William and Dinah (Ingham) Nutter

William Nutter, son of John and Elizabeth "Betty" (Knowles) Nutter, was born in Stockport, near Barley, Wheatley Booth, White Hough NCP, Lancashire, England, on January 3, 1829 (or 1830 ... conflicting records). (William's ancestry has been traced back to the 1400's. Click here to view it). He was raised in England, and learned the trade of cotton carding and spinning, working in some of the chief cotton factories in England.

Dinah Ingham, daughter of William and Olive (Heyworth) Ingham, was born on Wheatley Lane, in Old Laund Booth, Lancashire, England on June 1, 1834.

William and Dinah were married April 10, 1852. Influenced by a Morman missionary, John and Dinah converted to the Morman faith in 1852. John attained the priesthood in 1855. With their daughter Olive, and son Moroni, they booked passage on the Juventa in 1855, and emmigrated to the United States. John worked mainly in Philadelphia until he saved up enough money for the trip to Utah in 1860. They traveled by riverboat to Florence, Missouri, then joined a wagon train of other Mormans headed for Salt Lake City. The train consisted of 75 wagons, most, like the Nutter's, were pulled by 2 yoke of oxen. The Nutters found the "Promised Land" not what they had been led to believe. They were not welcomed, and generally taken advantage of by the Morman residents. Disillusioned, they left and travelled to Nebraska, where the settled, trading one yoke of oxen for "squatter's rights" to a homestead on the Wood River, near Gibbon. Because of an Indian uprising early in their life in Nebraska, they packed up a wagon, and headed East. With the Civil War raging, they didn't stop until they reached England. However, longing for Nebraska, they soon returned to Philadelphia, and then back to the Wood River country. As their old homestead was now occupied, they purchased "squatter's rights" on another Wood River property, this time including a log house and a log barn. (The builder and previous owner, William Story had been killed by Indians.) They lived in the log house for 18 years.

A brief "Biographical Souvenir" describing the early life of William Nutter was published in the historical records of Buffalo County. A very comprehensive documentary is contained in The Life and Times of William and Dinah Nutter, Prairie Pioneers, written by Michael Scheuer, who is decended from Dinah's sister Mary Ann Ingham.

(Many of our pioneer ancestors either were descended from William and Dinah Nutter, or married into his family. There are enough connections that Gibbon, Nebraska deserves its own web page, the Gibbon Connections.)

Log home of William and Dinah Nutter

I'm not certain of all the identities. No doubt William and Dinah are seated, and I believe their son William is kneeling to the right of Dinah, with his wife Laura seated to the left of William, Sr. Daughter Libby (Nutter) Robinson is standing behind William, Sr. I'm not sure who the two men sitting on the ground on the left are. The second from the left could be son Frank (Benjamin Franklin Nutter), and I guess it is likely the man on the left is the youngest son, Mirabeau. I don't know who the gunslinger on the pony is, or the other kids on the roof. Grandkids, most likely.

In 1887, they finally built a new frame house, octagonal in shape. They lived on this farm for the rest of their lives, and prospered. The recollections of Dinah, documented in a very interesting article by S. C. Bassett, cover their lives as real pioneers in early America, complete with wagon trains, homesteads, and Indian uprisings.

William Nutter died at his home on 13 May 1906, at the age of 92, was buried in Riverside Cemetery near Gibbon. Dinah lived to be 84 years old. She died 30 December 1918 and was buried beside her husband.

William and Dinah had thirteen children:

[The history of the Nutter ownership of property in Buffalo County can be found here.]

A Nutter family gathering on the farm in 1904, likely on the occasion of Dinah's daughter Jane "Jennie" Nutter Hogg preparing to move to Oregon. By this time, William Nutter Senior was bedridden and therefore not in the picture. Standing, left to right: William Nutter the younger; his wife, Laura; Effie and Olive (John's elder daughters); Jennie Nutter (John's wife); John Nutter; Robert Robertson (Elizabeth Nutter Robertson's son); B.F. "Frank" Nutter; Jennie (Nutter) Hogg; Lorton and Ben Robertson with their mother, Elizabeth (Nutter) Robertson at the far right; Orville Nutter (William the younger's son) stands in front of Lorton and Ben. In front: Dinah Nutter is seated in front holding Harold Nutter (son of John); On the left in the front row are Ebert and Banks Nutter (sons of William the younger); Ronald and Glenn Hogg (Jennie's sons) continue the row on the other side of Dinah; followed by Marjorie and Hilda Nutter (John's daughters); Pearl Nutter (daughter of William the younger); Inez Nutter (John's daughter); Perry and Wellington Nutter (sons of William the younger). Conspicuously absent are Will Hogg (Jennie's husband), Herbert Nutter and his sisters Elsa and Bea (children of John), who, apparently, were already in Oregon. Also absent were Louise Nutter, her husband, Reuben and their family.

Best picture of William Nutter's house and outbuildings

Four generations. Dinah (Ingham) Nutter (seated), her son John Nutter, and John's daughter, Beatrice (Nutter) Hogg, holding her first child, Jean Hogg.

Wedding Certificate of Willam Nutter and Dinah Ingham

A Nutter family gathering, probably on the occassion of the funeral of Anna (Carlson) Nutter, 1st wife of John Nutter. William and Dinah seated at the left. William, Jr. and wife Laura are seated 4th and 5th from left. Son John Nutter is standing at the left. Son Frank is standing 6th from the left. Elizabeth (Nutter) Robinson is standing 4th from the right. Beside her on her left, is her sister Jennie (Nutter) Hogg, then 'Madam' Louis Nutter. It might be Will Hogg, husband of Jennie who is standing on the far right, though it is far from certain. Missing, or not yet identified, is 19 year old Mirabeau Nutter.

The Carlson clan, family of Anna, the deceased, is also present. Her parents Carl and Marta are seated in the center row, 4th & 5th from the right. Anna's brother John is seated 2 places to the left of Carl. Anna's sister Ida and her husband Simon Seeley are seated to the right of Marta. Behind John Carlson and to the right of Frank Nutter is "probably" Conston Carlson, another brother to Anna. The last brother, Charles is "probably" seated at the far right, center row.

John and Anna's 5 children are also present. The youngest, Francis Beatrice, is seated on William Nutter's lap. The 3 other daughters Elsa, Effie, and Olive are sitting, probably 1st, 2nd and 6th in the front row, with her brother Herbert sitting 4th from the left. Others are yet unidentified. (Contact me if you can help!)

A photo of William and Dinah Nutter with their ten surviving children. Standing, (left to right) William Junior, Ellen, Benjamin Franklin "Frank", Elizabeth, Ione and Jane "Jennie". In the front row are Alice, Mirabeau, the parents -William and Dinah, Louise and John.

Last revised March 21, 2015. If you have comments, corrections or additional information or pictures you would like to contribute, feel free to contact Dave Nims.