Brewster ? Anyone interested in Kansas’s history and the pioneer days just might enjoy a visit to the Minor Family Sod House Bed and Breakfast.

Located about 20 miles north of Brewster, the four-room soddy was home to Lesa Juenemann’s great-grandparents, Tom and Mary Minor, for nearly 50 years. Now, Lesa and her husband, Fred, have decided to share her heritage with others who want to experience life on the prairie in a sod house.

The Minor Family Sod House Bed and Breakfast, about 20 miles north of Brewster in western Kansas, has been in the same family since 1909. The current owners, Lesa and Fred Juenemann, are reflected in a glass cutout that shows the house's sod walls.

The Minors purchased the soddy in 1909, just one year after it was built, and since then it has remained in the family. Now the fourth generation is taking the bed-and-breakfast approach to sharing the house and stories about the family.

One story relates the fact that Mary Minor, at first sight of the soddy, wanted to return to her frame house in Nebraska to raise the youngest six of her 12 children.

The original sod house was built with 2-foot thick walls and had only four rooms within its 18-by-48-foot perimeter. It had wooden floors, double-hung glass windows and a wood shingled roof.

Changes made to the original structure included Mary’s desire to cover the inside walls with a smooth plaster, as they remain today. Also, the outside walls were covered with concrete to protect them from the harsh Kansas weather, and two small rooms were added on the east side.

Today, the wooden floors have been replaced with concrete, and the two rooms that were added on the east have been converted into a kitchen and bathroom with electricity and running water.

The soddy was also the location of the Minor post office from 1910 to 1920. During these years, Tom Minor carried mail on horseback and was postmaster for the area. Cards postmarked Minor, Kan., are on display as part of a collection of antiques in the house.

History guides endeavor

Fred Juenemann’s love for history and his own family’s heritage, coupled with the fact he has spent hours researching the area and its history, has aided in the project.

“My maternal great-grandparents, Caleb and Anna Geisenhener, homesteaded in Sheridan County in 1888, and I have pictures and have heard stories about them over the years,” he said.

Lesa Juenemann said her family is pleased that she and her husband have taken over being caretakers for the soddy.

“When Fred took an interest in the house, my folks were thrilled. I didn’t appreciate the house as much when I was a kid as I do now, but I have three brothers, and we were all in Scouts, and I remember coming here for day trips,” Lesa Juenemann said.

She recalls trips that included trying to cook in the wood burning stove and learning how to regulate the heat.

The Juenemanns have worked diligently to retain the authenticity of the house. In order to showcase the fact that the house is actually made of sod, they removed a 4-foot-square section of the plaster in the living room and encased the sod in a glass frame.

“It’s complete with critters,” Fred said about placing a couple of small toy mice and a toy snake where they can be seen through the glass.

Although the Juenemanns have made the house more modern, the accessories are based on the past. The two small bedrooms have iron beds made up with crisp linens covered with colorful quilts. Oil lamps sit on small tables, and walls display pictures of the couple’s ancestors. The original kitchen has a wood stove and a hand pump for fresh well water and a large, round, wooden table and chairs that is reminiscent of the era.

No Holiday Inn

Several options are available to guests of the Minor sod house, and these can include a full steak dinner and continental breakfast or the breakfast only, depending on time of arrival and departure.

In addition to staying at the home place, a visit to the Minor family’s sod house includes walking paths that lead to nearby pioneer dugouts, books relating to the area’s rich history, cassette tapes that replicate old-time radio shows, farm tours when time permits, hunting when in season and hours of solitude. The Juenemanns say the only thing missing is a television.

The couple live in Brewster, less than a half-hour away.

“The nearest neighbor is a mile away as the crow flies, and we are working hard to get the wildlife to come back to the area, especially the wild turkeys,” Fred Juenemann said. “It seems that people have taken an interest in tourism in this area, and they enjoy seeing prairie dogs and the few buffalo that are around here.

“The road running by here provides a nice winding drive to Atwood, and the area is rich with history that guests can learn about. Sites of the Kidder Massacre, Dewey-Berry Feud and Fort Wallace are all near here. And, just over there is Beaver Creek,” he said, pointing to the creek just yards north of the house.

The couple have stayed in other bed and breakfasts and said theirs is different because there are not multiple units. The soddy accommodates up to four people.

“This is not like most bed and breakfasts. It’s a guest house. If you share it with anyone,” Fred said, “you share it with someone you brought with you.”