As I continue to work on Manning's history and ask various Manning helpers to find information on the Internet, I continue to be amazed at the stuff people post that is in error or easy to find and show on those commercial websites.
Do I have everything correct? NO, but I always ask everyone to let me know if they find an error or suspect I might have an error because I want to correct any errors I have, no matter who made them - I want the most accurate database I can get..
Lately I've had several people tell me loudly and clearly with colorful language, that they don't like what I do in capturing activities in and around Manning with my digital camera. Now this is nothing new and similar to when I video taped programming for Channel 2, many decades ago.
Another day recently I was visiting with another person - having a nice conversation and when I told them about the first railroad in Manning was the Northwestern - they blew their stack and said it was the Great Western - they had worked for the railroad for 40 years and knew the area history. I tried to explain the Great Western came along after the Northwestern and Milwaukee and after they expressed more of their knowledge of area RR history I was told to get the "F" out of here. Now I calmed things down and dropped the discussion.

When someone tells me I'm wrong, my first comment is - I could be wrong and will look in my database and generally I find out I was correct or mostly correct.
I could have told this person that all 3 RRs went through our farm and I have the abstracts that show those RRs and I also have all kinds of historical information in my database but it wasn't worth a heated argument.

Why do I mention some of these confrontations? I'm sure it will sound like whining...For one thing, this is what I deal with quite often when I work on Manning history and someone doesn't like what I do...their right, but I also have the right to take pictures and preserve Manning's history - some people just see their side of the issue and then some of them also spread lies and rumors because they can't back up their point of view.
I also mention this to emphasize that more people need to learn to listen today and not speak - I don't mean from me but in general...then they might actually might learn something in life.
I learned years ago to LISTEN to folks, especially the older and more experienced people - I also realized that sometimes their memories weren't always correct but I still took in their stories.
Then I would document them as best I could and if I found out they had something incorrect I made a note about it. BUT I didn't run around and tell everyone that person was wrong or went back to them to hold it over them.
I'll never forget one time in the "Bull Pen" at the Corner Cafe - a bunch of old timers were discussing the video I played on Channel 2 the night before where Bud Johnson would tell of the various families that lived in the homes around town - I titled the video "The House that Jack Built." Now some of the guys were saying Bud had this wrong and that wrong and then all of a sudden Art Rix, the elder person there, spoke up. He said that while Bud left out some of the families who lived in a home, he was basically correct with what he told - the room got quiet.

Now disagreements and arguments are nothing new when it comes to our history/memories but one thing I've noticed is how attitudes have changed - to where the person thinks he can't be wrong and gets aggressive about it.
Everyone has the right to their opinion but that doesn't mean just because they have an opinion that they need to proclaim it as the ultimate truth to everyone.

Years ago we had party phone lines for gossip, but now with the Internet we can reach nearly everywhere around the world to gossip, and I think that makes some people believe that everyone should hear all of their opinions.

Here is a little spat back during WWI when there was anti-German animosity, so Der Manning Herold eventually combined with the Manning Monitor and only English was printed in the Monitor after that...but Berthold Kraus didn't like what someone was saying about the Herold.
We'll never know who that person was but Kraus obviously gave that person a "tongue lashing" in Der Manning Herold.
So as we all can see, arguments and disagreements are nothing new and at times can get pretty heated.

Give him a Dose of Paregoric
Der Manning Herold
It is rumored that an English paper is soon to be issued from the Herold office, the necessary amount of material on hand. There is said to be some dissatisfaction over the change of the name from Monitor and especially over the substitution of the words "Carroll County" for "Manning" in the heading. ---- Manning's Baby to the Capital.
There is a fellow in this town with a kid's head on a man's shoulders who has had a chronic attack of colic ever since we have refused to let him dictate the managing of our business. We are reliably informed who this fellow is and know to an absolute certainty that he knew he was lying when he "wrote" those words and that he did it without the knowledge of Mr. Kraus. We have nothing to say about dissatisfaction with our paper only that we have added 45 new names to our list in the last three months and have lost but three.

Note from Art & Ila Rix March 2004
Berthold Kraus and his wife were involved in Show Troops which put on plays.
When their group came to Manning to put on a play they liked the town so well that they moved here.


Another thing I notice with those online genealogy/history and social media sites are that people like to post the most common pictures and information but I like to scan and document the odd and unusual things that no one else will take the time to scan and preserve.
What do you see in this scan?

This is the first thing I look at when someone brings me an old Monitor.
I immediately knew who this was - Raymond Kelsey, Manning dentist and also dentist for the military during WWI, WWII, and Korea. His son is Donn Kelsey. Ray's wife was Florence Meyers, a relative of mine.
I think little things like a subscriber's name on the Monitor is a very important part of Manning's history puzzle.

I'm double checking for sure which home this old Monitor was discovered while they were renovating their home and I e-mailed Donn to see if his parents lived at this home...I'll report back once I get all of the facts squared away.

I constantly watch e-bay for old Manning items I don't have. Most of the picture postcards that are currently listed, I already have multiple scans of, so I'm not interested in them UNLESS they have writing and names on back that will give a little perspective about that time-frame.

Here are several items I recently purchased that are very unusual. Many times I can't compete with the pocketbooks of collectors who only want the item for their collection and aren't interested in the background/history of the Manning item. So many times I get outbid and of course the money comes out of my own pocket when I win...I'm not a collector but these items will go in the Manning Museum someday.

As I wrote above, I'm not a collector but this matchbook cover intrigued me, as I had never run across this business before with a Manning connection and citizen. I just love it when I can find something about a past Manningite who I knew and my family has connections with. Amos "Messy" Misselhorn and my dad, Amos "Kiezel" Kusel, graduated together in 1938 and there was another Amos in this class - Amos "Pickel" Rutz...nothing earth-shattering but it's the little things to me that are sometimes more important that the big picture.

Another item I purchased was this 1916 envelope that I think is connected to Charles Lyden, but I don't recognize the Standard Stock Farm name. There were 2 other e-bay bidders on this item and not sure why they would want it.
I've been trying to reach Jeanne (Lyden) Farley in Aplington, but the phone number I have is dead - if anyone is in contact with Jeanne, please let her know.
Anyway, on back is what I was really interested in where it lists Lyden's prize breeding sows. The Lyden homeplace was southeast of Manning - later owned by Herb Ullerich and farmed by Wilbur & Gordy Lamp and later our A.R. Kusel farming operation custom farmed it for around 15 years for Herb.
Charles raised purebred Poland China hogs. He also raised and bred trotting horses.


Lady Big Bone 2nd in contest & Wonder Girl 4th

There were several farms with the name "Stock" in them but I need to determine if this was Lyden's farm.
Harry Nelson was involved with this transaction but I don't recognize his name.

The last item I'm going to feature for now - I have dozens of other Manning historical things I purchased over the last couple of years - is this baseball team.
The first thing I checked on the back was to see if there were any names/dates and like usual - there wasn't any information. I have several other picture postcards from this era scanned, some with a few names, dates, and information so I'll have to compare them to see if I can ID someone in this picture.
The photo was taken in front of the Fair Grounds grandstand which was once located on the south side of the road that goes down to the present-day sewage plant...now what is part of the soccer field and one time the Manning School football field before it moved across the road to the north and was just south of 141 & the Saunders' Steak House.
For years, Shorty Sextro owned and farm this area where the team is standing...
The road that is still there was where we practiced for track when the old school was still being used where the Rec Center is now.


Unfortunately no information was written on back of this recent purchase on e-bay

From the Radeleff family collection 1910

You can see the Milwaukee railroad water tower and the Manning water tower under the word "over."

From the Ruth Ohde collection - more specifically the Dethlefs history.

1 A. Schoening, 2 A. Koepen, 3 August Gruhn, 4 Cam Parish, 5 Russell Free, 6 Lou Reinholdt, 7 Lou? Ohm, 8 Pete Kuhl, 9 George Dethlefs