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Sebeka Area Historical Society, Sebeka, MN (2026)

12/14/2025

"Pages of Time," published in 1998, p 547

SKARO, ELVEN THEODORE

Elven Theodore Skaro was born August 2, 1891 , to Erick and Betsy (Knudtson) Skaro at Minot, North Dakota. He served in World War I
under General Pershing and was a machine gunner. He saw months of service on the Metz-Verdun line. He was in the thickest part of the St. Miehiel battles. On October 11, he was seriously wounded in both things and spent months in the hospital in both France and at Fort Snelling. After that he returned to the farm he and his brother Edward operated in Section 30 of North Germany Township. They had purchased the farm from their father.
Edward died on July 14, 1954, and Theodore continued to farm until 1961 when the farm was sold. Theodore built a new home east of Wadena and did carpenter work part-time for several years. On October 4,
1977, he was seriously wounded in a car accident in Staples and died at St. Luke's Hospital in Fargo, North Dakota, on October 19, 1977. He is buried beside his sister Hannah in Wadena Cemetery. His funeral services were held at Johnson Memorial Home in Wadena.

12/14/2025

KURZENBERGER, GEORGE

George as born to William and Cora Ann (Pettit) Kurzenberger on September 10, 1910, in Springview, Nebraska. He was the second oldest of 11 children. He attended school through the eighth grade and along with shearing sheep with his brother Grayton, he worked for several neighbors until he entered the United States Army. George served his
country during World War II in the Pacific Theatre which took him to the Philippine Islands and up to Okinawa. After he was united in marriage to Virliss Moench, they moved to the Wadena area and then in 1959 to the Sebeka-Ni**od area.
He worked at Wadena Silo Company and Homecrest Industries in Wadena. After his retirement, he helped farmers in the area with their farming activities. George passed away August 3, 1997, at the Shady Lane Nursing Home in Wadena and was buried in Wing River Union Cemetery.

12/13/2025

The Review Messenger, May 22, 1996

Logging and Public Service:
Graba Family Traditions
The Graba family has a long history as a logging family. Each generation since the first Graba came to this area in 1878 has made some or all of their living from the logging industry. “Timber was the best employment,” recalls Jerry Graba. “That’s why [our grandfathers] came, for the good wages of timber.”
The Graba lineage originates from Roden, Waldick, Germany, and moved to America in 1816 when great-great-grandfather John Christian Jacob Grebe traveled to the United States as a stowaway aboard a ship. John was 16 years old when he made that voyage and eventually he settled in Madison, Indiana. He and his wife had one daughter and six boys – five who fought in the Civil War. (Their son Henry Jacob was 28 years old when he served in the Civil War.)
Great-grandfather Henry Jacob was born in 1832 in Madison, Indiana. It was great-grandfather who brought the Graba lineage to the Ni**od area. First Henry Jacob moved from Indiana to Iowa where he lived for ten years and then in 1878 he moved to the Ni**od area. He was 46 years old and a widower. The first winter he drove four horses for loggers and earned $20 a month plus room and board. In 1879 he set up a halfway house on Cat Creek, south of Ni**od. Later he would move his halfway house, four miles east of Sebeka.
In 1882, Henry’s son, Jacob J. Graba, and Jacob’s wife Nettie and their three children moved to this area from Osage, Iowa. Jacob’s ten-year-old brother, George, made the long journey with them. They traveled by horse and covered wagon. They came through southern Minnesota with its open country and good soil, but they continued traveling for six weeks until they landed in thick timer and wilderness on the banks of the Crow Wing River. They stopped where Ni**od is now located and lived there that first winter where Jacob worked in the logging camp. His employer was a man by the name of Kelly, who was running a logging camp about where Oylen is located today. Logs were hauled to the Crow Wing River and in the spring they were floated down to the Mississippi River and then on to Little Falls where the large sawmills were located.
In the early 80’s, great-grandfather Henry moved his halfway house to the Red Eye River and his daughter-in-law Nettie ran it for him while Henry and Jacob worked in logging. The halfway house served as an overnight stop for the wheat farmers of Hubbard prairie who were carrying their wheat by horses to the nearest railroad at Verndale.
When the railroad came to this area, that put an end to the halfway house and eventually the Grabas moved to a claim near Park Rapids. Later Jacob traded his homestead rights for logging equipment and ran a logging camp. For several years he cut logs in the winter and in the spring had a log drive down the river to Motley to the sawmills there. From here the Graba family moved to Meadow Township to a farm, but always logging was an important part of their sustenance. As Jerry stated, “They logged every time they needed a sack of flour.”
Jacob and Nettie had three children when they came to Minnesota, and ten more were born here. Clifford C. was their eleventh child. He was born in 1895 in Meadow Township. “Scarcely a man was then alive,” Jerry recalls his father saying. When Clifford was only six or seven years old, he and his older brother George herded cattle all summer for farmers. They also picked blueberries to sell. After his father Jacob died in 1906, Clifford became a “cookie” or cook’s helper in a logging camp for a couple of years. That’s where he learned to make good flapjacks.
Nettie had a few cows and sold butter to make a living. She also took in boarders. One such boarder was Bertha Cora Belle Platten, the new school ma’rm at District 21 in Orton Township. Cora lived at Nettie’s for two years while she taught school, then on November 5, 1920, she married Clifford. Jack recalls, “Dad always liked to tell people he lived with Mom two years before they got married.” “But,” Joyce quickly added, “Mom was a boarder at Grandma’s.”
Clifford and Cora made their home half a mile south of Nettie’s; cows and logging were their livelihood. In 1922 they moved north two miles to where Jack Graba lives today, and in 1937 they moved to the homestead that is today the home of Jerry Graba. Both of these homesteads are in Orton Township, northeast of Ni**od.
Clifford and Cora had seven children: James (“Jim”), Joyce, Jack, Jerome (“Jerry”), Jayson, Janice, and Joseph. Jim was killed August 16, 1944, during World War II. He was a B-17 pilot. Today Janice lives in Bloomington and Joseph lives in Forest Lake, but the other four Grabas still live here. (Also living in the Ni**od area is their second cousin Fred Graba, son of pioneer George Graba who traveled to Minnesota with his grandfather.)
Even into this fourth generation, logging was a part of their lives. “Seemed like we were cutting logs since we were little kids,” said Jack.
However, Clifford also started a new tradition for the Graba family – public service. Clifford was one of the first directors on the Ni**od Creamery board, served on the County AAA board, Central Co-op Wholesale board, and the Mutual Service Insurance board. IN the 50’s, Clifford ran successfully for public office and served two terms in the Minnesota House of Representatives.
Since then, Clifford’s sons have picked up and carried the public service mantel. Jack served on the Sebeka School board for 15 years. Jerry served two terms on the Sebeka School board, one term as a state representative, and served 11 years on the County ASCS board. Jayson served 10 years in the North Dakota legislature (six in the House of Representatives, and four in the Senate), worked 20 years for the labor movement in North Dakota, and 18 years as personnel director for the city of Grand Forks. The youngest son, Joseph, was a teacher ten years before services three terms in the Minnesota House of Representatives in the 70’s, and has also held several administrative positions in state education. To quote his sister Joyce, “We’re all proud of Joseph.”
Two fine traditions mark the Graba family – logging and public service. As Joyce, Jack, Jerry and Jayson recounted their pioneer heritage with the familiar Graba humor, they portrayed a quality I have found all our pioneers to possess – spirit. Though times were rough and life was hard, their forefathers’ spirits were never broken. Two lessons we can learn from our pioneers are: Hard times should be softened by humor, and public service should be a way of life.

Picture: Photo taken by Ole Harstad.

12/13/2025

"Pages of Time," pp 376-377, published in 1998

GRABA, GEORGE AND GERTRUDE

George W. Graba was born in Brownville, Iowa, on June 27, 1872. He moved to Minnesota with his parents at the age of eight and was one of the early settlers in Wadena County.
He was united in marriage to Gertrude Chapman when he was 21. They had three children, namely: Harold, who died in infancy; Bessie (Westra) and Beatrice (Reber).
After Gertrude's death, George married Mrs. Hannah Carlson in 1917, and they had five children – Freddie, Helen, Laura, Betty, and Arlene. Mrs. Carlson had three children by her first marriage – Lillian, Homer, and Irene.

Picture: Back row: Irene, Hannah (mom), Lillian, George (father), Homer, and Fred; front: Helen, Laura, Betty, and Arlene.

12/13/2025

"Pages of Time," pp 376-377, published in 1998

GRABA, CLIFFORD AND CORA

The Graba family has a long history as a logging family. Each generation since the first Graba came to this area in 1878 has made some or all of their living from the logging industry.
The Graba lineage originates from Roden, Waldick Germany, and moved to America in 1816. John Christian Jacob Grebe traveled to the United States as a stowaway aboard a ship. John was 16 years old when he made that voyage and eventually he settled in Madison, Indiana. He and his wife had one daughter and six sons – five of whom fought in the Civil War. (Their son Henry Jacob was 28 years old when he served in the Civil War.)
Henry Jacob was born in 1832 in Madison, Indiana, and it was he who brought the Graba lineage to the Ni**od area. First Henry Jacob moved from Indiana to Iowa where he lived for ten years. In 1878 he moved to Ni**od. He was 46 years old and a widower. The first winter he drove four horses for loggers and earned $20 a month plus room and board. In 1879 he set up a halfway house on Cat Creek, south of Ni**od. Later he would move his halfway house to the Red Eye River, four miles east of Sebeka.
In 1882 Henry's son, Jacob J. Graba, and Jacob's wife Nettie, and their three children moved to this area from Osage, Iowa. Jacob's ten-year-old brother, George, made the long journey with them. They traveled by horse and covered wagon. They came through southern Minnesota with its open country and good soil, but they continued traveling for six weeks until they landed in thick timber and wilderness on the banks of the Crow Wing River. They stopped where Ni**od is now located and lived there the first winter. Jacob worked in the logging camp. His employer was a man by the name of Kelly, who was running a logging camp about where Oylen is located today. Logs were hauled to the Crow Wing River and in the spring were floated down to the Mississippi River and then on to Little Falls where the large sawmills were located.
In the early 1880's, Henry moved his halfway house to the Red Eye River and his daughter-in-law Nettie ran it for him while Henry and Jacob worked in logging. The halfway house served as an overnight stop for the wheat farmers of Hubbard Paririe who were carrying their wheat by horses to the nearest railroad at Verndale.
When the railroad came to Sebeka, it put an end to the halfway house and eventually the Grabas moved to a claim near Park Rapids. Later Jacob traded his homestead rights for logging equipment and ran a logging camp. For several years he cut logs in the winter and in the spring had a log drive down the river to Motley to the sawmills there. From here the Grabas moved to Meadow Township to a farm, but logging was always an important prat of their sustenance. They logged every time they needed a sack of flour.
Jacob and Nettie had three children when they came to Minnesota and ten more were born here. Clifford D., their 11th child, was born in 1895 in Meadow Township. "Scarcely a man was then alive," Clifford liked to say. When Clifford was only six or seven years old, he and his older brother George herded cattle all summer for farmers. They also picked blueberries to sell. After his father Jacob died in 1906, Clifford became a "cookie" or cook's helper in a logging camp for several years. That's where he learned to make good flapjacks.
Nettie had a few cows and sold butter to make a living. She also took in boarders. One such boarder was Bertha Cora Belle Platten, the new school ma'rm at District 21 in Orton Township. Cora lived at Nettie's for two eyars while she taught school, then on November 5, 1920, she married Clifford.
Clifford and Cora made their home half a mile south of Nettie's, and cows and logging were their livelihood. In 1922 they moved north two miles, and in 1937 they moved to the homestead that is today the home of Jerry Graba.
Clifford and Cora had seven children: James "Jim", Joyce, Jack, Jerome "Jerry", Jayson, Janice, and Joseph. Jim was killed August 16, 1944, during World War II. He was a B-17 pilot. Today Joseph lives in Forest Lake, but the other five Grabas live in the Sebeka area.

Picture: Clifford Graba family

11/22/2025

"The Pages of Time," published in 1998, p 522

RAISE, ANDREW AND OLIANNA
Andrew Jacobson Raise was born at North Trondhjem, Norway, on September 6, 1849. In June 1887, he immigrated to the United States.
He settled at Abacrombe, North Dakota, for a few years, later moving to Britton, South Dakota, and in March 1895 settled in Oylen where he filed a homestead.
Andrew married Olianna Hansen on October 26, 1899. They lived on the farm for 22 years, then moved to Sebeka where they lived for five years. After that they moved back on their farm to reside for 11 more years. However, they spent their last years living in Sebeka. Andrew and Olianna had no children.
Andrew died on May 12, 1939. He is buried in the village cemetery.

11/22/2025

"Pages of Time," published in 1998, p 522

RASMUSSEN, HILDA

Hilda was born in Clarion, Iowa, on October 12, 1906, to parents Magnus and Christina Nelson. She passed away November 19, 1992, at the age of 86 years. She was indeed a good Samaritan. Hilda was a very caring person; when someone needed help, Hilda was there. She always helped with community projects – helping anyone and everyone was her
love.
She married Herbert Schermerhorn and they farmed near Ni**od, living in a log house and milking cows in a log barn. They were blessed with five children, one passing away in infancy. The other children are Madelyn, Jerome, Hubert and Ethryn.
Hubert died in 1920, leaving Hilda with four small children and a farm to operate alone. She milked the cows and sold cream in Ni**od, going there once a week in a Model T. She once said, "God brought us through."
Sometime later she married Melvin Rasmussen and they built a house from timber and stone from the farm and continued to farm and rear the children; however Hilda always took time to help a friend, a neighbor, or care for elderly and ailing friends and relatives.
Melvin Rasmussen passed away in 1970 after a long illness. Hilda is also deceased.

11/21/2025

"Pages of Time," pp244-248, published in 1998

THE HISTORY OF NI**OD
Part 6: School District 21

As more and more settlers began residing in Ni**od and the surrounding area, the need for a schoolhouse and education of their
children became an important concern of many parents. A petition was brought by C.C. McClure on March 17, 1885, before the county
commissioners asking that a school district be created. As a result of this action the county board granted the formation of School District
21 in what is now Orton Township. The first schoolhouse was erected in Ni**od during the summer and winter of 1885-86. The first class met that spring with Miss Goodale as the teacher. During the next few years several other schoolhouses were constructed in the district.
During the period from 1885 to 1889, the school year was six months long but broken down into two three-month terms – a fall and spring term. The fall term lasted from October (starting after the harvesting of crops) until December (closing due to the cold weather) and the spring term started in April and ran until June. In 1890 the school board voted to extend the school term to seven months and construct a new schoolhouse. While construction was taking place, classes were
held in the home of C. McClure. The construction was completed in April 1891, and the board voted to extend the school terms to eight months. Some of the early teachers of the Ni**od school were Mrs. O.A. McClure, Miss Maggie Wilkins, Miss Hallie Noland, Miss Ada Beardsley, Miss Effie Lyons, Mrs. Eva Rick, Miss Jennie Schields, Alzetta Cowdy, and Mrs. I.F. McClure.
The period from 1885 to 1893 saw the enrollment in the district begin with ten pupils, jump to 17, then fall to eight. The students of
District 21 started producing a newspaper in 1891 called the Ni**od Star and it is not quite certain how long it operated.

The one-room school, District 21-3, continued to serve the area until the schools were consolidated and all the children were bused to the Sebeka Public School. Everyone had special memories of the school … the Christmas plays, special party days … annual Play Day activities and the chance to win a ribbon … and of the teachers who helped the
students through the years to achieve their dreams.

11/21/2025

The Sebeka Review, July 27, 1928
GRAND OPENING OF THE NI**OD HALL
Big Time at Ni**od
Community Hall
Friday Eve., July 27th

The new community hall at Ni**od is rapidly nearing completion and on Friday evening, July 27, the formal grand opening will be held. There will be speaking by well known orators of the county and other entertainment features. A basket social will be held, followed by a dance. All proceeds will go into the building fund. The Ni**od boosters extend a cordial invitation to all to attend Friday evening and they assure all a fine time.

The Sebeka Review, July 17, 1936
NI**OD WILL "TURN ON THE LIGHT"
Power Company to Turn on
Current at Ni**od This Week

The Review this week is please to dedicate this week's issue to the Ni**od boosters for their progressive action in securing electric light and power for their busy little town.
The Minnesota Power & Light Company completed building their "high line" to Ni**od this week, the business places and residences have all been wired and the "juice" will be turned on either Sunday or Monday. This issue of the Review contains news items of interest pertaining to Ni**od and the boosters of that live-wire inland town and the entire county rejoices with Ni**od over their success in securing the modern convenience and comfort of electricity for both lights and power.
This great improvement is an important epoch in the history of Ni**od's steady progress and with the enterprising spirit of the residents of Wadena county's leading inland town, Ni**od is sure to grow as well as the splendid dairy and agricultural territory which surrounds it.

The Sebeka Review, August 16, 1946
NI**OD RESIDENTS VOTE IN FAVOR
OF INCORPORATING INTO A VILLAGE
44 Votes Cast
With 38 In Favor
Of Incorporating

By a vote of 3j8 in favor to six against, Ni**od legal voters in the proposed area decided last Monday, August 12, in favor of incorporating to become a village.
Within three days after being notified of the result of the election, the county auditor of Wadena county will set a date for an organization meeting, and upon then days notice of said meeting will gather at a mass meeting, select two judges and one clerk, who shall have the power to call a general village election for the purpose of electing three councilmen, a village president, village clerk and other officers.
Congratulations and best wishes to Ni**od, Wadena county's youngest village.

11/19/2025

"Pages of Time," pp244-248, published in 1998

THE HISTORY OF NI**OD
Part 4: Lotta Lee

One of the more exciting moments in the Crow Wing River history was the construction of the Lotta Lee. A group of merchants known as the Shell City Navigation Company in 1883 built the Lotta Lee. The Lotta Lee was 62 feet in length and 15 feet across the beam, drew eight inches of water and could carry 30 tons. She ran a few excursions up the Shell River to Twin Lake and then made her maiden voyage down the Shell River to the Crow Wing and on down to Brainerd. She was to have been the economic boon for grain shipment from the Shell Prairies. Imagine how exciting for the people of Ni**od to see the sight of this steamboat passing through town. The trip from Shell City to Brainerd took one week, but the Lotta Lee never returned via the Crow Wing to Shell River. Instead she remained on the Mississippi, traversing between Brainerd, Crow Wing, and Fort Ripley. It was abandoned in 1887 at the Frank Tilden farm near the Pillager/Motley area after trying to make a return trip up the Crow Wing River where the current proved to be too swift for the steamboat. At this time, the boat was stripped of the engines and other parts, thus ending the Crow Wing River steamboat era.

11/19/2025

"Pages of Time," pp244-248, published in 1998

THE HISTORY OF NI**OD
Part 3: Graba's House and City of Ni**od

Between 1873 and 1885 there were only six organized townships within the county with the northern half unorganized. Then in 1885 Shell River Township was formed. Lyons Township was organized on January 7, 1896, but Oron Township was not organized until July 11, 1898 and only after the name had been changed from Fairview. Except for isolated pockets such as Red Eye Mills (Sebeka), Kindred (later called Shell City), and Ni**od, much of the northern portion of the county was sparsely settled. But this was soon to change as progress slowly worked its way north.
In 1881 a plot survey for the construction of a road from Verndale to Shell City was filed with the county clerk and construction began that same year and was completed by 1886. Known as the Wheat Trail, it angled northeast from Verndale up to Ni**od and then northwest to Shell City. This became a very well-traveled road.
Jake Graba's house that had been constructed in 1880 became a halfway house for the wheat haulers who traversed the Wheat Trail from Shell City t the railroad terminal at Verndale. "Pac" Williams and his wife Mary were running the halfway house by 1885 and did so until 1888 when he turned the operations over to his brother, Amos William. Amos operated it until 1890 when it burned down. He rebuilt and later sold out to a man named Gilmore. During the time it was operated by Williams, the hotel was the social center of the area, hosting parties and dances for the local people.
Along with the Williams' half-way house, Ni**od (it was also sometimes referred to as Williams' Landing) could also boast having two hotels, a dry goods store, and a stage line. One of the hotels that operated in Ni**od was known as the Stewart Central Hotel and was owned by M. Stewart of Verndale and operated by a Reverend Pascal Parks. As to when the Stewart Hotel opened is not clear, but it closed in 1889 when Reverend Parks moved. The other hotel was referred to as the Dew Drop Inn, but little information outside of its name has been found. Also Chancy Harris ran a hotel on Cat Creek, half a mile from Ni**od and Hunters Ranch was hotel located on the route to Pine River. A passenger stage line was owned and operated by two brothers, John (then the sheriff) and Frank Eddy. One of the drivers for the stage for the stage line was Dan Williams who either quite or retired in 1889. The stage line contracted for mail and passenger service between Verndale and Park Rapids. Ni**od became the halfway point where passengers could get out and eat a meal or stay overnight. From Ni**od the stage would travel to Shell City where a stop would be made long enough to throw off the mail and charge the horses for the final lap of the trip to Park Rapids.
Mail sent to Ni**od was first addressed to the Verndale halfway house, but this was changed in the late 1880's when Ni**od got a post office and Mrs. Pac Williams was appointed the first postmaster of Ni**od. With the construction of the Wadena-Park Rapids railroad in 1891, mail service was routed to the Northern Pacific Railroad Company. At this point, mail service between Sebeka and Ni**od was contracted and Jessie Williams drove the stage between the two towns. The post office at Ni**od continued until 1918 when it became the Ni**od loop of the Sebeka post office.
– History of Ni**od by Barbara Chapman

10/23/2025

Ni**od Chronicles by Jerry Mevissen, June 2002, The Review Messenger

BLUEBERRY SMITHS
Blueberry Smiths. The name has a "Little House on the Prairie" resonance to it. It conjures up images of a family – mom, dad, and the kids, hiking in the woods, syrup pails in hand, descending upon a patch of wild blueberries and picking enough for a couple of pies and a batch of jam, plus some more to sell.
Well, that's less than half the story.
The patriarch of the Blueberry Smiths was William E. Smith. He was born in 1848 and traveled by wagon from Villard, Minnesota, to
homestead the family farm in Bullard and Lyons townships in 1892. Mr. Smith declared the local water to his liking, and credited it with
curing his kidney trouble "without a drop of medicine."
William and Alice Smith had six children: Nina, Mason, Pearl, Belle, Edward, and Burt. With all that available manpower, the Smiths amassed 1,100 acres and ran a herd of 200 Milking Shorthorns. Nina married and
left the farm. Pearl and Belle didn't, and they herded cattle until pastures were fenced. Later, they taught school locally.
In addition to the Milking Shorthorns, the Smiths raised sheep, goats, turkeys, ducks, pheasants, and chickens. Mr. Smith crowed about the quality of the clover hay he raised. He was an avid hunter, from the looks of the family photograph album, and a successful trapper.
Besides his agricultural and sports endeavors, Mr. Smith was an advocate of harnessing energy from the Crow Wing River to power industry in northern Minnesota. He predicted a government dam to conserve water and prevent floods.
And he still had time to pick blueberries!
Blueberry picking was a hot industry around here at the turn of the twentieth century. Newspaper accounts relate that a ton of berries is loaded at Sebeka and Menahga each morning, causing delays in the Great
Northern passenger train schedule.
Another report cites 400 crates of blueberries being shipped from Menahga each day to all parts of the United States. In 1920, the Great Northern southbound train carried 1,800 crates of wild grown blueberries. The reporter speculates that this represented half of the crop, the balance being transported by auto by the pickers themselves. These crates weigh about 40 pounds and sell for $3.15 each. Wouldn't you like to have had the Doane's Linament franchise then?
An articles in a July 1919 Sebeka paper relates complaints of many farmers that transit workers are leaving fence gates open and tearing down fences to drive their cars through the pines in search of berries.
Blueberries were delivered by horse drawn wagons to railroad sidings until the advent of the automobile. Blueberry production waned as the twentieth century developed and stopped by mid-century.
Youngest Smith son Burt and wife Alice had two children, Bill and Betty, who still live on the original homestead. Betty lives in the
family house, which was built in the 1920's, next to the old ice house, which still stands. Bill and wife Sandy live next door. Do they still pick blueberries? No, but the legend lives on. Betty says she is still reminded of her family's reputation as the Blueberry Smiths.
I noticed on a walk down the driveway that berries are setting on the plants now. The old timers say it could be a good year – cool spring
and plenty of late rainfall. A bowl of fresh blueberries would taste good now. At $3.15, I'll take an entire crate.

Sebeka Area Historical Society

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