Early Red Willow County records

Susan Doak

Southwest Nebraska Genealogy Society

Southwest Nebrska Genealogy Society's library holds several treasures, but the 55 volumes of Red Willow County Court records are among the most fascinating.

The fact that we nearly lost those original books when we had pipes burst overhead during winter made our search for someone to help digitalize the pages even more important.

These hand-written volumes contain everything from debt collection to divorce, guardianship to estates, all recorded for posterity. A searchable index is available on the SWNGS website, www.swngs.org and should you wish copies of the proceedings, one of our members will be glad to help you with that.

Divorce wasn't invented by the current generations, however, obtaining a divorce prior to the no fault laws was much more difficult. When I have researched family history, I have found several instances of marriages that were short-lived and produced no children. You might wonder why those "mistakes" would be of use to you in your genealogy research, but don't ignore them! Remember, when a couple applied for a marriage license in some states, they were required to provide place of birth, date of birth, maternal maiden name and if underage, a consent form signed by either a parent or guardian.

As shown in the following Red Willow County records, when they obtained a divorce the petition normally included the date and place of marriage, any property to be divided and any minor children involved. If the wife wished, she could ask the court to restore her maiden name.

March 12, 1885, Annie L. Drumiler vs Charles R. Drumiler petition for divorce. The couple was married Oct. 21 at Elko, Nevada and had one child, Elkert P. Drumiler. Annie's maiden name was restored to Eagan.

Alexander Jones sued Mary Jane Jones for a divorce, Feb. 13, 1889. The couple was married April 12, 1847, in Bonepart County of Van Buren, Iowa and had no minor children.

On Feb. 8, 1889, John Conner was granted a divorce from Martha J. Conner. Their children included Hattie, Moriah, and George. The couple had been married Feb. 22, 1859, in Marietta, Crawford, Wisconsin.

Margaret Wilhelm asked that her maiden name of Fleishmouse be restored when she divorced George Wilhelm on Dec. 11, 1889.

Joseph Bickford versus Elizabeth Bickford was before the court on Dec. 27, 1888. The divorcing couple had two children: William and George.

Cora E. Faling was divorced from Irvin I. Faling on June 30, 1889. Her name was restored to Cora Conner.

Montgomery Doyle sued for divorce from Bettie Doyle on March 11, 1889. Bettie's name reverted back to her maiden name of Alexander.

Several couples split the sheets in 1889. The following proceedings did not list any minor children: Frank Brainard vs Minnie B. Brainard, Cora E. Kelly vs Alexander M. Kelly, Ira Waldo vs Eliza S. Waldo, Amelia S. Hart vs Wm. E. Hart, Nichols Marcy vs Susan Marcy, George O. Searl vs Ester Searl, George C. Graham vs Nancy Graham, Hattie O. Hollister vs George H. Hollister, Anna Hoyt vs Frank P. Hoyt.

Lizzie and George Marshall had one son, Lawrence Marshall. They had been married May 12, 1886, in Lincoln, Nebraska, and were granted a divorce on Feb. 5, 1890.

Rose Pinney divorced Benjamin Pinney on Aug. 27, 1890. The couple, who had been married in Liberty Mills, Indiana, had two children: Charles and Luella.

If you wish more information on one of these listings, contact us at: swngs@hotmail.com. SWNGS next meeting will be Sept. 12, 2015. All open library hours are cancelled until September due to the heat, however if you are traveling from out of town we will try to accommodate your research needs. Please email us your request as far in advance as possible.