SODTOWN, THE COMMUNITY THAT WOULD NOT DIE

        The village grew. The area was being homesteaded and settled fast. Sod buildings were later replaced by frame structures to accommodate the growing traffic through the crossroads village. A combination livery barn and store were added in the southeast corner of Section 29.

         Among the earliest settlers were the Farrs, Ernest and Levi; three Urwiller brothers, Samuel, Fred and Jacob, Jr., and John Stuber, all from Switzerland via Michigan; Jacob Link and Reuben Miller, both from Germany via Michigan; Jacob Link's sister and husband, the Fred Spahrs, from Germany, and Gilbert and Mary Hankins from Iowa. Other Sodtown pioneers were Max and Harry Schlund, William Fieldgrove, Claus Sothman, Ed Brumwell, David Bachman, James Harris, and the Bernet, Gross, Stonebarger, Trinkle, Wilkens, Muhlbach, Post, Fisher and Havlik families.

         A cemetery was started on one acre of land in the southwest quarter of Section 32, purchased from A. Brumley for $10.00 in April 1880. First known as the Sweetwater Cemetery, the name was changed to Cherry Creek in 1909, then to Sweet Creek Cemetery in 1922. This name carried until 1939 when it became the Sodtown Cemetery. The 100th anniversary of the Sodtown Cemetery was observed on May 25, 1980.

         Although the sod schoolhouse is said to have been built in the mid-1870's, there is no record of the names of teachers or students until 1883 when Watson Paine taught the 1883-84 winter term and reported the schoolhouse to be in "medium" condition. Anna Probasco, teacher of the 1884 spring term, listed the condition of the schoolhouse as "bad" so in the summer of 1884 a frame schoolhouse was built by Fred and Samuel Urwiller located north of the sod schoolhouse and facing east.

         Along with the need for a school, the new residents also felt the need of a church. In the spring of 1880, M. J. Long moved into the neighborhood from Hamilton County. He arranged with a Presbyterian minister, the Rev. Lower, to come or to send a minister to Sodtown to organize a church. In May of 1880 the Rev. I. Baine of Gibbon preached at the first service, held in the sod schoolhouse. Rev. Baine then held a service every four weeks until severe winter weather set in. In the spring Rev. Baine started the organization of a Presbyterian Church, and on June 19, 1881, the Rev. Little, a Synodical missionary, came and completed the organization. After the sermon 21 men and women enrolled; later the enrollment grew to 49 members, not counting the children. Services continued to be held in the sod schoolhouse until July 1884 when a building committee for a new church was elected. Members of this committee were Jacob Long, Fred Urwiller and Max Schlund, and as such they became the trustees of a new corporation known as the First Presbyterian Church of Cherry Creek.

         The new schoolhouse had just been erected on land purchased from Emily and Moses Ham, who also sold one-half acre to the church for its new building. It would also face east and be located to the north of the schoolhouse. Work began October 15, 1884, with Fred Urwiller as the master builder. The size of the church would be 20 x 30 x 12 and would cost approximately $600.00. The completed church was dedicated on February 1, 1885 by the pastor and the Rev. George Crissman, pastor of the Presbyterian Church of Kearney, and served the Sodtown community until 1909. The vacated building was eventually moved one-half mile south to the Charles Jenkins farm.

         When the Burlington & Missouri River Railroad surveyed the land for its railroad line from Lincoln northwest through Grand Island and Broken Bow, the first survey from Grand Island was through Sodtown, on three miles straight west, then northwest to Beaver Creek, then only a rural postoffice. Because of the hilly terrain the railroad company was not satisfied with this route. A second survey was made whereby the railroad would by pass Sodtown and instead go through Cairo, stay on the north side of the hills and canyons up the South Loup River bottom to Beaver Creek, and thence to Broken Bow. Construction was completed into Buffalo County in 1886. Thus a death blow was struck at Sodtown, and Beaver Creek on the new railroad became the new town of Ravenna and grew with the development of the Burlington line along the Loup River valley. (See Buffalo Tales, Vol. 1, No. 11, 1978).

         While the village of Sodtown began to wither slowly, the sod buildings crumbled and some of the frame buildings were dismantled or moved, Sodtown did not die. Its school remained strong. The history of Sodtown School published in 1962 states that "there were 55 pupils enrolled around 1888. In these first years students were divided into the following groups- primary, intermediate and grammar. Because of the large number of students, they sat two and three to a desk." Until 1905 two terms of school were taught each year, a fall and winter term of four months and a spring and summer term of four months. "There was always a large number of students in school in these early years, partially due to the fact that students started when they were 3 or 4 years old and many continued in school until they were 20 and 22." The records available show at least 23 students until 1910-11. Sodtown School closed in 1957, and School District 48 was dissolved in 1962.

         A community hall was constructed early in the 1890's on the southeast corner of Section 29, recycled from the old store and livery barn. Sponsored by the Woodmen Lodge, a large number of the younger men for miles around became members. Although the Lodge eventually disbanded, the hall continued to be used for school programs, dances, literaries, debates, township meetings, farm organizations and telephone company meetings, and as a voting place. Mrs. Esther Basnett recalls that "some nights people came from quite long distances on horseback to the dances held there." In 1957 the hall was given to Cherry Creek Township and moved onto the lot formerly occupied by the church and school which had also been donated to the township by the school district. It is still used for community affairs - the only remaining building at old Sodtown village.

         In June of 1922 a meeting was held at the Community Hall to organize a Sodtown Band. Mr. and Mrs. Milo Deeds, farmers living in the area, had had experience playing in a band, and Mr. Deeds was named the leader. Twelve eager would-be musicians were present at the first meeting and gave their choice of instruments which Mr. Deeds was to round up, along with two dozen beginner's band books. Within two months over twenty had joined the band, and at the close of its first year there were twenty-six. The band became a popular group and was invited to play for such special occasions as Memorial Day, 4th of July, Annevar, county fairs, park and church programs.

When Milo Deeds, after five or six years as band director moved, Joe Skala was chosen to replace him, but he, too, moved from the neighborhood two years later. Frank Chramosta then became director and kept the Sodtown Band active and alive until the mid-30's. By this time high schools were offering band and orchestra for the young people, and the need for a neighborhood band seemed less important.

Some 25 years later, however, when the Nebraska Farm Bureau Federation launched its annual talent find contest, some of the children and grandchildren of the old Sodtown Band reorganized under the name of Sodtown Farm Bureau Band of Buffalo County. A band of twelve members, with James Adam, Jr. as bandleader, entered the Farm Bureau talent competition in Kearney and won, then went to Lincoln and won at the state convention. This gave them the opportunity to go to Denver to appear at the National Farm Bureau Convention in a contest against twenty-two other states. They had the honor of opening the talent program and appeared at various sessions through out the convention, including the Nebraska breakfast session. The highlight of the trip came when the band was asked to appear at the general session before national dignitaries and representatives of 49 states and Puerto Rico, as well as five thousand convention goers. Through recent years the second generation Sodtown Band has played at many meetings and programs. Their last appearance was at the Sodtown Cemetery centennial service in 1980.

Perhaps the most unique project of this active Sodtown community, and one that has survived since the early years of this century and continues to be alive and doing well, is the Sodtown Telephone Company. In the early summer of 1904, Levi Farr, residing one-half mile south of the Sodtown village site, and William Fieldgrove, living one and one-half miles east, were the first two farmers to have telephones. Conversation was made possible by talking over the barb wire fence between their farms. Later in the summer, Samuel Urwiller, Jr., a close neighbor of Levi Farr, joined them, and the three families were in close contact by barb wire fence telephone line for a few months. Other neighbors were eager to join them when the benefit of telephone communication was proven to them, and a year later fifteen more families had joined the barb wire fence circuit. Mrs. Rose Urwiller Knerl remembers "when we first got our telephone it came down the wire fence. Our neighbor across the road, Art Paul, entertained us ... he would crow like a rooster, moo like a cow, bray like a mule and many other imitations like cats and dogs."

William Fieldgrove was chief engineer and lineman. In March of 1905 the Sodtown neighbors organized the Farmers Mutual Telephone Company, and plans were made to build a line from Sodtown to Ravenna, Luce and St. Michael. By fall the company had spread like wildfire in every direction and had a total of thirty-four phones. Several miles of line were built, and it was now evident that the company must put in a switchboard and hire an operator.

Luce was then a progressive spot with a store, post office and two blacksmith shops, so the switchboard was installed in the home of the Fox Brothers, who ran one of the shops, and their sister became the first switchboard operator. The name was changed to the Sodtown Telephone Company, many miles of line were built with toll lines to Shelton, Ravenna and Cairo, and service was good. The Fox family continued to operate the board until 1919. By this time a larger board was needed which was operated a short time by George Wrinkle at his store in Luce, but in the winter of 1920 a small house was purchased and remodeled and served as the telephone office for many years. Several operators manned the switchboard until May 15, 1960 when the company switched to dial phones, moved into a new cement block building, insulated and fireproof, in the southeast corner of Section 5 in the Gardner Twn. A Stromberg Carlson automatic switchboard was installed and members were now able to dial anywhere through the courtesy of the Northwestern Bell Telephone Company acting as a connecting agency.

Since then the building has been enlarged and a second larger automatic switchboard installed. At its peak the Sodtown Telephone Company had 130 telephones, but it is now down to 85 due to a large number of farms having been vacated and some members on the fringe areas having changed to other connecting companies. In the fall of 1980 all members were changed to one-party telephones, and all telephone lines of the Sodtown Telephone Company were buried underground.

Today Sodtown remains an important place name in Buffalo County. Many early settlers have moved from the neighborhood and from the county, but those remaining retain close family ties in the Sodtown community where their roots were put down over one hundred years ago.

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