NEBRASKA STATE HISTORICAL SOCIETY MANUSCRIPT FINDING AID
RG3706.AM: Spurlock-Shrimpton Family
Papers: 1884-1946
Nebraska City, Gage County; Salem, Richardson County; and Ainsworth, Brown County, Neb.: Entrepreneur, mill owner
Size: 2 folders
BACKGROUND NOTE
Frank W. Shrimpton was born in DeKalb, Illinois on December 29, 1874. His parents, George Shrimpton and Ann (Freeman) Shrimpton immigrated to the United States from England in 1862. George was engaged in the milling business, and passed his knowledge to his son, Frank, as he grew up around mills and the milling industry. For a short time the family remained in Illinois, then moved to Nebraska, settling at various times in Nebraska City, Blue Springs, Caldwell, and York, Nebraska, where George took the contract for installing the machinery in the new York Steam Mill, c.1883-1884. In 1888 the family moved to Salem, Nebraska. The people of the town had agreed to present George Shrimpton with the land if he would build a new mill on the site where the previous mill had burned in 1885.
On November 21, 1900, Frank married Maude Spurlock of Salem, and having bought an interest in a mill in Greenwood, Wisconsin, moved there with his new wife. Two daughters, Janice and Virginia, were born to the couple. In December of 1912 the family returned briefly to Salem, then traveled on to begin the Shrimpton Milling Co. with Frank’s brother, Ben, in Ainsworth, Nebraska. Frank retired and sold the operation in 1941, and died on June 10, 1952.
SCOPE AND CONTENT NOTE
This collection relates to the life of Frank Shrimpton, and consists principally of his reminiscences, “The Story of My Life,” architectural drawings by E.P. Allis & Co., and photographs. The materials have been arranged into two series: 1) Manuscripts, and 2) Photographs. The reminiscences are incomplete, having been begun in 1946, but taking the narrative only to the year 1919. George Shrimpton worked for E.P. Allis & Co. in the 1880s and had the contract for installing the machinery in the York mill (see pp. 6-7 of the reminiscences), which may explain how the architectural drawings came into the Shrimpton family’s possession. The story behind the ribbon from the Three Oaks reception for President McKinley can be found on pp. 24-26. Some incidents in the autobiography are documented in the photographs.
DESCRIPTION
Folder 1
Series 1 – Manuscripts
The Story of My Life, c. 1946 [typescript, 34 p.]
Three Oaks reception ribbon, 1899
Miscellaneous printed materials and clippings
6 drawings on linen (scale 1/4″ to 1′) for Montgomery & Carnahan roller mill, York, Nebraska, est. 1883. By E.P. Allis & Co., Milwaukee, Wisc., W.D. Gray, Rolling Engineer. (See OB086)
Series 2 – Photographs
Photographs
ADDED ENTRIES:
Ainsworth (Neb.) — History
Brown County (Neb.) — History
E.P. Allis & Co. (Milwaukee, Wisc.)
Milling — Nebraska — Ainsworth
Milling — Nebraska — York
Montgomery & Carnahan (York, Neb.)
Reminiscences
Salem (Neb.) — History
Shrimpton, Frank W. (Frank William), 1874-1952
Shrimpton family
Spurlock family
York (Neb.) — History
KFK 07-21-1995; 11-15-1995
11-18-2009 Revised TMM
