How many people have their own eponymous town? Mine is the village of Steinauer, Nebraska. I've come across some old pictures, so I'm going to start uploading these and other photos to this gallery. We'll see where it leads.

Steinauer, Nebraska was founded back around 1850 by three Swiss immigrant brothers. One of those guys was my great grandfather (or is it great- great?). This is where I first helped butcher a steer, saw a real, authentic log cabin, figured out what a Knights of Columbus hall was for, bought ice cold bottles of Coke (5 cents), and visited a tavern.

This is a photo I took the last time I was in Steinauer -- for a large family reunion, including a few dozen relatives from Switzerland. My grandfather ran the bank (and built this building, I assume.) When I was a kid, that little white shed at the back of the bank (on the left) was the town's telephone switch; it was always going click-click-click-kerchunk. I only discovered on my last trip that the second floor of the bank building was the Steinauer Opera House. (OK, I'm not sure they called it that, but, hey, any town with a band gazebo should have an opera house, right?) While exploring the room, I discovered several old hand-painted scene backgrounds and a tin-tile covered wall where the actors in each play signed their names. The biggest suprise was the discovery of my father's signature for several plays put on in the 1920's. Cool, huh?

Great-(great-?)Grandfather Joseph Steinauer




Dad (Jerome J. Steinauer)