W-1897-HSNL.DOC

Generation +1 #3 daughter of William Landau of Oberlin

ID 01	1898 Simpson-Landau
born	1897-02-05 Holden Simpson Oberlin Ks	1898-08-06 Neva Blanche Landau Kanona Ks
married	1917-11-05 Oberlin Ks
died	1992-05-27 Oberlin Ks	1982-05-12 Oberlin Ks
father	Franklin S Simpson	1856 William Landau
mother	Diadamia E Smith	1860 Nancy French
#1 child	19xx Nancy Fern Simpson Oberlin Ks	Edward Hines
#2	1922 Dorothy Simpson Oberlin Ks	19xx William (Bill) Linaburg
#3	19xx Blanche Simpson Oberlin Ks	19xx Clifford Schissler
#4	19xx Carolyn Simpson Oberlin Ks	19xx Robert Sixbury div
#5	1937-07-29 David Simpson Oberlin Ks	1941-04-02 Diann Wagner

Neva (Landau) & Holden Simpson Neva Landau

Holden was born on a farm 4.5 mi NW of Oberlin Ks. Neva on a farm near Kanona Ks. They both attended Decatur Community High School. They moved to the farm 1.5 mi SW of Oberlin on Feb 17, 1919 and continued to live there till Neva died in 1982 and Holden died in 1992. Holden did custom corn shelling for over 45 years. They were members of the United Methodist Church of Oberlin. One of his favorite pastimes was to attend antique thrasher shows and reminisce about the old days.

Holden & Neva lived near by William & Nancy for a brief time I believe after they were married as Holden tells of events as if they were in daily contact. At some time shortly after they were married Holden & Neva moved to their own farm about 2 miles west on the south road heading West from Oberlin. You continued west for a mile after that primary county road turned south to zig zag to the SW going up stream along Sappa Creek. Their home was also the typical square frame building surrounded by farm buildings with plenty of room for parking current and old farm machinery. Holden now in his 90's still lives there looking after himself with David’s help. David the youngest of the family now farms the place. Holden continued to raise hogs, during those years when city fellows would be in full retirement. He could also look out and see the stripper oil well drilled after WWII still lifting some oil. These royalty checks came in mighty handy helping to fill in during the retirement years. Holden can look in the direction of former neighbors, the trees and buildings at those sites are still there but the people have long since moved to town and passed on.

Holden Neva

Nancy Dorothy David Blanche Carolyn

There's plenty of time for nostalgia now that Neva is gone. All their children left to live their own lives, David being the only one to stay and farm the place. Nancy Fern went the name Fern as a kid so as not to be confused with grandmother Nancy. Fern married and move away from home after high school living in Ks before moving to California after WWII. Dorothy married and moved to Ca where she and husband Bill operated a factory making ceramic goods. Blanch married and lived in Atwood the adjacent town to the west, thus a frequent visitor and companion to her mother. Caroline moved to Salina married and raised her family there.

Each of us cousins enjoyed going to visit Holden & Neva and our Simpson cousins. They were close to town and when I was able to get about on my bicycle I'd ride out on my own to see them. Being a City Kid it was always a delight to learn about how things were done on a farm. Those were the years when machinery was expensive, only used equipment affordable to many, and all equipment prone to break down. Horses were still an economical option, reliable and self sustaining. Everyone raised chickens and milked cows and most raised hogs. Neva & the kids tended their garden, Holden butchered; the familys larder was well provided. Part of the land was still in buffalo grass which fed the milk cows and horses. The remainder was cultivatable land which was used to raise wheat, corn and milo. During the dust storm years, which coinsided with the great depression, things were very difficult on the farm. It took hardy people with a sense of humor and ability to make do to survive those years, many just packed up and moved on. Holden & Neva hung in there and were amoung the survivors who saw better years and better times.

It was at the Simpson’s where I first milked a cow & watched Holden feed the cats lined up along the barn wall by squirting milk at their faces. It was with Holden in his pasture that I first learned of how to set up a Jin-Pole and a tripod of used telephone poles to hoist a horse that had become sick and fallen on a slope in the pasture after a rain. A single Jin-Pole was used at first, a rope block and tackle at the top to lift the horse enough to get a piece of canvas under the horse for use as a sling for lifting. The horse was too weak to stand on his own so a kind of tripod was arranged, using two poles to hold the longer one steady so the horse could be lifted & hold him up on his feet. I was disappointed when my folks came to pick me up, before a way was worked out to get the horse to the barn. The horse was an old one & Holden was not sure it would make it back to good health. This was typical of other occasions in which I helped as I grew up, each year being a little more real help and all the time learning of the rich heritage still remaining of what early farm life had been. Holden's vocabulary, and ways of saying things, were at times right out of the past. His expressions were home spun, phrases he had inherited, his words colorful but not foul. Expressions were related to farm life and not contaminated with our formal school taught English language. For example if some lady was visually quite pregnant, Holden, would say She'll be comin fresh soon. This kind of observation was a daily thing on a farm.

My visits to their farm were primarily during grade school age with so much to observe and learn. Thus it was with fond memories I'd return to visit when an adult. Neva & Holden would be ideal candidates for a video documentary. Neva in particular had a charismatic personality that caused her to be center stage when ever she spoke. Her voice was always loud, but not obnoxiously so, after all day having to yell across the farm yard and be heard above the wind she sometime forgot to attenuate her voice when in a room. She was a delight, her eyes flashing and arms waving as she'd tell of some event. She was a wonderful good hearted lady to all of us. We always enjoyed going to see and reluctant to have to leave when visiting with Holden & Neva.

Oberlin Herald 1977; Holden Simpsons Planning 50th Anniversary Celibration. The children of Mr. and Mrs. Holden Simpson will honor their parents with a Golden Wedding anniversary open house Sunday Nov. 5, from 2 until 5 pm at the Methodist Church basement. A cordial invitation for friends to call is extended. No gifts please.

Recollections of Uncle Holden 1986, age 88 (Recorded by Virginia (Landau) Emerson May 1986)

"The Landau boys were all good looking men. Took after Grandpa. All dressed well.

Aunt Susie married a wealthy man (Forest Redman). She had trouble with her mind and daughter Myra also had mental problems. (possibly Alzheimer’s) Uncle Forest was intelligent, had quite a lot of education. Forest financed most of Redman-Paddock Lumber Co.

The Landau's always liked to dress up, most of them had nice houses. They liked the women.

Oscar Johnson was a good fellow. When Dora had her last baby, Aunt Neva went to care for her.

Earl Landau rented the Redman Farm. He was the only farmer of the boys.

When Wayne got his finger cut off Rell was with him. When they were working on it he chewed up a whole cigar and had to leave because he just about fainted.

Rell and all the Landau boys liked a little "nip" of whiskey. Ila hated for him to drink and if she noticed his breath, he'd tell her it was cough medicine.

Earl about drowned at a lake near Hoxie and they revived him by pushing on him (CPR was not known). He was also a cracker jack pool shooter. He and Rell often went to the pool hall, to play pinochle and dominoes as they got older. Rell called Earl "kid".

The Landaus all loved to dance. Wayne and Corna often went to dances and to the Bohemian Hall south of Kanona to dance.

In the early days, they (the boys) often went to house dances where they piled all the furniture in one room and danced to a fiddle and whatever instruments they could find. Also barns and hay lofts were used.

Dorothy Simpson

Oscar Johnson and Earl used to "pick" corn. Often started in fall and shucked corn all winter. The wagons had a buck board on one side to keep the corn from going over the wagon. They used a "shucking hook". They fit on the hand to snap the corn off the stalk. The corn was piled into cribs and the run through a sheller to separate the corn from the cob.

Holden Simpson had a corn sheller and did a lot of shelling. He also had a threshing machine to separate wheat from straw.

Neva always went to help the whole family. Grandma called on her often.

Nina and Earl Tally had a "scrap" before their first baby was born and Nina went and stayed with Neva's family. But it didn't last long. Their first baby was either still born or died shortly after birth. Then Norman and Bob were born.

When Wayne lived in Hildreth, Nebraska, Lemon was very little, but he crawled under the train to go to the elevator where Wayne was and scared them "spitless."

When Grandpa (Will Landau) died, he just complained of indigestion and dropped over. (Probably heart) Grandma called Nina but it was too late.

After Grandad (Will) Landau died, Grandma baked pies, etc. and sold them around town.

Grandad Landau did a lot of different things. He held a county office, worked at the elevator and was an excellent meat cutter. He contemplated going into the meat business. Holden butchered and Grandpa cut the meat for sale part of the time. Beef sold for 5 cents a pound then.

Grandma fired Holden for being late to work at the elevator, because he couldn't catch his horse to ride to town. But Grandpa just laughed and said to forget it.

Grandad Landau ran away from home when he was in his teens and met Grandma and they fell in love and got married. When they came to Kansas, Grandma walked behind the wagon. Once she got so far behind, someone told Grandad to wait for her as she was lost.

Grandad Landau and Holden Simpson made sandwiches and sold them and cigars at Sales for awhile. One day they sold a complete box of cigars. Everyone liked them and felt "more important" smoking a big cigar. All the Landau boys smoked cigars at that time.

In those days lots of people made home brew or moonshine, especially beer because so many were German and they drank it often. Sometimes they cooled it in the "milk houses" where cold water ran through to keep milk and butter cool. The water ran from the windmill to the stock tanks. These little buildings were a God send to early pioneers on the farms. It was where the milk was also separated from the cream to be churned into butter. Also they had a supply of cold clear water to be carried to the house to drink. All the windmills had a common dipper to drink from as water was almost a luxury.

Dora loved to dance and grandmother didn't really approve of dancing. One time Grandmother took the cream check when they lived at Kanona and gave it to the church and Grandad was angry because she didn't trade it for groceries, as that was the common custom then. Earl was an excellent dancer and excellent in waltzing. He taught Eileen and Virginia to dance at an early age.

Neva was a warm hearted woman. Often members of the family came to her for love and hugs. Darrell (Rell's son ) came over to Neva's from Earl Tally's where he was working. He was mad about Earl Tally criticizing him for working with his shirt off.

Byron built the out house at Holden's place. He did some carpenter work for the family before he worked for the railroad. In his office peopled used to talk of his beautiful white teeth. He said he used a combination of baking soda and salt. He was a very nice fellow and quite successful.

Holden cared for Neva as a nurse before she died. He was glad she didn't have to wash on the old wash board.

In Remembrance

IN LOVING MEMORY OF

Holden Simpson

FUNERAL SERVICE

Tuesday, June 2, 1992, at 2:00 p.m.

Pauls Funeral Home, Oberlin, Kansas

OFFICIATING

Rev. H. Gene Shoemaker

music

ORGANIST: Mrs. Doris Shoemaker

SOLOIST: Mr. Willard Noren

SELECTIONS: "The Old Rugged Cross" &

"How Great Thou Art"

HONORARY CASKET BEARERS

James Screen Vollie Pollnow Floyd Lotker

Wayne Larson Walter Mosier Henry Scott

CASIKET BEARERS

Stevan Sixbury Michael Simpson Glenn Sixbury

Don Simpson Dan Sixbury Ed Lenaburg

FINAL RESTING PLACE

Oberlin Cemetery, Oberlin, Kansas

ARRANGEMENTS BY

Pauls Funeral Home

Oberlin-Selden, Kansas

Holden David Simpson, the son of Franklin S. and Diadamia E. (Smith) Simpson, was born February 5, 1897, on a farm four and one half miles northwest of Oberlin, Kansas, in Decatur County. He passed away Wednesday, May 27, 1992, at Tulare, Califomia, at the age of 95 years, three months and 22 days.

Holden resided in Decatur County all of his life. He was raised on a farm southwest of Oberlin and attended Addleman Country School and Decatur Community high School.

On November 5, 1917, he was united in marriage to Neva Blanche Landau at Oberlin. Five children were born to their union, and they were blessed with fourteen grandchildren, twenty-six great-grandchildren and one great-great-grandson. Neva predeceased Holden on May 12, 1982.

Holden and Neva lived on the same farmstead since February 17, 1919, and he continued living there until his death. Holden had worked for a farmer near Traer for 15 months before beginning his own farming operation in 1919. He had also done custom corn shelling for over 45 years.

He was a member of the United Methodist Church in Oberin. One of his favorite pastimes was attending antique thresher shows and reminiscing about the old days.

Survivors include one son and his wife, David and Dian Simpson of Oberlin; three daughters, Fern Nancy Hines of Lake Oswego, Oregon, Dorthy and husband Bill Lenaburg of Tulaie, California, and, Carolyn Sixbury of Salina; his sister and her husband, Esther and Pete Dunlap of Franklin, NB; his grandchildren; other relatives and many friends.

Preceding him in death were his parents; wife; a daughter, Blanche Schissler; three brothers, Rea, and Harry; one, sister, Hazel Bolin; his son-in-law, Edward Hines; and a great-grandson, James David Carroll.

A memorial, fund was established. in his name to Methodist Church, Oberlin.