Douglas Firs grow to immense height and diameter in the Rocky Mountains and have been the principal lumber tree. They were never considered adaptable to the plains but this one of a group of four in the east yard of the old Bell home has reached a height of over 50 feet.

     This beautiful large Austrian Pine in the yard of Lumir Oborny (Lot 12, Blk 39) has an unusually broad spread for the specie.

     The Austrian Pine has proven to be well adapted to eastern Nebraska. This one in the yard of the Bell home is probably over 90 years old. It has grown straight and tall, a characteristic of this specie.

     This picture is of the north end of the row of Scotch Pines along the west side of Bellwood. These trees may be 90 years old. Scotch Pine do not get as tall nor as large as Austrian or Ponderosa Pine but they have long been a favorite in landscaping because of the picturesque shapes they take.

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     This Sycamore tree in front of St. Peter's Catholic Church is a beautiful specimen. It is listed as the state's biggest Sycamore in the last list of Nebraska champion trees. It was probably planted in 1890. There is a row of four very large Sycamores on the north side of Lot 1, Blk 7.

   An old landmark in the community was the large barn that stood on the east side of Bellwood, just south of the present. home of State Senator Loran Schmit.
   The barn, which measured 54 by 100 feet, was built in 1884. It provided space for 40 horses plus three large feed bins and a hay loft for 100 tons of prairie hay.
   From 1880 until 1893 Charles W. Derby, brother-in-law of J. D. Bell, founder of Bellwood, was foreman of the Henry Ranch, the name it was always referred to before the turn of the century. The ranch was owned by R. H. (Bob) Henry of Columbus, who for many years was mayor of Columbus.
   Early-day residents recalled that Charley Derby had exceptional ability in the selection and training of horses. The ranch became well known as a source of good driving and riding horses. Beautifully matched teams especially trained for women drivers were shipped in car lots to Chicago where they were sold for "park driving," a popular Sunday afternoon outing before the turn of the century. Also, many of the horses were trained for side-saddle riding by women.
   Mr. Derby made good use of his four daughters who were very much at home around horses and riding side-saddle in holiday parades in Bellwood. Many of the horses trained here were selected at North Platte where they had been rounded up from wild herds, which were plentiful in that area.
   In addition to the horse operations the ranch included section 5 in Olive Township which was used for summer range for sheep. Section 16 in Savannah Township was used for pasture for Hereford cattle. Section 17 provided prairie hay for the ranch. A full-time crew spent most of the summer mowing, raking, stacking and hauling hay.
   In the fall the herds were brought in to the ranch buildings for sorting and weaning. There were always plenty of onlookers for this event as it provided plenty of action and excitement for the local people and often visitors as well.
   Aside from its size one of the unique features of the big barn was the 16-foot wide alleyway which ran full length of the centerline of the building. This permitted two-horse teams to pass in the alleyway. The 20-foot wide lean to

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running full length of the south side of the barn was used to feed and shelter the livestock.
   Charley Derby ran for Butler County Sheriff in 1892 and was elected. In 1893 he and his family moved to David City.
   From 1912 until 1931 the ranch was owned and operated by Adolph Yanike. He used the yards and buildings to feed out cattle and hogs. He built a slaughter house on the place and operated a retail meat market in Bellwood. He also owned and operated a grain elevator on the railroad. At the close of the first World War he built a large new home on the place, which is now the home of Senator Schmit and his family. Mr. and Mrs. John Fohl, grandparents of Senator Schmit, owned the old ranch from 1937 to 1964. He also used it to feed out cattle.
   By 1972 the old barn had reached the end of its usefulness and in January it was torn down, closing the book on a bit of interesting local history.

   One of the best known buildings in the business district for 88 years was the Bellwood Hotel. This was located on the west side of the main street one block south of the bank in the northeast corner of block 13.
   The hotel was built in 1883 by C. W. Ewbank and was operated for several years under the name of the Bellwood House. The office and registration desk was located in the northeast room on the first floor. West of the office was the dining room which could accommodate about 25 guests. The kitchen was a one-story addition on the west of the dining

room. On the south side of the kitchen were the cob shed and woodshed to store fuel for the kitchen and heating stoves.
   The innkeeper and family lived on the first floor of the south wing of the hotel. All of the guests were housed on the second floor. Six of the guest rooms had double beds and the two larger rooms had two double beds.
   In the early decades of the town nearly all the business people, dealers, salesmen and others interested in obtaining good farm land arrived in Bellwood on the two daily passenger trains. If they were complete strangers and had no relatives or friends in the community they stayed at the hotel. The hotel did a thriving business until about the time of the first World War. After that business gradually diminished as automobiles came into more use.
   The first operator of the hotel was George Dittenhaver who operated it from 1882 until 1888 when it was sold to Judd Carpenter. His daughter, the late Retha Hall, recalled that all the carpenters building the Bellwood School in 1890 stayed at the hotel. In 1896 Mr. Carpenter leased the hotel to Emma McCulla and Lillie Page. Other operators during the next two decades were Gene Carpenter, Joe McGaffin, Mrs. William (Sally) Barklow, Mrs. William (Nell) Jewell, Hiram Clossom.
   In 1925 Judd Carpenter deeded the hotel to his daughter, Mabel Judevine, who ran it until 1927. James Finch was the next operator, followed by Sylvester and Arnola Demuth. In 1929 it was sold to W. T. Randolph, a retired Bellwood Methodist minister. He sold it in 1938 to Mr. and Mrs. Tom Sandusky who operated it until 1949. Josie Steager was the last owner, renting out rooms by the month for several years. Some of the last occupants were Jennie Cooper, Ben Edmunds and Alvin Woods.

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