TELBASTA PIONEER DEAD

William Kruger, one of the sterling pioneer men of this community died Friday at the home of his son, Gustave Kruger, one mile north of Telbasta. He had gone up to assist his son with some work and was getting ready to return home with a load of cobs when he was stricken with heart failure and died in the arms of his son. He was removed to his home by neighbors.

William August Kruger, “grandpa” Kruger as he was familiarly known, was born August 24, 1847, in Germany and was 65 years of age at the time of his death. He came to this country in April 1869. He was married to Miss Wilamiena Koller in 1872 and to this union six children were born—Mrs. Minnie Bloom and Henry of Herman; Gustave and Elizabeth who reside at Telbasta; and two children who died in infancy. His wife died about nine years ago. He was a consistent member of the German Evangelical church and was at the time of his death trustee, Sunday school teacher and treasurer. He was loved and respected by all who knew him and was a great favorite of children.

Coming here in the early days, by hard work and saving he became the owner of three farms which are occupied by three of his children. He retired from farming some years ago and bought a home in Telbasta where he and his daughter, Elizabeth, have been living. He has a brother, Fred Kruger, who lives in Idaho.

Funeral services were held at the home Monday at 12:30 and at the church at 1 o’clock.

Tribune 7 Feb 1912

William Kruger

The life of William Kruger, a prosperous and wealthy German farmer of Washington county, came to a sudden end on Friday, Feb. 2nd, when he was stricken with apoplexy while in the act of trying to mount a farm wagon to which he had just hitched a team of horses. His son, Gustav, who had unloaded shelled corn from the vehicle, noticed his father’s predicament and promptly came to assist him, but soon discovered that he was holding his father’s lifeless body. The news of his sudden demise naturally came as a great shock to his family and the whole community, since he was generally considered a man who enjoyed fairly good health.

The deceased came to Nebraska in 1869 while a young man and after several years of hard labor as a farm hand, was married to Miss Wilhelmine Koeller in 1872, and later settled down to housekeeping with his young wife on a farm in Sheridan township of this county, where they together braved the many hardships which confront all pioneer settlers, with limited means at their command.

Note: Since the actual death date was not given, the news article date was used.

~~~ Obituary courtesy of the Washington County Genealogical Society. Newspaper clippings on file in the Blair Public Library at Blair, Nebraska.~~~