Family honors pioneers with new monument, irises in Sherman County

SHERMAN COUNTY, Neb. (KOLN) - A weathered sign buried in the trees marks a grave in a pasture where twin infants were laid to rest by German immigrants August and Anna Zeller.

“The little plot that’s located out in the pasture, that’s where great-grandma buried it,” said Kent Zeller.

Family members have mixed answers about whether the twins were boys or girls. They do not know the twins’ cause of death. Both answers are lost to history.

Zeller knows the story of loss well, and about the irises that the twins’ mother planted to remember them.

“And then over the years, I mean, we’re talking, 100 plus years that those little flowers have bloomed and year after year have kind of stabilized where that little piece of ground was, call it holy ground or whatever, where those two little kids were buried,” Zeller said.

“The flag irises were what was available and more native to the area over 100 years ago and getting close to 150 years ago here. And that’s what Anna obtained,” said Kerry Eilenstine, a descendant of the Zellers. “And planted them in memory of her children to mark their grave because you just didn’t have the availability of materials to make grave markers that stood the test of time. And this was a way she could do that and (the twins) wouldn’t be forgotten.”

Eilenstine said she has never seen the irises bloom in the pasture.

Irises of a different variety bloom along the fence line across from the gravestone of August and Anna Zeller. The couple is buried at Hayestown Cemetery. Their children are still buried at the original homestead site on private property.

The Zeller homestead was closer to the Boelus and Rockville areas, but they had a Ravenna mail route.

Eilenstine has taken care of Hayestown Cemetery since 2012. Her grandfather donated the white fence in memory of her grandmother, who would have been a granddaughter of August and Anna Zeller.

“Before there were a lot of organized cemeteries and there have to be just numerous unmarked, unknown graves that have been lost,” Eilenstine said.

Eilenstine visits the sign placed by the Sherman Historical Society with her family.

“I noticed that the road was no longer being maintained,” she said. “And of course, in recent years, the county does not call it closed, but they’ve put up a sign that says closed and you cannot get through on it.”

She said the family discussed how they would like to see the marker maintained and how difficult that would be without the road.

Eilenstine recruited Zeller to help with the project in 2025.

“And so then we got together and that was our question, we said, maybe it’s time to bring the kids back to mom and dad,” Zeller said.

After burying their babies, Anna and August Zeller farmed in Sherman County and had 10 living children. According to Eilenstine, one son passed away and did not live long enough to have a family.

“It’s basically our grandmas and grandpas,” Zeller said.

Carol Fisher, also a descendant of the Zellers, said someone speculated that August was a cobbler.

“But when they came here because they could get the land to homestead, they were farmers,” Fisher said.

Of the nine children who had families, descendants of seven donated to make the project happen. The Zeller family pitched in $5,000 for a monument created by Wagner Monument Company in Kearney. The inscription shares the history of their family and other settlers.

“And so this is kind of a homage to not only the Zeller twins, but also to all those youth and little kids that started the journey but didn’t get to finish it,” Zeller said.

“Definitely a lot of the younger folks have moved away, and don’t often, because they’re far away, they don’t often come back,” Fisher said. “So this way they have something to think about and everyone seemed to be very enthused about getting behind it and developing it.” Fisher said.

The family members transplanted the irises from the original gravesite in 2026.

“And so that was a very special and fun day and that was a way to tell my grandkids and get them, start that seed of possibly loving and having an interest in this also,” Eilenstine said.

To get to Hayestown Cemetery from Rockville, take Highway 68 for about 1 mile. Turn south on the first county road off the highway and go 2 miles. Turn east and travel another 2 miles.

The cemetery is located on the north side of the road. The Zeller graves can be found on the east side of the cemetery.

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