Individual Details
Frank Pluhar
(10 Dec 1889 - )
BIOGRAPHICAL: Frank Pluhar Visits (Jordan Tribune, 1 Apr 1976)
BIOGRAPHICAL:
Frank Pluhar was in Jordan the other day conducting business and stopped by
the Tribune office. Visiting with Frank was a pleasure and the following
interview with him was a result of that visit.
Frank Pluhar was born September 10, 1889 in the Ukraine, Russia, the son of
Joseph and Sophia Pluhar who were Czechoslovakian farmers in the Ukraine
Valley.
Frank went to the first and second grade and then for a time didn't go to
school because there was no teacher to teach beyond those grades. However,
when he was 14 he went to school one more year to a professional teacher who
could teach arithemetic. After this year if schooling Frank came with his
parents and brothers, Vrat, Bill, and Joe, and sisters, Lea, and Mary to the
United States, the year 1907. The family settled in Waggoner, South Dakota
where they farmed for three years. In 1910 the family decided to move to
Montana and the Skunk Arroyo country near Cohagen, north of Miles City
attracted their farming interests. Also the main attraction to their homestead
was the water. Early settlers used horses and wagons to carry water into homes
from the railroad section near the Pluhar ranch. The homestead is the section
where now, Frank's son, Phillip now lives and farms.
Having no funds for a school, the Pluhar family set about to earn something
toward that. Frank stated that they bought a thresher in 1915 and did custom
work with it and earned enough to build a school house. It was the Skunk
Arroyo School.
He told of the early days, fuel situation. We think fuel is hard to come by
now, but his story of how the men, women and children picked up buffalo bones
to burn in their kitchen stoves, and for heat, as well as burning buffalo chips
for heating and cooking, because there were no trees closer than 30 miles away
on the Big Dry. He said some families burned this type of fuel for as long as
15 years after he came to this country.
His father was a progressive farmer and in coming to Montana he brought with
him, five carloads of grain, hay, binding machinery, wagons, horses, cows,
chickens and geese. Frank said his father came out of Russia with about $7,000
of their money, but it was only worth one-half the price in this country. The
U.S. Immigration Laws were open at the time encouraging people from other
countries to come to the U.S. and the land of opportunity.
Frank went back to Dakota and there he met his wife, Theresa Bernek, who
then was 18 1/2 years old and shortly they were married there, on January 15,
1915. The wedding was held in her cousin's home with just the family present.
The couple had five children, Phillip, who lives at Cohagen, Emil who was
killed during World War II, Edwin who lives in Billings, John who farms near
Phillip at Cohagen, and Violet of Longview, Washington.
The couple farmed at Cohagen until about 1940 when they bought a home in
Miles City. Frank worked at Krumpe's Repair Shop in Miles City until about
1960 and was Sexton at the Custer County Cemetery for a number of years.
The couple continued to live in Miles City until 1974 when his wife passed
away. Since that time he has lived at the Phillip Pluhar ranch at Cohagen, or
with his daughter, Violet Long at Long View, Washington.
Frank enjoys fish, not fishing, especially smoked smelts. For his
entertainment he enjoys making inlaid necktie clasps, playing his accordian
occasionally and gardening.
During the early days on the ranch he said his wife and he were not
interested in dancing, and who would be after plowing 2 1/2 acres per day with
a walking plow and keeping up with the daily chores, but he said there were
lots of dances in the community.
His favorite during the early days was working four horses on a breaking
plow, he said, with the four horses pulling and me pushing. He learned to do
blacksmithing because he was always too far away from one to get repairs.
In the year 1912 he reported that the family raised 600 bushels of wheat and
claimed a 65 bushel per acre average. In order to earn extra money he hauled
wool to market in a wagon to Miles City. He used four horses and nary a truck
was to be seen on the raod in the more than 60 mile trip. He said that
Sterling West had a truck, but most of the time it was broke down, and so the
horses and wagons were more reliable in those days.
Asked how he learned to speak the English language he replied, "Hard." But
he did say the best way to learn was to live with it. Coming to this country
he had learned Russian and Slovik, to read in three languages, but he forgot
one, Russian.
In conclusion of the interview, Frank was asked if there was anything else
that we should know, and he replied with his quick humor, "You already know too
much, about me, I think."
BIOGRAPHICAL:
Frank Pluhar was in Jordan the other day conducting business and stopped by
the Tribune office. Visiting with Frank was a pleasure and the following
interview with him was a result of that visit.
Frank Pluhar was born September 10, 1889 in the Ukraine, Russia, the son of
Joseph and Sophia Pluhar who were Czechoslovakian farmers in the Ukraine
Valley.
Frank went to the first and second grade and then for a time didn't go to
school because there was no teacher to teach beyond those grades. However,
when he was 14 he went to school one more year to a professional teacher who
could teach arithemetic. After this year if schooling Frank came with his
parents and brothers, Vrat, Bill, and Joe, and sisters, Lea, and Mary to the
United States, the year 1907. The family settled in Waggoner, South Dakota
where they farmed for three years. In 1910 the family decided to move to
Montana and the Skunk Arroyo country near Cohagen, north of Miles City
attracted their farming interests. Also the main attraction to their homestead
was the water. Early settlers used horses and wagons to carry water into homes
from the railroad section near the Pluhar ranch. The homestead is the section
where now, Frank's son, Phillip now lives and farms.
Having no funds for a school, the Pluhar family set about to earn something
toward that. Frank stated that they bought a thresher in 1915 and did custom
work with it and earned enough to build a school house. It was the Skunk
Arroyo School.
He told of the early days, fuel situation. We think fuel is hard to come by
now, but his story of how the men, women and children picked up buffalo bones
to burn in their kitchen stoves, and for heat, as well as burning buffalo chips
for heating and cooking, because there were no trees closer than 30 miles away
on the Big Dry. He said some families burned this type of fuel for as long as
15 years after he came to this country.
His father was a progressive farmer and in coming to Montana he brought with
him, five carloads of grain, hay, binding machinery, wagons, horses, cows,
chickens and geese. Frank said his father came out of Russia with about $7,000
of their money, but it was only worth one-half the price in this country. The
U.S. Immigration Laws were open at the time encouraging people from other
countries to come to the U.S. and the land of opportunity.
Frank went back to Dakota and there he met his wife, Theresa Bernek, who
then was 18 1/2 years old and shortly they were married there, on January 15,
1915. The wedding was held in her cousin's home with just the family present.
The couple had five children, Phillip, who lives at Cohagen, Emil who was
killed during World War II, Edwin who lives in Billings, John who farms near
Phillip at Cohagen, and Violet of Longview, Washington.
The couple farmed at Cohagen until about 1940 when they bought a home in
Miles City. Frank worked at Krumpe's Repair Shop in Miles City until about
1960 and was Sexton at the Custer County Cemetery for a number of years.
The couple continued to live in Miles City until 1974 when his wife passed
away. Since that time he has lived at the Phillip Pluhar ranch at Cohagen, or
with his daughter, Violet Long at Long View, Washington.
Frank enjoys fish, not fishing, especially smoked smelts. For his
entertainment he enjoys making inlaid necktie clasps, playing his accordian
occasionally and gardening.
During the early days on the ranch he said his wife and he were not
interested in dancing, and who would be after plowing 2 1/2 acres per day with
a walking plow and keeping up with the daily chores, but he said there were
lots of dances in the community.
His favorite during the early days was working four horses on a breaking
plow, he said, with the four horses pulling and me pushing. He learned to do
blacksmithing because he was always too far away from one to get repairs.
In the year 1912 he reported that the family raised 600 bushels of wheat and
claimed a 65 bushel per acre average. In order to earn extra money he hauled
wool to market in a wagon to Miles City. He used four horses and nary a truck
was to be seen on the raod in the more than 60 mile trip. He said that
Sterling West had a truck, but most of the time it was broke down, and so the
horses and wagons were more reliable in those days.
Asked how he learned to speak the English language he replied, "Hard." But
he did say the best way to learn was to live with it. Coming to this country
he had learned Russian and Slovik, to read in three languages, but he forgot
one, Russian.
In conclusion of the interview, Frank was asked if there was anything else
that we should know, and he replied with his quick humor, "You already know too
much, about me, I think."
Events
| Birth | 10 Dec 1889 | , Ukraine, Russia |
Families
| Father | Joseph Pluhar |
| Mother | Sophia Jelinek |
| Sibling | William Pluhar (1886 - ) |
| Sibling | Ludmila (Lea) Pluhar (1900 - 2001) |
| Sibling | Joe Pluhar (1901 - ) |
| Sibling | Mary Pluhar |