Jack Simpson

Former Odebolt resident, Jack Simpson passed away March 4, 2020 at the age of 93. He was a big part of the Odebolt community while he lived there, as was his wife Joan. They ran Singers Department Store, and Jack was post master, belonged to many Odebolt organizations and served on many boards.

I looked in the on-line Odebolt Newspaper Archive and found this article from Odebolt's newspaper, The Chronicle.

(Click the image to view the larger version.)

Below is Jack's obituary, taken from Farber & Otteman's on-line obituary archive

Jack Simpson, youngest son of Murel and Pearl (Cleveland) Simpson was born on a farm near Sac City on June 2, 1926.  He passed away at the age of 93 on Wednesday, March 4, 2020, at Loring Hospital in Sac City.

Jack grew up in and around Sac City, graduating from Sac City Public School in 1944.  He participated in athletics in high school, but track was his real love.  He became the 100 yard dash champion of the State of Iowa in 1944.  During the summer of 1944 he entered the United States Army serving two years and was discharged as an Army Sergeant. 

   In the fall of 1946 he enrolled at the University of Iowa to continue his education and participation in track.  He became the first freshman to lead the team in scoring and was elected Captain of the team.  He won four major letters while participating in track and became the first track athlete to accomplish this at the University of Iowa.  He received a Bachelor of Science Degree at the University in June of 1950.

   Jack and his wife operated a retail store in Odebolt for twenty-five years.  He went to work in the Odebolt Post Office in 1959 and continued working there until his retirement in 1987, retiring from the position of Postmaster.

   On August 22, 1948, Jack married Joan Schwitzer in Sac City.  To this union were born five children.  Their second child, Vickie Marie was born in 1951 and passed away in 1953.  Their youngest son, John, passed away in 2001.  Those remaining to mourn his passing include his wife Joan of Sac City; sons: Tom (Mary Kay) Simpson of Colorado, Greg Simpson of Salina, KS, daughter, Deborah (Doug) Haase of Denison, IA; eight grandchildren: Jessica, Kristin, Emily, Brandy, Wade, Colby, Emma and Jack; eleven great-grandchildren: and one great-great grandchild; extended family members and many friends.

   Jack was preceded in death by his parents; brother Milford Simpson; daughter Vickie and son John.

   Jack enjoyed participating in community affairs.  He served as an elder and deacon in the Odebolt First Presbyterian Church.  He had been a member of the American Legion, Odebolt Rotary Club, The Odebolt-Arthur Community School Board, Masonic Lodge, Odebolt Fire Department, and Board of Directors for Colonial Manor Nursing Home.

   Jack and Joan had wintered in Mesa, AZ since retirement and enjoyed their traveling and visiting children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren.

Feeling cooped up?

IDEAS TO OCCUPY YOUR TIME AT HOME DURING
THE COVID-19 "STAY AT HOME" TIME

 

Visit the ODEBOLT HISTORY PAGES and find out a LOT about our town's history!

Neighborhood "I Spy" game - have your kids draw big rainbows and put them in your window.  Tell your friends! Then walk around and see how many rainbows you spy!

Phone family, friends and neighbors a couple times a day. Human voices, telling stories, laughing - cheers you up! This includes kids. They can learn phone-talking skills!

Call elderly neighbors to check on them. Do they need groceries? Cheer them up.

Have your kids do some art on your sidewalk with chalk. If a lot of people do it in a neighborhood, you can take a walk to see it.
Find an antique fire cart near downtown. Find out about Kelly's Colts!

Organize a walk with your friends - staying at least 6 feet apart. Make a long line! You'll have to talk loud and laugh louder!

Take a family hike in a park (stay off play equipment though!)

Drive around Blackhawk Lake and look for migrating birds. Take binoculars!

Drive around town - how many flag poles can you spot? Or blue houses. Or ....

Visit the Vet's Memorial Monument at the cemetery with your kids. Talk about the people on the monument. Walk around tombstones of people you knew and tell about them.

Find a small, red, one-room house in Odebolt once inhabited by Swedish immigrants and read about it!

Walk the path at Memorial Walk Park from the beginning and then back again. Read the plaques embedded in the walk.

Visit Monument Circle and read what is written on the stone marker there.

See the window display at the Odebolt Museum.

Look for Easter decorations around town - or make some to decorate your lawn or windows.

Find a small park where the Ground Observer Corps used to watch for enemy aircraft.

Think creatively, especially as the weather warms up. Maybe you could plant a pollinator garden with your kids and help beautify Odebolt for people AND feed our beneficial bugs, bees and butterflies!

All the best, and stay safe!

Stockyard location

There has been some discussion about exactly where the Odebolt stockyard was located. The below image, taken from an 1899 Fire Map of Odebolt, shows its location. You can see Main Street on the upper right, and Walnut at the bottom. The stock Yards are just below middle on the left side. You may click the image to enlarge it slightly.

If you wish to look at historic maps, go to "Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps" at
https://www.loc.gov/item/sanborn02781_005/

Odebolt Stockyards

Click the photo to enlarge it.

This photo was found on an online auction site and is one that neither of the editors had seen before. It appears to be looking toward the northwest, and I believe you can see North Main houses on the far upper right.The photographer was James Traver (see bio below). Traver must have climbed up an elevator to get the shot!

Before graveled roads and stock trucks, farmers had to herd their livestock to the stockyards in Odebolt where they would be fenced in while waiting to load onto train cars bound for Sioux City, Chicago, or other destinations.  In the early days farmers shipping to Chicago rode along with the cattle to make sure they were watered, fed, and not left on a side track to freeze or overheat.  There are lots of news bits in the old papers about shipping by train.

EXAMPLES:

The Chronicle, Thursday, February 26th, 1903
The railroad figures show that more grain and stock are shipped from Odebolt than from any town in Iowa of 2,000 population. 

The Chronicle, Thursday, April 8, 1915.
W.H. Horan shipped a car load of horses, containing twenty-two head to Sioux City Tuesday. The horses were bought for war purposes in Europe.

A number of cars of stock were shipped out the past week. F.J. Gilbert shipped one car of cattle and one mixed car, cattle and hogs; J.C. Gosch, one car of hogs; Allie Paul, one car of hogs; John and Henry Meyer one car of cattle; S. V. Buehler, one car of sheep - all to Chicago. Herman Reis shipped one car of cattle to Pilger, Nebr.; W.H. McWilliams shipped in one car of feeders from Sioux City.

The Odebolt News, Thursday, February 14, 1918
Dave Huston and James Scotthorn and John Luft each shipped a car of cattle to Chicago Saturday. Huston and Luft accompanied the shipment to the city

About the photographer:

James Traver was born at Logansville, Wisconsin, March 2, 1864. In 1883 he came to Sac County where he married a cousin, Miss Harriet Traver of Odebolt. The young couple moved to the Dakotas, and in 1887 returned to Odebolt, They had one son, James Traver, Jr.  Mrs. Traver died in 1898.  Later in 1898 James Traver married Miss Etta Ballard of Odebolt. Mr. Traver conducted a barber shop in Odebolt for some time and was also night watchman. About 1911 the Travers moved to Webster City where James opened a photography studio and became one of  the town's leading photographers. He passed away suddenly on August 31, 1925 and is buried in Odebolt Cemetery.

Also see:
The Odebolt Chronicle, Volume 64, Number 6, February 7, 1952

Landmark Razed--Old Water Tower Is Torn Down in Railroad Yards 

The Odebolt train depot off Main Street between 1st Street and Highway 175.