Hans Ehlers Farm, F Street, Papillon 18 Damsite, Millard, Douglas County, NE

Significance: A distinctive product of German-American culture and an example of a 19th century agricultural settlement, the farm shares a number of features with other German-American farms in Nebraska. German immigrants to the Great Plains brought with them a distinctive style. Among these are a 1/2 story loft, boxed ascending stairway, and centrally located chimney or stove flue. Another trait is the loose arrangement of the farmstead buildings into a courtyard shape, a pattern found in northern Germany and the Lower Rhine area. Placement of doors into the main house reflects this central European heritage. The formal entry leads into the parlor, a room not extensively used which faced away from the farmyard court. Inhabitants commonly used an entry into the kitchen, which led from the courtyard. Czechoslovakian settlements also exhibit this similar traffic patterns. The history of the farm can be considered characteristic of the region as a whole...
Unprocessed Field note material exists for this structure: FN-40
Survey number: HABS NE-42
Building/structure dates: ca. 1880 Initial Construction
Building/structure dates: 1920 Subsequent Work
Building/structure dates: 1920- ca. 1950 Subsequent Work