9/22/2017
We got an early start and met with the director of the Custer County Historical Museum, Tammy, and her mother, Rosalie, concerning Mary’s father (born in Oconto), grandfather and grandmother, along with plenty of detail about their lives. I can’t say enough about these two gracious ladies. They really went above and beyond in their research.
Mary was able to see county records of her grandparents, Edwin F.and Mary H. Russell: their land purchase and eventual sale; Edwin’s grave in the old Viola cemetery (Viola was a town that is no longer there); the 160 acre plot of land where they built their home, and we were able to talk with the gentleman who now owns the land (it is part of a 3,000 acre spread).
The museum also had a large collection of photographs by Solomon D. Butcher, chronicling the lives and everyday struggles of early settlers to the sand hills. Nearby was 2 large murals constructed of sculpted bricks, reminiscent of the murals on the Chamber of Commerce building in Concordia, Kansas, that we saw 2 years ago.
Finally we had lunch with Tammy, and after again thanking them for their efforts, said our goodbyes and headed back to Gothenburg to get ready for the next leg of our journey, Dodge City, Kansas.