Boettger Farm

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This 160-acre farm, most of which is now a lake and recreational area, was once home to three generations of Boettgers: William A. and Mina Stuhr Boettger, Otto M. and Irene Grau Boettger, Robert D. and Nadeen Preston Boettger. Homesteaded by Isaac Burgman in 1860, the land was purchased by Marx Stuhr in 1887, and given as a wedding gift to his daughter, Mina. William A. Boettger, a German carpenter, built large barns and a handsome house on the hill.

Champion White Wyandotte chickens were raised here. The land was nurtured with conservation measures and huge quantities of organic fertilizer from its Holstein dairy herd. The first demonstration by a Douglas County Extension Home Agent is said to have been presented here. In 1951 the first Nebraska fields of crown vetch, discovered and developed by former Nebraskan, Dr. Fred V. Grau, were planted as seed crop.

Mina Stuhr Boettger was born in Douglas County and lived her 98 1/2 years here. Her son, Otto M., was born on this land and spent 80 of his 82 years. It is to these generations and to their love of the land that this marker is dedicated.