Hall Counnty NEGenWeb Project Presents

A History of the Hall County Whisker Club

This page is an index to an past memorbilia club of men with whiskers in Hall County, Nebraska.

NO JUSTICE IN WOOD RIVER

Wood River culprits of the kangaroo court, sentenced by Judge Grimminger, of Grand Island, acting for the Whisker club at alleged trials held in Wood River Fri' day night, June 3, paid the penalties as laid down to them by his honor, on the streets of Wood River Saturday night, June 4, at the appointed hour.

L. C. Anstine was chief executioner, leading E. T. Rounds, who very much impersonated the ex-kaiser with his helmet and uniform overcoat, by means of a log chain. Closely following Rounds was D. D. O'Kane, the dummy-elect. The procession made the rounds of main street, and Rounds was chained to an oil sign by Anstine.

Rounds "Undertaker" Escape

While Anstine was placing CTKane on a stop sign and giving him the necessary instructions regarding the proper method of handling traffic, Rounds broke from his location, the log chain proving entirely too light to hold the determined undertaker. Rounds went up main street at a particularly undignified rate of speed, considering his profession, a group of admiring youngsters following hard on his heels in an attempt to keep in sight of the fugitive. Rounds was soon captured by Anstine and returned to the post of torture.

By this time Johnnie Wiggins and "Bunny" Hofrichter were on the scene and ready to sing, tell lies, and perform otherwise as stipulated.

O'Kane soon discovered that, as a dummy, he had been placed in a very hot spot. He found it necssary on several occasions to call on Rudy Gloe to prevent being wiped off the scene, but with the assistance of Rudy, four complaints were made out against the following: Al Fairbanks, Mert McDermott, Mrs. McPhillips, and George Mead. The nature of their of-fenses will be disclosed at a later date when they will be called before Newt Senseney.

The dummy further found his duties so strenuous he was unable to get within a block of the rest of Anstine's culprits. In order to get a report for The Independent, he persuaded Tom lams to get as near as possible to the various scenes of suffering and bring back a report. When lams returned at the end of one hour, he reported that Rounds was right in his original assertion regarding the sanity of whisker wearers. The entire mob, including the Sunbonnet club members, are crazy, lams said.

Culprits Make Getaway

A bodyguard was finally sent after the dummy, and he joined the gang. The courtesy and kindness of Doc Fredericks, who graciously opened the back door to the picture show, enabled the culprits to be released from the mob.

In making up this report, the dummy feels that an injustice was done him by the reporter for The Independent, who should have remained in Wood River and finished the job, knowing the dummy would be plenty busy Saturday night, carrying out court decrees and steering traffic.

Barbers Enjoy Rush

The barber shops of Grand Island were doing a land office business July 6, as nearly three thousand members of the Whisker club, organized to grow whiskers and publicize the 75th Anniversary of Hall County, returned to modern facial styles.

During the life of whisker-raising activities, which lasted about seven weeks, members were required to visit a barber shop at least once a week. This helped increase the patronage of local shops. But on July 6th the tonsorial experts were swamped as the ambushed Whiskerites made haste to rid themselves of their beards.

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THE WHISKER CLUB

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