Early Settlers – Louis and Margaret “Maggie” Shaw Frick – Point View Cemetery, Radium, Pawnee County

Point View Cemetery is three miles south and one mile west of Radium which is located 11 miles east of Larned along highway 19. It is home to approximately 100 headstones. The land for the cemetery was purchased in 1897 from Louis and Margaret Frick.

Louis Frick came to Pawnee County from Indiana. Margaret “Maggie” Shaw came with her parents, Silas and Mary, and four siblings in 1878. The two were married on May 25, 1885, in Pawnee County. They were the parents of four children, Walter, May, Silas, and Gladys.

The family settled in Logan Township in the southeast corner of Pawnee County. The family faced the same hardships other pioneers endured including grasshoppers, hail storms, and prairie fires.

However, nothing compares to the loss of children. Tragedy struck the Frick family in 1909 as Silas and Walter contracted typhoid fever and passed away. Silas suffered from typhoid and pneumonia for nine weeks. He died at the age of 20 on September 17th. Their oldest son, Walter, died on October 24th at the age of 23. They are buried in the Frick family plot in Point View Cemetery.

The following year, Louis and Margaret decided to retire. They kept the homestead but sold the animals and machinery. They moved to Macksville and remained there. Maggie passed away in 1922 and Louis in 1942. They are buried in the same cemetery with their sons and two daughters.

The rest of the story: During the year 1909, there were several cases of typhoid reported in the newspapers. Two boys ages 6 and 11 passed away. The saddest story would be the death of Jakub Krzoska. He left a wife and 11 children with the oldest only 17 years old.

Note: The main causes of typhoid fever were poor sanitation and a lack of cleanliness. Symptoms include high fever, weakness, stomach pain, constipation, headaches, and mild vomiting. Physicians would use turpentine, quinine, and brandy to treat it. Antibiotics would be used today.