SGS2026: Scandal!

Nebraska, 1900 Federal Census: Soundex and Population Schedules.
Soundex: S421/424 Ralph thru S513 (NARA Series T1057, Roll 89).

For the second SGS Write All About It! writing prompt, I chose SCANDAL. I didn't have a particular scandal in mind, but the more I thought about it, the more I was drawn back to the first ancestral scandal I discovered years ago, when I was just starting my genealogical journey, and one that remains unparalleled in the family secrets I have unearthed.

Back in yesteryear, the best entrée to the U.S. census was the Soundex. For genealogists, the creation of the Soundex was a transformative project conducted by the Works Progress Administration during the Great Depression. Beginning with the 1880 census, indexers used the Soundex phonetic indexing system to group individuals with similar-sounding surnames, enabling officials to efficiently locate those who needed proof of age in order to apply for newly established Social Security benefits. In addition to the 1880 census, the 1900, 1910, and 1920 censuses were also later indexed. For anyone doing genealogy before 1990, you know how critical these indexes were to your research.

Years ago, when I enrolled in an introductory genealogy course, the instructor opened her first lecture with the announcement, “If you can’t live with the knowledge your great-grandfather was a horse thief, leave now!” My first inkling that my great-great-great-grandfather, Cuyler Shultz, might fall into this dubious category of ancestors came while searching the Soundex for the 1900 Census, when I discovered that Cuyler was an inmate at the Nebraska State Penitentiary in Lincoln. Questions and rampant speculations immediately began racing through my mind about how he got there and what followed in the years until his death.

But first, before I could answer those questions, I needed to start at the beginning. I had been researching my paternal Shultz ancestors, Cuyler and Eliza, who originated in Wisconsin, later moved to Iowa, before settling in Nebraska in the 1880s. I was able to trace them relatively easily in the census using the printed indexes to the 1850, 1860, and 1870 censuses, using the process of elimination and winding and rewinding many microfilm reels. 

When I got to 1900, however, I noted that Cuyler was not enumerated with his large family in Grand Island, Nebraska. The enumerator indicated that his wife, Eliza, was married and not widowed, so I set out to find out whether he was living elsewhere or had been excluded for some reason. As I browsed the Soundex, I found Cuyler, but was surprised to learn he was living in Lancaster County, Nebraska, home of the state capital, Lincoln. As I read further down the card, I almost fell out of my chair when I read the words "Nebraska State Penitentiary"! Cuyler was 69 years old at the time, so I didn't know how long he had been incarcerated. Fortunately, Nebraska is one of the states for which the 1890 Veterans' census survived, and he was enumerated in Grand Island, where I expected to find him, so I was able to narrow down my search for his crime(s) to 1890-1900.

So, what happened and when, and how'd he end up in the Pen?

History of Hall County, Nebraska,
by A.F. Buechler and R.J. Barr, 1920.

On a research trip to the FamilySearch Library in Salt Lake City, I located a history of Hall County that provided a few scant details and a date. There were no online newspapers to consult at the time, so I wrote to a local genealogical society and paid for a researcher to check area newspapers for me. 

After a few months, I received a tantalizingly large envelope arrived in the mail with a treasure trove of articles about the trial. To say it was the talk of the town is an understatement. In a nutshell, in a fit of rage, Cuyler shot his neighbor, J.P. Farr, over long-standing disagreements unprovoked and without remorse. During the course of the trial, which centered around an insanity defense that Cuyler himself rejected, it was revealed that, as a result of injuries received during the Civil War battle of Shiloh, Cuyler had shrapnel in his head. He had a history of erratic behavior after the war and was violent and a heavy drinker as a way to manage his ongoing pain.

Omaha Daily Bee, March 21, 1892, Page  1.

Regardless, he was convicted and sentenced to hang. At some point, his sentence was reduced to life without parole. After nearly 10 years in prison, the Shultz family petitioned the governor of Nebraska, Ezra P. Savage, for clemency for Cuyler, citing his advanced age and the family's pledge to manage his activities. Clemency was granted, and Cuyler was released in 1901. After their youngest daughter, Ida, was married in 1910, Cuyler moved to the Nebraska Soldiers and Sailors Home in Grand Island, where he lived until he died on June 10, 1917. 

Curiously, his obituary makes no mention of his murder conviction, but does make note of his Civil War service. His daughter, Christina, left behind an 80-page manuscript with many minute details of her life, and also neglects to mention anything about his murder conviction, although she does speak very candidly about his alcohol consumption, how her mother had to sell eggs and butter to provide food for the family when her husband didn't, and his violence towards his family. 

I have since located other direct ancestors with less-than-stellar histories, as well as nefarious activities of extended family members, but Cuyler holds the prize for being the most notorious of them all!

Copyright 2026 by Lisa A. Oberg, GeneaGator: Vignettes of Yesteryear. All Rights Reserved.

#52Ancestors: In the Courthouse

The Nebraska State Journal (Lincoln, NE)
Thursday, 17 March 1892, pg. 1.

Back in the olden days, before the census was digitized and the snow was six feet deep, we were grateful for the Soundex system as a way to pinpoint the location of our ancestors. Developed as a way to identify people in an era before widespread civil registration, the Soundex enabled government officials to locate individuals as a form of proof of age when enrolling in Social Security.

The Soundex is a system for indexing surnames based on the phonetic spelling, or sound, of the name. The code consists of the first letter of the name, followed by 3 digits representing the first three phonetic sounds found in the name. As a result, similar sounding family names are grouped together with similar Soundex codes. It was invaluable for the years it was generated; 1880, 1900, 1920 and partially 1910.

Based on earlier census, I expected to find my great-great-great grandparents, Eliza (Kirkendall) and Cuyler Shultz somewhere in Hall County, Nebraska in 1900, likely near the village of Doniphan. Rather than scroll page by page, I elected to go first to the 1900 Soundex for Nebraska in the hopes of identifying an exact page. I found Cuyler readily enough, but the first thing I noticed his location was in Lincoln, Nebraska's capital. "That's weird" I remember thinking. The next thing I read really made my hair stand on end, Inmate at the Nebraska State Penitentiary. Holy cow!! Scrolling on, I also found a card for his wife, Eliza, living in Doniphan, just as I expected. Well, there's definitely a story here, I thought!

The first order of business, however, was to look at the actual census. Armed with the exact enumeration district and page I was able to quickly locate Cuyler there amongst his fellow inmates. I wrote to the Nebraska State Historical Society which sent me copies of his prison record showing he was incarcerated for the crime of murder! Oh my goodness, this was getting crazy. Over time, I learned Cuyler shot his neighbor, Jamie Farr, as a result of his anger over a longstanding feud between the two, which worsened over time until the final confrontation. Numerous Nebraska newspapers have since been digitized which provide rich details of the trial. 

Grand Island Old Soldiers' and Sailors' Home postcard

Insanity was the plea and during the course of the trial evidence was introduced about Cuyler's erratic "irascible" behavior before the murder including sleeping with a gun under his pillow, randomly barking like a dog and hitting his wife with a bullwhip... but only when she deserved it. It was also revealed that Cuyler, a veteran of the Civil War, was still carrying lead bullets in his body. Although the link may not have been as well understood then, the notion that Cuyler had some level of lead poisoning certainly seems possible now. Family testimony also suggested he was a heavy drinker and not all that nice, to begin with.

Originally sentenced to hang, this was later reduced to twenty years in prison. Sixty-one at the time of the murder, Cuyler's sentence was eventually commuted in 1903 by the Governor of Nebraska Ezra Savage due to infirmities of old age. Cuyler lived out the final years of his life at the Old Soldier and Sailors Home in Grand Island, Nebraska, now known as the Nebraska Veterans Home. His obituary in 1917 mentioned nothing about his life of crime, rather focusing on his Civil War service. The closest it comes is to say he resided in Doniphan until the spring of 1892! Oh, o-kay! Wink, wink!

Curiously, Cuyler's daughter Belle—my great-great-grandmother—left this entire chapter in her family's history out of the 80-page manuscript of her life, as well! After the trial, many family members changed the spelling of their name from Shultz to Shults. I'm not exactly sure who they thought they were fooling by this change! But there is no denying that Cuyler, seemingly unconcerned about his fate according to newspaper accounts, spent some time #IntheCourthouse!

Copyright 2019 by Lisa A. Oberg, GeneaGator: Vignettes of Yesteryear. All Rights Reserved.

Hidden Mothers and Hellion Fathers

Scene from Meeting of Minds (1977-1982), 
with Jayne Meadows, as Catherine The Great.

If you're of a certain age you might remember a TV-series which aired on PBS from 1977-1982, hosted by Steve Allen, called Meeting of Minds. In it, actors played characters in history brought together for a conversation about a variety of topics. This week's prompt, "Invite to Dinner" for 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks is the ancestral version!

Of course, when given the opportunity to question a long-gone ancestor, most of us immediately think of those people who are the brick walls in our family tree. With that in mind, I made a list of several people I would love to have the opportunity to ask a few questions of.

Hidden Mothers

Tracing our female ancestors can be such a challenge before civil registration was required. Women were all-too-often invisible. Here are a couple such women I would like to have a sit-down chat with:

1. Mariam Williams Kirkendall (ca. 1822- ??)
   Married at 16 to Robert Kirkendall in Wisconsin in 1838, Mariam disappears following their divorce in 1849. Their divorce records are the stuff of headline news today, both sides alleging infidelity, drunkenness and more. Indicative of the time, custody of their children was awarded to their father. Curiously, she is mentioned as Robert's first wife in his obituary but her fate after 1850 remains a mystery.
2. Mary Grainger Keely Johns (1834-1871)
   For many years Mary was one of those dead-end branches of my family tree. Family stories suggested that she was married before she married my ancestor, Daniel Teats Johns. No one knew, however, if Keely was her maiden name or that of her first husband. Turns out it was the name of her former husband, but many other questions about her life still remain.
3. Catherine Thomas Younker (1834-1912)

   

   Wikipedia: Hidden mother photograph

   
   When did Catherine arrive in the United States? Born in Gilsa, Germany, Catherine and her siblings were orphaned at an early age. How and why did she make her way to Illinois after her arrival? So many questions, so few answers.

Hellion Fathers

1. Cuyler Shults (1831–1917)
   By far the most irascible of my ancestors, Cuyler murdered his neighbor and was sentenced to hang. His sentence was eventually commuted by the governor of Nebraska due to his advanced age. The trial transcripts suggest a tense relationship with his neighbor, Jamie Farr, but is that the whole story? Inquiring minds what to know!
2. Willie Henry Younker (1894-1929)
   Family tradition has it Willie telegrammed his then-wife Meda with the news he wanted a divorce while she away was visiting her family. He neglected to mention another woman was expecting his child. He died just days after his 34th birthday, so the opportunity to get any answers from him directly was lost when his children were still quite young.  
3. Owen Flynn (ca. 1795-ca. 1864)
   Okay, truth be told, I don't know for certain Owen was a bad guy. But he is the only one of my immigrant ancestors who decided to forego the opportunities of the New World and return to his homeland. Wouldn't you love to know what it was about America he didn't like enough to make returning to Ireland seem like the better idea? 

Curiously, every one of these ancestors is on my father's side of the family. He didn't find it all that amusing when I told him there was a murderer in the family, however. In typical dry, droll Dad fashion, his response was "Why don't you find people like this on your mother's side of the family?" Good question, Dad! I would love for the opportunity to find out the answer, if only I could sit down to dinner with one, or all, of these ancestors!