Earl J. "Buddy" "Bud" Hajic

Family Photo	with Lottie

I was given your 'The History of Lowell, Indiana" sesquicentennial site URL by Karleen (Karlsson) Halaschak. She and her husband Edward live in Crown Point, Indiana. Her mother, Bernice (Nelson) Karlsson, a sister of Don Nelson (whose WWII service is described in your site) was the major switchboard operator for Lowell during (at least) the 1930's. Bernice and Don were foster children of Carl and Lottie (Charlotte Hajic) Mahler.

Carl Mahler was a house moving contractor. He is mentioned in "Pioneer History" by Richard C. Schmal (Jan. 29, 2002, Lowell Tribune, page 5) titled 'Lake Dalecarlia': The Lake Dalecarlia dam was built in 1928 at the site where a dam existed earlier to power the pioneer grist and saw mills. Carl Mahler of Lowell, well-known for repairing bridges and moving buildings, was the contractor. The Carl Mahler house was a 2 story wooden one located about 4 miles east of Lowell on the north side of State Highway 2 (then Harding Highway) at the 'T' intersection with southbound State Highway 55.

I have attached the following images:

1. Carl & Lottie Mahler c.late 1920's
2. Lottie & Carl Mahler c. late1930's. The background is the adjacent pasture viewed to southeast.
3. Carl's business card
4. includes Bernice Nelson
5. shows Don Nelson

Gladys Bastear is the daughter of Joseph & Elizaberth (Hajic) Bastear. The latter is a sister of Lottie Mahler's. Lottie (Hajic) Mahler is also a sister of my father, Edward B Hajic. Harry Bastear is Gladys' brother.

The Carl Mahler residence was, for our family, a wonderful source of retreat/vacation/work during the summer months. Our family included Edward's wife Lilly (Mikuta) Hajic and children: Edgar, Robert, Phyllis and Earl (Aunt Lottie readily changed that to Buddy/Bud). Robert (Bob) worked for Carl during his late teen years helping in the hauling of the huge sills and jacks for the house moving. The Mahlers also often provided meals and rest for some of the road constuction workers (re. conversation with Bernice [Nelson] Karlsson and her daughter, Karleen). These were busy, happy times in the Carl Mahler household.

Some of my (Bud) best pre-teen and early teen years were experienced in the 1930's and early 1940's. A noteable summer included painting the outside of their 2 story house. Karleen re-enters the story here as a toddler who added driveway gravel to one of my buckets of white paint. An earlier summer included learning how to drive the smaller of the 2 Chevy trucks (see photo 4) that Carl used for his work in the adjacent pasture. It was the pasture of Carl's mother Nellie (wife of Paul Mahler) who lived directly east of the Carl Mahler house. My main memory of her is as a woman in her 80's who still split her own firewood!

Lowell 'treats' included the annual Labor Day festival, a bitter-sweet experience, which marked the end of summer fun and the next day's start of school in Berwyn, Illinois. Occasional movies at the Lowell theater provided my early cinematic culture. Saturday nights were often marked at the Mahler house by Carl's arrival home near midnight and his insistence we all get up and join him in the gallon of ice cream he brought home. At my earliest age there I was taught to respond to Bernice's "Number please" with "What numbers do you have?" Transportation to Lowell from our Berwyn home was sometimes provided by Don Nelson, who I would meet near a Chicago 'El' station stop. Other times we might take the Monon train.

I'm sure that my sister Phyllis and brother Edgar could far surpass my descriptions with their own memories of the significance of Lowell, Indiana, and the Mahler influence on their lives. Bob was subsequently with the Marine (Carlson's) Raiders on Guadalcanal during the 'Long Patrol' behind enemy lines and was KIA on Bougainville Island in the South Pacific on November 8, 1943. His enlistment physical fitness was in no small measure due to his work with Carl Mahler.

Sincerely,
Earl J Hajic