Copyright © 2025 by Wendy Waszut-Barrett
In 2014, I encountered the name Jack Ballard & Son, stenciled on the back of some scenery at a Czech Hall in Cuba, Kansas.
Amazingly, he was mentioned in the article “Dramatic Expression: Czech Theatre Curtains in Nebraska,” written by David Murphy and published in Nebraska History (1993). Ballard was credited with the painting scenery for the Sokol Hall in Crete, Nebraska.
On my drive home, I stopped by Crete and viewed shreds of scenery above a dilapidated Sokol stage. There was no way I could get close enough to see much of anything, yet I stood in awe. There was a full fly loft! However, I had a sense of dread, as I immediately recognized that this stage would not stand the sense of time, plus the chance of my return was slim.
Surprisingly, Jack Ballard’s name popped up in my FB feed in 2021 when Fred Kolo mentioned that he was related to Jack Ballard – the scenic artist who painted scenery for Czech Halls in Eastern Nebraska. He was responding to “recent discoveries at the Tabor Opera House”; likely a New York Times article about my work at the Tabor Opera House, published that same month.
Kolo posted a few polaroid pictures of scenic models by Jack Ballard. He shared the following: After I was firmly on my way to being a set designer over rather strong parental opposition, my father one day told me that he had an uncle who would travel around Eastern Nebraska with a wagon full of paint and canvas and try to sell new items to the local theatres (they seem to all have been called opera houses) on hiring him to paint some new backdrops for them. Dad told me that he always helped his uncle mix the paints. (That was jaw-dropping to me at the time.) The surname was Ballard, and that branch of the family pretty much ended up in Los Angeles and worked in various crafts in the film industry. I was not much in touch with them, but they still had the stage and set models that he used to promote his wares. Long ago I got sent polaroids of a number of them.
Fast forward to July 2025. I returned to Cuba, Kansas, to repair Ballard’s drop curtain depicting Wenceslaus Square in Prague. While on site, the same reporter (Deb Hadachek) drops by for a quick interview. We reminisce about my 2014 visit and struggle to remember a few things about the history of the Czech Hall; after all, it has been 11 years! That evening I decided to complete another online search for Ballard’s work in the region.
Every day, historic records and newspaper article continue to be uploaded into online databases. After a delightful romp through the past, I knew that Czech halls and Ballard would be the subject of my next few posts. That evening, I also identified a few sites that I wanted to visit on my way home, including Ballard’s grave in Crete, Nebraska.
My return trip photographs, combined with a week of research, resulted in a story about three Nebraska scenic artists: Jack Ballard (birth name Byrl E. Ballard), Allen A. Ballard (Jack’s older brother), and Donald Ballard (Jack’s son). Jack followed his older brother into the painting profession. Jack’s son, Don Ballard, also became a scenic artist.
Tracking down the lives and careers of these three individuals was quite a challenge, but an absolute delight. I uncovered information that I never expected to find, tracing the Ballard family roots back to sixteenth-century England. Ballard family descendants trace their roots back to Phillip Henry Thomas Ballard (1575-1642) and Elizabeth Townsend (1577-1637) of Nottinghamshire, England), posting the family tree to ancestry.com. Phillip and Elizabeth Ballard were Jack’s 8th-great grandparents! The Ballard family emigrated to America in the early-seventeenth century, settling at Middle Plantation in the Virginia Colony; an unincorporated town established in 1632. In 1699, this settlement in was renamed Williamsburg, in honor of England’s King William III. Thomas Ballard I and II (Jack’s 6th and 5th great grandfathers) are listed in Landship Owner Patterns and Early Development in Middle Plantation: Report of Archival Research by Martha W. McCartney in 2000. Thomas Ballard I was a landowner and politician in the Colony of Virginia. He served in serval roles at James City in the 1660s to 1680s, including justice of the peace, sheriff, and burgess. He was named to the Governor’s Council (1670-1679) and was Speaker of the Virginia House of Burgesses1(680-1682). The Ballard family’s activities in Colonial America are extensive and quite fascinating, including the 330-acre tract sold by Thomas Ballard II after his father’s death to help form the College of William and Mary.
The Ballard family remained in Virginia until the early-nineteenth century, when they headed west. Jack’s father, Alexander Ballard was born in Virginia but headed west with his family in 1830. The birth of each sibling traces Alexander Ballard’s journey to Ohio, Indiana, and Iowa.
As a young man, Alexander continued west from Knoxville, Iowa, to Diller, Nebraska. I am going to include a complete transcription of his obituary, published in the Diller Record on Sept 28, 1916. It sets the stage for Jack’s home”
Alexander Ballard was born near Hillsboro, Grayson County, Virginia, Oct. 10, 1928, and passed on to his reward at Fairbury, Nebraska, September 25th, 916, aged 87 years, 11 months and 15 days. In early childhood he came with his parents. Here he spent his youth. In 1847 the family moved to Marion County, Iowa. In 1853 he returned to Indiana and married Rebecca Sumner. In 1856 he and his wife removed to Marion County, Iowa. In 1857 they made a prospecting trip up into Minnesota in what was then known as a “Prairie schooner” (And this reminds the writer that the first trip of the family from Indiana to Iowa was made in a wagon drawn by oxen.” Not finding anything more satisfactory in Minnesota than the home already chosen in Iowa, they returned to Knoxville, Iowa. Here he lived until 1880, During this time, Mr. Ballard engaged in the vocation of blacksmith. In 1880 he started west again. He came by railroad as far as Washington, Kansas. There he took the wagon route again and came north to Steele City, then on to the present site of Diller. He was among the very first residents of that place. He built the first blacksmith shop in the place and hauled lumber for some of the first houses that were erected in the village. About two years later, he brought his family to the newly established home and once more became a pioneer in the real sense of the word. He made his home in Diller ever since until last winter, where he came to Fairbury to live with his daughter, There is a rather striking coincidence in the deaths of him and his wife. Both died on the 25th day of September, and at the very same hour of the day, 2:30 in the afternoon. Mrs. Ballard died three years ago. A daughter, Wilma, died in Knoxville, Iowa, September 29, 1881. He leaves behind the following immediate relatives: One brother, Clerka Ballard, of Frankfort, Indiana; four daughters: Miss Olive, of Diller; Mrs. Etoile McClay and Miss Bert, of Fairbury; and Mrs. Ida McEllewee, of Lincoln. And also, four sons: William of Indianapolis, Indiana; Allen of Beatrice, Nebraska; Bort, of Escondido, California; and Byrl, of Fairbury, and fourteen grandchildren, with one great grandchild. All of the children were present at the funeral except two sons, William and Bort. Mr. Ballard was originally a member of the Dunkard Church. Mrs. Ballard had become a member of the Christian Church while a girl in Indiana. It was her privilege to listen to Alexander Campbell several times in ger girlhood, When they came to Diller there was for a number of years no Christian Church established there. The Methodists organized a church, and for several years they both worshipped with the Methodists. Later, when the Christian Church was established, Mrs. Ballard desired to enter the church of her choice, and Mr. Ballard joined her in entering the Christian Church. Of that church he has been a member ever since.
This section of Alexander Ballard’s obituary was published throughout the region. However, the Diller Record added the following information about Ballard’s association with Iowa’s Underground Railroad:
Mr. Ballard enlisted for service in the Civil War, But he was unable to stand the physical examination. He got as far as Keokuk. From there the recruiting officers sent him home. He came back to Marion County, Iowa, and served the cause by becoming a station on the “Underground Railroad.” Many a black refugee received aid and sympathy at his hands. He was a true pioneer. He was one of the souls who, present civilization owes more than it can ever pay. He blazed trails, laid foundations and built structures. We are entered into the inheritance left by such as he and his noble wife. He was entered into his reward. His body has served its day and purpose. We have laid it away. But Mr. Ballard still lives. His work still speaks though his tongue be silent. Reverently we uncover our heads and do honor to the hero of pioneer days.
We often think of the Underground Railroad as transporting people from south to north. However, a substantial amount of activity took place in Iowa, helping enslaved people in Missouri and neighboring Southern Slave States reach the Mississippi River and Illinois. The Iowa Freedom Trail Project, sponsored by the State Historical Society of Iowa, is a wonderful site to explore the Underground Railroad in the Midwest.
In regard to Ballard’s Civil War records…I have only located one military record for Alexander Ballard, dating from 1863. At that time, he was 34 yrs. old and living in Union Township, Marion County, Iowa. The 1860 US Federal Census also listed Union Township at the Ballard residence: Alexander and Rebecca living with their three daughters, Lucy Olive, Mary E. and Ida. By 1870, the Ballard family was living in Knoxville, Iowa. The household now included seven children, ranging in age from five months old to sixteen years.
When Byrl E. “Jack” Ballard was born in 1878, he was the youngest of nine children. His four eldest sisters were all school teachers, ranging in age from 19-24 yrs. old. Jack was two years old when his father headed west to build a new home. Alexander Ballard initially settled in Steele City, Nebraska, where he was counted in the 1880 US Federal Census. Steel City was organized in 1879, having been first founded in 1873 when the St. Joseph and Western Railroad arrived in the area. By 1883, Alexander Ballard had built a new home a few miles to the northeast. The Ballard family was reunited in Diller, Nebraska. The 1885 Nebraska State Census listed the Ballard household containing Alex (58 yrs, blacksmith), Rebecca (57 yrs., keeps house), Olive (31 yrs., milliner), William (21 yrs., teacher), Allen (18 yrs., painter), Bort (13 yrs., at home), and Byrl (6 yrs., at home). Interestingly, another young painter boarded next door to the Ballard home – 24 yrs. old Ed J. Berry.
I stopped by Diller on my way home. The town consists of only a few buildings and a population of 240. As my dad used to say, “Don’t blink or you’ll miss it.” Interestingly, a large opera house dominates the small town. Built in 1912, the large building dominates Diller’s skyline.
The Diller Record shared many Ballard family activities, including Jack’s journey to Lincoln, Nebraska, with his sister Etoile in 1888. He was only ten years old at the time, but he was already venturing sixty miles from home. On April 10, 1891, the Diller Record announced, “Master Byrle has gone to Western [Nebraska] to learn the printers trade in the Wave Offices.” By now, Jack was twelve years old and ready to enter an apprenticeship. His older brother Bort has also entered the printing business in Nebraska, before moving to California.
Jack Ballard’s adventure’s made local news. Fishing trips, family visits, oratorial contest recitations and other performances sporadically appear throughout the 1890s. In 1897, however, he agrees to play music in a circus band. On April 30, 1897, The Diller Record reported, “Henry Henrichs and Byrl Ballard left this morning for Fairbury having engaged to play in the band with Campbell Bro.’s Circus.” Diller was one of the stops on the Campbell Bros. Circus stop. I was surprised to find several pictures of the Campbell Bros. Circus at the Fairbury City Museum, including a photograph of when the Cambell Bros. Circus visited Diller, Nebraska, in 1894, and their winter grounds in 1898.
In 1898, the circus established winter grounds in Fairbury, Nebraska. Two year later, Ballard was again working with them, but this time as a painter.
On 17 Nov 1900, The Fairbury Gazette announced, “Mr. Ballard has the contract for repainting Campbell Bros. show cars.” Over the course of a few years, he entered the painting trade, following in his brother Allen’s footsteps as a carriage painter.
In 1896, Allen A. Ballard was working as a carriage painter in Kansas City, Missouri. The next year, his younger brother joined him in the trade. On Sept. 10, 1897, The Diller Record announced, “Byrl Ballard went Tuesday to Kansas City where he has a job of painting in a carriage factory with his brother, A. A. Ballard.” The two were working for Russell & Son at 810 E. 11th Street. Advertisements for the firm stated, “Manufacturers of carriages and buggies, business and delivery wagons, fire department apparatus; repairing a specialty.”
By the spring of 1898, Allen had established his own carriage painting business in Crete, Nebraska. His firm, Ballard & Cramer, operated in Crete from 1898 to 1902. His younger brother soon followed. On May 13, 1898, The Diller Record reported, “Byrl Ballard came down from Hardy’s the fore part of the week and after spending two or three days visiting relatives and friends in Diller left yesterday for Crete where he expects to work for his brother Al. Ballard, at carriage painting.” Over the years the brothers would sporadically work together, before partnering with other painters. By 1900, Byrl E. Ballard increasingly went by his nickname “Jack.” This name change coincided with his marriage to Emma Kolarik.
On June 28, 1899, The Crete Herald reported:
Miss Emma Kolarik of this city and Burril Ballard of Beatrice were married Wednesday at Wilbur by County Judge Hendee. Miss Kolarik has for years been employed at the Cosmopolitan hotel and has many friends here who wish her much joy. Mr. Ballard, better known as “Jack,” was until last winter engaged with his brother in the painting business. The newly wedded pair went to Beatrice Wednesday evening, where they will reside.
The 1900 US Federal Census listed the couple living in Beatrice with their newborn daughter Lorraine. By that fall, they moved to Fairbury, where Jack again secured a contract with the Campbell Brothers Circus. On Nov. 17, 1900, The Fairbury Gazette announced, ““Byrl Ballard, wife and baby, who are moving from Beatrice to Fairbury, where Mr. Ballard has the contract for repainting Campbell Bros. show cars, visited in Diller over Sunday. –Diller Record.”
By 1901, Ballard was working in Omaha as a carriage painter but soon transitioned to sign painting. In 1902, he moved his family to Plattsmouth, Nebraska, where he completed a variety of projects throughout the region, including gold lettering on plate glass, window ornamentation, business signs, and railroad cars. He eventually became associated with the Burlington Railroad. On July 3, 1903, the Hardy Herald of Hardy, Nebraska, announced, “Byrl Ballard, wife and child, are here from Plattsmouth, Nebr., for a week with his brother. He is in the employ of the Burlington route.” He was still associated with Burlington’s car shops until 1908, a year after he celebrated the arrival of his son and future business partner, Donald K. Ballard (1907-1956).
Of Ballard’s private life, he was a member if the Modern Woodmen of America, Camp No, 322. He was noted as playing a stringed instrument, although article failed to specify if it was a violin, viola, cello or bass. His musical activities included the Hardy band and entertainment for the Modern Woodmen of America.
On March 12, 1908, The Plattsmouth Journal reported, “Will move to Crete. Byrl Ballard, wife and baby returned from a week’s visit with Mr. Ballard’s parents at Crete. During their stay there Mr. Ballard entered into partnership with Geo. Cramer in a carriage shop at that place, and with his family will shortly move to Crete where they will make their future home. They have lived in Plattsmouth for the past six years, during which time Mr. Ballard has been employed in Burlington coach shops. They have friends here who regret to see them leave. We wish them prosperity in their new home.”
Cramer had previously partnered with Allen Ballard, Jack’s older brother. By 1909, he had moved to Beatrice, Nebraska. Jack and Allen Ballard were again painting together, but this time as scenic artists. On May 10, 1909, The Beatrice Daily Express Credited the new scenery at the Star Theatre to “A. A. and B. E. Ballard, both of this city” noting that the stock scenery collection “reflects much credit upon their ability as artists.” That summer, the brothers headed to Crete for several residential projects. Jack Ballard did not remain in Beatrice for long, soon moving to Fairbury. This would become his standard mode of operation, hopping from one town to the next, staying as long as the project lasted. Ballard’s work would take him to Kansas, Colorado, Wyoming, and California over the years.
Jack did not partner with his brother for long, soon relocating to Fairbury. On Nov. 12, 1909, The Fairbury Journal-News announced, “B. E. Ballard has moved his family from Beatrice to Fairbury into the house on Sixth street…Mr. Ballard is employed by G. W. Bartlett as a decorator.” His house in Fairbury is still standing, although a bit worse for wear. I was able to document it on July 25, 2025.
When the US Federal Census was taken in 1910, the Ballards were living 219 South 17th Street in Lincoln, Nebraska. His occupation was listed as “theatrical scene painter” in the advertising industry. Meanwhile, his brother Allen remained in Beatrice, continuing work as a scenic artist and sign painter. I am going to add another name to the Beatrice mix. Scenic artist Fitch Fulton also grew up in this bustling, Nebraska town. I have already written a full biography for Fulton as he once worked for Sosman & Landis Scenic Studio in Chicago.
Allen Ballard established a new scenic art firm with J. L. Ashenfelter in 1910, Ballard & Ashenfelter, scenic artists; sometimes identified as Ashenfelter & Ballard. In 1910 their firm delivered scenery to stages in Abilene, Kansas (the Seelye and Lyric Theatres), Lexington, Nebraska (Priel Opera House), and Harvard, Nebraska (Opera House). In 1912 the two established the Mid-West Scenic Co. in Beatrice. Allen continued to work as both a scenic artist and sign painter over the years until his passing in 1931. One of Allen’s last scenic art projects was for the Lyric Theatre in Wymore, Nebraska.
In 1910, the same year that Ballard & Ashenfelter began work, B. E. Ballard Scenic Co. was established in Fairbury, Nebraska.
Between the summers of 1910 and 1912, the firm painted scenery for seven Nebraska stages in Atkinson (Opera House), Long Pine (Theatre), Jansen (Town Hall) and Beatrice (Star Airdome Theatre and the Lyric Theatre), Fairbury (Majestic Theatre), and Geneva. Ballard was no linger working by himself, or with a single partner. While working at the Majestic Theatre in 1914, The Fairbury Journal-News reported, “B. E. Ballard and his force of painters and decorators have been hard at work all this week and every foot of the interior has been newly painted and decorated. New color schemes have been introduced throughout, and the result is that the Majestic patrons will be agreeably surprised and pleased with the new Majestic.”
Ballard continued to paint under his own name for the next decade, moving to Omaha by 1918. In 1918, his WWI Draft registration listed his occupation as a sign painter, working for the Abbott Advertising Co. in Omaha. Ballard’s physical appearance was described as medium height, medium build, gray eyes, gray hair, and slightly balding.
In 1922 he was listed as a sign painter for the Inter-State Sign Co., Omaha. For the most part, Ballard continued to shift from scenic art, to sign painting, interior ornamentation and back again. Between 1913 and 1923, Ballard was credited with painting scenery for stages in Fairbury (Majestic Theatre and Opera House), Crete (Lyric Theatre, Sokol Hall, and St. James Hall), Omaha (Brandeis Theatre). Many of the venues were repeat customers, continuing to order scenery every few years. In Crete, Ballard continued to paint scenery every few years for the Sokol Hall, starting in 1915. On Sept. 27, 1921, The Crete News reported, “New Sokol Theatre Curtain. Jack Ballard, a scenic painter of Omaha, is repainting the front curtain and drops at Sokol theater, even the advertisements. The scene on the front curtain will be a river view taken at Prague, Bohemia, and will be finished for the opening show of the season, tomorrow (Friday) night, which is advertised in the News. Mr. Ballard formerly lived at Crete and Mrs. Ballard is the daughter of Mrs. Anna Kolarik of this city.” His nickname “Jack” became increasing used by in newspaper articles during this time.
In 1924, Ballard accepted was listed as the in-house scenic artist for the Brandeis Theatre in Omaha. When he painted scenery for St, Mary’s Church Auditorium (Luxemburg) and a Community Theatre (David City), he was listed as “Jack Ballard, scenic artist of the Brandeis Theatre, Omaha.” The following year, his son Don joined him as a scenic artist at the Brandeis. Jack Ballard & Son was still credited as scenic artists, Brandeis Theatre, Omaha. Between 1925 and 1928 Jack Ballard & Son were credited with painting scenery at the following Nebraska Theatres: Brandeis Theatre (Omaha), Gem Theatre (Trenton), Oliver Theatre (Palisade), the new school theatre (Palisade), Orpheum Theatre (Straten), Electric Theatre (Curtis), New Opera House (Deshler), Empress Theatre (Central City), Theatre (Dorchester), New Sokol Auditorium (Omaha), Sun Theatre (Gothenburg), the Lyric Theatre (Arapahoe), and Orpheum (Scottsbluff). Their painting for the Gem Theatre in Trenton was described in The Hitchcock County News 30 Jan 1925: “A new drop curtain was hung in the Gem Theater, close of the week. It was purchased from Jack Ballard, who with his son, does all of the scenery painting in the Brandeis Theater in Omaha. They sold advertising spaces on the curtain and fifteen of Trenton’s business firms are represented. It is a neat and artistic piece of work, and the new curtain will be enjoyed by the patrons of the Gem. The old one did duty for more than eight years and it’s time of service was almost too long.”
There are so many newspaper articles that describe the scenic art of Ballard & Son in detail. They were delivering drop curtains, advertising curtain, painted stock scenes and draperies. On Oct. 25, 1928, The Holbrook Observer of Holbrook Nebraska published an article entitled “New Decorations at Ritz Theatre.” The article reported: “A curtain bearing the advertisement of a number of business firms of Holbrook, has just been placed in the Ritz Theater. The work was done by Jack Ballard and son, of Crete, Nebraska. It is a very artistic piece of work. Mr. Ballard also decorated the side walls of the building with scenes most pleasing to the eye. The pictures represent the South Cheyenne Canyon, Bay of Monterey, Seal Rocks, Autumn in Connecticut, Big Thompson Canyon, and a Virginia Meadow. Mr. Ballard is a real artist. The family left Tuesday afternoon for Crete, Nebr.” Similarly, a western theme was also the subject of another advertising curtain in Cambridge, Nebraska. On Dec. 20, 1928, the Cambridge Clarion described, “in the center of the curtain is a beautiful reproduction of the gates of the Yosemite Valley of California, surrounded by attractive ads of merchants of Cambridge. The work is being done by Jack Ballard and Son of Denver, who are artists in their line of work.”
Jack Ballard & Son not only began to incorporate more western imagery into their work but also began to travel father west. The painted scenery for the new Municipal Auditorium in Denver, Colorado. In Hollister, California, they listed themselves as “scenic artists of Denver when painting scenery for the Legion Building Hall. Between 1928 and 1931, Jack Ballard & Son, scenic artists was followed with: “of Denver” (CO), “of Omaha” (NE), “of Imperial” (NE), “of McCook” (NE), “of Cuba” (KS), “of Lincoln” (NE), “of Crete” (NE) and “of California.” They were itinerant artists, traveling from town to town with a wagon full of supplies. Scenery painted during this time was for a variety of locations, including the following Nebraska stages: Ritz Theatre (Holbrook), Fair Theatre (Cambridge), Opera House (Clarkston), ZCBJ Opera House (Howells), Sokol Hall (Cuba), St. James Hall (Crete), Sun Theatre (Gothenburg), Sokol Hall (Crete), Open Air Show House (Tuxedo Park), Waly Thompson Auditorium (Dorchester), and the Janacek Theatre (Schuyler). They also delivered scenery to a theatre in Wray, Colorado.
On Oct. 1, 1931, The Crete News published an article about a new theatrical innovation by Ballard in an article entitled “Improvements at Sokol Theatre.” The article reported, “The Crete Sokols are to be congratulated on the beautiful draw curtains that have just been completed by Jack Ballard and son. The front draw is a beautiful soft curtain of royal purple with silver tinsel in fancy scroll around the local merchants’ display, which gives the effect of being diamond studded. The local theatre is the second in the United States to have a split draw curtain with merchants; displays on the soft cloth of this type; the baffling problem having been to secure a cloth on which the paint would not crack with the folding of the cloth. The Gothenburg Sun was the first to have this type of curtain. Jack Ballard and Son are also the creators of the curtains in the theatre. The second curtain in the Sokol theaters here, is wine colored and also split in the center for a draw or if the occasion demands, may be hoisted. The merchants whose names appear on the front curtains and several other pieces of stage settings. Mr. Ballard, whose home is in Crete, has painted a new curtain for the Sokols every third year since the erection of the new hall in 1915. The artist’s next stop is Wray, Colo., where they will install a duplicate of his Crete work.”
I am going to pause for a moment and add some historical and familial context. There was a sharp decline in prices on the New York Stock exchange on October 29, 1929. Now known as the Great Crash, it marked the beginning of the worldwide Great Depression that lasted for a decade. When the US Federal Census was taken in 1930, Jack, Emma and Donald Ballard were living at 1022, Gm Street in Geneva City, Nebraska. Both Jack and Donald were listed a scenic artists. In the midst of this sharp economic downturn, Jack Ballard lost three of his brothers. His sister Lucy Olive Ballard had already passed on Nov. 30, 1930, in Fairbury, Nebraska. On January 1, 1931, Bowater Boot Ballard passed away in Fresno County, California. Four months later, Allen A. Ballard passed away in Beatrice, Nebraska. On Sept. 10, 1932, William Sumner Ballard passed away in Indianapolis, Indiana. It was the end of an era. Lucy had been the oldest of the Ballard siblings. As reported in her obituary, “She came with her parents to Iowa when about two years old [1856] where she grew to womanhood, was educated and engaged in school teaching. Again, she came with them to Diller, Nebr., in n1884, where she conducted a millinery, dressmaking and notion store for forty-four years, When she was taken sick last April, she was taken to the home of her sister Miss Bert Ballard, in Fairbury, where she lived until her death.” At the time of her passing in 1928, seven Ballard siblings remained. By 1932, only three were still living: Byrl “Jack” Ballard, Etoile “Etta” McClay, and Ida McElwee.
By 1933, the Great Depression was in full force. Unemployment had reached 25%. Millions were taking pay cuts and working reduced hours. There was widespread poverty, homelessness, and hunger. Businesses vanished overnight. The services of many tradesmen were no longer needed, especially scenic artists, sign writers, and decorative painters. Of this time, Chicago scenic artist John Hanny wrote: “After the Depression of 1929, which lasted about five years, conditions were extremely bad. Studios disappeared; many artists had to find other kinds of jobs.” Such was the case with Jack Ballard and his son Don when to the Midwest, settling again in Crete.
They diversified their services, replacing theatre projects with a series of smaller commercial and residential projects. Family connections and word of mouth were key. Ballard & Son decorated the Dr. Kolouch Hospital in Schuyler; Kolouch was Jack Ballard’s brother-in-law. Other non-theatrical projects included decorating the State Bank (Alexandria), the Crete News Building entrance, Riverside Cemetery’s Legion Memorial (Crete), decorating Sacred Heart Church (Crete), painting a firetruck (Crete), and producing a few parade floats for the Union Pacific Premiere in Omaha. Ballard & Son painted even painted a few signs for the City of Crete. City Council reports list that they painted restroom signs for Crete. Despite the economic downturn, Ballard & Son still painted scenery for the Rialto Theatre (Cozad), Opera House (Alexandria), and the New School Auditorium (Alexandria). They also painted scenery for the Ak-Sar-Ben Den show in Crete.
Life continued to move on despite economic hardships. In 1937, Son Don was married to Florence A. Hier, of Peoria, Illinois. Their marriage announcement was published in The Crete News on Sept. 2, 1937:
Miss Florence Hier of Peoria, Ill., daughter of Ben Hier of Crete and Don Ballard, son of Mr. and Mrs. Jack Balaard of Crete, were married at 10 p. m., Wednesday, Aug. 25, at St. Peters Rectory at Council Bluffs, Iowa, by Father Stein, in the presence of Miss Jean Norton and George Van Buskirk, of Omaha. The bride wore an ensemble of black and white with black accessories, and a shoulder corsage of gardenias to complete the costume. Miss Norton wore a black frock. Her corsage was pink pompoms. Mrs. Ballard is a graduate of St. Elizabeth Academy of St. Louis, Mo., and of the Lincoln School of Commerce. The past year, she has been employed by the Fleming Potter Cp. Of Peoria, Ill. Mr. Ballard is a graduate of Central High school of Omaha. He is associated with his father in the sign painting business. At the present time, Mr. and Mrs. Ballard are residing in Crete. Friday, Dr. and Mrs. Fred Kolouch of Schuyler entertained the newlyweds and his parents at dinner.”
Until now, Don had been living with his parents. The 1940 US Federal Census listed Don, his wife and newborn son, living with his father-in-law, Ben Hier, at 525 East 13th St., Crete. They were next door to Elizabeth Kolarik, Don’s maternal aunt (Emma Kolarik’s sister-in-law).
Don’s parents were living at 37 Linden Ave.in Crete. Ballard & Son began to decline and terminate with a year. 1941 is the last year that I was able to identify a project by Jack Ballard & Son. That fall, they worked on floats for a parade in Cozad, and Christmas decorations for Crete. In 1942, Don’s WWII draft card provides some insight into his physical appearance at 35 yrs. old: 5’-11 ½”, 190 lbs., blue eyes, brown hair, and a light complexion.
His mother, Emma Kolarik Ballard, passed away on June 4, 1942.
That year Jack Ballard was listed as a sign painter, working for the Omaha Advertising Co. In 1950, he worked for the Neon Sign Company as a commercial artist. By 1950, Don had moved to California with his family and was working as a railroad electrician, maintaining railroad cars in Richmond, Contra Coast, California.
Ballard passed away in Evanston, Cook County, Illinois. His obituary was published in The Lincoln Star on July 27, 1952:
Byrl Ballard is Dead Rites Set for Crete. Funeral services for Byrl Jack Ballard, 73, former Crete and Lincoln resident, will be held at 2 p.m. Saturday at Kuncl Funeral Home in Crete, He died in Chicago. For several years he was employed in Lincoln by the Bruce Neon Company. Surviving are his daughter, Mrs. Lorain Gustafson of Chicago; a son, Donald of Richmond, Calif.; two grandchildren and one great grandchild.
Other obituaries noted that his last fifteen years were spent in Crete, but “a number of preceding years were spent in Lincoln, Omaha, Fairbury, Beatrice and a number of towns in western Nebraska, Colorado, Wyoming, and California.” I have yet to identify any scenic art attributed to Ballard in Wyoming. Don’s wife Florence did not pass away until 2004 at the age of 92 yrs. old. She is buried next to her husband at Saint Joseph Catholic Cemetery in San Pablo, California.
My post about Scenery Preservation in Cuba, Kansas.
My post about the Czech Hall in Cuba, Kansas, with scenery by Jack Ballard & Son.
To be continued…
