On 15 September 1894, Reuben made a run for a government homestead at the opening of the Cherokee Strip. It is unknown if he was successful in getting any land. For nearly 14 years, Reuben and Ina raised their children in Talala, Rogers County, Oklahoma. There was a brief time during that period where they lived in Missouri, where they had a strawberry farm.⁷ In 1915, the family packed up and left Oklahoma for Norton, Norton County, Kansas.⁸ Reuben was a farmer and a railroader while Ina was employed as a cook at the Kent Coffee Shop for over 26 years. She was a member of the Christian Church and the American Legion Auxiliary.

When Reuben was about 82 years old, he slipped while getting out of the bathtub. He hit the heater and burned his face badly. Ina was unable to care for him, so Reuben was sent to the Swanson Nursing Home in Clay Center, Clay County, Nebraska, where he would receive the best care the family could afford. Reuben died 6 December 1952 at the age of 83. His memorial service was held at Rhoad-Somers Funeral Home in Norton, and he was buried in Norton Cemetery.

Ina died 3 April 1971 in Norton at the age of 97. During her life, she had twelve children, ten grandchildren, and seven great-grandchildren. Also, she had outlived her older brother, younger sister and brother. Her memorial service was held on the 5^th at Scott-Brantley Funeral Home with Daryl Boston officiating. Her casket bearers were sons Don and Cliff; son-in-laws Howard Archibald, Louis Erpelding and Phil Walker; and grandson-in-law Gene Hager. She was buried at Norton Cemetery next to Reuben.⁹

They had twelve children, but nine survived childhood:

Blanche Lillian Spickerman was born 28 November 1892 in Talala. She died in 1897 in Talala. She is buried in Talala Cemetery.¹⁰

Charles "Art" Arthur Spickerman was born 6 December 1894 in Talala.¹¹ He joined the U.S. navy and served as fireman, second class, on the U.S.S. Texas around 1917.¹² He later served in on the U.S.S. President Grant during World War I as fireman, first class. The U.S.S. President Grant was a troop transport that made sixteen round trips between New York and ports of France, carrying a total of 40,104 servicemen on her eastbound passage and a total of 37,025 servicemen on her westbound returns to New York.¹³

He married Palma Croci 2 August 1919 in Norton. Palma was born 2 June 1899 in Palmero, Italy, to Anton and Lydia Croci. Palma’s whole family immigrated to New York sometime between 1903-1910.¹⁴ Art and Palma settled in Norton where their two daughters were born. Around 1926, Art’s family left Norton and settled in Coxsackie, Green County, New York. Art worked as a carpenter and was a seargeant-of-arms of Coxsackie Post 166, American Legion. He received a silver life membership card for his outstanding service to the American Legion.¹⁵

In October of 1975, Art’s health began to fail and he was admitted to Veterans Hospital in Albany, New York. Two months later on his 81^st birthday he passed away peacefully in his sleep with daughter Trilby and grandson Wayne and Chip(?) at his side. Daughter Lydia had left her father’s side two hours earlier to be with her mother who was doing poorly. Funeral services were held at 11 in the morning on the 9^th at United Methodist Church in Coxsackie with the Reverend William H. Hunter officiating. The pallbearers at the funeral were all Art’s grandsons—Ricky and Billy Hotaling; Wayne, Don and Tim Spickerman—in addition to grandson-in-law, Paul Canniff. It was a "nasty cold, damp day" at Riverside Cemetery where the burial services took place. Palma’s health kept her inside the car, but she had a good view of the services. "Taps" was played and three volleys were shot at the end of the burial service. Due to the fact that New York was a great distance from Kansas and Colorado, none of Art’s sisters and brothers were able to attend the funeral.¹⁶ Palma died 6 August 1979 in Coxsackie and is probably buried in Riverside Cemetery.

They had three children:

1. Trilby Pearl Spickerman was born 17 December 1921 in Norton. She married Frederick Hotaling 30 April 1943. Frederick died 20 January 1987. They had four children: Frederick "Ricky" Hotaling, Jr. (b. 3 December 1946), Palma Ann Hotaling Canniff (b. 20 December 1950), William "Billy" Charles Hotaling (b. 9 September 1957), and Linda Anne Hotaling Bonack (b. 20 July 1960).
2. Lydia Martha Spickerman was born 28 September 1924 in Norton.¹⁷ She was briefly married to Tony Romano. She has one son: Wayne Nelson Spickerman (b. 31 August 1953).
3. Charles "Skip" Arthur Spickerman, Jr. was born 7 July 1926 in Climax, New York. He married Nina Von Duesen.¹⁹ Skip died 20 September 1960. His funeral services were held on the 22^nd at 2 in the afternoon at First Methodist Church with Reverend Gene Black officiating. He was buried in Riverside Cemetery.²⁰ He and Nina had two sons: Don Howard Spickerman (b. 16 August 1947)²¹ and Timothy Stuart Spickerman (19 March 1949).²²

Estella Pearl Spickerman was born 14 January 1897 in Talala. Pearl, as she was called, was a very delicate girl and prone to illness. After a "lingering illness of ten weeks", Pearl died 18 February 1909 at the age of twelve in Talala. What is really ironic is that her two aunts Stella and Katherine both sent her two separate Valentine’s Day postcards, postmarked the 7^th and 11^th, saying they were glad to hear that she was doing better. It is unknown if the postcards reached Pearl before her death.

The funeral service was arranged by the National Benevolent Society, of which her father Reuben was a member. She was buried in Talala Cemetery with her older sister Blanche. Pearl’s obituary had a poem in her honor:

E’re sin could harm or sorrow fade,
Death came with friendly care,
Our little Pearl to heaven conveyed
And bade her blossom there.²³

Bess Lenore Spickerman was born 4 March 1899 in Talala.²⁴ At the age of 16, she married a 23-year-old Edward "Ed" Alonzo Smith 30 January 1915 in Beaver City, Furnas County, Nebraska—only about 30 miles from Norton. Ed was born 30 June 1892 to William Pony Smith and Anna Mittan Smith in Norton. Except for a brief stay in Talala after the birth of their daughter Evelyn, they settled in Norton.²⁵ Ed worked as a Norton County sheriff and also worked for the Standard Oil Company and the Ambrose Creamery in Norton. Bess and Ed later divorced. Ed went up to Araphoe, Furnas County, Nebraska, to work on the police force there. He later moved to Abilene, Kansas to work as night dispatcher for the Abilene Police Department. On 21 May 1967, Ed suffered a heart attack and was bedridden at Abilene Memorial Hospital until his death on June 12^th. His memorial service was held on the 14^th at Scott-Brantley Funeral Home in Norton with the Reverend Ted Eppinger officiating. He was buried in Norton Cemetery.²⁶ Bess was a member of the First United Methodist Church. Bess died 15 March 1975 of breast cancer at the age of 76 at the Norton County Hospital. Her memorial service was held on the 17^th at Enfield-Eckhart Funeral Home with the Reverend Ted Eppinger officiating. Her brother-in-law Louis Erpelding, grandson Terry Hager, and grandson-in-law Don Johnson, were among the casket bearers at her service. She was buried in Norton Cemetery.

They had one child:

1. Evelyn Virginia Smith was born 23 October 1916 in Norton, Kansas. She attended the local grade school and graduated from Norton Community High School. She married Eugene "Gene" Willard Hager 13 August 1938 in Beloit, Mitchell County, Kansas. Eugene was born 28 May 1915 in Oronoque, Kansas, to Willard W. Hager and Mabel Clair Cole. He and Evelyn were classmates at Norton Community High School. Following their marriage they settled down in rural Norton and where Gene ran a dairy farm. In addition to being a dairy farmer, Gene was a carpenter and farmer-rancher. Evelyn and Gene were very active people in Norton. Gene had served several years on the School Board and was president at one time. He was also a member of the U.C.T. and the Norton Lions Club. Evelyn was a homemaker but worked at Moffet Drug for twenty years before her retirement in 1981. She was a member of the Knit and Stitch Club, American Red Cross and the Trinity Episcopal Church. She enjoyed bird-watching and working in the outdoors in her garden. Gene died 22 November 1981 at the Presbyterian Hospital in Denver, Colorado, at the age of 66. His memorial service was held on the 25^th at Enfield-Eckhart Funeral Home with the Reverend Dennis Gilhousen officiating. He was buried in Norton Cemetery. Evelyn died 7 April 1992 at the Norton County Hospital at the age of 75. Her memorial service was held on the 10^th at Trinity Episcopal Church with the Reverend Dennis Gilhousen officiating. She was buried in Norton Cemetery with her husband. They had two children: Terry Eugene Hager (b. 19 December 1941) and Connie Lee Hager Johnson (b. 21 October 1943).²⁷

Clifford "Cliff" Nelson Spickerman was born 18 December 1900 in Welch, Craig County, Oklahoma. At the time it was known as the Scoseescosee or Cooweescoowee District. There was only a midwife present at his birth.²⁸ Cliff was a professional ball player, pitching for Norton. He also played in the Western League and the Nebraska League. It is not known how he met his future wife, Lucille Emma Sparks, but they married 16 August 1932 in Goodland, Sherman County, Kansas. Lucille was born 16 August 1902 to Louis Sparks and Lillian Monroe in Omaha, Nebraska. She spent her childhood in Omaha until she turned 15 and moved to Sidney, Cheyenne County, Nebraska, and finished high school there. At the same time, she married Frank Harvey in 1917. They had two children, one of whom, the daughter Barbara survived. The son died in infancy. She later attended the Chicago School of Nursing in Chicago, Illinois.³⁰ Following their marriage, Cliff and Lucille settled in Norton where Lucille worked as a nurse at the State Sanatorium for Tuberculosis in Norton.³¹ In 1937, Cliff, Lucille and Ina traveled to New York where Cliff had his spleen removed at Columbia-Presbyterian Medical Center in New York City on May 24th. The operation cost his chances of having a baseball career.³² Family tradition has it that he had the chance to play for the St. Louis Cardinals.³³ In 1941, they relocated to Colorado Springs, Colorado, where Lucille received a hospital nursing job. A year later, they moved to Salina, Saline County, Kansas where Lucille entered the military service during World War II. In 1944, they moved to Santa Monica, California where she was in the Air Force. In 1952, they returned to Colorado and resided in Loveland. Cliff worked in the Aircraft Industry as a manufacturer.³⁵ Lucille was a member of the United Methodist Church. Lucille died 22 July 1975 at the age of 72 in Loveland, Colorado. Her memorial service was held on the 24^th at the Enfield-Eckhart Funeral Home in Norton with the Reverend Ted Eppinger officiating. Her casketbearers were nephew Richard Lindsey and her brother-in-laws—Louis Erpelding, Don Spickerman, Howard Archibald, Philip Walker, and Gene Hager.³⁶ Cliff continued to live in Loveland after Lucille’s death. Around April 1987, Clifford suffered a bad fall and fractured his right hip, which required surgery to fix the fracture. On 17 April 1987, two days after he returned home from the hospital, Cliff became dizzy and collapsed at his home. He was brought by ambulance to McKee Medical Center, but failed to respond to resuscitative efforts. He was pronounced dead at 6:54 P.M., from a blood clot in his lungs. He was then buried in Norton Cemetery next to his wife Lucille. Cliff and Lucille had no children together.

George Cecil Spickerman was born 26 January 1903 in Talala. On 3 June 1910, George died of complications, at the age of seven, from an illness he had for some time. He had just received an award the prior month on the 27^th for perfect attendance for the last three months in school. He was buried in Talala Cemetery with his two older sisters Blanche and Pearl.³⁷

Bonnie Louella Spickerman was born 27 April 1905 in Neosho, Newton County, Missouri.³⁸ At the age of 15, she married James "Jimmie" Clifford Allen 26 June 1920. A year and two months later, Bonnie found herself a mother at 16 to twins Betty and Billy.³⁹ Bonnie was a homemaker and later worked for the State Sanatorium for Tuberculosis. On 6 December 1950, the family was in mourning when it was learned that Billy was reported missing in action in the Korean War. Three years later, he was confirmed dead.⁴⁰ Bonnie then became a Gold Star Mother of the American Legion Auxiliary Post 0063. She was also active in the Norton Christian Church. Jimmie died 17 March 1960 in Lyons, Rice County, Kansas. Bonnie died 5 March 1996 at the age of 90 at the Andbe Home in Norton. Her memorial service was held on the 8^th at Enfield Funeral Home with Roger Hasselquist officiating. She was buried in Norton Cemetery.⁴¹

They had two children:

1. Betty Jean Allen was born 6 August 1921 in Norton. She attended grade and high school in Norton. Shortly before her eighteenth birthday, she married Cecil Lorimor 30 May 1939. Following their marriage, the couple moved to Charleston, South Carolina where Cecil worked in the shipyards during his service in the U.S. Navy. Following World War II, the family moved back to Norton. They soon divorced, and Betty later married Bernard Greenwood 7 October 1947. She and Bernard moved to Grand Island, Nebraska, then Lyons, Kansas, before they finally settled in Russell, Russell County, Kansas. Betty was a member of the Auxiliary of the Veterans of Foreign Wars and the American Legion. She died 9 October 1973 from tuberculosis at the age of 52 at her home in Russell. Her memorial service was held on the 12^th in Norton at the Enfield-Eckhart Funeral Home. One of the casket-bearers was uncle Don Spickerman. She was buried in Norton Cemetery. Betty and Cecil had two sons, James Earl Lorimor (b. 25 February 1940) and Gary Joseph Lorimor (b. 7 November 1942).⁴²
2. Billy James Allen was born 6 August 1921 in Norton. He spent his childhood in Norton and attended the schools there. He married Ruth Lamoine Pack. Billy entered the Army during the early stages of World War II and remained in the service to fight in the Korean War. Unfortunately, he was killed in action on the Korean front 6 December 1950, when a troop truck he was riding in drove over a land mine. His body was never recovered, and his death was not confirmed until three years later. He and Lamoyne had one son Billy James Allen, Jr. (b. 27 February 1949).⁴³

Julia Edna Spickerman was born 22 April 1907 in Talala.⁴⁴ She married Charlie Vermillion, but they divorced in 1940. She renewed her acquaintance with widower Walter "Red" Archibald, who she had dated several times when they were teenagers.⁴⁵ They later married 31 December 1958 in Boca Raton, Colfax County, New Mexico.⁴⁶ He was born 4 September 1904 to Robert Archibald and Eva Roberts in Phillips County, Kansas. Red spent his childhood in Phillips County and moved to a farm near Almena at the age of sixteen. He married his first wife Enolia Young 31 January 1923. They settled in Almena until 1935 when they moved to Colorado Springs. They had two sons Don and Ray Archibald. She became ill and passed away August 1957. Red then moved to Norton.

In 1937 Red had formed the Western Produce Company and continued to distribute produce and beer in the area. He was a member of the Almena Naphtali Lodge No. 310 A.F. & A.M., the Prairie Dog Shrine Club, the Salina Consistory, the Norton Eagles Lodge No. 3288, and the Prairie Dog Recreation Association. Red died 6 March 1983 at the age of 78 at the Norton County Hospital. His memorial service was held on the 10^th at Enfield Funeral Home with Darel Boston officiating.⁴⁷ He was buried in Mt. Hope Cemetery in Almena, which is only 15 miles from Norton. Julia was a member of Trinity Church after being baptized 28 October 1956. A year later, she received confirmation from the church 4 November 1956. In the 1980s, Julia began to develop Alzheimer’s and moved to a nursing home when she could no longer care for herself. She died 24 Sep 1999 and was buried in Norton Cemetery. She and Red had no children.

Alice Ferne Spickerman was born 18 April 1909 in Talala. She never went by Alice, using Ferne instead. She attended grade school and high school in Norton. She first married Ernest Steele, but they soon divorced. She later married Louis Francis Erpelding 27 October 1941. Louis was born 13 October 1913 to Peter Erpelding and Anna Hellmer in Nortonville, Atchinson County, Kansas. He attended District 42 school in Atchinson County until he turned 14. Because of his asthma, he was sent to live in Norton and attended Norton High School. He was a very close friend of the Spickerman family.

Louis worked at the Hudson Essex and Brooks Motor Companies. In April 1942, Louis and Al Norman formed City Motors. Louis worked tirelessly in the business until his retirement in 1993 when he sold his portion of the business to Richard Norman. Louis was a member of the Norton Gun Club and was an avid trapshooter. He was a member of the Eagles Lodge and a 50-year member of the U.C.T.⁴⁸ In the early 1990s, Ferne began to develop Alzheimer’s and had to be sent to Andbe Home because Louis was too old to care for her. Without Ferne at his side, Louis’ health began to decline and he could no longer take care of himself, too.⁴⁹ He died 17 October 1913 at Norton County Hospital at the age of 84. His memorial service was held on the 20^th at Norton Cemetery with Pastor Fred Hazen officiating.⁵⁰ Ferne died 31 March 1998 at the age of 88. Her memorial service was held at Enfield Funeral Home on April 3^rd with Jeff Nielsen officiating. She was buried in Norton Cemetery next to Louis. She and Louis had no children.⁵¹

Evea Martha Spickerman was born 8 February 1912 in Talala.⁵² Her middle name was originally Mabel, but she had changed it to Martha in honor of her grandmother Martha Parrine Mason. She first married Don Hammond, who left her. On the rebound, she married Walter (surname unknown), but they soon divorced.⁵³ She later married Clarence Albert Yockers 31 March 1943 at Yuma’s Gretna Green in Yuma, Yuma County, Arizona. Yuma’s Gretna Green was the most famous wedding parlor in the region where one could easily secure a marriage license and have an ordained minister in attendance.⁵⁴

After Clarence served in World War II, the couple moved to Norton. Later, they moved to Denver where Evea became a member of the Electra Chapter No. 160 of the Eastern Star of Denver. On 12 April 1967, Evea filed for divorce from Clarence on the grounds of cruelty. In September 1974, she returned to Norton to live at Andbe Home, a convalescent home, because she had developed multiple sclerosis and could no longer care for herself. She died 25 March 1981 at the age of 69. Her memorial service was held on the 28^th at the Enfield-Eckhart Funeral Home with Darel Boston officiating. Two of her nephews, Joe Lorimor and Terry Hager, were casketbearers. She was buried in Norton Cemetery. She had no children with any of her husbands.⁵⁵

Dorothy Wilma Spickerman was born 9 April 1914 in Talala.⁵⁶ She married Philip Walker 3 May 1931 in St. Francis, Cheyenne County, Kansas.⁵⁷ More about Dorothy Wilma Spickerman will be discussed in the Dorothy Wilma Spickerman family branch.

Don "Todd" Howard Spickerman was born 16 February 1917 in Norton.⁵⁸ He had been born with a cleft palate, and his parents took him to Chicago to have surgery in order to repair it. Uncle William Spickerman paid for the trip. Being self-conscious about his scar on his upper lip, he grew a mustache later to cover it up.⁵⁹ He married Alice Nadyne Sanford 11 July 1938 in Smith Center, Smith County, Kansas. Nadyne, as she was called, was born 27 October 1918, in Belleville, Republic County, Kansas, to Edwin C. Sanford and Pauline Alice Kautz. Nadyne died 13 November 1990 and is buried in Fort Logan National Cemetery in Denver. Don died 15 October 1996 in Denver and is buried next to Nadyne. He and Nadyne had one daughter:

1. Sharon Kay Spickerman was born 6 July 1939 in Beloit, Mitchell County, Kansas. She graduated from Limon High School in 1957 and entered the University of Northern Colorado. She married Gordon Brandt Scheele 1 June 1958 at First Presbyterian Church in Loveland, Colorado. Gordon was born 4 August 1936 in Kimball, Kimball County, Nebraska, to Mr. And Mrs. R.D. Scheele. Following their marriage, the couple returned to their studies at UNC where Gordon was a senior and majoring in biology. Sharon put her studies on hold after the birth of their sons. She returned to college and graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education in 1967. From 1973 to 1994, she was an elementary teacher at Highland Elementary School in Littleton, Colorado. They had two sons: Jeffrey Todd Scheele (b. 10 January 1960) and Randall "Randy" Dean Scheele (b. 9 July 1962).⁶⁰