Individual Details
Mary Ella Fronk
(14 Mar 1870 - 5 Jun 1965)
Omaha World-Herald, Omaha, Nebraska, Monday, June 7, 1965, Page 28, Col. 6: Jesse's Gang Defended Her. Pioneer Woman Dies; Services Tuesday. Funeral service will be at 2 p.m. Tuesday for Mrs. Mary Norlem, 95, who came west in a covered wagon. She died Saturday.
Her early life included fording the Missouri in a prairie schooner, dealing with both friendly and hostile Indians, and receiving protection from Jesse James' gang of outlaws.
Mrs. Norlem was born in Henry County, Ill., on March 17, 1870. In the summer of 1871 her parents moved west to a farm near Circleville, Kans.
In Civil War
Her father, D. D. Fronk, had been a volunteer in the Union Army during the Civil War.
One surviving son, Morris Norlem of Minneapolis, Minn., said: "Mother often said of Jesse James: "They can say bad things about him now, but many's the night he would have a man protect the cabin from Indians while father was gone."
Mary Fronk married James Norlem in Councils Bluffs on November 6, 1895. Mr. Norlem, a contractor, helped rebuild Ralston after a tornado struck it in 1913, according to relatives.
Broken Hip
He died in 1935. Mrs. Norlem lived with relatives until 1963, when she was admitted to the Masonic Home in Plattsmouth. She broke her hip in a fall there May 25.
Services will be at the Florence Christian Church. Caldwell Funeral Home of Plattsmouth, is handling arrangements.
Besides sons, James, of Garden City, Kans., and Morris, survivors include: Brother, D. S. Fronk, Beaver, Okla.; daughters, Mrs. William (Harris) Hayes, and Mrs. E. F. (Elva) Goodenkauf, both of Omaha , and Mrs. T. J. (Helen) LaGess, Gordon, Neb.; six grandchildren and 17 great-grandchildren.
Her early life included fording the Missouri in a prairie schooner, dealing with both friendly and hostile Indians, and receiving protection from Jesse James' gang of outlaws.
Mrs. Norlem was born in Henry County, Ill., on March 17, 1870. In the summer of 1871 her parents moved west to a farm near Circleville, Kans.
In Civil War
Her father, D. D. Fronk, had been a volunteer in the Union Army during the Civil War.
One surviving son, Morris Norlem of Minneapolis, Minn., said: "Mother often said of Jesse James: "They can say bad things about him now, but many's the night he would have a man protect the cabin from Indians while father was gone."
Mary Fronk married James Norlem in Councils Bluffs on November 6, 1895. Mr. Norlem, a contractor, helped rebuild Ralston after a tornado struck it in 1913, according to relatives.
Broken Hip
He died in 1935. Mrs. Norlem lived with relatives until 1963, when she was admitted to the Masonic Home in Plattsmouth. She broke her hip in a fall there May 25.
Services will be at the Florence Christian Church. Caldwell Funeral Home of Plattsmouth, is handling arrangements.
Besides sons, James, of Garden City, Kans., and Morris, survivors include: Brother, D. S. Fronk, Beaver, Okla.; daughters, Mrs. William (Harris) Hayes, and Mrs. E. F. (Elva) Goodenkauf, both of Omaha , and Mrs. T. J. (Helen) LaGess, Gordon, Neb.; six grandchildren and 17 great-grandchildren.
Events
| Birth | 14 Mar 1870 | Annawan, Henry Co., Illinois |  | ||
| Marriage | 6 Nov 1895 | Council Bluffs, Pottawattamie Co., Iowa - James Morris Norlem | | ||
| Death | 5 Jun 1965 | Omaha, Douglas Co., Nebraska | | ||
| Burial | Springwell Cemetery, Omaha, Douglas Co., Nebraska | |
Families
| Spouse | James Morris Norlem (1858 - 1935) |
| Child | Sara J. Norlem (1899 - 1940) |
Endnotes
6. Find A Grave.
7. Obituary of Mary Ella Fronk Norlem, Omaha World-Herald, Omaha, Nebraska, Monday, June 7, 1965, Page 28, Col. 6.
8. Find A Grave.