WAUPACA REPUBLICAN

March 17, 1893

 

Millions in Murphys

 

            Rev. W.J. Perry dropped into our office before returning to his pastorate at Eureka. “Will” was formerly an old correspondent for the REPUBLICAN and he said it was natural to drop in with an item. “This time” said Mr. Perry; “I have a few potato items. I have been getting statistics of your potato dealers and I know your readers especially the foreign ones, who live where a few loads of potatoes will glut the market, will be pleased to know of a spot where the bushels marketed will go up into the hundreds of thousands, yes, over a million and where the number of carloads exported go beyond the thousand.  These astonishers!! are what calls a town into prominence and Waupaca has the name for a crack market and Waupaca potatoes are synonym for excellence.  There is no difference in potatoes grown on the sandy soils of Waupaca, Waushara and Portage counties but they all go as “Waupaca Potatoes”, even a few shippers in Minnesota and Michigan have branded their cars “Waupaca Potatoes” but the product gave the whole thing away and they had to pull down the sign.

THE FIGURES.

            From the beginning of the shipping season, the last of August, there was shipped from Waupaca station up to Saturday, March 11, 1414 cars.  It is estimated in the various warehouses and cellars in this city and at least 400 cars in the hands of farmers yet to be marketed here.     The starch company ground last fall 200,000 bushels.  Averaging the cars at 600 bushels to the car, makes 1,200,000 bushels.  Add to this 200,000 bushels made into starch makes one million, four hundred thousand bushels, which in dollars, averaging fifty cents a bushel makes in solid cash paid out to farmers tributary to Waupaca SEVEN HUNDRED THOUSAND DOLLARS.  And then, in this county there are several other places, Scandinavia, Ogdensburg, Royalton, Manawa, Sheridan, Weyauwega, New London and Clintonville, whose shipments of potatoes will roll up to the Waupaca figures, and maybe exceed them, on the whole.

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            It will only require a little figuring to show that the potato deal in Waupaca county places in circulation over one million dollars annually.  It is no wonder the farmers are building, the village and cities have a healthy growth and that real estate has commenced to be active. The farmer is not paying all his attention to potatoes.  There are spots in townships where grain, hay, the dairy and stock business is booming.  And our lumber, granite and brick business takes no back seat.  On the whole, what was thirty years ago the despised “Indian Lands” now stand at the top of the list in producing material wealth.  Our potato mines bring forth a substance that readily exchanges for gold, silver and greenbacks and that substance is sought after as one of the leading necessary articles in the regular bill of fare every day in the year.

            In the above statistics we have said nothing in regard to individual shipments in car lots, which will add quite materially to the amount, but ‘nuf said.  It is a big thing for this locality any way, and it is constantly growing better.