Pete R Schmidt

Pete R. Schmidt was born on March 17, 1944 in Rushville NE to Peter M. and Mable E. Schmidt. Pete spent his earliest years on land located 12 miles north of Hay Springs on White Clay Creek. This land was homesteaded by his grandfather Peter Schmidt in 1885. Pete and his parents were joined by his sister Linda and the family moved to a second farm located 5 miles further north near his mother's birthplace. As a teenager, Pete then moved 2 miles down the road with his grandmother Lucy Abold at her nearby ranch.
In 1967 Pete married Clarinda Broken Leg and they also started their life on the same homesteaded land and in the same house as Pete and Mable had done some 20 years earlier. Pete and Clarinda were joined by their daughter Monica in 1968 and resided on this farm until 1973 when they moved into Rushville, NE. In 1979, the family was joined by a son, Bobby. Clarinda's parents were Daniel and Virgie Broken Leg. Pete and Clarinda divorced but continued to co-parent and raise their children together. They enjoyed a lifelong love and friendship, spending many holidays and family events together. Pete lived in Rushville until his passing in his home on October 26, 2025. Pete was preceded in death by his parents Pete and Mable, his sister Linda Wheaton, the mother of his children Clarinda Broken Leg, and a grandson Nathaniel Ohitika Thomas.
Pete worked at both grain elevators in Rushville, drove semi-truck locally and across the country, he had the patience to repair almost any small engine especially his lawn mowers, tillers, and chainsaws. He sold produce and wood around Sheridan County and on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. Pete enjoyed many hobbies throughout his life, he was an avid reader, historian, and philosopher. Pete was a gunsmith and a sharpshooter. He traveled the country with his friends attending and winning many benchrest shooting competitions. He was a lifetime member of the NRA and in his 30's he attended many NRA conventions and lobbied for important Second Amendment issues. The land Pete inherited from his father continued to be used as pastureland as well as for a small sawmill for lumber he used to build may projects big and small in his 81 years. Pete loved to garden and shared his vegetables with the community with his humble stand outside his home on highway 20. His business model was the honor system, with simple wood box on his stand to drop off money and "pay what you could". The last few years he could be found visiting the Sheridan County History Center, volunteering his time to help with the history of this region. Pete's greatest joy was his children, granddaughters, and great grandson. Six generations of his family have roamed the same rolling fields, climbed the same Ponderosa pines and played along the same creeks as Pete. It was a final wish that the land stay in the family.
Pete is mourned by his son Bobby Chamberlain of Nebraska City, NE daughter Monica (Gary) Colbath of Palmer, AK; granddaughter Jessica Thomas and a great grandson Othaniel Erickson of Cheyenne, WY; Emily Thomas of Rapid City, SD; Niece Stacey Wheaton NH; Nephew Jim (Aryn) Wheaton TX.
Funeral services will be held on November 7, 2025 at the Extension Community Chapel outside of White Clay, NE at 2:00 p.m. As was his request, most of his ashes are to be scattered across his land and with Clarinda at the Episcopal Cemetery in Pine Ridge, SD. His final resting place will be at the Bomar Cemetery north of Hay Springs next to his parents and overlooking the original homestead that has been in the Pete Schmidt name for 140 years. Memorials can be sent to Sheridan County History Center in Rushville, NE.
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