As the United States mobilized for World War I, local draft boards across the country were tasked with meeting quotas to supply soldiers for the war effort. In Nemaha County, Kansas, this process played out in the pages of the Courier Democrat, offering a detailed look at how communities responded to the Selective Service Act.
In its August 16, 1917 edition, the newspaper reported that the county had not yet met its initial quota of 113 men and would need to summon 226 more in a second round of calls. Most of those named were young, single men—many of whom had filed agricultural or industrial exemption claims. Despite those efforts, the article suggested that few would be able to avoid service.
The published list of names paints a powerful picture of a rural Kansas community on the brink of major change, as ordinary citizens were called upon to serve in a global conflict. These clippings preserve a moment in time when local names became part of a much larger story.
TO CALL 226 MORE ON SELECTIVE DRAFT
We Print List of Men Who Will Be Summoned on the Second Call To Fill Quota
Out of the 226 men called on the first summons for men, there are not more than 76 at the most in sight and probably not that many. The 76 includes for the greater part men who have filed agricultural claims and men who made no claims. Likely some of the men who made agricultural claims will be able to make their claim stick. However, the Board is lucky if it gets 60 men out of the first 226. For this reason the second call, true to the form shown in other counties, is for the full 40 percent quota, which amounts to 113 men.
The Board said Tuesday that the names printed below are official. They print from the official list number 226, in the order in which they will be required to appear:
Summoned Monday, August 20
1139, Frank J. Loeffler, Seneca
676, Fred Kruger, Seneca
944, Wm. G. Walters, Bancroft
122, D. Hurst Fitzgerald, Seneca
642, Alva L. Rucker, Corning
939, James G. Karns, Ontario
222, Edw. E. Morris, Sabetha
906, Ellsworth Tibbetts, Pawnee
1337, Bert Lockhart, Goff
700, Percy G. Johnson, Goff
1250, Bermin DeBord, Centralia
1195, Benedict Rettele, Seneca
297, Wm. H. Harris, Sabetha
321, Vernie Ashley, Sabetha
736, Henry H. Meier, Bern
707, Richard Christianson, Bern
1245, Joseph P. McGrath, Axtell
1002, Walter Furnish, Goff
1151, Geo. H. Droge, Seneca
1101, Wm. E. Smith, Oneida
368, Floyd Atkinson, Oneida
974, Harry H. Bell, Wetmore
220, Fred Lamparter, Sabetha
926, John M. Howard, Pawnee
1010, Ivan K. Johnson, Goff
919, Willie G. Theis, Axtell
656, Frank D. Steele, Jr., Goff
1389, John Wiltz, Sabetha
314, Glenn Wilson, Centralia
1175, John F. Drier, Seneca
1070, John Weber, Seneca
738, Bennie R. Blute, Bern
1167, Emil Lenz, Bern
1097, Chas. H. McCall, Oneida
1191, Amos Smith, Seneca
1234, John G. Kokojan, Seneca
1360, Geo. W. Proctor, Sabetha
648, Wm. J. Sherlock, Centralia
1118, Jim R. Cox, Kelly
121, Sam’l E. Staver, Seneca
1221, John E. Wilson, Sabetha
1414, H. L. Bergman, Baileyville
292, Robert Lichty, Sabetha
Karl H. Gaston, Centralia
504, Harry E. McCabe, Corning
1044, Herman Hess, Oneida
1061, Henry Gudenkauf, Seneca
1201, Raleigh Croxton, Goff
470, Edwin L. Bailey, Goff
312, Melvin O. Johnson, Sabetha
1284, Herman Boeding, Kelly
1179, Geo. E. Schmitz, Seneca
753, Hugo C. McAlpine, Bern
130, Alvin R. Rogers, Seneca
385, Wm. M. Steele, Centralia
163, Phillip J. Weyant, Seneca
1023, John B. Dunning, Goff
424, A. J. Wenger, Sabetha
840, Glenn Maneval, Centralia
1347, Edwin Myrick, Sabetha
Elihu Martiney, DuBois
657, Elmer Massey, Goff
175, Milton B. Williams, Seneca
John Bungard, Sabetha
278, Winfield S. Hay, Sabetha
1240, Jos. G. Hedeman, Seneca
524, George A. Brun, Corning
911, Fred A. Fields, Baileyville
1172, John F. Marsh, Bern
532, Fred Eisenbarth, Corning
- 23, Palmer F. Jones, Seneca
- 1173, Fred Haus, Seneca
- 331, Carl P. Ackerman, Sabetha
- 1108, Harlan F. Starns, Oneida
- 492, C. E. Shumaker, Wetmore
- 1201, Charles M. Vorhes, Seneca
- 565, Roy L. Cox, Kelly
- 800, Irvin H. Gallagher, Corning
- 1447, David Haynes, Baileyville
- 1049, C. G. Hasenkamp, Seneca
- 1442, Verne Detweiler, Vermillion
- 115, Andrew Mandes, Bern
- 961, Ray W. Cassity, Wetmore
- 398, Jake B. Russ, Corning
- 349, Lloyd O. Kreim, Sabetha
- 1227, Will Kammer, Seneca
- 1407, Frank A. Burdick, Seneca
- 501, Harry H. Geever, Wetmore
- 1091, Henry H. Stephens, Onaga
- 378, Marion E. Bergsten, Baileyville
- 753, Homer Pfister, Corning
- 346, John H. Hatch, Bern
- 1040, Frank H. Stewart, Seneca
- 1024, Jess G. Wilcox, Bancroft
- 1291, Henry Weber, Seneca
- 1212, Lee Taylor, Centralia
- 789, Fred Wade, Sabetha
- John H. Dunn, Oneida
- 1156, James Kelly, Seneca
- 1393, Ernest McClain, Goff
- Albert W. Mathewson, Seneca
- 978, Wm. E. Simmons, Wetmore
- 1260, Karl W. Ozias, Centralia
- 506, Aldo Livingood, Corning
- 1291, James L. Glenn, Goff
- 1272, Arvil J. Hewitt, Seneca
- 877, Frank M. Barber, Centralia
- 385, Dudley B. Quick, Berwick
- 681, Louis A. Swartz, Bancroft
- 713, Eli Meyer, Oneida
Summoned Wednesday, August 22
- 935, Geo. E. Bittman, Bancroft
- 1121, Eli Strahm, Goff
- 1150, Chris H. Katz, Seneca
- 450, Earl S. Hewitt, Wetmore
- 1390, Ward B. Aumiller, Sabetha
- 113, Harley E. Wilcox, Seneca
- Wm. H. Hill, Bern
- 1004, Levi M. Wesley, Bancroft
- Wm. G. Goff, Seneca
- 1034, Chas. W. Little, Goff
- 808, Chanler Post, America City
- 780, Delbert Channel, Soldier
- 364, Frank L. Ratzlaff, Seneca
- 267, Thos. J. Andrews, Sabetha
- 421, Jacob R. Groff, Bern
- 940, Verne Connor, Bancroft
- Geo. H. Stemmer, Seneca
- 1254, Wm. L. Coe, Centralia
- 169, Collins Wilkinson, Seneca
- 436, Willard Jones, Sabetha
- 396, Ulrich Strahm, Sabetha
- 898, Frank Hazeltine, Wetmore
- 1304, Ira L. Bobbitt, Oneida
- 1107, George Riley, Oneida
- Frank G. Milner, Centralia
- 862, Clyde Jones, Vermillion
- 1406, Gustav Kloepper, Baileyville
- 257, Peter Moreno, Sabetha
- 1109, Wm. F. Parrott, Oneida
- 155, Clyde H. Jenkins, Seneca
- Melvin H. Ewing, Sabetha
- Raymond S. Dean, Sabetha
- Joe McNally, Corning
- Harry Durland, Centralia
- Marshall Collins, Bancroft
- Ralph R. Shepherd, Seneca
- Frank T. Gockel, Baileyville
- Milton E. Mishler, Sabetha
- Charles W. Bigham, Sabetha
- Oliver F. Rokey, Oneida
- Henry B. Kuhlman, Kelly
- Edward L. Hund, Seneca
- Carl W. Leuze, Sabetha
- Joseph B. Burris, Seneca
- Warren S. Ash, Sabetha
- Paul L. Kirk, Axtell
- August H. F. Plinke, Seneca
- A. L. L. Scoville Jr., Seneca
- Charles Gaston, Centralia
- Frank H. Ronnebaum, Seneca
- Leland H. Holsiter, Sabetha
- Hubert W. Howland, Sabetha
- Clarence A. Alexander, Goff
- Ray C. Phillipi, Sabetha
- John Wegman, Sabetha
- Louis Kadleck, Hanover
- Joe V. Bueltel, Seneca
- Clarence Miller, Seneca
- Ernest Hanin, Bern
- Leroy C. Keeney, Onaga
- Benedict Oldering, Baileyville
- Edward H. Clark, Seneca
- Bennett Jones, Seneca
- Lawrence Lanning, Sabetha
- Joseph B. Lemkuhl, Kelly
- Forest D. Noble, Vermillion
- Walter J. Stevens, Seneca
- Edwin Armstrong, Centralia
- Frank A. Schmitz, Seneca
- Fred C. Patterson, Sabetha
- Clayton Brougher, Sabetha
- Matson M. Miller, Seneca
- Louis F. Vantvravers, Centralia
This call for 226 more men from Nemaha County serves as a poignant reminder of the local impact of a global war. Behind each name printed in the Courier Democrat was a life suddenly altered—young men leaving behind farms, families, and familiar routines to serve their country. For genealogists and local historians, these draft lists offer more than just names—they offer a window into the emotions, decisions, and sacrifices that shaped communities during World War I. As we reflect on this era, we honor not only those who served but also the towns that supported them.