…Charles, Junio and James Oelberg (pic), all three were born at Albany near Lima, and all have spent practically all of their lives in Fayette County. All three, and another brother, Albert, have been connected for a time with the Lima store, know for years as, "the Oelberg Bros. Store." Charles was the youngest of the eight children of their parents, John Peter and Elizabeth Betz Oelberg.  Of the brothers, Junio is the oldest, followed by James and Charles.
…The Lima store held an Oelberg ownership from 1883 until 1929. Junio bought the store from Frank Matzel in 1883, the year he married Pamela Coe. His brother James helped him and bought a partnership in 1889. In 1890 James purchased Junio’s interest, and in 1892, James sold it to his brothers, Charles and Albert. Charles stayed until 1901, and Albert continued with the store until his death in 1929, after which the Lima store passes out of Oelberg ownership.
…Charles F. Oelberg was born February 9, 1873, and since 1890 has resided on the farm which was bought by their father in 1852, and of which he eventually became the owner. His children are Harold Oelberg of Elkader; Mrs. Gail Nelson of Dallas Center; Mrs. Edward Daries of Harris; Franklin Oelberg of Lima; and Mrs. Leland Meyer of Stronghurst, Ill. Mrs. Oelberg died in 1928 and in 1929 Charles married again. Their home is one mile northeast of Lima.
…Junio Oelberg, who bought his farm home one+ mile southeast of Lima in 1889, lived there until March 1936, when he sold it to his daughter Mrs. W. D. Follensbee. As a young man he worked on farms and helped build the Milwaukee railroad through Wadena and Lima. This line was abandoned in 1938. Besides Mrs. Follensbee his children are Mrs. W. H. Turner, between West union and Fayette; Mrs. R. M. Dickinson, Lima; and Albert J. Dickinson, Waukon. Since the death of his wife in 1936, Junio has resided in Oelwein with his brother James, and in a hotel in Waterloo. Now at past 85 years of age he has good eyesight, good hearing, and has retained nearly all of his teeth. In all of his travels he goes alone. He is next to the oldest living person born in Westfield Township. The oldest is Ernest McGee of Whittier Calif., now 89.
…James Oelberg, born August 30, 1963, following his years in the Lima store and after selling out to Albert in 1892, he went to Oelwein, starting in the shoe business with James and Oscar Humphrey. In 1910 he bought the store from the Humphrey’s and later built a 25ft addition to the building. He sold the store in 1918, but retained ownership to the building in which the Grille now is located. James also has been assessor for years, serving first as appointee to fill a vacancy and has been reelected each time since. He has been a member of the Elks lodge for many years, and has taken an active part in the public affairs in Oelwein.

Source, West Union paper article of the 1970's, with personal editing.

In 1912, a 12x24' Ice House was built east of the creek bridge on the south side of the road to store ice. The ice cut on the pond under the Albany bridge. Some cutting and loading, others with teams and sleds hauling, others packing the ice in sawdust, those helping were to have free ice.

Nefzger Store
...In 1878 another store was started by Simon Nefzger just west of the first store.  It was also operated at one time by Ebenezer (Bob) Nefzger starting in about 1878. At the time that the store was destroyed by fire about 1890, it was being used as a home. The nearby blacksmith shop also burned and was rebuilt. About 1900  it burned again.

Lima store 1890 +/-

This view is looking to the northeast from standing on the railroad tracks.  The railroad came to Lima in 1878, running along the Volga from Wadena, crossing the Volga at Talbot's Ford across the field to the SE of the cemetery, then ran through the bottomland field in front of the cemetery at an angle to this point in front of the Lima Store.  From here it followed the present road to the west and swung northward through Frog Hollow to West Union. Today's road from the west to Lima is actually the old rail bed.

By the 1880-1890 time span the Lima Store was a very large structure for the place and time, by far the most impressive building in the Lima, Albany valley.  The shape and function was typical of the time.  The foundation was limestone slabs with all of the timbers and lumber cut at the local mill(s).  The residence, as with so many businesses of the times was located at the rear and/or above the store.  Three fireplace chimney's are visible and as with all the area homes/businesses, heated by wood cut from local woodlots.  In the back of the residence is the livery barn which housed any horses, wagons, buggies, cattle.  Typically there was several small outbuilding for hogs, cattle, some cows, chickens, etc.  Small fields, gardens, and orchard  were nearby.  This was the normal for many village residence who owned property.  They maintained in reality a small farmstead that produced much of their food needs and of course transportation. Water came from hand dug wells, and by the 1880's wells were being 'drilled' and an iron pipe casing sunk/pushed into the ground.  Hand operated pumps, with handles came into use, some of which can still be found around the countryside.  By the turn of the century many kitchens had a small hand pump at a sink with the used water just run to the outside through a pipe.  Only backhouses were available until well into the 1940's.  Indoor plumping and lights had to await the coming of electricity to the Valley in about 1838. The established families in a village lime Lima or Albany were nearly self-sufficient, as were the farms. bz/2003

Just behind the Lima store is a small shop.  The tree line in the background marks the Lima Brook (creek).  The water source for the creek is from the 'springs' several miles to the north or left.  The creek runs straight south a half mile and emptied into the Volga River immediately on the east side of the old Lima Bridge and about 60 yards downstream of the mill dam.   The road south out of Lima, ran just to the west of the creek, thus straight down to the mill from the Lima Store.  Along the creek, not far from the mill, between the road and creek was a saw mill in later years, and blacksmith shop.  As auto's came prominent a garage was present at the blacksmith shop area. 

Lima Store 1910 +/-

...The store was remodeled and enlarged in 1906-07, but burned in April of 1907.  The store was then rebuilt the summer of 1907, with goods being sold at the mill building until the new store could be built.  A.J. (Albert or 'Chub') Oelberg built a cement block warehouse just west of the store, with a full basement, which was rented out as living quarters to various people.  Albert (Chub) Oelberg owned the Oelberg Brothers' store and the post office for almost 50 years, with the first years in partnership with his brothers.

Lima area occupations, avocation, etc.

The Mill Site
......The Lights built a saw mill and later added a set of burrs for grinding corn in1849-50. Andrew Hensley bought out the Light mill and made it into a flour mill by1852. The saw mill was sold to P. H. Durfey and his son, Follett.  In later years, Follet and sons, Robert and Merl, operated the mill. At that time the flour mill was owned by Albert R. Oelberg, who also owned and operated the general store. The mill  was abandoned around 1910 when the river could no longer furnish power except for a short time in the spring and fall after heavy rains.
...The first to settle in the Lima valley was Eurastus A. Light and Harvey Light; therefore the area started to become known as Lightville.   Later to be called Volga City for a short time but because there was another Volga City farther down the river just inside Clayton County, the name was changed to Lima by an act of the Iowa State Legislature.  Talbot and Andrew Hensley were just downstream of the Lights. The Light brothers started a saw mill on the Volga River in 1849-1850 (100yds west of the bridge of the 2000's). 
...Rev. James Davis, a United Brethren preacher, with his family, came to the county in August, 1849, and settled in Dover Township, but in the Spring of 1850 removed to Lightville (now Lima), having rented Harvey Light's place, his son William cutting out the road from West Union to Lightville.
...Andrew (father of Andrew Jackson or A.J. or 'Jack') Hensley built a flour mill with stone burrs at this same place in 1852.  Andrew had taken up land in October of 1849,a mile east downstream in section 19 of Illyria Towhship being the second man to enter land in Illyria.  In 1851 he purchased the mill site, land and plat completely8 surrounding Lightville.  The Light brother moved from the region at that time.   In 1855 Andrew Hensely bought his last farm on the north side of Albany, retained the Lima land for his son A.J. but sold the mill site with its surrounding acres to P.H. Durfey and son.

Major farmers near Lima:
...To the  south was Charles Whitley who was a breeder of full blood horses and cattle. T. R.  Parker, general farming. The Graf farm and ten acre apple orchard. They shipped apples by  car loads....To the southeast was G.P. Gage, general farming, the P.H. Hastings farm which later was run by a son, John Hastings. J.J. Oelberg and S.C. Bass....To the east was W. O. Lewis, G. W. Jones, C. H. Wilson, George Kuhens, Frank Follenbee, Del Kuhens, James Davis, Joe Lewis, Jehiel Warner, Andrew Shepherd, George Lambert, Al DeNier....To the north was Walter Pritchard, C.C. Harrison who later moved to Missouri,  Robert Barthlomew, Smith Landas, T.D. Lewis, N.F. Henry and Charles Oelberg. Eli  Meyer, John Davis and Thomas Pritchard and Wlill Sloan. William Carmachael and Sam Carmachael, Frank Helms and Sam Helms who later moved to Ridgeway, Iowa....Reuben Hensley, Albany farmer; brother A.J. "Jack" Hensley, Lima farmer and miller....T.W.  Potter who lived just to the east of the Lima Store and farmed adjacent to Lima.

The Depot Area:
...P. H. Hastings was depot agent in Lima for many years and many car loads of cattle and hogs were shipped from this point.  The Milwaukee Railroad first ran into the county in 1878. The last train ran Feb. 7, 1938, and the tracks were torn out on July 14, 1938.The railroad was abandoned in 1938.

The train approaches Lima from the east in front of the Lima Cemetery on a winter day in the late 1800's.

...A lumber yard was established in 1890 southwest of the Lima store and was operated for many years by P. H. Hastings, who was also the depot agent. The lumber yard was later discontinued about 1910, and a Commission Company was formed and stock yards built where the lumber yard stood, with F. T. Jones the manager.  Many loads of hogs and cattle were shipped out on the railroad from Lima.  A warehouse to store incoming and outgoing commodities was also built at the stock yard area.

School:
… A School House was built on the north bank of the river and the first classes held in the winter of 1850, taught by E.H. Light. After the flood of 1878, this school building which as been used for other purposes, was abandoned and later moved to the Tom Potter farmstead, adjacent and northeast of Lima, and used as a grainery. A black board was still intact, when the building was destroyed because of the Volga Lake project.
…Another country school house on the south bank of the Volga was built in the 1860's. 
… About 1878, a more substantial school house was erected on high ground south of the river just to the SE of the bridge. An addition was built in 1905, and abandoned for use by the 1960's to be utilized for farm storage until destroyed by the Volga Lake project.

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Church Info:
…The first church organized in Lima was the Congregational, started in 1857. Membership grew from seven in that first year to about twenty in 1878. a united Brethren Church was organized but soon disbanded. The first building used as a church was either moved or torn down. Then the congregation was reorganized as the Lima Union Church. The building constructed in 1882, was added to in 1914. Four stained-glass windows were installed on which were inscribed names of the first members—Hensley, Helms, Henry and Stearns.
…Norton Henry sawed the lumber for the original building and  Mr. Beardsley finished the lumber and made the pews. John Elston did some inside work and Winslow and Wheeler Stearns, A.J. Hensley, S.D. Helms and many others donated labor; Reuben Hensley, Sam Helms, J. Davis, Andrew Shepherd and George Earl. Winslow Stearns, farmer and carpenter Norman Henry and George Kuhens, young men at the time, (1879, as we calculate it)  helped haul the church saw-logs to the Henry mill. "Elder" Helms, the first preacher of this church.
…The first pulpit and seats were handmade by John Elston, Mrs. Laura Shepard,  Henry's uncle, and the finishing and varnishing was done by Mrs. Shepard's brother-in-law, Joseph Beardsley.
…Reverend Taylor and Reverend McCormick were two of the earliest ministers. Another pioneer minister, Reverend Israel Shaffer, grandfather of I.F. Shaffer of  Fayette, preached his last sermon at the Lima Church.
…The church was rebuilt, the east addition added, in 1914. The late Albert "Chub" Oelberg, proprietor of the Lima general store, furnished cement, hardware and other supplies at cost.
…George "Gunner" Earle was the finishing carpenter.|
…The Lima Union Church and Sunday School was organized in 1882 with a Mr. Richmond as Superintendent.
…Allie Bass went to elementary school near Lima. In 1925 she received her B.A. Degree in Education at Iowa State Teacher's College in Cedar Falls. She received her Masters Degree from the University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa.  She was a Methodist Missionary in India for many years, and was an instructor  in a Methodist boy's school in India for sixteen years. She was a Social Science instructor in a Junior College in North Carolina. In 1945 she was a business manager in a college in India. She also taught in Central High School in Ames, Iowa.
..The Lima Cemetery Association incorporated in 1865. It is in the cemetery that the life-size statue of John Crawford and his beloved dog stand. The statue was erected by Mr. Crawford's employer Libbie Harrison, in appreciation for his many years of faithful service as a farm hand. The statue was paid for in great part with the unclaimed wages Mr. Crawford had earned.

At one time in the area to the north of the Lima Store a Methodist Church was in operation.  After the Lima Community Church was built all congregations joined to utilize and maintain the facility.

Other:
...Susan Collins was born July 3rd, 1851 and died June 12, 1940 and was buried in the Lima Cemetery. She was probably the only person residing in Fayette County who was born to slave parents.
...Marion Shepard, who later in life as a Township Constable was shot and killed by "Ike"  Barber of the Barber Brothers, whom Constable Shepard was attempting to arrest for horse stealing.

Lima Letter in the Fayette Post Card, October 5, 1887

…Dan (Daniel P.) Hensley has returned here after quite a long absence looking for a good place to locate and has concluded to settle down at Lima.|
…Reuben L. Hensley and the Finch Brothers are making preparations to build new houses this fall.
…We understand a new time table is soon to go into effect on our railroad and that the freight and passenger trains will meet here at 10:45 am.
…The one great event this week was the moving of the post office. P.M. Hastings had moved into the new store (Olberg's), has everything new and convenient and handles the mail with the grace and ease of the old hand. F. T. Pilkington is duly installed as assistant and will look after Uncle Sam’s interest in the absence of the postmaster.
…Mr. E. E. Henry lost a valuable horse last Monday.
…Lima is gaining quite a reputation as a butter and egg market, the highest price in the county being paid. Let it boom; it needs it.
…Mrs. Bass and family will remove to West Union this week. We are sorry to see them go.
…W. F. Shepard and family have returned from California and will settle here at Lima, concluding this is the El Dorado.
…Mrs. C. Wilson is quite sick and requires the attendance of a doctor daily.
…Rumor says our boys will get into trouble if they do not quit playing ball on the Sabbath. A hint to the wise, &c.

Sources:
Notes compiled by the late Elizabeth Oelberg Dickinson, Fayette, Iowa and the late Merl Durfey. Lima booklet. 1878 History of Fayette County.  Personal background.