Central City in Linn County, Iowa — The American Midwest (Upper Plains)
PFC Nicholas Aberle
Army National Guard 2011-2013 & Nich Bear
Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, September 18, 2025
1. PFC Nicholas Aberle Marker
Nich was a 2012 graduate of North Linn High School. He participated in FFA, Band and basketball. Outside of school his true love was farming with Dad and working toward having farmland of his own. He had a work ethic that was beyond any teenager, getting up early to work pigs and then go straight to practice. In the summer he mowed lawns around town enough so that he was able to purchase his own equipment.
Nich was a member of Troy Mills American Legion Post 712 and joined immediately following his BCT. His military goal was to be deployed; he was in Washington DC on duty during the inauguration of President Obama in 2013.
Nich Bear as he was named by Nich's nephew, was given to Nich's family as a memento following Nich's death from injuries sustained in a car accident going to work for a local farmer. Nich Bear quickly became something the family utilized to help tell stories to Nich's nieces and nephews.
Nich Bear has been to each of the 99 Iowa Freedom Rocks as well as one in Minnesota. While visiting one of Freedom Rocks, Bubba Sorenson was painting and took a picture with Nich Bear.
Topics. This historical marker
this page online
Location. 42° 11.734′ N, 91° 31.671′ W. Marker is in Central City, Iowa, in Linn County. It is on Central City Road 0.3 miles east of Marion Road (Iowa Route 13), on the right when traveling east. The marker and Linn County Freedom Rock are located in a covered shelter on the south side of the Central City Road and River Street intersection, near the Linn County Fairgrounds. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 201 Central City Road, Central City IA 52214, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in Eastern Iowa. It is also in the American Midwest and in the Corn Belt. Globally, it is in North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture and also the Louisiana Purchase.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 6 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Paul Warfield Tibbets Jr. (here, next to this marker); Mancil V. Root (here, next
2. Marker detail: PFC Nicholas Aberle & Nich Bear
Related markers. Click here for a list of markers that are related to this marker. Central City Freedom Rock Veterans Memorial
Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, September 18, 2025
3. PFC Nicholas Aberle Marker
The marker is mounted near the base of the north side of the Linn County Freedom Rock.
Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, September 18, 2025
4. Nich Bear
Nich Bear is painted near the bottom of the north side of the Linn County Freedom Rock.
Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, September 18, 2025
5. Linn County Freedom Rock & Shelter (north side)
PFC Nicholas Aberle & Nich Bear are honored on the north side of the Linn County Freedom Rock.
Credits. This page was last revised on October 14, 2025. It was originally submitted on October 10, 2025, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. This page has been viewed 72 times since then and 22 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. submitted on October 14, 2025, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.
