobiles and more.  There also is a collection Studebakers...

I’ll end this post (almost) from Pioneer Village with a bit of whimsy… This sculpted arch is over a service entrance to Pioneer Village.  It was erected in 1940 at Columbus Nebraska as a welcoming gateway to the town.  Unfortunately it was removed and ‘lost’ in 1969 when the road was widened.  The sculptor was Floyd Nichols, and he is better known for his metal sculptors and fine knives.  In any case, his daughter searched for the sculptural panels for years and they were finally discovered in a shed at a park in Columbus. 

Harold Warp’s niece and her husband bought the panels in 1974 and this arch was dedicated in 1979.  It depicts a Native American Tribal Leader, a Native American hunting Buffalo, a Prairie Schooner and a Native American Woman carrying a child.  But there is more to learn about Floyd Nickels...

Floyd Nichols was a WWI U.S. Army veteran who made personal fighting knives for soldiers in WWII.  At the beginning of the war, there weren’t enough knives available for every soldier.  The government asked people to donate knives and many did.  Others, like Nickels, decided to make them for the troops headed off to war.  A saddle maker named Alfred Cornish helped Nichols by making sheaths for the knives.  Some of the fine knives made by Floyd Nickels had a bit of buffalo nickel in them.  Today, Floyd Nickels knives are highly valued.  I ‘borrowed’ the photo of one of his knives from the Internet.  I found one that sold in 2005 for $900 and another one…in perfect condition that sold in 2011 for $2,500.

But I digress…as usual!

Just click on any of the photos to enlarge them.

Thanks for staying with me as we tour Harold Warp’s Pioneer Village in Minden Nebraska!

Take Care, Big Daddy Dave