Liberty School Teacher Falls Down Abandoned Well

Lincoln Sentinel-Republican, 25 February 1909

Miss Stella Conner, teacher of Liberty school, No. 71, in Valley township, had rather a thrilling experience last Thursday morning while walking to her school. There were still a few snow drifts in the road from the recent snow storm; it was also raining slightly which caused the roads to be in a very bad condition. Miss Conner was walking at the side of the road to avoid the mud when all at once she felt what she supposed to be solid earth under her feet give way and found herself in almost total darkness. Finding herself considerably startled and slightly bruised she collected her thoughts and began an investigation to find herself at the bottom of an old, abandoned well. An umbrella she had been carrying had been pulled partly into the opening through which she had fallen shutting out most of the light. She began calling as loudly as possible for help; but finding that no one responded had to find other means of escape. The well was about 25 feet deep and had been walled up with stone. This stone wall afforded Miss Conner her means of escape. So securing her dinner pail which she found had gone to the bottom of the well with her, she began climbing toward the top of the well and finally succeeded in getting out.

Not being the kind of a girl who is daunted by small things, Miss Conner now gathered up her umbrella, her books and with her dinner pail all in pretty good condition, and went on to the school house and taught school all day as if nothing unusual had happened.