Historical Figures of Johnson County Portrayed at Cemetery Walk

The Johnson County Historical Society Museum conducted a Cemetery Walk at the Tecumseh Cemetery on July 3 and 4. Six local citizens portrayed different individuals at five sites in the cemetery. The portrayals focused on events in the lives of those individuals and the reasons why they are remembered.
Ben Buffum, portrayed by Bob Curry
Ben Buffum was the first United States rural mail carrier. Route #1 left the Tecumseh Post Office on November 7, 1896 and ran south and east over a 27 mile stretch. Buffum delivered nine pieces of mail on that first trip. In January 1897, Buffum's third month on the job, he delivered 283 letters, 29 post cards and 15 packages. He sold 626 two-cent stamps.
Buffum was born in 1861 in Knox County, Illinois. He and his parents moved to Johnson County, Nebraska and settled on a farm 4 ½ miles south of Tecumseh. In addition to farming, Buffum's father ran a mercantile store. Buffum had a passion for horses and began working in a livery stable for a living. Buffum married Mary Mannie Halsted and since the Buffums had no children of their own, they helped raise Bertha, the daughter of Charles and Fanny Buffum, after her parents died of an illness.
On November 17, 1896 Ben Buffum recited an oath of office as the first rural mail carrier in Tecumseh. When the weather and road conditions were favorable, Buffum would deliver the mail by horse and buggy. If the roads were bad or there were inclement weather conditions, Buffum would ride a good horse with the mail tucked in saddle bags. Buffum served as a rural mail carrier in Tecumseh for two years at $25 dollars a month.
AP Fitzsimmons, portrayed by Tom Morrissey
Dr. AP Fitzsimmons was responsible for the development of the R.E.A. (Rural Electrification Act) at the local level. He proceeded in establishing the first public power district in 1936. The act helped create the state's unified, community-owned power network by 1949. Nebraska became and remains the only all-public power state in the nation.
Upon his return, Fitzsimmons became Surgeon General of the Nebraska National Guard. He was once again appointed to serve in an island of the Philippines and later became the mayor of Manilla. Upon his return to Tecumseh this time, Fitzsimmons was delegated to serve in the Nebraska State Legislature, which had two Legislative houses at that time. In 1914, Fitzsimmons was sent back to the Philippines for a third time, this time to establish the first tuberculosis hospital in the world.
Fitzsimmons was elected mayor of Tecumseh in 1923 and, as the 1930s came in, Fitzsimmons was instrumental in helping US Senator George Norris of Nebraska along with other senators and congressmen, in gaining access to electricity as a means of revolutionizing the rural way of life. A $1.5 million grant in federal funds was distributed for the construction of the Rural Electrification Act through this area of Nebraska and, upon a directive from Washington, DC, a switch was flipped at the Tecumseh Power Plant providing electricity to citizens of rural Tecumseh.
Mrs. LM Oldfield, portrayed by Pat Bane
Mrs. Louisa Maria Oldfield, grandmother of Pat Bane who portrayed her, was the first hat lady in Tecumseh. Her hat shop was located in a house to the east of the current jail. Bane fondly remembers playing hide and seek in Mrs. Oldfield's Hat Shop and believing her grandmother could always find her because of all the glass eyes from the mannequins watching her.
Mrs. EE Hesse, portrayed by Karen Johns and Wauneta Laverne McMaster, her daughter, portrayed by Jennfier Martens
Mrs. Hesse and her daughter “Verne” McMaster were the first murder victims in Tecumseh. Mrs. Hesse's second husband, EE Hesse, struck each one down, dropped their bodies into a well, filled the well with dirt and set the house on fire.
James Clutter, who hauled the dirt, was suspicious when Mr. Hesse left town. Clutter contacted both city and county officials to investigate, but neither entity moved forward. Therefore, Clutter and some of his friends decided to do their own investigation, at nighttime so as not to create a scene. The bodies were eventually found three months later at the bottom of the well located on the west edge of Tecumseh. Although several searches for Mr. Hesse were conducted, he was never apprehended.
Captain AD Flanagan, portrayed by Steve Mercure
Captain Augustin Flanagan was a Civil War Congressional Medal of Honor recipient. He served during the Civil War in the Union Army as a Sergeant in Company A, 55th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry. He was awarded the Civil War Congressional Medal of Honor for his bravery at Chaffin's Farm, Virginia on September 29, 1964. His citation reads: “Gallantly in the charge on the enemy's works: rushing forward with the colors and calling upon the men to follow him; was severely wounded.” His medal was awarded on April 6, 1865.
Flanagan was a native of Pennsylvania who served under four generals in the Civil War. After the Civil War, Flanagan remained in Tecumseh until his death on January 21, 1924. Many from Pennsylvania stopped by Flanagan's grave to pay him homage for his efforts during the Civil War.