. . . click on any image to enlarge . . . please email noel@aungst.net with questions or comments :)

Pioneer Village (there and back again) - October 25, 2008

We started our adventure Friday evening by driving to North Platte, Nebraska and staying at our favorite hotel chain, Motel 6. This one ain't so great, by the way. This town has lots of hotels to choose from and all advertising very cheap prices. I think we'll choose otherwise next time. Nonetheless, we stay two nights as our base of operations for our Pioneer Village and other Squished Penny collecting.

Up at 7a and off to Minden, NE, only two hours away . . .

Diana and Noel before entering Pioneer Village

The "big room" . . . first taste of exihibits

The oldest cars are here . . . lots more to come

Example of information posted on nearly every item

Electric generator

. . . cool!

Simplicity!

. . . all hangin' out

Diana viewing a doll display.

Blood letting kit

Doctors surgery kit

Switchboard

Part of cash register display

Yep, from Fort Collins, CO. I remember the story that now that FC has resurected the street cars they had to buy many of them back.

Over the door to the other village circle of buildings

It's may seem like Pioneer Village is mostly old cars. It's true that the largest square footage is devoted to cars but they do not represent the largest number of items by a long shot. It's hard to say what our favorite room or item is here. It may be the purely overwhelming number of items that is the significance of this Village.

Looking across the "village" circle to the church

Labeled tree (most are) in front of sod house

In one of the sod house rooms

Opposite side of the main room

Front corner of the same room

Just one corner of a room in the next building

Ahhh . . . Women's work is never done . . .

Diana remembering her youth (no, really!)

Wanna buy one, don't cha?

Just a few of the treadle sewing machines

History of washing machines

So you saw what the women did . . . now men's hobbies :)

Collecting . . . Salt shakers . . .

. . . ceramics shoes . . .

. . . logo'd pens and pencils . . .

. . . steins . . .

. . . buttons and ???

Country store

In it's front window

Along one wall in the store

Firehouse and locomotive along the circle

This is where Diana would work

United States map from the early 1830s - No Wyoming, Montana, Arizona . . .

Noel acting as engineer

Back in the main building to rest in warmth.

School house on the circle. The building that started Pioneer Village.

School's First Aid Kit

Diana leaving the school room on her electric cart. Pioneer Village water tower in the rear.

Inside the Village church (Lutheran)

Pipe Organ

Services every Sunday

To the outer group of buildings next. The first and largest has the biggest variety of any. One could spend hours in just this building. There are only a couple of the sample rooms photo'd. The second floor had many items priced as they where when purchased. An area of political items and a Senator office was also shown.

Evolution of band instruments

Tube radios

Various styles of pianos (this is only a few of the displayed specimens)

Druggest

Beauty shop

Stacks of donated computers yet to be cataloged.

Ham radio display

Folding bed

Bed carriage

Compter Room

Kitchen along the years. They also dispalyed the same years for Bedrooms and Living Rooms. This is 1830

1860

1890

1910

1930

1950

1980

A short break and a stop at the Squished Penny machine

There resturant. Quaint.

The Squished Penny against a placemat

On our way back inside the Village

A display of rocks

Diana's fav

Closer look . . .

After a break for lunch we go outside again . . .

Colorful tractor seats around a rest stop

Farm machinery

Row of rakes

A donated collection of name plates. 15 panels

Along a row of tractors

Front of the row

Work trucks on one side and snow blowers along the other

Power wood cutting and splitting

A craftsman making brooms for sale. He's alive :)

Buggys

Sleds

Horses from various carousels

Fancier buggys

Diana peeking in a stage coach

Rows of cars . . . arranged by manufacturer

. . . and more

More . . .

A travel trailer

Parking meters

More cars

more . . .

another

Big touring car

Another line of autos

More . . .

some more . . .

Cool grill!

Some foreign cars

The first snow-mobile

Snowmobiles

Desotos

Barbed Wire

Plows and cultivators

Monkey wrenches

To more ag displays

Blacksmithy

Anvil and . . .

Forge

Tack shop

Pony Express Station

One of hundreds of quilts on display

No pictures of the dozens of clay sculptures, the attire from each decade starting in 1830 or many fill-in-blank displays we only briefly looked at. We will be going back . . . someday.

We did find some Squished Pennys in few other places on the way back. Two locations of known machines was closed when we got there :(

The Gateway Arch over I-80

Banners on all the poles in Kearny . . .

On the way into the display. Three Squished Pennys gotten here.

Cabela's in Kearny

Diana at the Cabela's Squished Penny machine

Golden Spike Tower (closed) in North Platte. The tower looks like a RR spike.

THE cleanest restrooms on I-80 . . . tall claim!

Cabela's in Sydney, NE

This Cabela's Squished machine

Last stop on the way home . . .

On the way home, Sunday, we stopped at the Boulder First UMC to walk it's labyrinth.

The labyrith in the basement of the church. Very nice.