Family Group Sheet

HUSBAND
Alvin WALRATH
BIRTH	about 1827	Pennsylvania, United States⁶⁷
OCCUPATION		Alvin Walrath was brick-mason and plasterer. William and Samuel seemed to get along well with their step-father and learned some construction skills. ; Nemaha, Nebraska, United States
CENSUS	10 June 1880	Barada Township, Richardson, Nebraska, United States⁴⁹⁷
DEATH	25 November 1885	Nebraska, United States⁶⁷
BURIAL	November 1885	Prairie Union Cemetery, Shubert, Richardson, Nebraska, United States⁶⁷
MARRIAGE	19 September 1875	Richardson, Nebraska, United States

WIFE
Paulina BARKER-B5A7/W/³⁴²
BIRTH	31 January 1835	Lafayette, Missouri, United States^67,342
MISC	1871	Richardson, Nebraska, United States
MISC		Paulina was a quiet woman who helped her children grow up the right way. She was a good cook and seamstress.;
MIGRATION	1887	Because her son Henry's (B5A7B) health was not good and northwest Nebraska was beginning to be settled, Paulina sold the farm in Richardson County. In the spring of 1886, Paulina, Henry, William and his new bride Cora started west in a covered wagon. Near the present-day site of Broken Bow, they camped one night with the Jesse Kennedy family. Jesse and his older sons had already been west to scout the area and had returned for the rest of his family. As the Bolejacks were alone, he suggested they travel together. As the trip progressed, Henry became acquainted with Cora Kennedy whom he later married. The family's first home was on the homestead they had entered. The land was treeless, so they plowed up strips of sod to build a two room house. It had a board floor and shingled roof. A plaster made of mud and alkali from the lakes nearby covered the inside of the thick walls, which kept the house warm in winter and cool in summer. Cora made rag rugs to place in front of various pieces of furniture. She later crocheted rags until she covered the entire floor, join the smaller rugs into the whole. They hauled firewood from Pine Ridge (Nebraska), a day's journey away. Water had to be hauled in barrels as the water was too deep to dig a well. The thick grass made good pasture for cattle. When the sod was plowed, the land grew vegetables well, especially potatoes. However, if the local market became glutted, there was no other place to sell the produce. The Sioux Indian Reservation was not far to the north of their claim. The Indians had been restive several years because of broken promises and broken treaties. When gold was discovered in the Black Hills, white men invaded their land. There were sporadic fights between the Indians and the U.S. Army. They had heard the gunfire from the battle of Wounded Knee on 29 Dec 1890. The Indian trouble made the settlers nervous. ; Broken Bow, Custer, Nebraska, United States⁴³⁴
MIGRATION	about 1891	Because alkali proved bad for Henry, worsening his health, they decided to give up their claims and return to southeast Nebraska. There they survived the great panic of 1893 with hard times for all.; Richardson, Nebraska, United States
DEATH	1 September 1894	dropsy and heart disease; Shubert, Richardson, Nebraska, United States⁶⁷
BURIAL	September 1894	Prairie Union Cemetery, Shubert, Richardson, Nebraska, United States⁶⁷
REF #		B5A7/W/;
MARRIAGE	about 1861	Dewitt Clinton BOLEJACK-B5A7; probably Johnson Co, MO;
FATHER	William BARKER Sr
MOTHER	Mary BARKER


CHILDREN