11/25/2024

The Naming of the St. Quentin Post

(UPDATE BELOW!)

Be sure to read "The Naming of the St. Quentin Post", researched and presented by Post Historian Rob Smith this past Veterans' Day.  It tells the story of two men from Ely, Joseph Dvorak and Charles Noska, who died near the city of St. Quentin, France in World War I.  Smith does a wonderful job of taking us back in time and describing  the conditions of the war the men experienced, as well as conditions back home.  Other Ely area men who died in World War I were Joseph Filipi, Joseph F. Kriz, and Frank Moses, Jr.  Read the story at St. Quentin Post website



Read other history posts at the Legion blog.  Click the drop down under the tab "History" to see all the articles offered.  Great job!

UPDATE:

From Judy Daubenmier
Charles Noska was my great uncle. He was a twin. He was drafted despite having a withered arm. My grandmother kept his photo and pointed it out to me often. She never forgot him. The information on the post website is very informative. It does leave out several other children in the family, including my grandmother and her twin sister.

Here is a photo of his grave (provided by Rob Smith, who says -
I visited his grave at the Somme American Cemetery in France. It is a gorgeous place.)


 


9/16/2024

 From the Historic Ely Elevator Facebook page

Perhaps you’ve noticed the new addition to our yard! You may or may not also recognize this railroad baggage cart, which until recently was displayed in front of City Hall. The cart was in desperate need of repair, so local master-of-all-trades Orville Meskimen restored it, and beautifully so. 
 
 The city wanted to display the cart closer to the old railroad, the Historic Ely Elevator is happy to give it a new home! (and will do our best to protect it from the elements)
 
This was Orville’s second restoration of this important historic artifact. The details of its rescue can be found in the Ely Community History Society blog: https://www.elyhistory.com/2019/12/the-baggage-cart.html




10/20/2023

Cedar Rapids Horsemen's Club


We have received a large collection of documents and photos concerning the Cedar Rapids Horsemen's Club, which was located in the town of Western for many years. We will be indexing this collection over the next few months.

Click the photos to enlarge them.

The Horsemen's Club in Western (now torn down)

                                             Interior of the club

 

Members celebrating the club's 79th birthday
On the far right is Jim Miller from Ely.
Identities would be appreciated!

 


 

Ely School Kids 1930s

 Click the photo to enlarge it


                                         Ely school kids outside the building in the 1930s

The girl on the right with her legs crossed is Edna Sladek, who graduated in 1933.

We would appreciate if people can identify others (in comments below) or email HistoricEly@yahoo.com.

10/09/2023

Ely School Kids

      Below is a photo of children and teachers standing in front of the Ely School House. We estimate the year to be about 1935. It would be great if we could get some identities for the kids!
     Click this link for a close-up of the  people in this photo. https://photos.app.goo.gl/iNeJHLFDKBxr4KMa8

Janine Norman
Fourth row, 3rd from left is Evelyn Elias Stastnyl. 2nd girl next to her is Doris Krob Buresh.(I think)
Third row from the right 5th girl is Rachel Trular Garnant.
Top row from the right is Chuck Varva & third guy is Gilbert Hynek!

Mary Vavra Haster
In the upper right area, do I see Vernon Erenberger and Inez Hartley?

Mark Krob
Bob Krob -3rd row, 4th from right.
Norb Krob - 3rd row, 3rd from left.

Pat McNamara
I think I see three Sladek girls.
Helen Sladek Walshire Second row from top third from right.
Maxine third row from top fifth from left.
Mildred Sladek Staley is third row from bottom and sixth from left.


Thanks to Darren Ferreter for colorizing this photo!