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Solving the mural mystery
The mural mystery has been solved!
The large German Heritage Days' murals, discovered during preparations for the 2007 celebration, were painted by Ethel Weigel, a McCook artist of note during the mid-part of the 20th century.
We were informed of this last Thursday, immediately after a color photograph of one of the murals appeared on the front page of the Gazette. Several readers called to tell me Ethel did the painting.
"She not only did paintings," said her son, Otto Weigel Jr. "She also did statue restoration work for Catholic churches in the area."
Ethel's friend and neighbor, Kay Clesson, said Mrs. Weigel's many creations include murals she did for the McCook United Methodist Church and for the home of U.S. Sen. Ben Nelson's parents, Ben and Birdella.
The Methodist Church mural covers the west wall of the Youth Center on the top floor of the church. It was painted in 1958, nearly a half century ago. It has been refurbished. "I couldn't make it up the stairs, so Muschi Mues of Holbrook did the repair work," Kay said.
Ivan Schmid says Ethel painted the German Heritage Days murals in the early 1970s, soon after German Heritage Days became an annual event in McCook. Ethel would have been in her 60s at the time as she was born Aug. 2, 1908 in Trenton and died Feb. 10, 1990, in McCook.
"The murals were mounted on a trailer and pulled down the street in the parade," Ivan said. "That's the reason Ethel did two murals. She wanted them visible from both sides of the street." After several years of use in the German Heritage parades, the murals were retired and stored in Mr. and Mrs. Joe Uhrich's garage at 803 Sunset Road. They later were moved to where the Santa Claus Lane decorations are stored.
Now that the murals have been re-discovered, they may be featured in future Heritage Day parades. Ivan and Pam Harsh, executive director of the McCook Area Chamber of Commerce, are already talking about that possibility with members of the Heritage Days committee.
Parade use would be fitting. After all, heritage is the reason we celebrate and the treasured murals are excellent expressions of the festival's beginning.
Old Fashioned Bar Shampoo
The next time you visit a trendy shop, such as a Cracker Barrel restaurant or a place like Knowlen & Yates in McCook, check to see if they have a specialty product called "J.R. Liggett's Old-Fashioned Bar Shampoo."
"Why?," you wonder. Well, the reason is that the old-fashioned bar shampoo was conceived and is packaged and promoted by a 1966 graduate of McCook High School, J.R. "Jim" Liggett.
"I had been with a New York City ad agency, Ogilvy & Mather, for 10 years when my wife and I decided to go out on our own. As a youngster, I had learned to make bar soap while staying with my great-aunt, Ann Anderson, in the community of Denman between Kearney and Grand Island. I continued to make soap through the years, and became excited about the possibilities after discovering a soap and shampoo formula in an old cookbook."
Thus, in 1982, after Jim and Diane moved to a scenic 58-acre farm on the Connecticut River near Cornish, N.H., they launched their new company featuring old-fashioned bar shampoo. In the 25 years since then, the business has expanded to the point that their products are distributed internationally. "We do all our own production," Jim said. "Nothing is made overseas." The firm continues to expand, recently launching a pet shampoo, called "Fergie" in honor of the Liggetts' dog.
Long-time residents of the McCook area may remember the Liggett family. Jim's father was Gene Liggett, manager of the SCS office in McCook for a number of years. Gene and his wife, Rosalie, had four children: Jim, Ron, Mary Ann and Dorothy.
"I feel fortunate to have grown up in Nebraska," Jim said. "I learned a lot of good, basic standards to take with me as I travel the roadways of life."
We're proud of you, too, Jim. Because, as we can see, you've made a big contribution to clean living.