under construction
the foale family
a little about peter foale
From the book Stories of Settlers Along the Nemaha, by Doralyn Steiner Cheney (published by the Table Rock Historical Society):
Up North on the North Fork
It is elsewhere that one reads about an early pioneer on the North Fork missed by the census enumerator. Peter Foale arrived in Nebraska Territory on the 4th of July of 1856 (Chapman Brothers, 455). He selected land along the Nemaha River one mile south of the Johnson County line and five miles north of the “partially laid out” town of Table Rock. At that time, he had only one neighbor in sight, Artemis Armstrong. Mr. Armstrong, who was found by the census enumerator, lived a half mile away.
Peter Foale was born in Devonshire, England, the son of William Foale, a stone mason, who died when Peter was fifteen years old. In 1848 when Peter was 26 years old, he and his brother, William, sailed from Liverpool, England to the United States. When they arrived in New York City, Peter was “ill with a high fever. He was hospitalized. His brother, William, was informed that Peter had died and was buried, so the brother took the trunk containing all the money, clothing and went on” (Brand Irons). Peter recovered from his illness and worked his way to Ohio. There he married Susan Hewitt. From Ohio they migrated to Illinois and on to St. Joseph, Missouri. Peter and Susan had two sons: Oscar, born in 1850 and another son, William, who died in infancy (Chapman Brothers, 455).
During his first fall in Nebraska, Foale sheltered himself in “rail shanty.” It was described as being a dugout that was covered with rails and hay (Brand Irons). A year or two later the shanty and all of its contents were destroyed by a prairie fire that swept through the area after jumping the Nemaha River. Thereafter, he built a small log cabin in which he and his family lived for the next ten years.
After coming to Nebraska, Foale continued to work at his trade as a stone mason in Forest City and St. Joseph, Missouri. He walked thirty miles to Brownville to catch the ferry for St. Joseph. He came home once a month and carried a sack of flour or sugar on his shoulder (Brand Irons). Over time, he purchased additional land. He would eventually own a total of 760 acres along the Nemaha, “one of the most valuable homesteads in this region” (Chapman Brothers, 455).
In her 1939 memoir about the Bunker Hill neighborhood ("North Table Rock"), Elsie Pepoon Sutton described neighbor Peter Foale and how important he was to that neighborhood.
Elsie pepoon sutton's 1933 history of the original table rock
In 1933, Elsie Pepoon Sutton interviewed people about their memories of the original Table rock. In the course of her interviews, she also gathered local history about other matters. They included the following:
John R. Allen, born in 1846, was 87 in 1933. He came to Long Branch in 1865 but moved to the Howe farm in the Bunker Hill neighborhood in the fall of 1866. John Allen said that when his family moved to the Bunker Hill neighborhood, Peter Foale lived in a log house down on the creek, below their place. "It was not as big as our log house," said Mr. Allen. "[Rev.] Giddings said Mrs. Foale had to stoop to get into Foale's log house. He [Rev. Giddings] and Peter didn't like each other very well."
John R. Allen, born in 1846, was 87 in 1933. He came to Long Branch in 1865 but moved to the Howe farm in the Bunker Hill neighborhood in the fall of 1866. John Allen said that when his family moved to the Bunker Hill neighborhood, Peter Foale lived in a log house down on the creek, below their place. "It was not as big as our log house," said Mr. Allen. "[Rev.] Giddings said Mrs. Foale had to stoop to get into Foale's log house. He [Rev. Giddings] and Peter didn't like each other very well."