Spencer Cunningham & Calista Jane Powell

Children of Spencer Cunningham and Calista Jane Powell

Marriage notes for Spencer Cunningham & Calista Jane Powell.

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Spencer Cunningham

Spencer was born January 1, 1864 at Medford Ontario Canada near the
Georgian Ba y, in a log home with a lean-to, kitchen - seven rooms in
all. His parents wer e Stephen and Sarah Ann Richards Cunningham.

The family left Canada Septembe r 12, 1871 with two teams and covered
wagons. Spencer was 7 years of age at th e time. They crossed the lines
into the US at the Fort Sarna at the port Grosh et Michigan. They were
on the boat three days to Chicago. From Chicago they c ame to Cedar
Rapids, Iowa where they stayed all winter near the banks of the Ce dar
River.

Spencer was 8 when they started for Nebraska about April 1, 1872. They
were with another family by the name of Jarman. There were five wagons a
bout 20 head of stock (cattle) and a saddle horse. They crossed the
Missouri R iver at Plattsmouth on a ferry boat, and came on to Lincoln
and then to Polk Co unty. Arrived May 5, 1872 at Spencer's brothers
place which was 16 miles south of Columbus, Nebraska.

The prairie had just been burned black, and only two houses in sight and
not a tree for as fas as you could see. They lived in a s od house until
he was 18. He lived through the blizzard of 1873 when stock wer e driven
by the storm into the Blue River and drowned or suffocated by the wet
snow. Then came the plague of grasshoppers. He saw the big cloud coming
and h eard the noise. It sounded like the sound of a threshing machine.
They were s o thick that they darkened out the sun and came down and
devoured everything gr een.

September 20, 1882, Spencer went to Weston, Iowa. He stayed all winter
and came back to Shelby in 1883. In 1886 he went to Lincoln and worked
in the Asylum ward and didn't like it so went to Kansas and took a
homestead near Wyn oa Logan County. He built a shack. In 1887 he had
been working at various job s in Colorado and went back to his
homestead. Someone had stolen his shack and contested his claim so he
went back to Nebraska. His father died in 1888 and S pencer rented the
home place in 1889 and on February 6th married Calista Jane P owell at
Central City, Nebraska. They lived at Shelby for 10 years then moved to
Central City. He farmed Clarence Powell's place for 7 years. Later he
boug ht 240 acres at Riverdale, Nebraska and moved there March 1, 1906
and lived and worked for 14 years. March 1, 1920 he moved to town.

Calista Jane Powell

Married Name:<_MARNM> Claista Jane Cunningham
Calista was a school teacher. S he had 6 children.

Etta Teresa Cunningham

Married Name:<_MARNM> Etta Teresa Nichols

Verl Cunningham

Wife was Ilene

Glen Cunningham

Wife was Mamie

Loren Cunningham

Wife was Mildred

Clarence Cunningham

Wife was Pearl

Myrtle Cunningham

Married Name:<_MARNM> Mrytle Brown
Married Loraine Brown