Mabel Marie [Feyerherm] and Ozro Foster Dean

Mabel [1919-] born in Plainview NE, married Ozro in Orchard NE June 18, 1939, and left with Clark and Thelma Gustin for a honeymoon to Yellowstone Park and the San Francisco Exposition. The first stop on that trip was Casper WY and the famous fire proof Hotel Townsned. Opened in 1923 as a luxury palace, it can be seen on the left in the picture looking south on Center Street. The cost of a nights lodging was under $8 when it was abandoned in 1983 and put on the national historic registry. Voters rejected the idea of spending $16 million and adding 1 cent to sales tax to remodel it into a new 7th district courthouse in 2004 election. I was living in Casper in the early 1980's in a house that was built about 1910, but has since been torn down; it was on Collins Drive right across from the Northwestern Railroad repair shop which has also been removed along with the tracks.

Wyoming tales and trails.com

Yellowstone in 1939 was much like visiting today. The maximum highway speed is still 45 MPH, and the famous Fishing Bridge has not changed. A car could enter the park for $3 [more like $25 now], camping was free and a stay at the Old Faithful Inn started at $2.75 a day. Mabel made a painting depicting the Old Faithful eruption, much like this view taken in 2006.

 

They returned to Crawford NE, where Ozro taught at high school. Besides classroom studies. Ozro was a proficient trumpet player and liked directing the school marching band which he did later at Berwyn NE.

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Mabel attended high school in Royal NE [class of '37] and the principle in 1934 was Ozro! After graduation she went to complete 2 years of normal school at Wayne State Teachers College.

Fritz Borchardt, Superintendant with Ozro Dean, Principal, Royal Public School, 1934

 

Mabel wrote this verse in the eighth grade

Autumn

The trees are discarding their coats of green

And many gaudy colors instead can be seen

There is Miss Box Elder with her pretty gown

While little Evergreen frowns a big frown

What is the reason? Can't you guess?

She would like to have a new party dress!

Oak and Elm are as happy as can be

But they are no more beautiful than Miss Maple Tree.

The Party is started and when the end is near

Sadness will overwhelm them because the cold, clold winter will be here.

 

Music was another talent, as a child she gave a number of recitals on piano to the delight of the community, including one that was broadcast by the AM radio station. In 1932 the Royal Band performed on radio WJAG, Norfolk NE. Helen Hering was one of Mabel's classmates in the band and older sister to the performer Jeri Southern who became quite famous as a blues and jazz singer.

 

Ozro was at Broken Bow High School, class of 1927. He was in the school orchestra and probably played endless refrains of the school song. He also did debate, glee and served a term as president of the Dramatic Club.

For the 1930 census he was at Lincoln attending NU. He was staying in apartment rented by aunt Lottie Skinner for Ozro, sister Marge and cousin Wayne Skinner. Ozro graduated from the University of Nebraska BSEE. He went travelling with his buddy Clark Gustin after graduation. They got to Long Beach just in time to survive the March 10, 1933 earthquake, one of the largest to hit southern California. That was not enough to shake his preference for California life. Ozro taught at highshool, 1934 Royal, 1936-1938 Hooker County, 1939-1940 Crawford and 1941 Springfield Nebraska. His sister Mary married Marvin Mayo in 1940 when he worked at MGM studios and they lived at 1979 Whitley in the Hollywood Hills. Ozro and Mabel moved to Santa Monica CA but this was all disrupted by the Pearl Harbor attack and the coming of war. Both families returned to Nebraska. Marvin served in the military as a photographer and Ozro went to the Glenn L. Martin Nebraska Company in Omaha to be electrical assembly inspector on bomber aircraft. They lived at Papillion just outside Omaha and this is where Don was born.

Marvin Mayo, Cora and Leo Dean, Mary, Ozro at Santa Monica 1940

 

After the war, building supplies were scarce and Marvin had a barn taken down and shipped by rail from Nebraska. From that he built his home and camera shop located on Sepulveda Blvd in the San Fernando Valley. Meanwhile Ozro went back to Broken Bow, where he was electrical service inspector for the REA power, and other jobs including selling new Dodge cars and running for County Superintendent of Public Schools (he lost). Larry was born in Broken Bow. Finally he brokered a deal with the General Dynamics Corporation Convair Division to be engineer at a brand new naval missile factory being built in Pomona California. Dad took his final pay as 2 new Dodge cars, one silver gray sedan and a fire red convertible, and we were off to the west coast. (The last car he bought was a new 1992 silver gray Dodge Spirit, which still sits at my ranch). During the construction phase in 1951, offices were at the old Consolidated Vultee San Diego aircraft plant and we lived at Cardiff-by-the-Sea, staying at a shore-side motel run by one of Marvin's studio buddies. In later years, both families would return here for Thanksgiving or winter break get togethers.

 

Once the factory opened, we moved to a new subdivision in Ontario, on the grounds of a former orange grove. Our house was built to be a demo, but dad convinced them to let us move in, and the next house became the sales office. Several of the professional staff located in the same subdivision as the factory started up production. Growth was so strong we could only have partyline telephone service. I was trained to listen for a dial tone, because otherwise the line was in use, and you could eavesdrop. This was GTE (now Verison) service area and they were very progressive in offering direct dial service, but neighboring Pomona was Pacific Bell and there was a stiff long distance charge. In fact all long distance calling was quite expensive and calls to relatives living in Nebraska were always planned events.

 

There was an elementary school just a block away from the Ontario house, and the next year I started off to kindergarten. It was an old facility, my 6th grade was the 50th graduating class. The regulations in those days were that school structures that survived the '33 Long Beach quake were considered safe. After the Northridge quake that was reconsidered and many Ontario school building were affected. The first to be torn down was my school, and what was discovered was it was so strong it cost more to tear down than to build it originally. Except for the large glass windows, it would have withstood a direct thermonuclear hit. Then it was decided that these buildings were better repurposed to non-student uses. The oldest building on my high school campus was saved by turning it into offices, and its auditorium, which could only serve non-student functions became the home of the community band.

 

Mabel put her teaching skills to work as a substitute in the elementary and junior high schools. Among her favorite assignments was directing the band classes. Her oldest son had this family talent which he put to good use at the University of California Berkeley as student director for the marching band. Ozro's grandsons Kevin, Ryan and Jeremy all were talented at brass music in both concert and marching bands, with Jeremy earning his degree in Music.

 

2 children Donald Leo Dean [1942- ] and Larry Ozro Dean [1948- ]

Susan Marie [Keller] and Dr Donald Leo Dean

Sue [1948- ] married Don at Seattle WA. 2 living children, 2 grand children

Wileen Gay [Swisher] and Larry Ozro Dean

Willy [1950-] married Larry at Denver CO in 1970. 3 children, Jeremy Jason Dean [1972-], Corena Crystal Dean [1975-1996], and Benjamin Brady Dean [1979-]

Willy and Larry - 1970

 

Willy has re-married in 2002 to Mark Aurand [1959], residing in Garden City KS where they had the River of Life Karaoke, in 2005. Now have moved to Longmont CO.

Mark and Willy - 2003

Nikki Lynn [Marchman] and Jeremy Jason Dean

Nikki [1976-] married Jeremy in September 1999 at Lakewood CO. They have two boys, Connor Mathew [2003-] and Logan J [2006-] and live in Longmont CO. Jeremy has degree in Music Education performing his senior recital on french horn, but prefers working as service rep for Rogue Wave computer software.

Jeremy and Nikki - 2001

Dr. Naomi Jay [Dewey] and Benjamin Brady Dean

Naomi [1979-] married Ben in May 2001 at Manhattan KS. She is a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine graduate from KSU. They have 2 children Christopher [2003-], Johnathan Daniel [2005-] and moved to Portsmouth Ohio in 2008. Ben has his degree in Management Information Systems with minor in economics, KSU class of 2007.

Ben and Naomi wedding 2001, Jeremy is on the cell phone.

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