This page is dedicated to the
African-Americans who pioneered in the sandhills of Nebraska.
They not only endured the normal hardships of pioneer life, but they
also "pioneered" in that there were few of their racial
heritage in this area during the early days of settlement.
Blaine NEGenWeb is pleased to be able to present this little known piece
of our history,
and the history of Amos Harris, and William Alfred Young,
Amos Harris is buried at
Grand Island, Hall, Nebraska. His headstone reads as follows:
D; Feb. 23, 1911
Brought to Nebraska
by I. P. Olive
in 1878 *
* Unfortunately his
tombstone is not correct.
Amos Harris did not come to Nebraska until 1880, and he is not
listed with the Olive gang
Amos Harris could neither read not write, very little of his life in
known. He didn't know when or where he was born.
It is said he
came from Texas with the Olive Brothers in 1878 on a cattle drive.
For a short time, he stayed with the Clive Brothers near the head of the
North Loup River. Later, he, George Sawyer, and Bob Ross worked on
the Figure Four Ranch which was also near the head of the North Loup
He carried a raw-hide
rope which he, himself, had braided. He was considered to be on of
the best ropers in the sandhills.
With George Sawyer
doing the writing, a wedding was arranged with a black girl living near
Mr. Harris had a
"shack" on the North Loup, south-west of the confluence of
Goose Creek and the North Loup River, about where the William Jensen
ranch in now.
The news is the Brewster
Democrat in 1898 States: "Mrs. Amos Harris came in on the
stage from Halsey to Purdum. Mr. Harris received six hundred head
of cattle that would be summered between Hawley Flats and Purdum.
He did not own the cattle but was responsible to see they didn't drift
too far from river water as he had no windmills or large tanks.
Amos was a bit man,
weighing over two hundred pounds. He was very witty, much like by
everyone. He was called "Nigger Amos" but in an
My grandmother, Mrs.
C. B. W. Cox, served meals in Brewster for twenty-five cents. Amos
Harris ate there when he was in town. He never came in the front
door, always to the back and would eat with my grandmother at the
kitchen table. Amos had been brought up in this tradition from the
Mr. Harris died in
Grand Island, Nebraska, in 1911 and was buried there. The black
people in Grand Island bought the headstone for his grave. Only
his name and date of death are on the stone as no birthdate was known.
SOURCE: Blaine County History, Vol. 1,
1988, Curtis Publishing, by Tim Cox, F260, p. 314.
Remembering Amos Harris, beloved
cowboy and huge man
African-American stood 6-3, weighed over 250 pounds and spoke
SOURCE On-Line: Grand Island Independent, Silver Salute.
Published: Thursday, January 19, 2003 *
Marilee Malicky is president of the Garfield County Historical
* Permission to reproduce this article
has been given by Peter Letherby, Associate Editor of Grand
** Marilee Malicky has also agreed to the used of this material
Irwin Dodge (left) ‹ who stood 6 foot,
1 inch tall, and
ranched east of Elyria ‹ was one of Amos Harris¹ good
friends. The above picture of the two was taken when Amos
was about 40 years old.
For The Independent
Amos Harris was the beloved black cowboy of the Loup Valley area
and known as "One of God's True Noblemen" and as a
"Prince of a Man."
Amos was born south of Galveston,
Texas, on the Brazos River, a son of freed slave parents. His
exact birthdate, unknown even to himself, is questionable --
either the 1840s or the 1860s.
Amos' obituary stated that he was 65
years old in 1911. However, his first marriage certificate
stated that he was 27 in 1897, which would have made him 41 when
he died in 1911.
Amos told of making five trips up from
Texas on the Chisolm Trail. On one of these trips, the cattle
were sold to the Ed R. Cook and the George Towar ranches near
The wide-open spaces must have appealed
to Amos as he decided to stay here. He married Eliza Young of
Boelus in 1897, and they started a ranch 18 miles north of
Brewster on the Calamus River.
Amos took in cattle from Valley,
Garfield, Loup and Greeley counties and fed them for a dollar a
head and then returned them in the fall. He was an excellent
cowboy and stories abound of his deeds.
Although he could read and write and
spoke five languages, including fluent Gennan, he was not wise
in the ways of the law and lost his ranch to a homesteader. He
and Eliza moved to Ord and, in 1903, she died "under the
surgeon's knife." Amos was devastated.
Amos was a huge man. He stood
approximately 6 foot, 3 inches tall and weighed between 250 and
Belva Lowery wrote an article on Amos
Harris for the Garfield County Historical Society Museum, after
she conducted an in-depth study and interviews for the
University of Nebraska television station KUON-TV in 1969. In
the article, Lowery says of Amos:
"He got so much joy out of small
things and his happiness and cheerfulness were infectious.
Lawyers, bankers, lumbermen, editors, farmers, men, women and
their children all added their recollections of him with loving
pride. They remembered him as picturesque, courteous, friendly
Amos married Elizabeth Jane Fears in
1908, he was 38 and she 20. In 1909 he homesteaded a ranch in
Wheeler county. Amos started suffering small strokes and died on
Feb. 23, 1911.
He is buried in the Grand Island
Cemetery, however the tombstone incorrectly states that he came
to Nebraska with I. P. Olive in 1878. Amos did not come until
1880, and he is not listed with the Olive gang.
Blaine's neighbor, BROWN
COUNTY, features an article about its early pioneer rancher, Ed T.
Amos Harris was an employee of Mr. Cook. You can read this article
by clicking on the book below.
Another Negro, Mr. Billy
Young, had a blacksmith shop in Dunning for years. He died in
Dunning I have a branding from Mr. Young made for my father in the
1920s. I've hear many of the Dunning ranchers offer to buy Mr.
Young a drink at P. C. Riggs' but he never drank with them.
SOURCE: Blaine County History, Vol. 1,
1988, Curtis Publishing, by Tim Cox, F260, p. 314.
William Alfred Young
1875 - 1940
William Alfred Young, son of Mr and Mrs Anthony Young, was born near
Dannebrog, NE on Aug 8, 1875, and passed away in Dunning NE on Feb 18,
1940,at the age of 64 years, six months and 10 days. He spent his
childhood and grew to manhood near Dannebrog. Here he farmed the
homestead of his parents, and being a lover of music, played in the
local band. In 1901 he was united in marriage to Miss Lula Shores.
To this union was born one daughter, Glenora. In 1908, the family
moved to a ranch northeast of Halsey, where they lived until they moved
to Dunning, about 1918. For these many years he has served the
surrounding territory as blacksmith. He has been preceeded in
death by his parents, two sisters, and one brother. He is survived
by his wife; his daughter, Mrs. Guy Sayers of Alliance, NE; one brother,
Ambrose V. Young of Quincy, IL; one sister Helen Buxton of Omaha NE and
four nephews and four nieces. Brother Young was always interested
in civic advancement, community betterment and moral and religious
enlightenment. He was a member of the Full Gospel Church, and as a
Christian, was ready to lend his support to any cause. His
cheerful manner should be an example to all who came to know him.
He was informed, tolerant, and conscientious. As far as possible,
he tried to please both God and man. One of his expressed desires
was to "be in the center of God's will." Children loved
him; grown people respected him; and all who knew him paid him honor.
His passing has left a vacancy in this part of the sandhills that no one
else can fill. All of us unite in extending our sincere sympathy
to those bereaved and in paying our last respects to this friend to man
and servant of God.
Would that there were more like him
County Booster Newspaper, Thursday, February 22, 1940.
by Clarence Mac Duryea
(while in the 8th grade) to honor
I know a
man in my home town
Who toiles and works all day
For just enough to go around
Through life's own pleasant way.
He never says an insulting word,
To make a fellow mad,
He never has been known to urge
A person to do bad.
goes to church each Sunday morn
And learns about the Christ;
He reads the Bible each night and morn,
To lead a better life.
He would help a little child in need,
And spare his life for them,
Because he is the son of God,
Who gave his life for men.
helps the children fix their toys
In time he has to spare,
And helps the farmers fix their carts
With a true and honest care.
If all men, women, girls and boys
Were so good as not to swear,
They too shall go to the Golden Gate,
Sorrow and sadness are not there.
Blaine County Booster Newspaper,
Thursday, February 22, 1940
Blaine County Booster
Newspaper, Dunning, NE, Thursday, March 7,1940. Author,
Folks, sometimes I wish we didn't live in such an out of the way place.
guess the sensless taker is gonna have a hard time findin us.
glad we live where we do. Then again I wish we lived out more in
civiliesation. Why some of us up this way didn't even know our ole
BILLY YOUNG had went away an left us till after his funerel. I
that cause we thot a lot of Billy. I heard they was a big funerel.
came fer miles aaroun. Everybody liked Billie. He had more
lotsa white folks. I ust to go over to his rench north of Halsey.
when he set up his shop in Dunning I always liked to go in an talk with
when I was over there. He had a big heart in him. An it was
thru. If I didn't have the money to pay him for work he done for
would wait till I could pay it. He never liked to ast anybody for
comin to him. Onct when I seen him I was down in the dumps.
The kids had
the flu. I was say in det an didn't have no money coming in.
I think I
had bin havin some kinds trouble with a naber over a fue dollars he owed
"Well Obie, how are you gittin along?" says Billie in a
friendly way and
held out his hand. I tole him how things was goin an how I felt
As soon as I got thru, he smiled an said, "Well, Obie, it's never
so bad but
it could be worse. It could be worse, Obie." Well you
know I got to
thinkin about that an the more I thot about it the more it seemed like
was rite. He made me feel a lot better. An by the time I got
hom I felt so
much better Lutildie thot I had a streek of good luck til I told her
it. Well we got to thinkin about all we had to be thankful fer, an
don't know whether I ot to admit it but I gess we bawled a little that
Well, since Billy has went away an left us an we didn't even know atall
jus aint felt like doing nothin. Folks, I don't see why it had to
wonder how this "could be worse" as Billie used to say.
Folks, if thays any
heaven Im sure Billy went there. Folks, I feel so bad I wanta say
I dont dare put in the paper. An I aint puttin this on.
of my best friends is gone.