Other Events and Attributes:

• familyserch.org ID: LX9W-HJH
• Created: 28 Jun 2015

Notes:

Find A Grave Memorial# 61657855

[This letter is written by Gustave Engelbrecbt to his Englebrect relatives in Missouri giving the details of the loss of his son Orville’s (spelled Orvel in the letter) wife and daughter in the Republic River Flood of May 31, 1935.]
Oxford, Nebraska
June 3, 1935

Dear Loved Ones:

Now that the rescue work is over I feel I should let you know more definite about the terrible flood we had here in the Republican Valley. The worst in the history of Nebraska. It his us all pretty bad but Dorothy and her family were some of those most severely hit.
The water came so fast that one couldn’t run out of the way of it, and it was midnight when the volley came and people were at sleep and the night was pitch dark and was raining some. When Dorothy and Orvel awoke, the water as coming into the house, they had no time to dress. Orvel waded through the water to get an axe and chop a hole in the roof; and all climbed to the roof when they got there the house swept away with them, going at a fast speed down the valley towards the river. In a little while the house hit something and went to pieces, and they went on with part of the roof. Soon they hit a tree at the river and were thrown into the river.
Orvel is a good swimmer, he took the little boy 2 years old in one arm and swam with the other arm. He told Dorothy to hang on to him she grabbed his suspenders and that way he swam with them. Poor Willis Lou had already gotten away from them. Soon they got on some floating pieces of something and held to that till they were wiped off that. Then he had to swim again and soon they got to something else to cling to but that soon got away from them and had to swim again. Somehow Dorothy must have hit something and lost her hold on him and sank. He saw her come up twice and hollered at her with all his might but she did not answer any more and sank again when he never saw her any more. In the excitement the boy dropped away from him he grabbed for him and happened to catch him by the arm, thanks to God, otherwise he would have been gone too. Being much discouraged after losing the girl 6 years old and finally Dorothy too, after swimming a mile and a half, but for the sake of the little boy he thought he
Lucky he soon got to safety with the boy on a small, very small sandy island, soon after Dorothy let loose of him. If she had held on for about 20 feet more she would have been saved, but at the time they did not know that for it was too dark to see anything. They got to this island at about one o’clock at night and it was pretty cold and the little fellow had nothing on anymore, his shirt was all torn off and was quite bruised. Here he had to spend 36 hours before he was rescued.
The little fellow got so cold that he turned blue. Orvel took his overalls off and wrapped them around the boy and pressed him close to him. In the morning, Saturday, the sky was clear and the sun came out warm. But let me tell you Providence played its part here, God sure helped that little fellow. Orvel saw a little mattress floating on the water close to the shore he caught it and it was the boy’s own little mattress out of his little bed.
Orvel cut it open and dried it. Soon came a pillow along with an extra pillow case on it. Orvel put part of the feathers in the mattress and put the other pillowcase on him cutting a hole in the top for his head and a hole on each side for his arms and then put him in the mattress when he had that done the boy looked at his dad and smiled, that done him so well that he thought his efforts were well rewarded. In all this while the boy did not cry.

Orvel was so badly grieved over the loss of Dorothy and Willis Lou that he cried out loud for a long time. His little boy says to him, “Daddy shut up”.

36 hours is a long time for a little boy to do without food or water so he insisted on having some of that dirty floodwater. God helped him and soon came a cup floating along Orvel caught it and filled it with that water and left it settle until the dirt was all on the bottom then he drank the water off. Then he says, “Daddy lets call Mamma to make us some thing to eat. Orvel explained to him that mamma got lost in the water and would never come back. The little fellow must have understood that he never called for mamma again.

Not far away on another island Orvel saw a house he thought to swim over there with the boy, put him in the little pillow case and tied him on his back but the little fellow cried so bad that he had to abandon the scheme. Stayed till next morning, Sunday. Then he could wade it across to the house. The people that lived there had left everything and fled, but there was food and water in the house, so Orvel fixed a meal and it is needless to say the boy ate heartily and smiled.

At eleven o’clock a boat came along and saw them and brought them in. Today they are both doing well, only Orvel is horrible sun—burned and the boy is very sore. This is just one story of many similar ones. Many people were rescued from trees and housetops. Several of the rescuing party were drowned. Well I guess I must relate a little of our own experience. Since we all got out alive I did not think it so important though our loss is something like $3,000.00 We did not think the water would ever come as high as we live.

So we stayed in the house and went to bed at 11:30 a neighbor called for help the water was running in the basement. We got up and dressed in a hurry, and when we went out the water came into our yard already. We ran to see what could rescue from the basement but could do nothing the water was already running in and in a little while a minute or two the water stood a foot deep on the floor. We saw we had to flee but there too the water was so deep and too swift and none of us could swim. So we crawled outthe north window and got on the windmill tower and around the side of the tower we hung till next morning about eight o’clock, then the neighbors from the highland came and got us with horses. The water had dropped two feet or more already. This was Friday night.

Now, Monday, we have 15 men working to clean the dirt out of the house and barn. We had 2 feet of mud in the house when the water went down. Everything in the house was full of mud. All fences, hay lumber, posts and everything that would swim went away, some of the smaller buildings went too others were moved just some distance and were hung up. All spring chickens drowned. The bigger ones and old hens were roosting high and stayed. From 40 hogs have ten left, cattle were all gone but 4 but Saturday we heard where there were 5 more. The wheat oats are ruined and grain in the bin is full of mud, have not even got seed corn left. We had no corn planted yet in the bottom. It will probably be a few weeks before we can live on the place.

At Orville Fuchs’s place the old folks lived in a big 2 story house and had 8 occupants at the time. It swept away and all got drowned but 3. They clung to a tree. Every building on the place and everything else is gone. Orville hasn’t got anything anymore but he proved himself a brave man and a great hero and if Dorothy had just hung on to him a little bit longer he would have saved her too, but neither one knew that they were so near at safety. Nearly every house in low bottom is gone and many people are drowned. They have so far recovered 3 bodies. Dorothy and Willis Lou we have not found yet. We will search again tomorrow and pray that we may find them. We would feel so much better if we could find them.

Now Amanda will you please let Joe and Obergs read this letter for I just haven’t the time to write to every body and then send it to Bill and to Sister Emma. I would like so much to write to everyone but I just can’t find time we have so terrible much todo. Dear loved ones please forgive me, I am just all concerned in finding back my dear daughter and granddaughter meanwhile we will trust and pray and cast our burdens upon him who said, “Call upon me in the days of trouble and I will deliver thee I willwrite again as soon as I can. Wife is bearing up good and so are the rest, with the help of God.

Your loving ones,
Tena and I and the rest of the family

Note: After talking with Winnifred Watson I found out that the wife’s body was never recovered after the flood. Willis Lou’s body was found by a farmer who was tending to his fields and saw her little arm sticking up out of the ground where the floodwaters had receded.


Buried:
body not recovered from flood, There is a marker in Oxford Cemetery

Dorothy married Orville C. Fuchs on 25 Nov 1926. Orville was born on 12 Feb 1897; died on 24 Jun 1971; was buried in Oxford Cemetery, Oxford, Harlan County, Nebraska, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• familyserch.org ID: LKRN-6PX
• Created: 28 Jun 2015

Notes:

Find A Grave Memorial# 61657858

died along with daughter Willis Lu in 1935 flood

Buried:
body not recovered from flood, There is a marker in Oxford Cemetery

Other Events and Attributes:

• familyserch.org ID: LKRN-6RY
• Created: 28 Jun 2015

Notes:

Find A Grave Memorial# 98251114

Howard J. Fuchs, age 80, of Arapahoe, Nebraska formerly of Oxford, Nebraska died on Wednesday, October 3, 2012 at the C.A. Mues Good Samaritan Center in Arapahoe, Nebraska.

He was born on August 31, 1932 in Furnas County, Nebraska to Orville C. & Dorothy M. (Engelbrecht) Fuchs.

Howard was a survivor of the 1935 Republican River Flood, but many of his family perished in the flood. Including his Mother, Sister Willis Lu, Grandmother Martha Fuchs, Aunts Virginia Blauvelt & Leona Anderson. He attended Buffalo Country School thru 8thgrade, and then graduated from Oxford High School with the Class of 1950. He attended Hastings Beauty Academy in 1951-52 and the Omaha School of Barbers in 1952. He was drafted into service in 1953 and served 16 months in Korea before being honorably discharged. He started Howard's Barber Shop in 1958 and worked there until the early 1970's. He then worked for the Village of Oxford as a power plant operator from 1974 to 1994. He would also work part time as an advertising salesman for the Times Tribune newspaper of Beaver City, Nebraska. In 2005, he moved to the CA Mues Good Samaritan Center in Arapahoe, Nebraska. He enjoyed and was very proud of his nieces and nephews musical programs. He enjoyed traveling and was proud to have been in all 50 states.

He was a member of the First United Methodist Church of Oxford and later Arapahoe, Nebraska, a Weblo Scout Master for 6 years, a member of the American Legion Post #219 & VFW of Oxford, and a 50 year member of the Masonic Lodge #183 of Arapahoe, a member of the Tehama Shrine Band and the Maverick Band.

He is preceded in death by his parents, Brother Roy "Skipper" Fuchs, Sister Willis Lu Fuchs.

He is survived by his sister Gail Shafer of Sterling, Colorado; Sister-In-Law: Rita Fuchs of Oxford, Nebraska and nieces and nephews

Memorial services will be Monday, October 8, 2012 at 10:30 AM at First United Methodist Church, in Arapahoe, Nebraska with Pastor George Probasco, officiating. Inurnment will be at a later date. Wenburg Funeral Home, of Arapahoe, Nebraska is in charge of the arrangements.