Hynek Rybnicek was an old world craftsman of a different kind. Born in Brezi, Bohemia on April 16, 1887 to Fathername, also a stone cutter, and Mothername. He grew up in a home where reading and learning were encouraged. In 1906, like many other Europeans, immigrated to the US to conscription in the army. He and his brother Anton arrived in Baltimore. Hynek Rybnicek moved to the Cleveland, Ohio and subsequently to Omaha, Nebraska before he answered an ad for a stone-cutter in Bismarck. He worked in a Bismarck momument shop for 3 years before moving to his own homestead in Morton County three years later.
It was common at the time for Czechoslovakian girls to come to the United States and work for Czech families while they learned English. A girl who grew up in Zaluzi, Bohemia, a village near Hynek's hometown, moved to Cleveland. Antonie Mendik and Rybnicek at one point began to exchange letters. "Tony" was an accomplished seamstress and cook. In 1914 financed by a $200 bank loan, Hynek traveled to Cleveland to marry Antonie on January 7, 1915. The couple returned to Bismarck to settle down and start a family.
At the urging of his bride he started his own business, Mandan Monument Works, in late 1915 at 522 West Main St. His talent was quickly recognized and in 1925 he was commissioned by the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) to carve the state's Great Seal in native granite to be place in the Washington Monument on behalf of the State of North Dakota.
Area farmers would frequently select a fieldstone on their property and engage Rybnek to carve their gravestone. The practice served to cut material costs, important during the Great Depression erra. He took the same approach in 1933 when recommended by Governor (and former Mandan resident) George Schafer to carve the cornerstone for the new State Capitol building, but for historical significance rather than cost.
Courtesy of State Historical Society of North Dakota (SHSND) C0442-2
The gigantic boulder moved from Canada and deposited in Morton County was used by Hynek Rybincek to carve out what would eventually become the final cornerstone for the current ND State Capitol Building. A copper-lined box was inserted within the cornerstone and filled with various historical artifacts. Pictured to the right are William Dobsen, capital groundsman; Joseph Bell DeRemer, architect; Hynek Rybnicek, stonecutter; and Ernst Warner, Capitol Commission.
It was also in 1933 that the residents of the Elbowoods Reservation commissioned Rybnicek to carve an obelisk which held Indian figurine extending a peace pipe. It was erected to honor Four Bears role's in the Fort Laramie Treaty. In 1938, he carved the grave monument for Alexander McKenzie at St. Mary's Cemetery in Bismarck. But he claimed the most pride for his work at the North Dakota Peace Gardens. The momument, sponsored by the Young Citizens League of ND, was paid for by donated pennies from the state's school children.
Hynek finally closed his shop as he approached his 82nd birthday. He reclaimed his love for reading during his retirement with specific focus to the bible. He died on May 24, 1971. His wife Antonie died on August 4, 1947. Their son Ervin Hynek, born on October 16, 1917, made 1st lieutenant in the US Army in World War II but was killed in action on Okinawa in the Pacific Theater on April 2, 1945. All three are buried in Union Cemetery, Mandan, ND.
Their daughter Libuse married Albert Imbrone of St. Paul and lived there with her husband and their five children. Her brother also had one child, a son, who would be a grandson to Hyneck Rybnicek.
