Clifford Nathan Shoger was born on June 28, 1908 on his father’s farm located in Cedar township, Mitchell county, Iowa. His parents were Cornelius E. and Nettie (Johanson) Shoger.

Cliff and Lulu Shoger At daughter's wedding in Mason city in 1954

As a young boy his last name was spelled “Schoger” and “Shoger”. The “c” was dropped by the family during World War I, so it would not look so much like a German name. Clifford was the youngest of four children. He had two older brothers, James and Fred and an older sister, Effie (Mrs. Alvin

Cliff, Lulu and Stanley

McKee). His older brother, James Shoger, said that when Clifford was a little boy and was learning to say his name, he would call himself “Tippy Chogger”.

Clifford grew up on his father’s 122 acre farm, section 15, Cedar township, which was located near the village of Meroa, Iowa (southwest of Osage). He attended the country school located across the road from his father’s farm. This school was called the Penrose School #4 and was also know as the Dahley School. Cliff graduated from the eighth grade, but he did not attend high school because he was needed at home to help his father with farm work.

Clifford was baptized on July 19, 1908 and confirmed on May 13, 1920 at the Rock Creek Norwegian Evangelical Lutheran church at Meroa, Iowa.

On May 20, 1932, Clifford N. Shoger was united in marriage to Miss Lulu M. Carter in Osage, Iowa at the First Baptist church parsonage by Rev. John Kern. Their wedding attendants were Gladys Carter (Lulu’s sister) and Glen Christianson (Clifford’s first cousin). They had met in 1928 when Cliff was riding his bicycle by Lulu’s father’s farm. Cliff was riding up and down the hill near their home and Lulu and Gladys were outside watching him.

Clifford Nathan Shoger Confirmation in 1923

Cliff and Lu began their married life together on the parental Shoger farm. Cliff share cropped the farm and was given the use of the farm equipment. Cliff’s parents lived with them for the first couple of year with them moving into a house in Osage in 1933-34. Lu’s sister, Gladys

Ardis and Stanley Shoger

Carter, lived with them for a few months because she was teaching school near there and her brother, Ernest Carter, helped Cliff with farm work and chores quite often.

Cliff and Lu had three children, two boys and a girl. Marvin Duane Shoger was born March 5, 1933 at the parental Ray Carter farm. Ardis May Shoger was born August 3, 1934 at the parental Cornelius Shoger farm. Stanley Edwin Shoger was born May 26, 1937 on the Norby farm, near Rudd, Iowa. All three children were baptized on August 26, 1938 at their grandpa and grandma, Cornelius and Nettie Shoger’s home on Pleasant Street in Osage, Iowa by the Rev. O.C. Myhre, pastor of the Rock Creek Lutheran church. Their sponsors were Mr. and Mrs. Elmer Dahley (Elmer was a half-brother to Cornelius Shoger).

In 1935, Cliff and Lu moved from the parental Shoger farm to a farm near Rudd, Iowa. This farm was owned by Mrs. Adella Norby. She was a half-sister to Cliff’s father. The Norby farm was located on section

Ardis and Stanley Shoger

24, Rock Grove township, Floyd county, Iowa. They moved to this farm because Cliff’s brothers thought he wasn’t providing for his parents, so one Sunday after visiting at the Ray Carter farm, they came home to an empty house. Cliff’s brothers had taken all the furniture out of the house. What Cliff's brothers didn't know was that Cliff and Lu had been paying for the fuel oil to heat Cliff's parents' house in Osage, as well as, paying for rent on the farm, in accordance with the lease agreement between Cliff and his parents.

In 1941, Cliff and Lu decided to purchase a farm north of Riceville, Iowa. They purchased a

Ardis & Marvin Shoger

160 acre farm on section 30, Oakdale township, Howard county, Iowa. The buildings and house were pretty run down. Lu’s father came up to see their new farm and he grabbed some soil and looked at it and told Cliff that he’d starve to death. The soil in Oakdale township (Howard county) wasn’t as black and rich as it was in Cedar and Rock townships (Mitchell county), but Cliff managed to have some good crops on the land over the years. Cliff and Lu did a lot of

Cliff & Lu Shoger on their honeymoon at Cecil & Millie Carter’s home in Latimer, Iowa

carpentry work the first couple of years. They worked on the house so it wasn’t quite as cold in the winter time and patched up some holes in the barn and built a couple of new hog houses and corn cribs.

Cliff and Lu lived together for 29 years and worked side by side with much of the farm work, except for milking cows which was left to Cliff and the boys. Cliff grew crops such as corn, oats, soy beans, wheat, and hay. He also raised milk cows, hogs, horses and chickens. He started out farming with horses and an Farmall F-12. He later purchased a Farmall Super H in the 1940s.

Ardis and Marvin

Cliff died of a sudden heart attack on March 10, 1961 near Little Cedar, Iowa. Cliff and Lu were taking their grandson, Steven Shoger, back to his parent’s house in Little Cedar. He had been spending a few days at his grandpa and grandma’s farm. It had snowed a lot the night prior, so Cliff has spent the morning shoveling out the driveway and the farm yard. The funeral services were held at Champion Funeral home in Osage, with Rev. Paul Hansen, officiating. Cliff was buried at the Osage cemetery in Osage, Iowa near his mother-in-law’s grave.

Ardis and her little pigs

Cliff and his family joined the First Lutheran church in LeRoy, Minnesota in 1941. They attended church services there every Sunday. Cliff was a cemetery board member there for a number of years. He was also a school board member for a number of years of the country school near his farm.

Lu continued to live on the farm until 1962, when she moved to a farm owned by Floyd Noble,

Cliff, Lulu (holding Douglas), and Stanley Shoger at Nettie Shoger’s house in Osage

located four miles west of Riceville. Six months later, she purchased a house in Riceville where she lived for 14 years.

Lulu May Carter was born on May 15, 1911 on her parents farm located 7 miles west of Osage, Iowa. Her parents were Ernest Ray and Ina Vietta (Jeffries) Carter, Sr. She grew up on her parent’s farm located on section 27, Rock township, Mitchell county, Iowa. She had an older brother, Frederick, and younger siblings, Gladys (Mrs. Lee Hobkirk), Ernest and Earl.

Lulu as RCHS cook, in 1973

Lulu was baptized as an adult at First Baptist church in Osage, Iowa. She attended rural country school near her parent’s farm – Rock #1 and she graduated from Osage High School in 1929. She attended Teacher’s College in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

Lu taught country school at Union #5 (1929-1930) and Cedar #10 (1930-1931). Her father made it very clear that she was not allowed to continue teaching after she was married.

Cliff, Marvin, Lulu and Ardis, in 1937

After Lu moved into Riceville, she worked as a cook at the Riceville Community Schools from 1962 to 1976. She also worked during the summer months as a cook for the Maid Rite Drive-Inn and as part time cook for Pettitt’s Café, both in Riceville.

Lu passed away from cancer on October 26, 1977 at the Mitchell County Memorial hospital in Osage, Iowa. Her funeral services were held at Champion Funeral Home in Osage, Iowa. She was buried next to her husband, Clifford at the Osage cemetery in Osage, Iowa.

 

 

Additional Photos

Lulu Carter at OCHS in 1929

Lulu Shoger in 1971

Lulu, Cliff and Stanley Shoger

Lulu feeding granddaughter, Debbie Orthel

Marvin, Ardis and the next door neighbor going to school

Marvin and Ardis Shoger Confirmation Day

Marvin Shoger

Four Generations Ardis (Shoger) Orthel, Nettie (Johnson) Shoger (holding Debbie Orthel), and Cliff Shoger

Four Generations (1936) Back Row: George Anthony Carter, Ernest Ray Carter, Sr., Ina (Jeffries) Carter, Clifford Shoger Front Row: Nellie (Clark) Carter (holding Marvin Shoger) and Lulu (Carter) Shoger (holding Ardis Shoger)

 

Four Generations (l to r) Ardis (Shoger) Orthel, Nettie Shoger (holding great granddaughter, Debbie Orthel), Clifford Shoger

 

Cliff and Lulu Shoger and family - 1943