John Henry Bauman, life-long resident of Fairview, passed away Tuesday September 1st in Sidney after a brief illness. He was born June 20th, 1939 in Fairview to parents Henry (Hank) Bauman Jr. and Jane Johnson. He and his younger brother Tom were raised East of Fairview. He spent his youth working the family farm and feedlot which was built on the old Jas and Zok farms downstream from the Fairview Bridge. His folks bought 160 acres from the Noteboom brothers just up from the feedlot and moved into their newly-built home in 1953. John attended elementary school in East Fairview and graduated from Fairview High School in 1958. He spent a year at MSU in Bozeman and often talked of his memories of Colter Hall.
John married Barbara Weber on December 3rd, 1960. They made their home on the Bauman family farm and raised 3 daughters - Diane, Chris, and Jeanne. He retired from farming in 1998, after which he and Barb bought a home in town on State Street. He was extremely proud of his yard and flowers, which he tended to as a parent tends to their children. If you drove by their place, chances are you would see John outside doing something busy on any given day. John’s other passion was local history. Many can attest to the immense time and effort he put in to preserving the history of the town and surrounding areas. He enjoyed talking with others about old-time Fairview and put together quite the collection of historical documents and articles out of the Fairview Tribune, Fairview Times, and the Fairview News. He would gladly open his collection up to anyone looking for information and for several years hosted an informal open-house during Old Timer’s Festival for anyone who was interested.
Ultimately, John was a determined man who lived life on his own terms. Even in his declining health he remained at home and fiercely independent right up to the day before his passing - just as he wanted.
He is survived by his wife Barb, daughters Diane Shannon (Gene Wildman), Christine Harris (Paul), and Jeanne Saarinen; grandchildren Adam (Tiffanee) Zelka, Drew Zelka, and Samantha (Joe) Darnell. He was especially fond of his four great-granddaughters Maddie, Chloe, Callie, and Macey Zelka. Preceding John in death are his parents, brother Tom, and son-in-law Todd Saarinen.
The family wishes to thank the medical staff and caregivers (especially his nurse Joanne) for the exceptional care in his last 24 hours. They also wish to convey their sincere thanks and appreciation to Paul and Sally Borg for their kindness and devotion to John over the past 2 years. Words cannot fully express the depth of our gratitude.
A wake service is planned for Sunday September 6th at 1pm at St Catherine’s Catholic Church in Fairview, followed by an informal gathering and open house featuring John’s historical collection in the church cafeteria. All are welcome and light refreshments will be served. Funeral services with burial at the Fairview Cemetery will be planned for a later date.