The Scheer Family
“We actually made it!” exclaimed the six year old German boy named Georg August Otto Scheer. The Steam Ship INDIA, carrying the Scheer family, “limped” into the New York Harbor in the spring of 1882. A newspaper article described the harrowing trip where the ship hit an iceberg off the coast of Nova Scotia in the same area where the Titanic sank a few years later. The hull of the ship sported a huge patch of tin covering the hole.
Upon arrival in the harbor, the family went through the Castle Island immigration center then began their move across the country to Nebraska to join other family members in a farming community around Bazile Mills.
Growing up, Goerg had a gift for music. He could pick up any stringed instrument and play it “by ear”. His favorite instrument was the fiddle. He had other hobbies, including the town photographer, but he mainly worked on the farm with his father and brothers. In 1896, the Scheer family, as part of the group of founders, opened the doors of the Bazile Mills Lutheran Church (Missouri Synod). The original building burned down in 1914.
On January 18, 1906, Georg married Martha C. T. Boje. For a time they tried homesteading in the South Dakota grasslands near Wewela. In 1914, the harshness of the area and the death of a young daughter brought the family back to Nebraska. On that year, on the 28th of July, their six child, Martin George Scheer was born.
Since there was no public school in the area, the Bazile Mills Lutheran Church opened a school, as well. Martin learned English at this school since German was the only language spoken at home. He came to dislike parochial schools because of the ridged rules and harsh treatment by the headmasters.
When Martin was five, his mother gave birth to twins, Eleanor and Dorothy. Two years later, after the birth of his younger brother Earl, Martin’s mother, Martha died. His sister Etta was eighteen years old and she tried to raise her younger siblings, but a year later, she married. That left Martin in charge of the house and the kids since their father was lost in despair after his wife’s death.
At fourteen, Martin got a summer job helping the local vet vaccinate cattle. The man offered to send him to high school and veterinary school. But his dad declared, “You don’t need all that to farm.” He wanted his son to be a preacher. So the years of Martin’s angry wandering began.
At a community picnic, Martin met Rose Koenig, daughter of Clara (Mathine) & Herman Koenig. She was catholic, but Georg insisted she become a Lutheran. They were married in the Brazile Mills Church on May 3, 1935. They moved to a farm near Center, Nebraska. Don was born there but the depression sent them westward to Wood Lake, Nebraska and then to a little ranch near Lingle, Wyoming. On November 20, 1939 Joan was born, She was so short the doctor changed her name from Josephine to Joan Claire. Times were still tough so the ranch was sold and they were back to farming when Sandra was born. World War II broke out and Martin moved the family again to the Snow Ranch north of Lingle. Martin was given a deferral from the army so the next few years were a wonderful time to be a kid on the Wyoming prairie.
Joan started first grade at the age of four to be the fourth student in the school. Don and Joan rode Don’s pony Patches to school about two miles from the house with an occasional ride to school on the hay rack when Dad was feeding cattle. Don found “Bucky”, an antelope, soon after his birth and we bottle fed the little guy, raising him to be our pet. It was fun to watch our pet antelope running and playing alongside us. He was a source of many hours of fun. More about him in another story.
The local school house had moved closer to the family house to accommodate a new neighbor’s son and one day, when Joan was in third grade, she looked out the window and saw her dad’s horse in the yard without his rider. Without any hesitation, the hunt was on to find him. They found him several miles from the house but he had a shattered ankle. A rattler scared the horse. The horse fell and landed on Martin. A doctor in far off Casper (I still remember Dr. Weston’s name) saved his leg, but this dreadful event ended the wonderful days at Snow Ranch. And just like that the fun days ended.
Martin was unable to work for many months and the boss’ son came home from war to take over the ranch. The family had to move to a little house closer to Lingle and there was no work for Martin.
Family Tree
Martin George Scheer was born on 28 July 1914 and died on 15 October 2001. Martin married Rose Koenig on May 3, 1935. Rose was born on 30 June 1914 and died on 23 May 1980. Rose was the daughter of Clara Mathine & Herman Koenig. Martin and Rose had six children. Joan was their second child.
Georg August Otto Scheer was born on 2 February 1876 in Ihlow, Brandenburg, Germany, he died on 27 March 1951 in Bazile Mills, Nebraska. Georg married Martha C. T. Boje on 18 January 1906 and died on 22 July 1925. They had 10 children and Martin was their sixth child.
Georg’s father was Michael Ludwig Ernest Scheer. Michael was born 29 September 1839 in Brandenburg, Germany and died 17 January 1917 in Creighton, Nebraska. Michael married Henrietta Ewald on 8 September 1859. Henrietta was born on 24 January 1839 in Brandenburg, Germany and died on 18 January 1917 in Creighton, Nebraska. They had 12 children. Henrietta’s parents were Gottlieb Ewald (1792-1854) and Anna Kathrine Schmidt (1804-1857).
Michael’s father was Ludwig Ferdinand Karl Scheer (1810-1880) and his mother was Elisabeth D Schmidt (1819-1877). They married around 1835. They had three children – Michael was the oldest, then Wilhelm Ferdinand Scheer (1842-1931) and Gottlieb John Scheer (1845-1920).
Fireside Stories 