My mother and father, Conrad and Laurene Erickson, moved to Meadowlark from Autumn Wood, a retirement community in Lincoln, Neb., in 1997. They had moved to Lincoln from their farm near Wahoo, Neb. about 10 years earlier. I don’t think Autumn Wood had the level of care that Meadowlark has, so my brother encouraged them to move here.

My dad needed a physician in Manhattan, so I took him to Dr. Gardner, who was my primary care physician. Dr. Gardner liked to visit, asked my dad how he spent his time. He said he watched TV and did some reading. Dr. Gardner asked my dad if he had ever thought about writing his history. He said there were some times in his life he would like to forget. He was born in 1907, and grew up during the depression years. The next time I went to visit my dad at Meadowlark, there was a spiral notebook on the dining room table. At some time in his life, he started to write his history, but it stopped about 1929 or shortly after that. Below is Chapter V about Early Automobiles.

Chapter V – Automobiles

My father’s first car was a Carter car. It was high in the air, and had leather upholstered seats. The body was built of wood. It had a double folding windshield enclosed in brass. There were two brass rods supporting down and front.

It had massive brass Prest-O-Lite head lamps. There was a Prest-O-Lite pressure tank on one running board. To light the lamps, you had to loosen a burr, open the hinged glass doors, go turn on the gas, then hold a lighted match to the element, go back and adjust the gas, then go close the glass doors and lock it with the burr.

 The car had a fairly good engine, but a very poor transmission. There was a cross-shaft with a sliding wheel with a fiber band that made contact with a fly wheel about 2 feet in diameter. It had a flat brass surface. When contact was made at the outer edge of the fly wheel, you would attain maximum speed. Close to the center would give maximum power. Sliding the fiber-covered wheel past dead center gave you reverse. There was a lot of energy lost due to friction. Power was transmitted to the differential and rear wheels by means of a chain.

Turning a corner and climbing a steep hill was impossible. On the corner 2 miles north of the church, we never made it until dad backed up across the intersection part way up the hill to the east, and then made a run for it.

People have told me that in their first car the father had the family get out of the car and push up some of the steepest hills. We never had to go to that method.

We used the Carter car for five or six years. Dad never traded it in on the next car. I don’t think the dealer would take it. He eventually sold it to our cousin, Ed Mohlberg, for a $40 down payment.

Our next car was a seven passenger Studebaker with a four cylinder engine. It was durable, well built, and could climb all the hills since it had a conventional gear box. There were two small folding seats that could be pushed under the rear seat and hid from view.

I first started to drive with this car, probably at the age of 10 (1917). One did not need a driver’s license then. I don’t think there was any age limit.

I was about 11 (1918) when Father had eye trouble. One eye had an abscess, and he was seeing a doctor in Lincoln, about 25 miles south of our farm. Hjalmer, my older brother, was left at home to do the field work so it became my job to drive to Lincoln every other day. We drove the 14th street road to within a block and a half of the Doctor’s office. Then we took right turns around the block and came back home. We had no mishaps or scrapes of any kind. I guess I felt my responsibility and was very careful.

One day we were in a heavy rain storm when we were on our way home from Lincoln. There was very little gravel on the roads in those days. Dad told me to turn in a farmer’s driveway. The farmer was standing in the driveway waiting for us. He motioned for us to drive into the driveway of his corn crib for protection. He took us in, gave us food and lodging, and the next morning the sun was shining, and we went home on firm roads. No doubt Mother had been praying for us all night.

Two years later (1920) it again became my responsibility to drive. This time for my mother who was scheduled to have surgery at Immanuel Hospital in Omaha, about 35 miles east of our farm. Father was along, of course. He arranged for us to us to stay at a boarding house next to the hospital. The car remained parked until we could go home, and I just killed time being kidded by the other boarders. They could not believe that I was the driver. They tried to hire me to take them downtown, but of course I did not dare, nor was I allowed to do that. They were all watching, however, the day I got behind the wheel and we drove off.

The seven-passenger Studebaker lasted until 1924 when father traded it for our first new car. It was also a Studebaker, a six-cylinder five-passenger touring car. A few sedans were on the market, but they were seen only in Lincoln and Omaha.

There were now four drivers in our family and the new car was a real status symbol. The top was fastened only behind the back doors and to the windshield. There were rods to hold the side curtains and they opened with the doors.

The car did not come equipped with a heater, but what you have never had, you don’t really miss.

One device that was popular at this time was a cutout*. We purchased one and installed it ourselves. Making a lot of noise was the thing to do. City ordinance forbid it being open in city limits.

This car gave good service for about four years. It was the last of the touring cars. I believe my brother Hjalmar had a Model A Ford roadster later on.

*Note: About this time exhaust heaters were becoming available but they were very bad to pollute the air in the car. A cutout was a device installed on the exhaust pipe in front of the muffler. It had a door that could be opened from the driver’s seat. An opening must be made in the exhaust pipe.