Lothrop, Mrs. Mildred 1876-1963

LOTHROP, KINKEAD, LOOMIS, MCBEATH

Posted By: Linda Ziemann, volunteer (email)
Date: 11/7/2020 at 09:47:42

The Sioux City Journal
Friday, Nov. 29, 1963

HOMER HEROINE IS DEAD.
[A 1941 photograph of Mrs. Mildred Lothrop was included with her obituary]

Mrs. Mildred Lothrop, 86, 210 Stellart apartments, twice recipient of the Northwestern Bell Telephone Co. Vail gold medal award for bravery while she was Chief Operator at Homer, Neb., during the 1920 and 1940 floods, died Thursday at a hospital after a nine-day illness.

She was named The Journal’s Woman of Achievement in 1947.

The citation for her heroism in 1940 read in part:
“During the early morning hours of June 4, 1940, although fully cognizant of the personal risk involved, she remained at her switchboard to warn inhabitants of their impending danger from flood waters and directed the work of rescuing those who she had learned were trapped by the rising water.
“Recalling a similar experience 20 years ago, she communicated with other places in the path of the flood and kept posted as to its progress. When the waters continued to rise, she called the local men for boats and other equipment and, appreciating the need for outside aid in addition to that afforded by the facilities at Homer, she called the police and fire departments of neighboring towns for life saving equipment.

“In devotion to duty she stayed at her post many hours until the flood receded, despite the rushing waters which threatened the building and almost reached the second floor where the switchboard was located.”

She was the first person ever to receive the telephone company gold medal award for heroism.

Funeral services for Mrs. Lothrop will be at 2 p.m. Saturday at St. Paul’s Lutheran Church at Homer, Neb. Rev. Louis C. Weitzenkamp of Lyons, Neb., will officiate. Burial will be in Graceland Park cemetery under the direction of the Nelson-Berger north side funeral home.

Mrs. Lothrop was born December 10, 1876, at Homer, Neb. [Her parents were John Kinkead & Emaline Loomis Kinkead.]

She continued to live at Homer until she came to Sioux City about a year ago.

Survivors include five sons, Melford M. and Kenneth A., both of Sioux City, Harold S. of Seattle, Wash., Everett E., of Portland, Ore., and Donald A. of Norfolk, Neb.; a sister, Mrs. Mary McBeath, of Fullerton, Cal.; four grandchildren and 11 great grandchildren. [Mildred’s sister was Mrs. George W. McBeath.]

Pallbearers will be Harvey Heikes, A. E. Thacker, jr., Marvin Nielson, Alfred Barnes, Jerry Longwell and Kermit Kautz.
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**See additional Transcriber family notes in [ ] brackets**