INTRODUCTION

By Miss Kurkowski

 

These stories were written when the Seniors of 1954 were in Junior American History.  Some of them were printed in the Waupaca County Post.  The design for the cover (missing) was drawn by Evelyn Paulsen and stenciled by Mrs. Meroe Anderson.  All of the typing and assembling was done by Miss Bagan and her Business Education classes.  After paying the cost of materials, the money will then be given to the hospital fund.

 

 

CLEAR WATER

By Roberta Schweitzer

 

            Wisconsin was the meeting place of so many various tribes of Indians that it is not strange to find that numbers of her cities, counties, rivers, and lakes have Indian names.  Here were found the Menomonee, the Sauk, the Winnebago, the Chippewa, the Pottawatomie, and others.  The early white settlers continued to call the localities by the same name the Indians had given them.  Because each tribe had its own language, there are cases where a place may have one or more names.  Waupaca, pronounced by some “Wa-pa-kaw” or “Wa-pa-ko-ho-na-wak” meaning “one brave young hero,” probably refers to the Menomonee culture hero Ma-nabus, or may refer to Wa-puka, a Pottawatomi chief, who is buried in a cemetery at Marion.

            Whatever the correct pronunciation, there is no question but what it refers to the river and means according to various interpreters, “the place of cool water,” “white sand bottom,” and “white or crystal water.”  An early fur trader states that the name means “dawning of the morning,” which the French endeavored to interpret by calling the river, “Tomorrow River.”  It still is called the Tomorrow River in Portage County.  You will note that all of these interpretations indicate that the river is and was one of clear water, one interpreter even going so far as to compare it to the brightness of the dawn.  Less than seventy years ago the Indians still used the river as a means of transportation and camped along its banks.  While its beauty has been spoiled to some extent by manufacturing plants there are yet many spots along its course, where it is still, and, as the early Menomonee said, “the place of clear water.”

 

 

WAUPACA INDIANS

By Delores Gunsten

 

            Long ago, before white man entered this region of wilderness, it was occupied by a tribe of people called the Menomonee Indians.

            These Indians migrated here from the St. Lawrence Valley.  While peacefully occupying the Chain o’ Lakes country at Wapa-kaw, a party of Oh-say-ges (Osage) came from their north hunting expedition.  This led to a war between the two tribes with the Menomonee victorious.  Later a stronger party of Oh-say-ges came again leaving the Menomonee defeated and giving the Oh-say-ges possession for years.  The Menomonee attacked again and with the aid of neighboring tribes, drove them away and regained possession of their homeland.

            A frequent camp ground of the Indians was at the bend of the Waupaca river, between the head of the Chain o’ Lakes and the city.  This locality, Garde Corners, was once densely forested.  Old settlers remember when there were a few wigwams of camping Indians there.  Dugout canoes were sometimes seen on the north shore of Mirror Lake where the district is now Lake Street and occupied by Waupaca citizens.  Indians are remembered by old residents, to have camped in small numbers in several places along the Waupaca River in and near the city.  Mrs. D.A. Brunson remembers Indians camping near the bridge in the ‘60s.  They came to town to sell blueberries.  They had ponies and used a travois in tranport-ing their belongings.

            Another favorite Indian camping ground was at the falls of the Waupaca River at the present site of the dam in the city.  Freeman Dana Dewey describes the burial of an Indian there.  “With him was buried his gun, knife, dog, and pony.  A quarter of smoked venison and a bottle of whiskey were placed in the grave.  The funeral service held at the Falls on the following night consisted of marching about the grave, firing a gun, and drinking from a whiskey bottle.”  This ceremony was intended to speed the warrior on his 4-day journey to the Spirit World.  Quite a few flint points and heavier stone implements have been found on this site in past years.

 

 

UGH!  BIG HEAPS.

By Darlene Kieffer

 

            Have you ever heard about the history of the Indian Mounds on and near the east shore of Taylor Lake?  I just wonder how many of us really know about these mounds.  There are only a few left today because some have been destroyed by the making of gravel pits, the construction of the Waupaca Electric line, that used to run through around the lakes, and the building of highways.

            These mounds that are still here today are located on the Taylor farm.  It is the first farmhouse, on the right side of the road, as you enter the city limits of King, and quite close to the highway.

            Now for the history of these mounds, which at one time numbered forty-five in all.  There are several types including altar mounds, mounds for cremation and burial mounds.  Some of these mounds were dwellings and some were monuments of earth of various forms.

            These Taylor Lake mounds were short distances from each other, and for convenience of description, they were named into three groups.  A man named Mr. Benedict provided the names for these – “Mound Grove Group,” “Highway Group,” and “Xerxes Hill Group.”

            The Mounds Grove Group, originally consisted of fifteen mounds, and followed the curve of the Taylor Lake bank of the Taylor property, known as Mounds Grove.  Seven of this fine group of pre-histories Indian Mounds remain.  One of these mounds, which Mr. Benedict describes in the Mound Grove Group, as having contained a “cyst burial.”  The skeleton was seated on the surface of the ground, facing the lake.  Over this interment was built a round mound and on top stood a gnarled black oak or pin oak. A few broken flint points were within the outer mound.

            Located a short distance east of the Mound Grove Group is the Highway Group.  This group consists of twenty-four mounds, of which three were of turtle mounds.  Only a catfish type effigy remains.  These turtle effigies had a body provided with legs, and a long or short tapering tail.  The catfish effigy had a horn on either side of its head.  It has no limbs, but a long tapering tail.  A part of the tail has been destroyed in the joining cultivated field.  This mound was marked with a bronze tablet mounted in a native boulder, by the Monday Night Club of Waupaca, during the Homecoming in August, 1913.  Dr. Reuben Gold Thwaites, secretary of the State Historical Society delivered the unveiling address.

            The next group which Mr. Benedict named was the Xerxes Hill Group.  They were located on the top of a hill, a short distance south of the Waupaca Highway.  Three of the mounds were animal shape and three were turtle forms.

            It is a great pity that prehistoric works of such public interest could not be spared.  If there were there today and set aside as a county preserve, they would be visited, no doubt, by hundreds of visitors to the Waupaca Chain o’ Lakes each year.

 

 

THE FIVE VERMONTERS

By Elva Rach

 

            Joseph and William Hibbard, Martin Burnham, E.C. Sessions and a Mr. Pratt left from Plymouth on foot with their blankets and grubstakes on June 9, 1849.  They were seeking the Indian Lands that were opened by the United States Government in October 1848.

            They traveled west past the town of Greenbush through the forest on the east side of Lake Winnebago, stopping the first night at the Stockbridge Indian Settlement.

            The next sunset found them little east of the present city of Menasha.  They traveled on, north through the timber land to Mukwa, across the Wolf River, along the east side of White Lake in the town of Royalton, to the site of the present city of Weyauwega.

            From Weyauwega, Henry Tourtelotte accompanied them in search for the land of promise.  At a point up the river where J.W. Chandler and S. Dow settled, Tourtelotte turned back while the original party pushed on.  They were caught in a severe thunderstorm and had to spend that night at the James Thomas farm.

            At last they reached the “magnificent water-power and site” of our present city of Waupaca.

            They brought supplies of flour and bacon with them.  During a June downpour, they sat up all night and held the flour under their coats to keep it dry.  This little incident occurred by the huge rock on the hill by the Danes’ Home.

            Waupaca was originally known as the Vermonters’ Camp because of these five Vermonters who first came here.

            It is said that one time when a party of men passed through this part of the country, they stopped at the camp.  The Vermonters were very hospitable and prepared a meal for them.  This party learned later that some of the men of the camp had not eaten for two days.  That night the party slept under the stars and dreamed of softer beds in more civilized lands.  They awoke to find the larder empty.  An Indian was sent to the Weyauwega camp for supplies.  When the party got to more civilized land, they told of the Vermonters’ great hospitality.

 

 

THE SECOND GROUP OF MEN IN WAUPACA

By Shirley Cate

 

            The second group of men in Waupaca were:  Captain David Scott, Freeman Dana Dewey, Judge S.F. Ware, William B. Cooper, and John M. Vaughn.

            Scott, a wealthy merchant of Attica, New York, came to Waupaca after fire destroyed his property.  He first settled on a farm near Waupaca in 1849, but later moved into town and became engaged in the drug business.  He was the first chairman of the county board and the first postmaster in Waupaca.  He died in 1864, having suffered from a stroke of paralysis.

            William B. Cooper, the first lawyer, built the first house in Waupaca and tried his first case before Justice Samuel F. Ware.

            S.F. Ware came to Waupaca from Pennsylvania in 1849.  He was the first Justice of the Peace in Waupaca County.  In 1860, Ware moved to a farm two miles north of Waupaca where he died.

            John Vaughn was born in New York, April 27, 1818.  In August 1849, he moved to Wisconsin.  He was the first man to travel the route from Berlin to Waupaca.  He was the first sheriff of the county and for many years chairman of the township board.

            Freeman Dana Dewey came to Waupaca in the fall of 1849.  When he arrived in Waupaca he began recording events which took place.  He never attained public prominence, but his “Waupaca History” is a source for local research.

 

 

THE COUNTY SEAT ARGUMENT

By William Bacher

 

            In the spring of 1848, the land which comprised Waupaca County was surveyed.  The surveyors, by the organic act, were required to locate the county seat some where along the Wolf River, for a period of two years. The county seat was located at Mukwa (Mukwa was located south of Northport on County Trunk X), and on the first Tuesday in April, 1850, an election was to be held, to vote for the permanent county seat.  When the ballots were counted, Waupaca was found to be the permanent county seat.  After this election, the eastern part of the county seceded from the organization.  Again in 1853 the vote for county seat was taken and Waupaca received the majority of votes.

            In order to make a certain Simon C. Dow, of Eastern Waupaca, sign papers declaring Weyauwega the county seat, they had him arrested and sent to the Portage County jail.  Weyauwega, not being satisfied with Waupaca as the county seat, got David Scott, a member of the Assembly, to get an act passed in legislature to take another vote on this issue in 1854.  Waupaca again won the majority of votes.

            In the spring of 1855, Weyauwega, without proper authority, voted on the removal of the county seat.  The scheme did not work, for Waupaca heard of it and took vote.  Again Waupaca was chosen the county seat.

            In the fall of 1855, the election concerning the county seat was again held. This time, Weyauwega even had the children vote.  Waupaca found out about this, and some of the Waupaca voters voted as many as eighteen times under different names.  Waupaca got a majority of the votes again for the county seat.

            The same year Weyauwega took the matter to the Supreme Court, at Madison.  After two hard battles in court, Waupaca was finally declared, by law, to be the permanent county seat of Waupaca County.

 

 

THE COURTHOUSE SQUARE

By James Lick

 

            In February of 1853 Judge Wheeler of Winnebago County came to Waupaca to auction off the land in the village.  He was accompanied by E.L. Browne, who was to act as a clerk.  They sold all the lots that had been settled upon for $1.25 an acre.  Judge Wheeler then put up for sale the Courthouse Square and called for bids.  Because all the men had made purchases and had spent all their money, there were no bidders.  The Courthouse Square could have been purchased for $2.50.

            In June of 1881 the village of Waupaca leased the plot of ground, which is now the Courthouse Square, to Waupaca County.  It was to be a perpetual lease as long as the public square was used for a public square only.  Five rods off the west side was not to be used and did not go with the lease.

            Mr. David Scott of Waupaca, who held the patent on the public square, willed it to his grandson, Mr. Allen Scott.  Then in 1881 Mr. David Scott filed a quit-claim deed on the public square leaving it in the ownership of Waupaca as long as it was used for public purposes.

            If the county seat were ever to be moved to another town, the Courthouse Square would go back to the City of Waupaca.

 

 

FIRST SCHOOL MOM

By Norm Rowland

 

            On September 13, 1843, a small baby was born.  No one knew at the time this baby, named Theodora Thompson, would some day be the first school teacher in Waupaca.  Theodora was the eldest of eight children and her parents were Luman and Lauretta (Button) Thompson.  They were married in New York in 1883 and moved to Waupaca in 1850.  They settled on a farm one mile east of Waupaca where Mr. Thompson purchased his land from the government for $1.25 an acre.

            Theodora received her education in New York, where she attended the public schools and later the normal school.  Under a private tutor she studied mathematics, philosophy, astronomy, and chemistry.  When the public school was established she was employed as the first teacher.  The school was conducted in the old Baxter building.  She taught for two years and then was married to Charles William LeGro.  After Mr. LeGro’s death in 1864, Mrs. LeGro continued to teach for fifteen more years.

            Charles LeGro was a member of the board that laid out the Town of Waupaca.  His profession was an architect and builder.  Politically, he was a Republican and was a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows.  He planned and built the First Methodist Episcopal Church building in Waupaca.

            The LeGros had three children named Hale, Fanny, and Elma.  Hale, the oldest, was educated in Waupaca High School before graduating classes were organized.  He became a molder by trade and moved to Minnesota.  Fanny was a graduate of Lawrence College, Appleton, and Elma attended the Northwester University at Evanston, Illinois, where she studied art and music.

            Mrs. LeGro resided at her home on the banks of Mirror Lake until her death in the 1890’s.

 

 

DOCTOR AND MINISTER

By Jim Doyle

 

            Mr. Cutting Marsh came to Waupaca with his wife in the fall of 1851.  He was a native of Danville, Vermont.  He was graduated from Dartmouth College, where he studied to be a doctor and Andover Seminary, where he studied for the ministry.  He came to Wisconsin in 1892 and spent nineteen years among the Stockholm Indians.  After the Mission at Stockbridge was discontinued, he spent three years as an itinerant missionary in Wisconsin, establishing churches and Sunday schools.  When the Indian Lands were opened to settlers, he came to Waupaca, settled on a farm, and stayed here for twenty-two years.

            Mrs. Marsh was a very kind, wise and faithful wife. It is said that one was never in her company for fifteen minutes without learning something profitable.

            Among the places Rev. Marsh preached were Waupaca, Weyauwega, Lind Center, Pine River, and Poy Sippi.  He went the rounds on horseback in spite of the worst weather that summer and winter had to offer.  He sometimes had to leave home on Saturday in order to reach the place.

            One of his projects was to make Waupaca the educational center of the area.  He and Winfield Scott, and others, formed a company to establish a private school which opened in the fall of 1856.  It was taught by Miss Hebard, an excellent experienced teacher from Attica, New York, but because of severe illness she had to give up the school.  The project was later abandoned.

            The building of the Presbyterian Church was another enterprise into which Mr. Marsh put all he could of time, strength, and money.

            After he stopped preaching he practiced medicine, and he was then widely known as “Dr. Marsh.”  He was a man of great sympathy, and it was impossible for him to see any suffering without trying to stop it.

            He died in the morning of July 4, 1973, and no one has quite been able to take his place since.

 

 

“WAUPACA SPIRIT” – GRANDDADDY OF WAUPACA NEWSPAPERS.

By Robert Eastman

 

            The “Waupaca Spirit” was first published in 1852 by C.E. and J.E. Redfield.  The Redfield brothers sold it to the Jones brothers in 1856.  The Jones brothers published the Spirit only one year when the Redfield brothers returned to put it back on its feet.  They then sold it to Dewey and Terrell.  The Redfield brothers again returned in 1860.  They published it until 1866 when they sold it to J. Perry, who renamed it the “Waupaca Criterion.”

            The Spirit was only four pages with six columns on each page.  The pages were fifteen inches and twenty inches.  Some of the known issues are in the Wisconsin Historical Library in Madison.  The earliest of these is October 2, 1855.

            The Spirit cost $1.50 for a year’s subscription and was published every Tuesday morning.  Mostly national and foreign news was printed.  The articles were well written and intelligent.  There was very little large-sized print and much advertising.  Dewey and Terrell, while they published it, took sides on all issues.  It was the self-appointed “official newspaper of Waupaca County.”

 

 

THE FIRST NEWSPAPERS IN WAUPACA

By Frank Hansen

 

            The Spirit, the first newspaper in the county, published in Waupaca by the Redfield brothers, endured from 1852 to 1866.

            In 1856 J.H. and J.S. Jones bought the Spirit.  Before the end of the year, they suspended publica-tion of the paper, and the Redfield brothers returned to the scene and revived it.  With the paper on its feet once again, the Redfield brothers sold it to Messrs. Dewey and Terrell.  In 1860 publican was gain suspended, and the Redfield brothers returned to run the paper until 1866, when it was sold to Leslie J. Perry.  Mr. Perry changed the name of the paper from the Spirit to the Criterion.

            In 1866 Judge C.S. Ogden of Ogdensburg came to Waupaca and established the Waupaca County Republican.  In the same year Mr. Ogden purchased the Criterion of Mr. Perry and merged the two as The Republican.  In 1872 Judge Ogden turned the Republican over to C.M. Bright, who published it until 1881, when it was sold to C.N. Hodges, who published the Republican until his death in 1882.  Next W.H. Holmes, who had had many years of experience in Michigan newspaper work, purchased the paper, and he disposed of the plant to D.F. Burnham in 1908.

            Another newspaper of great importance in Waupaca was the Waupaca Post, which was founded in 1878 by H.K. Pitcher and J.A. Ogden, son of Judge Ogden.  Two years later E.E. Gordon returned to Waupaca from New London and bought the Waupaca Post from Messrs. Ogden and Pitcher.  In 1887 Mr. Gordon and Mr. Perry went to Michigan to publish a newspaper, but Mr. Gordon returned to the Waupaca Post the following year.  After various changes during the succeeding twenty years, the business was incorporated as the Post Printing Company, which was purchased in December, 1908, by D.F. Burnham, J.H. Christenson and S.C. Simonson.  On January 1, 1909, the first number of the Republican-Post was issued, and successor to both the Republican and the Waupaca Post.

            Other newspapers in Waupaca before 1900 were the Waupaca County Register, which endured from 1858 to 1860, and the Waupaca Record, founded in 1894.

 

 

HISTORY OF WAUPACA NEWSPAPERS

By Sally Burnham

 

            First Waupaca newspaper, Waupaca Spirit, January 1, 1853, published by Redfield Bros.  At birth of Republican party at Ripon, Wisconsin in 1856, the Waupaca Spirit was renamed Waupaca Republican; later purchased by Chas. M. Bright, later by A.T. Glaze.  January 1, 1868, Waupaca Republican was purchased by W.H. Holmes.

            Second Waupaca newspaper, Waupaca Post, born 1872, John L. Sturtevant, editor with Charles Ogden and John M. Ware as co-stockholders.

            Third, Waupaca Record, Willard E. Carpenter, publisher, early in 1893.  Later edited many years by Mrs. W.E. Carpenter.

            In 1906 or early 1907 John L. Sturtevant was called to edit first merger of two Wisconsin newspapers, at Waupaca under name of Wausau Record-Herald.

            January 1, 1908 D.F. Burnham purchased Waupaca Republican from W.L. Holmes and on November 1, 1908 negotiated for purchase of the capital stock of Post Printing Company, publisher of Waupaca Post, the stock being distributed among several employees of the Corporation and the merger of the two newspaper were merged under name of Republican-Post.

            November 1, 1911, L.W. Krake issued a third newspaper at Waupaca, the Waupaca Leader, leading by a day other Waupaca newspapers by issuing on Wednesday.  On August 12, 1912, Mr. Krake purchased the name and business activity of the Waupaca Record but not its mechanical equipment, remaining his Republican, The Waupaca Record-Leader.

            The Republican Post and Waupaca Record-Leader served Waupaca community three years until Mr. Krake negotiated for a piano subscription contest and disappointment at results (or progress) of contest caused by Schultz Bros., Mr. Cohen having dry goods, hardware and groceries.  After three years as publisher and merchant, Mr. Cohen in June, 1917, negotiated for merger with Republican Post under merger name The County Post.  Enjoyment of entire field was terminated when in 1921 Robert H. Wright issued the Waupaca County Post with heading and type so similar to Waupaca County Post that Post and News were distinguishing marks.  In 1934, Waupaca County News was absorbed by Waupaca County Post and Mr. Wright went to a point north of Milwaukee to publish a newspaper.  Voting power of stock-holders of Waupaca Leader Company under the Co-operative rule, every stockholder having one vote regardless of number of shares owned, thus giving those in mechanical department control.

            In 1946, the stockholders among mechanical workers insisted upon selling the business and lapsing the corporation that determination was exercised in the vote to sell.

            During the forty-five years since the merger of Republican and Post at Waupaca nearly two score of Wisconsin newspaper mergers have been affected.

 

 

COUNTY POST FROM 1946 TO 1953

By Judy Apps

 

            On March 4, 1946, the Leader Corporation, who then owned the Waupaca County Post, sold out to the Warner Brothers.  Active members of the Leader Corporation at this time were D. F. Burnham, Ellsworth P. Barrington, J. Henry Christenson, and George Lindahl.

            Many changes took place under the direction of the Warner Brothers.  The most evident of these changes was the shift to the flush-left headline typography and the use of a new nameplate featuring the Chain O’ Lakes, the pride of all Waupaca.

            Another notable change in the paper was the change in their political attitude.  When Warners took over, the paper was a leading Progressive Party voice in the state, although at times it was Democratic.  With the change in ownership the paper soon took on a Republican policy.  An odd coincidence in this change is the fact that the Progressive Party disbanded shortly after the Post took on a Republican policy.

            While still under the ownership of the Warner Brothers the Post grew rapidly larger and soon carried more county correspondence than any newspaper in the history of Waupaca County.

            On September 1, 1948, the Warner Brothers sold the paper to Carl Turner, the present owner.  With this change in ownership the Post installed its own press cameras and instituted action news pictures.

            Until July, 1949, engraving for printing pictures was obtained from commercial engraving firms, but in that month the Post in connection with the Clintonville Tribune Gazette, installed its own engraving plant in Clintonville, (dividing the cost between the two papers).  The Post now has an order and hopes for delivery before June 20, when the Picture Post starts, of its own engraving machine which will be installed in the plant here.

            In July, 1952, the Post installed a Duplex press which will roll paper at a speed of 3000 complete 8-page sections an hour.  It is the only press of its kind in the county or near area.  This press was necessary because the number of papers printed and the size of each issue could no longer be handled by the old hand-fed press.

            All of the people of Waupaca are proud of the present Waupaca County Post.

 

 

 

 

SOME DANISH HISTORY OF WAUPACA

By Donna Wiesen

 

            When the first Danish people reached Waupaca in the late 50’s, they found the beginnings of a prosperous community.  Ole Larson is said to be the first Dane to come to Waupaca.  He was born in Denmark in 1826, and married a Norwegian girl from Scandinavia.  He was in the grocery and shoe business.

            In the later 50’s, it is said that there were about 30 Danes in the area.  Rev. Sorenson, a Danish Episcopalian minister, was very interested in the Danish language and held Danish services in the church every Sunday afternoon.  His father made several trips to Denmark, and usually brought back a group of sturdy young bachelors and married couples.  At one time it is said that he brought back over 200 persons, thus starting a steady stream of Danish immigrants.

            With this increase in the number of Danes who came to Waupaca, services were held in a log school in the third ward.  Churches were built.  The Danes’ Home was organized in 1877 for social and literary purposes.  By 1900 the membership had increased from 58 to 170.

            Some of the early Danish businessmen were as follows:

1.       Chris Johnson – Tannery, situated on the Waupaca River opposite the mill.  The

       original building now stands, used as a warehouse.

2.       F.C. Hansen – Tin shop and other hardware.  This was located two doors north of the           

     City Hall.

3.       Peter Mortensen – Cooper shop, the first door north of the City Hall.

4.       F.E. Lund – Harness shop.

 

 

THE DANES Hjem)

By JoAnn Nelson HOME

(De Danske

 

            The Danish population in Waupaca being quite large about 1877, an organization was formed where by the Danes, who had similar likes and dislikes, might be united.  In doing this, they brought into effect an organization for social and literary purposes.  It was organized January 6, 1877, and united into a legal body by the laws of Wisconsin in 1882.  There were eleven charter members with Hans Yorkson as president.

            When the new courthouse was built in 1880, the society bought the old building and moved it to a lot which had been purchased from Mr. Demerest for $600.  It was refitted for the purposes of recreation.

            A library of Danish books was established for public reading and grew to contain 2,000 volumes.  Regular meetings were held every Thursday evening and the business of the society carried on.  The building was used for about fourteen years until the treasury became large enough to make possible the building of a new Home.

            A building committee of nine men headed by Just Justsen was elected.  Hans Knutsen was hired to do the contracting.  The building was completed in March 1894 at a cost of $4,500.  The old building was moved to its present location on Water Street beside the Waupaca River and now houses a second hand store.  The new building contained a lodge room, library, theater, and a dance hall.  The dances were free and were never given for benefits.

            Every “Fifth of June” the Stars and Stripes with the Danish white and red flag could be seen flying from the flag pole over the Home.  The “Fifth of June” celebration was a special holiday for the Danes. It was on this day in 1848 that Fredrick, the Seventh, who had just ascended the throne, passed the Ground Law which gave the Danes free voting rights.

            As time passed, the membership began to grow smaller and smaller, until in 1913, it was comprised of 150 members and by 1940, only 32 members remained.  Finally, in 1945, the Industrial Commission condemned the building for recreational use.  Today it is the business place of Henry Billie’s Sheet Metal Works.

 

 

THE FIRST COUNTY JUDGE

By Albert Scheller

 

            Although Samuel F. Ware was the first man legally entitled to hold the county judgeship, he was not he first to be chosen to this office by the vote of the people.  Without any authority other than the desire to have a county judge among the officials, the voters of the county, which was then composed of seven towns, elected C.E.P. Hobart to this bench.  It was soon discovered that this procedure was uncon-stitutional and Hobart did not attempt to qualify for the office.  Judge Ware served most ably for a period of six years which started in 1855.

            Samuel Ware was one of the earliest pioneers of Waupaca.  He settled here in 1849, but did not locate permanently, with his wife and children, until 1850.  A stonecutter by trade, he engaged in farming and dealing in land.  At one time Sam Ware owned land on which part of the city of Waupaca now stands.  He was not only one of the first settlers, but a man first in community affairs.  He was the first justice of the peace in Waupaca and he held various town offices before commencing his service as first county judge in 1855.

            The death of this honored pioneer occurred in 1868 and was the direct result of an injury sustained in a runaway accident.  The physicians of that time were unable to prevent the spread of infection which developed from the injury.

 

 

THE SISTERS

By Carol Ann Nelson

 

            Mary Ann and Hannah Parish are originally from Randolph, Vermont.  When they came to Waupaca, they were nineteen.  The sisters came on a steamboat, down the Wolf River.  On the way the boat struck a snag and everything below the upper deck was under water.  Mary Ann and Hannah were on the upper deck praying for “Waupaca.”

            The Parish sisters then became teachers.  In those days you had to pay for the courses you took.  Their school was open to the public on December 5, 1855.

            On March 4, 1856, the sisters were married.  Mary Ann married Edward L. Browne, who was a lawyer; Hannah married G.L. Lord.  The girls were very active in church and belonged to the Episcopal Church for Wisconsin and the northwest.  There was a lot of gossip of the bishop’s coming.  People would say, “Just think, a real live bishop.”

            As the days went by Aunty Hutchinson was very busy.  She was a thin woman and a very good worker.  Her house was one of the largest and best appointed in the village.  The sisters were married in this house which is the oldest house in town.  There have been very few changes made in the house.  It was built in the early ‘50’s.  Mr. and Mrs. Tom Louis and their family, and Mr. and Mrs. George Locht now reside there.  It is located on West Fulton Street.

 

 

AN EARLY PIONEER

By Gary Bemis

 

            Linus Bidwell Brainard, M.D., was born on October 30, 1805 in Boardman, Ohio.  He had ten brothers and sisters all younger than himself.  While he was still in his teens, his father was killed by a falling log while helping a neighbor erect a cabin.

            After he had acquired a medical standing and graduated from the Western Reserve College, he purchased 1,040 acres of land in Sheboygan County.  He lost a sawmill on the Pidgeon River because his title was imperfect.  He then moved to Green Bay and served during the Taylor-Fillmore Administration as deputy collector at the port of Green Bay.

            In June, 1853, he went to the newly opened Indian territory of Waupaca.  He cut down a portion of the timber and plowed some of the land.  The young pioneer built a sawmill a half mile above the village of Waupaca, which, I believe, was located at what now is called Brainard’s Bridge.  Due to the demand for him to put most of his time to his work as a physician and surgeon, he left the care of the mill to other people, and the mill did not prove a success.  A few years later the mill burned and was never rebuilt.

            Dr. Brainard stated the Masonic Lodge in Waupaca and was its first Worshipful Master.  In politics he was an old time Whig, and later a Republican when the Whig Party died.

            He died on November 14, 1885, but he lived to see his forty-acre homestead brought within the city limits.

 

 

REMINISCENCE

By Sharon Cate

Told by Mr. Burham

 

            It certainly is interesting to hear some of the things the older residents of Waupaca have to tell.  Did you know that he first county fair was held in a little field in the vicinity of Holiday Inn between Waupaca and Weyauwega?

            The county fair was very much different from the fairs we have today.  For the showing of exhibits they had three or four yoke of oxen pulling carts.  In the cars were displays of fruit and vegetables and various other things.  During the fair the onlookers either stood up or sat on the grass.  About the only events that took place during the fair were the showing of exhibits and usually there was a speech.

            It was at the first fair that E.L. Browne made a speech.  In his speech he told why the main street in Waupaca was moved.  The reason for this was that there was a man who had a cornfield in the vicinity of where the main street was supposed to be.  They had stakes up for the street when the owner of the cornfield came out and said, “Hey, pull up those stakes in my cornfield.  Don’t plow up a part of the biggest cornfield in Waupaca County.”  It was because of this that they moved main street a half a block east.

 

 

INDIAN BOY OR WHITE BOY

By Billie Ruth Myrick

 

            Did you know that there was a very interesting kidnapping case in Waupaca about 100 years ago?

            Casper partridge was the name of the boy who was taken.  His father owned a farm about one mile from the Wolf River.  Mr. Partridge found an old rowboat drifting on the river and he and a neighbor used it to go to Oshkosh for supplies.  When they returned, Partridge told the neighbor to give the boat to anyone who claimed it.  After the boat had been lent to a friend, an Indian chief claimed it. When he was told a white man was using the boat, he grew very angry and waited for revenge.

            One day while Mr. Partridge was gathering sap, he sensed that something was wrong with Casper, who had remained in camp.  He rushed back, and finding him hone, searched for a while; then he got his wife and they both searched in vain.  Casper was mourned as dead from April of 1850 until the fall of 1851.

            Waupaca was the favorite habitat of the Indians.  At one time, a tribe camped near Shadow Lake where South Park is now located.  There was a young boy with them that attracted much attention.  He would leave the Indian village to play with the white children. While playing, he spoke English, but if a grown person came near, he would resort to the Indian language until he had passed by. Many comments were made on this strange behavior and some came to the conclusion that he was Casper, but no attempt as yet, was made to take him.

            Freeman Dana Dewey, thinking he could befriend the boy, offered him candy; but the boy refused until his playmate accepted the candy and gave him part of it.  If Mr. Dewey came near, however, the boy would run away.

            After many unsuccessful attempts to take the boy peaceably, they resorted to force.  A small party of men went to the Indian camp and took the boy.  They told the Indians that if he were not the boy, they would return him unharmed.  Identification could be confirmed by a small scar on his foot.  The Indians put up no resistance to their departure with the boy.

            When the case came up in court, the boy was proved to be Casper Partridge and was reunited with his parents.

 

 

THE KIDNAPPING OF 1860

By Barbara Behm

 

            In 1860, or a few years earlier, a family by the name of Camp, lived in Waupaca County.  There were two girls and two boys.  When the call for volunteers was sent out by Lincoln, the father enlisted in the army.  He was killed soon after.  The mother remarried a Mr. Stanley and they lived at a place called Stanley’s landing on the Wolf River.

            Orta, the youngest boy, was five years old when he was kidnapped.  His sisters were suppose to be watching him the day he was taken.  When his cap was found on the bank of the river and they didn’t find his body, they all came to the conclusion that the Indians had taken him.

            During the next years the family watched for him and they knew he could be identified by two scars he would always have. Eighteen years later Orta’s brother worked in a sawmill not far from Waupaca.  One day a man, he thought was an Indian, came to the mill; and it was discovered after talking to him, that he was Orta, his long lost brother.

            Orta told of how he went through much torture with the Indians to become a brave.  He lived with his family for a while but because he had grown up as an Indian he decided to go back and live with them.  His skin was dyed the color of an Indian’s and they couldn’t get it off.  Orta went to Dakota and settled down with a Sioux tribe.  He was adopted by a chief and was given the name of Chief Red Cloud.  Orta married an Indian girl and they had two children.  The daughter resembled her mother but the boy was white skinned.

            This information written by A.M. Jones was given to the late A.J. Pinkerton and in turn was presented to the Waupaca High School Library by Mrs. Pinkerton.  A.M. Jones’ mother was Orta’s sister.  This makes him the nephew of Jack Red Cloud, Sioux Indian.

 

 

RICHARD J. WOOLSEY, CIVIL WAR HERO

“DICK’S DARING DASH”

By Shirley Woolsey

 

            The following account of an exciting episode in the career of my great-great-grandfather, Richard J. Woolsey, while in the army during the Civil War, is taken from an early copy of the Waupaca Post.

            Woolsey was a large-framed, two-hundred pound bundle of good nature, rather decide in his opinions and ways of doing things.  He was a private in Co. M, First Wisconsin Cavalry, in the spring of 1864 and was out on patrol duty with thirteen more members of his company with Sherman’s army in Georgia.  The limit of their patrol was a large farmhouse, about fourteen miles from the main body, and a lot of Southern women came out and treated the patrol to drinks of water; and seemed to be in an unusually talkative mood. Dick noticed this, and suggested to the officer in command that they meant mischief, and wanted to move on.  The officer asked him if he was afraid.  Dick replied that he “didn’t know but that was what ailed him!”  Orders were soon given to return to camp, and before going far it was discovered that a body of rebel cavalry (Wheeler’s) was after them.  Very soon they came in sight of another body of the same horsemen, drawn up in line across the road between themselves and camp.  The patrol couldn’t ride through the dense woods to the right or left, and it began to look as if the conversation of those women had got the patrol into a box!  The officer called a halt to consider matters, but the cavalry behind kept coming right along.  Dick then made up his mind that he was surely enough badly “scared,” looked ahead and saw the line of troopers, behind at the rebs coming gaily along, took his revolver in his left, saber in his right hand, yelled to the boys to follow him, stuck his spurs into his horse and started at a dead run for that line of rebs across the road, bridle in his teeth, and emptying his revolver right and left as he struck the line.  Dick’s horse was as large in proportion as himself, and as the rest of the way and let it go through, following and firing.  When the patrol struck the union picket lines it number was reduced to six, and it is supposed the missing eight were captured, as no bodies were found on the road the next day, but none of them were ever heard of afterward.  Woolsey was made corporal the next day for gallantry.

            The Woolsey family still possesses the revolver and saber used in “Dick’s Daring Dash.”

 

 

THE MCCROSSENS – A PIONEER FAMILY

By Eugene Adams

 

            Robert McCrossen, who was a farmer in Rural, was born in the province of New Brunswick, Canada, March 17, 1821.  When he was twenty-one years old, Robert and his brother James walked nearly the whole length of the Erie Canal on their way to Oshkosh, where he worked one year in the lumbering business.  From Oshkosh, Robert went to Weyauwega where he engaged in the lumbering business for two more years.  He then went to Stevens Point to work at the lumber business for A. Brewley, who was then running a land office.  While in Stevens Point he bought seven forties of land, of which two hundred acres were under cultivation.  He also owned fifty acres in the southwest part of town.  In 1872, after his home on the farm burned, McCrossen immediately erected another house, a new barn, and a windmill.  In 1855, Robert married Miss L. Story, of Dayton, who died in 1862.  The following year he married Miss Libbie Wilkins, also of Dayton.  Mr. McCrossen had four children by his first wife and six by the second.  His children were Jennie, now Mrs. Proctor of Boston, George, Ira, now at Warsaw, Hattie, Katie, Gurtie, Alfred, Nettie, Maggie, and William.  Alfred McCrossen is now living in Rural on the home place.  Mr. McCrossen commenced without a dollar, but by hard work and good management, he secured an enviable position.

            James McCrossen and his father built the first buildings in Rural.  He also started the first block of buildings in Wausau, which is still called the McCrossen Block.  James McCrossen worked in the first gristmill at Rural.

 

 

THE FIRST GRADUATION

By Janet Larkee

 

            Eighty-seven years ago, in the small town of Waupaca, a school was built.  It was called Union High School.  The teachers were Arma Clay, Lizzie Snow, Miss MacKenzie, Libbie Williams, Miss Edwards, Miss March, and Mrs. Humiston.  Although special work had been done before, a regular course was not adopted until 1875.  IN 1876 the first students received their diplomas.  The first graduates were Paul Browne, Lizzie Chesley, Irving P. Lord, Phineas Munger, Julius Nelson, Will Parish, Flora Belle Rich, Belle Smith, Murray Weeden, and W.J. Zahl.  These graduates were small in number compared to the eighty-seven that will graduate this year.

            Eight of the graduates were born in Waupaca and surrounding communities.  W.J. Zahl was born in Springfield, Ohio, and Julius Nelson was born in Copenhagen Denmark.  The youngest member of the class was Will Parish and the oldest Irving Lord.  Most of the graduates did not start school until the age of seven or eight and were, therefore, older than the present graduates.  Four of the graduates became teachers and another one wanted to become a teacher.  Two of them became lawyers and another a printer.  Two of the graduates, Belle Smith and Murray Weeden, were later married.

            The motto of the class was “To live is not enough, we ought to live well.”  The graduation exercises were held Friday, June 16, at Stetson’s Hall.  The program, which was opened with a prayer, consisted of rations by all the male members of the class, essays by Lizzie Chesley and Belle Smith.  Flora Belle Rich presented an essay and the valedictory. Diplomas were awarded and the program ended with the benediction.

 

 

FOUR EARLY HOMES

By Di Anne Olson

 

             There are four old and interesting homes located in this town.  They are the A.D. Appletree Barnes, Chas. Churchill, John W. Evans and A.M. Penney homes.  They were all built between the years of 1870 and 1880.

            First I’ll start with the A.D. Appletree Barnes home.  It was built about 1888.  It is located on Churchill Street or Highway 10.  It is presently owned by the Pennebecker family.  The old Barnes home is not lived in at present but is used for a storehouse.

            My second home is the Chas. Churchill home.  It was built between 1870 and 1880 by Leary.  It is presently owned by the Pennebecker family.  This house is located across from the A.D. Appletree Barnes home on Churchill Street or Highway 10.

            As we ride toward town on Churchill Street we come upon another old home.  Now it is the office of the “Cary Manufacturing Company.”  First the home was owned by John W. Evans.  It is located on the corner of Churchill and Evans Street.  Evans was the owner of the “Evans Woolen Mills” which is now the present “Cary Manufacturing Plant.”

            My fourth and last residence is that of the Adelbert M. Penney home.  This home was built in the 1880’s.  It is located on South Main Street.  It is presently owned by the Pott’s family.

            All these homes look much as they did when they were first built.  Maybe they have a new paint job but the structure is much the same.

 

 

FOUNDING OF KING

By Bruce Ward

 

            The Wisconsin Veterans Home, on the beautiful and scenic Chain O’ Lakes, has played host to many veterans and their wives. To the residents, the Home means a great deal, but most other people take it for granted.  What is it?  How was it started? Who was behind it?  These thoughts never enter our mind as we pass through the little village today.

            In 1887 Comrade Henry P. Fisher put in the call for a veterans’ home.  He claimed we should have a residence for the needy soldiers who fought to preserve our country.  A five man committee was established to look into the matters concerning a veterans’ home.

            This committee resolved that a home should be started for needy honorably discharged service-men and their wives.  A law passed in the state Senate created a fund for running the home. It was also agreed upon that five men were to be elected to serve as Corporators.  These Corporators had full power to receive gifts of land, money, or buildings and to locate the site for the proposed home.  On March 10, 1887, these men had the home incorporated, only twenty-five days after their election.

            In July of the same year, the site was selected. The Greenwood Park Hotel, three and one-half miles from Waupaca, was picked from the top six offers.  The hotel and a few cottages were the only buildings standing when the state took possession in October of 1887.

            The home has come a long way since the beginning in 1887.  It covers 136 acres of land, 35 under cultivation.  With 108 buildings, the home is a little village in itself.  Today the residents are very grateful to the founders and the people of Waupaca who were generous enough to donate the land.

 

 

THE AXTELLS

By Nancy Axtell

 

            David Axtell, my great-grandfather, was born in Maine in 1825 and came to Waupaca County about 1856. He settled on government land near Ogdensburg and was one of the early settlers in Waupaca.  He married Martha Blanchard, who came from Waukegan, Illinois as a school teacher, on February 2, 1858.  He served in the Civil War with Company A of the 47^th Wisconsin Voluntary Infantry from February 1865 until the close of the war.  In 1867 they moved to an eighty acre tract of land in the town of Waupaca.  He took up farming and was an honest, hard-working man.  He was an active Republican and filled the offices of township supervisor and member of the school board.  David died in 1898 and at that time Martha went to live with her son, Frank.

            My great-grandfather and great-grandmother had six children, the fifth being Frank David who was born January 29, 1865.  Frank married Lizzie Nelson in 1898 and at that time they bought his sister May’s farm, which was just southwest of his father’s farm.  His specialty was dairying and his milk producers were high grade Guernseys. They had one son Harold, my father, who was born February 13, 1899.  Lizzie died in 1901 after only three years of married life.  Frank married again in 1907 to a widow, Hannah Johnson Hunt, who also had a son named Harold.  Frank and Hannah had one son Paul, who was born in 1915.  Frank also served as supervisor and member of the school board but belonged to the opposite political faith, being a Democrat.

            My father married Edna Johanknecht on June 14, 1933 and they took over the farm of Frank Axtell who died in 1943.  His specialty is also dairying and he also owns Guernseys.  He has also served as a member of the Sunny View school board for several years. They still live on his father’s farm with their three daughters.

 

 

INN HOTEL

By Arlen Neubauer

 

             In 1892 Mr. DeVoin completed one of the best hotel buildings in Waupaca.  The Hotel DeVoin, a large white building located at the corner of Union and Division Streets, was equipped with all modern conveniences so the proprietor was very popular.

            Mr. DeVoin sold the hotel to Dr. Biessen in 1898 and a year later Mr. Gordenier purchased the hotel and in turn sold it to Clark Scoville.  A brick building at the corner was built on the south side of the building. After this it was named the Inn Hotel.  The hotel was then owned by a number of people, although, at one time Hans Knudsen owned it.

            In 1918, Marve Bellinger, a blind man, owned the hotel which was run under the American Plan.  That simply means that you paid for your meals whether or not you ate them there.  When Bellinger died, his wife and later her second husband took over the hotel.  At one time Mr. Bellinger owned the Delevan Hotel.

            On January 6, 1919, the Inn Hotel was damaged by fire which started in the attic, near the chimney and spread quickly down through the third floor. The roof of the main building was entirely gone.  The Inn Hotel was rebuilt and reopened by the same managers.

            The Inn Hotel was closed for about four or five years; it was then owned by Jake Hanson, who was about ninety years old. He then sold it to a man who opened it as a second-hand furniture store. It is now owned by Curtis Lein.

 

 

FAMOUS FIRSTS

By Arlouine Piphorn

 

            There are many famous firsts in Waupaca.  I will try to list a few for you.

            The first death was that of Joel Deiter which occurred on May 15, 1850.  While the first birth was that of Mary Hibbard, daughter of Joseph on May 25, 1850.

            The first house in Waupaca was built in June of 1849.

            Waupaca County held its first Fourth of July celebration in 1580.

            The first hotel, Baxter’s, was opened in the Spring of 1851.

            William Holt kept the first store in 1851.

            Reverend Cutting Marsh was the first doctor, who came in 1851.

            The first church (Methodist) was built in 1853 and was later used for a blacksmith shop.

            Waupaca’s first newspaper, the Waupaca Spirit, was started by the Redfield brothers in 1853.

            The first building burned in 1854.

            The first Assemblyman was David Scott, who was elected in the fall of 1854.

            Samuel Ware was elected first County Judge of Waupaca County and conducted his first law suit in 1851 with Captain Spencer vs. L.W. Thayer as his constituents.

            The first railroad came to Waupaca in the fall of 1871.

            Electric lights were installed in Waupaca in the fall of 1871.

            Waupaca’s streetcar made its first run from the Wisconsin Central Railroad station to the old Grand View Hotel on July 4, 1898.

 

 

FIRST METHODIST CHURCH

By Leta Wilson

 

            Reverend Silas Miller preached his first sermon in Waupaca in 1850, in the home of Mr. J.M. Vaughn. Two years later the Waupaca Mission was organized under the Fox River District, and Reverend Boyd Phelps was the presiding elder over the entire district.  Before the first church was built they had sermons in the homes of various members.

            The first church was built on the site of the present building.  It was a white frame building with a large bell-tower on top.  It is believed the bell-tower on the church today is the same one. From 1850 to 1875 services, followed by Sunday School were held every Sunday.  Afternoon and evening services were held each Sunday and a prayer meeting was conducted each week.  The minister’s salary was paid by pew, or rent.  In 1875, the members decided to build a new church, so the old frame building moved to the corner of Badger and Main Street where Laux’s Garage now stands.  When Rev. Alley was pastor the present church building was begun. Rev. Alley did a lot for the church and should be congratulated.

            Soon after the building of this church in 1876,the Annual Wisconsin Conference was held in Waupaca.  The members of the church helped raise money for their new church. The Ladies Aid Society raised $1,000 by having fairs, baby shows, and ice cream socials.  In 1952 the church had quite a few new things done to it which improves the church very much.  They have put in new pews, painted the ceiling a rose color, the woodwork gray, and the walls are green.  They have put in all new alter furniture which includes two chair lofts.  New tile floors were laid in the main floor and they have put new deep rose carpet down on all the aisles.  At the front of the church, and at the back of the church is now docile curtains which matches the carpeting.

 

FIRST MILLS

By Lew Edminster

 

            The early history of Waupaca’s first mills begins back in the 1800’s.  The Lord Brothers’ Feed and Grain Mill was the first of Waupaca’s early mills.  It was built on the west side of the Waupaca River, and its source of power came from the river.  This river which flowed by on the east side of the Lord Brothers’ Feed and Seed Mill, also flowed past the Dana Dewey Feed and Seed Mill on the east bank of the Waupaca River.

            Dana Dewey’s mill was also a very old mill, so they also used their power from the river.  Dana Dewey arrived in the fall of 1849.  The nearest grist mill was at Ripon, and the marshes between Waupaca and that place were so miry that they could not be crossed by a team until frozen.

            When Dana Dewey came here, he stopped at the home of E.C. Sessions, and they were nearly out of flour so that something had to be done immediately.  Dana Dewey bought a coffee mill and went to work, but after grinding there a while, he gave that up as a bad job.

            Then Mr. Sessions and Dana Dewey went up on the hill back of Dewey’s house, cut a white oak tree about two feet through, cut out a block two feet long, squared each end, and bored a hole in the center.  They made a circle and chiseled and burned a hole large enough to hold about a peck of grain.  They made a hickory pestle about three feet long and five inches in diameter, and with the aid of a coffee mill for grinding buckwheat and this mortar and pestle for grinding grain, managed to get along until the twenty-fifth of December.  Then they sent a team of horse to Ripon and brought back some flour that had been ground in a regular mill.

            The Lord Brothers got their mill from Silas Miller.  They build the mill in the summer, and the first grist was ground on the nineteenth of November.  They were very elated over the completed mill because flour was a mighty uncertain commodity in Waupaca in those days.

            When this mill was completed, there were about one-hundred people in Waupaca.

 

 

THE FIRST WAUPACA BAND

By Kathleen Paulson

 

            The Waupaca Band Association was organized in November, 1887.  A good constitution was then adopted.

01.    Association to be known as the Waupaca Band.

02.    Band shall consist of President, Vice-President, Secretary, Treasurer, Leader, and Business Manager.

03.    The officers will be elected once a year.

04.    The annual meeting shall be held on the 25^th day of October, unless occurring on Sunday, therefore to be held on the following Monday.

05.    The President shall preside at meetings and in his absence the Vice-President shall take his place.

06.    The Treasurer shall keep all funds and pay orders signed by the President.

07.    The Secretary shall keep a record of all the proceedings and transactions of the Band.

08.    The Leader shall take care of all music.

09.    The members of the band may substitute players if necessary.

10.    No member may be expelled without 2/3 consent of the players.

11.    Any member absent from practice two times in a row must forfeit all right, stock and interest in the band unless excused by the leader.

The members of the Waupaca Brass Band who consented and agreed to these rules were:  Joe A.

Hudson, President; W.H. Rice, Vice-President; M.B. Scott, Treasurer; George Nordvi, Secretary; J.W. McCullough, Leader; Jeff Woodnorth, John Colrue, George Bridgman, A.E. Pall, Grant Sherwin, Joe Rosche, and Ed Williams.

            The first band consisted of 4 cornets, 1 flugle horn, 2 clarinets, 3 altos, 2 tenors, 1 baritone, 1 bass trombone, 1 tuba, 1 snare drum, and a drum major who was F.R. Whipple.

In 1888, 2 drums and symbols were added to the band.  About this time, some of the Waupaca

Band players played for roller skating parties, baseball games, and County fairs.

From 1894-1904, the band played for the veterans at Camp Cleghorn, besides playing two

concerts in the bandstand in town, one on Wednesday night and the other on Sunday afternoon.

Later, Charles L. Carrol, who was a fine director and good promoter, took over the band.  Under

his direction, a twenty-five piece orchestra played for the first silent movie at the Palace Theater called “The Birth of a Nation.”

From this time on the Waupaca Band has progressed, until last year it was considered and won

Class A ratings.

 

CURLING

By Robert Pugmire

 

Curling was first seen in Waupaca in the year 1879, when H.W. Williams, of Portage, Wisconsin,

purchased the first set of stones, and started the idea of curling in Waupaca.

The first curling in our city was done in back of the city hall, on a portion of the river that had

frozen over.  No ice skating was allowed on this curing rink. The curlers performed on the courthouse yard in view of the Waupaca public.  Curing was never done on Sundays, because the curlers said they made enough noise six days out of the week.

The Waupaca Curling Club has entered many bonspiels and tournaments down through the years. 

They have won the famous Morgan Medals several times as well as the S.S. Chandler trophy.

One of the very famous stories told about the Waupaca curlers is the story about an out-of-town

visitor who was watching the curlers in action on the courthouse yard.  He walked over to the late Dr. P.J. Christofferson ad asked what they were doing.  The doctor in his typical way promptly told the stranger they were inmates of the Weyauwega Asylum, out for their weekly exercise.  The visitor, it is said, gave a fleeting look at the curlers and quickly walked away.

 

 

EARLY GASOLINE STATIONS

By Jerry Fredrickson

 

The Deep Rock Station, the one of its kind in this city was built in 1920.  The property on the

corner of Badger and Jefferson Streets has now been bought by Lester Laux of the Chevrolet Garage and is being torn down. It was operated by a Mr. Potter for many years.

Before this station was built, automobiles were serviced in garages and a few country stores

which had a gas pump and sold oil to accommodate customers.

Wadham’s Oil Company built a station on the corner of Washington and Fulton Streets in 1923,

also, Gray Czeskleba started a station on Mill Street about the same time.

These first stations had pits in the ground over which the cars were driven to be greased or

drained of oil.  The pits were about six feet deep with concrete, had a ladder that went to the bottom so that the men could get under the cars to service them.

Large gas tanks buried in the ground were kept filled by men from the Bulk Stations.  The

gasoline was shipped in on freight cars and delivered with horse drawn wagons.  At that time gasoline was sold at 20 cents a gallon and oil at 15 cents a quart for the best of quality.

Back in the earlier days of cars and filling stations, it would be necessary to have your car

greased, oil changed, and checked before you were to leave so that your car would be ready in time for you to make your trip.  Now it takes just a few minutes with all the modern equipment that we now have.

When the Deep Rock Station was built a house which was on that corner had to be moved back

before they could begin building.

THE MARINE ROUTE

By Syd Knight

 

The Waupaca Chain O’ Lakes is the proud possessor of the marine route, one of the most unique

mail routes in the United States.  This route is eleven miles long and covers the following nine lakes:  Sunset, Beasley, Lime Hill, Columbia, Nestling, Route, Rainbow, McCrossen, and Long Lake.  In 1952 there were 120 cottages on the marine route and the route would be much larger if it were not for rural route one delivering to all the cottages on the north sides of the lakes.

The marine route started thirty-three years ago in 1920 through much effort of our one-time

congressman, the late Edward E. Browne.  The route opens June 1, and extends four months till October 1.  Letters being sent to someone on this route should be addressed to Waupaca, Wisconsin, Marine Route.  The carrier picks up the mail at the Waupaca Post Office and delivers it, returning the outgoing mail to the post office.

The marine route carrier is an employee of the United States Post Office Department.  The

present carrier is Alfred Brandt.  He has been delivering mail on the marine route for eighteen years.  Edwin Smith, the present postmaster at King, was the marine route carrier for eleven years. Hobart Edmunds and Donald Morgan also were marine route carriers, each serving two seasons.  The marine route teams up with the many other attractions of the Chain O’ Lakes to make it famous.

 

 

LITTLE HOPE

By Harlan Jensen

Little Hope is situated on the Crystal River, about three miles south of Waupaca on County Trunk

K.  The river is dammed up here and a large millpond is formed.  The water goes over the dam into a deep pool, which harbors trout.  The river continues under the bridge, around the peninsula, and over the rapids.

I can see it all in my mind, the old carding mill, and the small gristmill which were operated by

water power.  Later they built the big gristmill that is in operation now. It was operated by water power until George Hanson, the present owner, took over and changed it to electric power.

The old flume was a majestic thing, about one hundred feet long, eight feet deep, and six feet 

wide, always filled with clear, swift flowing water.  There was always water bursting from the seams, spraying all over the place.

There was a small store here called Root’s Grocery.  Seems that it went out of business in 1919

when Mr. Root, the owner, died.  The building was sold and moved to the Rasmussen farm.

I can just remember the old stagecoach that went through here.  They stopped at the hotel, which

is now the Herman Danielson residence.  There were also stables here for exchanging horses.

A Conservation Club is located here now.  It is called the Chain O’ Lakes Conservation Club. 

They have a nice clubhouse and quite a few acres of land, which is partly covered with trees.  They also have a Trap Shooting Range.

 

 

THE BIG POTATO BAKE OF 1907

By Deborah Powell

 

On September 7, about 1907, women wearing long, full skirts and huge hats, and little boys in

knee pants hurried to Waupaca.  In this town of approximately 3500 people, a large celebration was in store.

At that time Waupaca County was “King of the Potato Growers.”  In response to this honor, the

businessmen of the town planned a Potato Bake Day which was to last the complete day.

The stores hung streamers from their windows, and put up flags in front of their stores.  An

immense banner was strung from the First National Bank to the Court House upon which was written, “What Made Waupaca Famous?”  A picture of a huge potato was symbolized beneath the quotation.  Beneath the picture of the potato was another quotation, “Waupaca Potato is King.”

A parade was held, consisting mainly of horses and buggies. There were one or two automobiles

in the parade, also.  Twice that day there was a balloon ascension from the armory.

Free barbeque beef and potatoes were given to the people.  On the north end of the Court House

Square was the barbecue pit.  Tables were set up in the courtyard, also.

This gala affair attracted much attention. Write-ups of this celebration were in the Milwaukee

Journal, the Milwaukee Sentinel, and the Appleton Post Crescent.  This occasion was frequently referred to as a homecoming for Waupaca County, as people from all around came back to Waupaca for the potato bake, seeing old friends and making new ones.

 

 

INDIAN CROSSING

By Janet Ryan

 

Indian Crossing is a channel connecting Lime Kiln and Columbia Lakes, and was used by the

Indians as a crossing and a trail. Indian Crossing was where large groups of Indians passed or camped occasionally.

            The Indians that lived in this area were the Menomonee and they came from Portage on the Wisconsin River to Lake Shawano, near the boundary of the present Menomonee Indian Reservation.  This tribe was called the Shakitok and were under the leadership of Ni-aqtowa-pomi.

            In early settlement days they were reported to have had six villages in Waupaca.

            Several years ago the channel was dredged and widened so that large motor boats could pass through.

            William R. Arnold built the Indian Crossing Resort in 1923, and the Casino in 1924.  In 1930, William Arnold sold the Casino and the Indian Crossing Resort to John Martin and his brother-in-law, Paul Asplund.  Keeping only the Casino they sold the Indian Crossing Resort to Emil Jansson.

            John Martin and Paul Asplund operated the Casino until 1938, and then Paul Asplund sold his share to Allen Martin, son of John Martin.

            One of the most popular dance halls on the Chain o’ Lakes is the Casino, and many fine orchestras play here during the summer months.

 

 

TORNADO OF 1950

By Harlow Johnson

 

            In the late afternoon of Monday, September 18, 1950; the air was quiet, warm, ad humid. About 3:30 p.m. the wind suddenly started to blow and by 3:40 p.m. the wind blew itself into a tornado.

            Apparently the twister started at the Kelly Ware farm, two miles north of Waupaca.  The tornado, following a southeasterly path to Weyauwega and Redfield, lasted only a few minutes.  But in those few minutes it blew down barns, broke power and telephone lines, and uprooted trees.  Debris and steel roofing was blown as far as one-quarter of a mile.

            On the Van Faulks and Clarence Beckman farm, four miles east of Waupaca on Highways 22 and 54, barn rafters pierced the houses.

            The barn of Guy Anthony was completely leveled.  Cows and pigs were wandering loose after fences were broken.

            Approximately all the sheds and buildings, including three barns were damaged at the Waupaca County Hospital and farm, which is northwest of Weyauwega, and one inmate was killed from flying debris.

            The tornado had a tragic ending for Herman Schoenheide, a patient at the Waupaca County Hospital, who was found dead in a field near the hospital.  Other people were injured when they were hit by flying debris.

            Telephone and light utilities were put out of order in the Weyauwega area, the hardest hit. The tornado caused hundreds of thousands of dollars of damage.

           

 

THE EARLY HISTORY OF THE TOWN OF LIND

By Dick Minton

 

            The town of Lind consists of township 21, range 12.  It is bounded on the north by Waupaca, on the east by Weyauwega and Fremont, on the south by Waushara County and on the west by Dayton.

            This town west of Fremont and south of Waupaca was first settled in 1849 by J.W. Chandler. The post office was established the next year, with George W. Taggart as postmaster; the first mail route was carried by John Harris, familiarly known as “Old Zach.”  The town was organized in 1851.  The Methodists built the first church and the first sermon was preached in 1850 by Reverend Baxter.  The first officers of the town were:  Lyman Dayton, chairman; Charles Beadleston and J.W. Chandler, supervisors; Chauncy Dotz, J.H. Jones, S. Warren, justices; and J.L. Rice, town clerk.

            The first sawmill was built by Mr. Strong in 1853-1854, while the first store was built in 1859 by Mr. Mitchell.  The name Lind originates with George W. Taggart; Jenny Lind was the prime originator.  Tyler Caldwell, George W. Taggart, the sextons, Columbus Caldwell and Jarvis L. Rice made the first claims in 1849 on Walla Walla Creek; Mr. Dow built the first log house which is still standing in section I.

            The first school was taught by Mrs. Susan Chandler, in the “Chandler Settlement,” commencing June 5, 1851.  The first birth was a child of Hiram Sexton, in the spring of 1850.  The first marriage ceremony was that of John M. Dewey and May Chandler on November 15, 1852, performed by Reverend Peter Prink a Baptist.  Hollis Cebson built the first brick chimney, and the first stone cellar wall, in 1853.  Alvin Pope made the first pair of shoes.  The first Fourth of July celebration ever held in the county was in Lind, on Lone Pine Hill in 1850.

            Finally, in 1888, a Wesley Methodist Church was built.

 

 

LIGHTS ON IN WAUPACA

By Eugene Larson

 

            The homes in Waupaca had electric lights as far back as 1886, because a dozen persons started the Electric Light Company. The men who were at the head of it were A.G. Nelson, H.M. Lea, and Charles Churchill.  These men built the power plant above the Waupaca Star Mill on the Waupaca River.

            In the year 1898, a new company was organized, the Waupaca Light and Railway Company.  They had a steam driven generator in the plant to supply the Electric Railway on the street.  It was led by Irving P. Lord and W.B. Baker.  They built the lines from the depot to the Soldier’s Home, three miles west of the city.

            Mr. Lord, who built the very first light plant, efficiently operated the plant until 1917, when they changed the name to Waupaca Electric Service and Street Railway Company.  The sale of the property was made to two men from Minneapolis, A.E. Aspenes and Jesse F. Richardson. The old 1100-volt, 133-cycle single phase system was changed to a 2300-volt, 60-cycle, three phases system.

            All the stocks of the Waupaca Electric Service and Railway Company was bought by the Wisconsin Electric Company November 19, 1925, only three weeks after the merging of the Rhinelander and Antigo properties.  Great, indeed, has been growth since 1886.

 

 

BETHANY CHILDREN’S HOME

By Marilyn Moeller

 

            Some leaders of the Danish Evangelical Lutheran Synod (better known as the “Blair” Synod) had thought for some time of starting a Christian welfare program for orphaned or neglected children.  The result was that it was decided to establish a Home in Albert Lea, Minnesota.

            The building was started in August, 1895, and the new Home was given the name of Bethania Bornnehjem, Bethany Children’s Home.  Mrs. Anne Petersen of Waupaca, Wisconsin, was engaged as the first superintendent.  Her only son, Victor, came with her and remained with her as a helper as long as she continued in that work.

            The Blair Synod became a part of the United Danish Evangelical Lutheran Church in America at Minneapolis, Minnesota, in October, 1896, and Bethany Children’s Home became the property of the new synod.  At the annual convention of this synod held in Blair, Nebraska, in 1897, it was decided to move the Home to Waupaca, Wisconsin.  A piece of land consisting of thirty acres located on Berlin Street was purchased at a cost of $1,500 and a house was built to accommodate forty children.

            According to the state regulations now only sixteen children can live there at one time.  As a general rule, they are from Wisconsin and are given religious training in the Trinity Lutheran Church in Waupaca.

            Each child has certain duties to perform.  For example, they have to set the table, wash and dry the dishes, make their own beds, keep their own room clean, and iron their own clothes.

            There are two bedrooms for the girls, two bedrooms for the boys, and two rooms for hired help.  When it is necessary, these rooms are arranged differently to meet the requirements.

            At the present time, there are no children in the Home.  The Board of Directors is recommending to the Synod that the Home be used for an Old Age Home and Infirmary instead of a Children’s Home.

 

 

BOZO, THE EDUCATED BASS

By Joyce Johnson

 

            On July 25, 1933, Mr. Henry Estberg was working in shi shop on Rainbow Lake, when a black bass, sixteen inches long, came up beside the dock.  This gave him an idea.  He was going to train him.  He put oatmeal into the water to attract the minnows.  The fish would dart between the minnows to get the food.  He would go away, but always came back the next morning.  Hand named him Bozo. In two weeks, Hank could get close enough to throw Bozo a fish. In the fall, Bozo didn’t return for a long time. When spring came, he still hadn’t returned.  On the fifth day of June he came back.  About three weeks later, Hank and bozo were good friends again. Hank could pet and hold him.  He only had to wiggle his fingers in the water to attract Bozo’s attention.  The longest he would be gone was three or four hours. But Hank was afraid someone might catch Bozo, so he never let anyone fish around the dock. Hank made an act by letting Bozo hurdle over his hand to get a minnow. Bozo would let Hank raise him to an almost vertical position.  Hand was also able to kiss him.

            Pictures of Bozo were taken and sold for ten cents a piece.  In 1935, Hank moved his shop to Waupaca and Cal McLaughlin took over the dock and the care of Bozo.  One day Hank went to get Bozo and take him to live in the Bass Pond dear the Conservation League Clubhouse, but he was too late.  Bozo had been caught.  Bozo was about seven years old at this time.  One thing Henry Estberg says about a bass is that they will go for red ad dull gray quicker than any other colors.

 

 

 

 

 

 

KILLARNEYS OF AMERICA

By Anita Rast

 

            The Waupaca Chain O’ Lakes, one of the most widely known groups of Wisconsin lakes, is located in the southwestern part of Waupaca County.  These lakes are situated about four miles southwest of the city of Waupaca.

            These crystal and green lakes are located in a region once densely forested with deciduous and pine trees.  Because of their charm and beauty they have been referred to in advertising matter as “The Killarneys of America.”  No group of either Irish or Wisconsin lakes is fairer than these twenty-one niades of Waupaca.

The Chain lakes are strung out in a northeast and southwest direction, their shapes and arrange-ments suggesting “so many flags or garments on a line, fluttering and flapping in the summer breezes.”

At the head of the “Big Chain” is Taylor Lake, once known as Clem Lake; following in regular order is Rainbow and Sunrise, McCrossen, Round, Columbian and Long Lakes. Otter Lake, which lies north is attached to Taylor Lake by a stream.  Miner and Dake Lakes, twin lakes, which lie east of Columbian Lake, are connected with each other by a channel, but are not connected with the Chain.  Polly’s or Ottman Lake, a detached small lake, lies north of Columbian Lake.  Emmons Lake, situated a short distance southwest of Long Lake, is connected with Emmons Creek.

            In the “Little Chain” there are eight lakelets.  The first of these, Beasley Lake, is attached to the northwest shore of Long Lake. Beyond it are Bass, Youngs, Orlando, Knight, Manimin (Mud), Pope and Marl Lakes. The entire Chain O’ Lakes stretches out over an area 3-1/2 miles in length and a mile wide.

            “The shores of all the lakes possess the usual steepness of pitted plain basins.  Between the steep shores and the edge of the water in some of the lakes are narrow belts of grass or tamarack swamp which serve as good illustrations of the encroachment of vegetation in lakes.”

 

 

SHERIDAN

By Harriet Mortson

 

            Sheridan was known in its early days of settlement as Sessions Prairie, because of a man who owned all the land west of what is now Sheridan.

            Archibald and Katherine Buchanan and family, the first settlers, came from Scotland before the Civil War and built what is now the home of the Lloyd Jorgenson family.  Also standing are the two barns south of the highway.  The Buchanan family are direct ancestors of Hugh Johnson and Mrs. Talbot of Waupaca.

            Other early settlers were John and Jeannie Niven, who settled a little southeast of Sessions Prairie on the place where Sannes and family now live.

            The first school, built in 1867 and located west of the settlement, next to what is now the Sheridan Cemetery, was taught by Isabella Buchanan. This building is now in use on the Lloyd Jorgenson farm as a machine shed.  Other teachers were Mary Fisher in 1888 and Pauline Scott.

            In 1923 the second school house was built near the same place as the first. This school still stands and is occupied by Sam Rieben. I won’t try and name many of these first students attending either of these early schools but these few are still around and known in the community:  Mrs. Margarette Nelson, Mr. Sam Crossen, Mr. Carl Olson, Sam, Oscar, and Charlie Rieben, and Mr. Newell Evenson.

            The third school still in use, is located in Sheridan just east of the Valley Sheet Metal Shop, and is being taught by Mrs. Florence Woolsey of Waupaca.

            Another one of the oldest buildings is the first blacksmith shop.  A small wooden frame building that was located between what is now the Sheridan store and the brick building now owned by the Valley Sheet Metal Works.  Later Mr. Peterson bought this small shop and as years went by it became too small so he built the brick building east of the original shop, which now belongs to the Valley Sheet Metal Works.  Just a few years ago this first blacksmith shop was torn down, but everyone remembers it.

            Mr. Shaw owned the first store in Sheridan, and later Mr. C. Johnson bought this store and operated both store and Post Office.  At present this is owned by the Northwestern Co-op and is used as a feed mill.  John Lawrence’s potato warehouse also was a store many years ago.

            The first depot was west of Sheridan near where the Pipe schoolhouse is now located.

            The only hotel in Sheridan was owned and operated by the Jeffers family and is now the home of the Frank and Vilas Strebe families.

            One thing the oldsters will never forget is one Saturday afternoon on October 3, 1903 when a tornado went through Sheridan causing much destruction.  A cyclone followed in April, a few years later, and took the roof off the Sheet Metal Shop and horse stables at the rear of the shop and put them in the road in front.  It also ripped down a great elm tree which stood in front of this building.

            This little story, I hope, will help the younger people to realize what our Sheridan was at the time of the Buchanans, and the Nivens, our early settlers in the days of Abraham Lincoln.

 

 

WHERE NATURE LOVERS MEET

By Evelyn Paulsen

 

            Are you a nature lover?  Here is your paradise:  Whispering Pines Park.  It is situated seven miles southwest of Waupaca, and is open to the public from June first until September first without charge.

            Whispering Pines is privately owned by Mr. & Mrs. Christ Hyldgaard, formerly of Chicago, who in 1929 built a home among the trees in order to retire.  At that time, it was a wild and virgin forest.  With the active minds and hands of these two people, it soon turned into a living wonderland which attracts more than 60,000 people a year.

            The park overlooks what appears to be a small mountain lake. The lake, appropriately called Marl Lake because of its marl bottom, is the last link on the Chain of Lakes.  Its waters are crystal clear and heavenly blue which adds to the beauty and coolness of the spot.

            The great rock garden was the first attraction and remains a picturesque sight.  The begonia beds are very colorful, and the rose garden gives an air of dignity to the scene.

            In the two picnic grounds there are eighty tables, and six outdoor fireplaces available for all.

            An ideal place for children, too, because of its convenient playground.  One may feed the tame and friendly fish from the pier, or watch the various birds of which there are nearly sixty varieties.

            As for antiques, there is everything from stairways of hundred year old cedar rails to high button shoes.

            A large American flag can be seen with stars of stones; each stone represents the state from which it came.  Many odd formations of rock from all over the United States are on display.

            The garden paths wind around in and out so one can get a glimpse of all that is to be seen. One can browse around to his heart’s content in one of the two souvenir houses and rest in one of the many colorful and comfortable and absorb all the grandeur of this fascinating spot hidden away amongst thirty acres of tall, stately pines from sixty to ninety feet in height.

            In all its natural simple solitude and exquisite beauty, one truly finds a haven of relaxation and contentment.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

DAN BURNHAM REMINISCENCES

By Stanley Eggleston

 

            I asked Mr. Dan Burnham to tell me some stories about early Waupaca.

            One interesting event he remembers was the laying out of Waupaca’s first main street.  It was originally to be laid out between Christoph’s Dairy and where Campbells now stand.  They had to lay it out farther up because George Hutchinson came and told them that he would not let the surveyor put it through the middle of his cornfield.

            Another thing he remembers is about the first newspapers.  The first one was the Spirit which was started on New Years, 1853.  Rural was the center of population.  In 1855 the paper came back to Waupaca.  In 1856 it was renamed the Republican in December, 1907 and took charge of it in November, 1908.  Another newspaper, the Record was started by Carpenter. In 1911 the Leader was started and that paper differed from the others because it came out on Wednesday and the others on Thursday.  In 1912 they were merged and called the Record-Leader.  Carpenter sent out papers to 3,000 people for two years.  In 1914 he sent people out to collect but the citizens wouldn’t pay, saying they thought it was to be a gift.  This didn’t set too well with Carpenter and he sold out to Nathan Cohen.  He eventually sold to the Republican-Post and to shorten the name it was called The County Post.

 

 

THE MEAD MURDER

By Jane Hart

 

            October 7, 1882, was a cold, rainy night, and a perfect one for murder.

            H. C. Mead, the eccentric proprietor of the Mead Bank, located where Glover’s now stands, had the odd habit of doing most of his work at night.  This peculiarity was well known to the townspeople.

            After supper that fatal evening, Banker Mead returned to his office. During his absence, someone cut away the screen from a window in the back of the building.

            About midnight, the murderers climbed in through the window.  They hit Mead over the back of the head, knocking him unconscious, and then proceeded to rob him. While they were rifling the safe, Mead regained consciousness and recognized the men.

            The next noon, when Mead did not appear for dinner, a waitress from the Vosburg House went to call him.  She found the body covered with blood, still half-sitting in the over-turned swivel chair.  She gave the alarm and soon a curious, excited crowd gathered, speculating loudly about the identity of the murderers.         

            Though many men were accused, nothing could be proven.  The Vandecar trial in 1883 ended with an acquittal, and the case languished for ten years.

            Finally through the efforts of Benjamin Goldberg, another trial was held.  Goldberg had been elected district attorney on a promise to “try and convict the Mead murderers.”

            This trial was full of scandal and excited all of Wisconsin.  E.C. Bronson, Charles Prior, and Samuel Stout were the defendants.

            For two months, the trial dragged on, occasioning much gossip.  But the jury, after deliberating only half an hour acquitted the three defendants.  The Mead murderers were still unapprehended.

            Through the years, various suspects were unearthed, but were never brought to trial, until finally interest in the murder petered out, and the murderers still remain --- unknown.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

WAUPACA’S PUBLIC LIBRARY

By Roger Johnson

 

            Waupaca’s first Free Public Library was opened to the townspeople February 28, 1900, with a collection of one thousand books.  In the beginning the library was located above what is now the Firestone Store.

            The library was equipped with shelves, tables, and chairs, which were donated by the community.  The Women’s Monday Night Club, Miss Bailey and the Library Board were responsible for the starting of this project.  Miss Bailey remained as librarian for nine years.  When she retired, Miss Mary Benlick took her place.

            The location of the library was not changed for fifteen years, and the citizens decided that he growing little city should have a new library.  Attorney John Hart, a member of the Library Board, wrote to the Carnegie Foundation to receive financial help for the new building.

            The Carnegie Foundation was founded in memory of Andrew Carnegie, 1835-1919, who was a wealthy steel manufacturer and philanthropist.  He donated most of his money for the betterment of mankind.  His gifts to schools and universities amounted to millions of dollars. He gave $43,00,000 to establish libraries which number 3,000 and are situated in all parts of the world.  Thousands of communities have benefited from his financial help and now have public libraries.

            The City of Waupaca met the conditions of the Carnegie Foundation and received a gift of $10,000.  The new library was completed and dedicated in June, 1914.  A fine picture of Andrew Carnegie hangs over the fireplace in the Main Reading Room.

            Miss Benlick resigned on April 15, 1950, after forty years of service and Mrs. Nina Smith is her successor.  The library has come a long way since 1900, when it was first opened.

 

 

TWIN RESTAURANTS

By Bob Russell

 

            On July 4, 1931, Everett T. Webb from Fond du Lac, Wisconsin opened the Snappy Service Sandwich Shop in Waupaca.  The sandwich shop was 14 feet by 20 feet and had nine seats.

            On the front of the restaurant was to be painted “Bratwurst Sandwiches to take out.”  However, Reuben Nelson, the sign painter, painted Bratwurst and then forgot to finish it.  One day Dave Allen, one of Mr. Webb’s employees, asked him when Reuben Nelson was going to finish the sign because people were starting to call their restaurant The Bratwurst Eat Shop.  In time the sign was finished but people continued to call it The Bratwurst and the name has stuck ever since.

            This restaurant was one of the first if not the only restaurant in Waupaca County to be in operation for the last 21 years under the same management.

            Before the Second World War, about 1940, two German tourists happened to be traveling through Waupaca and noticed this restaurant.  They stopped and talked with Mr. Webb and told him that there was a restaurant in Hamburg, Germany, that was called The Bratwurst.  They said there was even a marked resemblance in the two restaurants.

            The meat, after which the Bratwurst Eat Shop was named, is a German pork sausage.  It was introduced in Wisconsin in the Sheboygan and Milwaukee areas where it is still popular, especially when charcoal broiled.

            The Bratwurst Eat Shop, one of the most modern restaurants in Wisconsin and always a popular place for local and tourist trade, was remodeled in 1948, and affords the guest a pleasant atmosphere plus a view of it’s modern stainless steel kitchen.

 

 

 

 

WAUPACA’S GOVERNMENT TODAY

By William Albright

 

            The Common Council of the City of Waupaca consists of eight aldermen, two from each of four wards.  The council meets in regular sessions on the first and third Tuesday of each month at 7:30.  It is the law-making body of the city.  The members today are:

                        First Ward                    Howard Manney, S.J. Danielson

                        Second Ward                J. Henry Smith, Erik Lindskoog

                        Third Ward                   Reuben Nelson, Herbert Moore

                        Fourth Ward                 Les Laux, N.J. Jardine

            Laux is chairman of the county board.  Hers is the Board of Education:

                        L.A. Olson                    3^rd Ward                       1950

                        John Hanson                 At large                                    1950

                        Frank J. Betry               1^st Ward                       1951    

                        P.H. Darling                 At large                                    1951

                        H.R. Herlick                 2^nd Ward                       1951

                        Jeanette Whale             4^th Ward                       1952

                        Verna Hart                   At large                                    1952

            The mayor is J. Kyle Anderson.

 

 

MARINE ROUTE

By Edna Pillsbury

 

            Mail delivery first carried by boat on Chain o’ Lakes started about 32 years ago.  The lakes it serves are McCrossen, Rainbow, Long, Beasley, Sunset, Nessling, Round, Limekiln, and Columbia.

            Congressman E.E. Browne was responsible for the introduction of this service to the lakes people.

            Alfred Brandt is the present mail carrier and has served for 18 years.  The only other carriers who served any length of time was Edwin Smith, who served for 12 years and then Taylor Lake was included in the route, but was only served a short time as it had too shallow of a shore.

            The reason the Marine Service was started was to give better mail service for the lake people.  Otherwise, they had to go about 3 miles for their mail or go to the Waupaca Post Office.

            The Marine carrier is not under “Civil Service”.  It is a big job.  The Post Office Department lets the bid to the one who they think will give the best service for the money.

            The mail carrier must be at the Post Office when the rural route and city carriers are also.  He sorts his mail, then goes by car to the lakes, where he keeps his boat, picks up letters, parcels, sell stamps, etc.  He serves them 6 days a week for 4 months; June, July, August, and September.  June is light as far as the volume of mail. July and August are the heaviest.  The service for people living in the cottages the year around are 125 patrons.  The carrier, if he has a good day, gets home about 10:00 a.m. starting at 7:00 a.m.

            The Marine Carrier does not receive a pension or Social Security; he is on his own.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

GRANITE QUARRY

By Beulah Anderson

 

            The Granite Quarry is located about four miles northeast of Waupaca.  It is now owned by Mrs. Ripley of Oshkosh.  Business at the quarry started around 1888, with about fifteen men working.  They worked ay and night shifts.  Later there were one hundred and forty men working in the quarry.

            The men started on the front side of the quarry (which faces the road), which contained red and gray granite.  There you can find a hole, where lots of granite has been removed.  It is full of water because of the hole in the rock, where water seeps through.

            There was a little quarry, which contained gray with black mica mixed with granite. This was discontinued because the mica would weather.  There were hidden seams, which would fall to pieces.  These they would try to glue together.  There was a large piece, which was to have been made into a pillar, but was never made up.

            There was a dam to furnish power.  Within this dam are two islands.  They had air drills, steam engines (to pull rock up from the lower quarry), and a derrick (to lift stones up on the track into carts to be turned, sawed, trimmed, or polished).  The buildings they had were a hotel, blacksmith shop, store, office, and quarry property.  A railroad which was planned never materialized.  In 1900 Peter Nicoliasen was killed there, when going over to see why a blast hadn’t gone off.

            All granite finished was hauled by horses to the Waupaca depot.  The last of the granite taken out was used for our state capitol at Madison.  A sample of Waupaca granite can be seen at the city hall.  For Waupaca they made a hitching post, and water troughs for horses, which were where the information bureau now stands.  Thomas Davidson made monuments from the granite.  The surrounding area and school are appropriately called “Granite Quarry.”

 

 

LOST – A CREAMERY

By Lynda Minton

 

            Waupaca once had a creamery which was located where the Barnhart Machine Shop is now.  It consisted of two buildings; the powdered milk plant and the main plant.  Two churns turned out as high as five thousand pounds of butter a day and during their best season they putout close to forty-five thousand pounds of whole mile a day.  The skim milk was shipped to New York and Chicago while the butter went to Chicago.  For years only eight people were employed to run the creamery.

            You may be wondering how we got this creamery that was so much help to us.  It all started way back in about 1889 when a small group of businessmen in Waupaca put up the capital for this business.  They operated it for a few years and had to shut down.  Later Mr. Frank Kaizer, who came here from southern Wisconsin, leased the creamery and also started creameries in Lind Center, Baldwin Mills, and Blaine.  The Waupaca Creamery, operated by Kaizer for five or six years, was sold to a firm from southern Wisconsin.  It was run by this firm for a couple years when Kaizer and a partner came back in 1907, and ran the Waupaca Creamery along with the creameries at Lind Center, Baldwin Mills, Springhill, and Blaine.

            In 1908, Mr. Louis Olson from Blaine came to work in the Waupaca Creamery as bookkeeper. In 1910 when our creamery was closed again, Mr. Olson took over and ran it for one and a half years.  Then in 1911, the farmers decided they wanted to make the creamery a Co-operative, so they sold stock. Mr. Olson was then hired as the manager of the plant.

            By 1927, they were running the milk drying plant.  This spelled success for the farmers and for years there were from 450 to 550 farmers patronizing the creamery.

            Mr. Olson resigned as manager in 1941, and a new manager ran the creamery for two years, when it then sold to Badger Consolidated in Shawano and everything was moved from Waupaca to Shawano.  This we hadn’t figured on but there was nothing in the contract that said they couldn’t move it.

            The powered plant was sold to Barnhart and the main building was torn down.  Waupaca had lost her creamery after so many years.

THE TORNADO OF 1951

By Jack Hartsworn

 

            The second tornado came with death and destruction, and was the worst one of ht two and came one year, nine days, five minutes after the first one.  The mile wide strip of land that the two followed is called “cyclone alley”.  It took six lives, one whole family near here, and the seventh, a woman, was carried 500 yards by the wind and was found in a ditch at Sugar Bush.  The property damage was high. It wiped out whole farms, flattening them to the ground and sometimes taking pieces miles away.

            The bodies of the Rasmussen family were found a quarter of a mile away in a swamp.  The Bonikowski’s, across the road, said they must have been on the back porch cleaning chickens and did not see the tornado coming.

            The Bonikowski’s seeing it, ran to the cellar for safety.

            Mr. Bonikowski and the hired man had just come home from the milk route and the truck still in front of the garage was picked up by the wind and turned upside down.

            The bus driver, Paul Jensen, who dries for the Waupaca School, said, “We saw the tornado clean out a hedge-row of pine trees and saw the roof go off the Bonikowski barn.  The tornado looked like it hit where Bonikowski’s cows were.  It hit them almost direct but I didn’t see any knocked down; they just started to run in circles.

            The funnel went clockwise. It looked like a whirlwind, only on a bigger scale.  Everything was in the air and it happened so fast I can’t say much about it.

            I don’t want to see another one.  I went through the one last year, too.

            The debris from the Bonikowski home was placed where the Rasmussen house once stood.

            The Bonikowski’s 1948 Dodge was lifted 25 feet into the air and was set on the foundation of the  house.  A combine, 100 feet away, was set on top of the car just above where the Bonikowski’s were in hiding.

            After the tornado, the Bonikowski’s ran over to see how the Rasmussen family had fared but all they found was ruin.

            The house and barn were flattened to the ground, their car was in the river 200 feet from the garage, and the pick-up truck was in the marsh.

            A tree branch, stripped of all its bark, was driven into the hip of a two-year old heifer.  The cow still lives.

            A house a few hundred feet away only lost a porch roof.

 

 

EARLY HISTORY OF RURAL

By Ronald Diver

 

            The settlement of Rural was started by J.H. Jones in 1851 in the town of Dayton.  The first frame house was built by Mr. Jones on the south side of the Crystal River at the foot of Junction Lake.  In 1852, Jones built another house, later occupied by W.J. Chamberlain.

            Jones, in 1856, built the mill building, later owned by J. and C.S. Ashman, but the machinery was not put into operation until 1862.

            The first post office in the town of Dayton was established in 1851.  Its name was “Nepawan” and Mr. L. Dayton was the postmaster.  In 1853, Nepawan post office was moved to Rural and J.H. Jones was appointed postmaster.

            A private school, taught by Miss Almica Dayton in 1852, was the first school at Rural. The school was one room in the J.H. Jones’ house near Junction Lake.  Miss Dayton told time by the passage of a window sash shadow on marks on the windowsill.

            The first public highway was the state road which passed through Rural, Parfreyville, and Crystal River from Stevens Point to Weyauwega.  This highway, built in 1852 was built from Stevens Point to Weyauwega.

            The rivalry between Rural and Waupaca has been very strong.  In fact, it was Rural that made such an effort to outstrip Waupaca that the publishers of the Waupaca Spirit, which was established in 1853 and is now the Waupaca County Post, moved their press and published their paper for one year in Rural.

            The sawmill at Rural, no longer standing, was built in 1856 by J. Ashman on the north bank of the Crystal River, just south of the Rural store.  It was run by waterpower and wagon boxes; lumber sleighs were made.

            The Rural store, now the only store in Rural, was built in 1902 on the south side of the present Highway 22.  It was moved across the road and became a store in 1905.  It went out of business in 1909, but a Mr. Funk took it over and ran it until Charles Weller bought it in 1916.  Robert Weller, Charles’ son now owns and operates the store.

 

 

OLD TIME ADVERTISING

By Irene Christensen

 

            In the Saturday, March 27, 1881 issue of the Waupaca Post, this ad was found:  “Wants A Wife, I want a wife; a black-eyed one preferred, temper good, manners agreeable, age about 20 to 25 years, weight 120 to 125 pounds.  No one with encumbrances wanted.  It is leap year and ladies who mean ‘business’ can properly drop me a note.  I will give someone a good and happy home, well furnished.”

            In eighteen hundred and eighty-eight, A.J. Holly’s ads read like this:  “A.J. Holly Furniture and Undertaking.  Fine bedroom and parlor sets.  Our specialty is plain and upholstered goods of every description.  In the undertaking department is an especially fine hearse.  We take care of the funerals when desired.  Embalming is done by the best scientific methods.  A full line of disinfectants in stock.”

            At A.C. Dutton’s, there was a “Bakery and Ice Cream Parlor, Confectionery, and cigars; oysters of all styles in their season.”  Dutton’s was on “Robert’s New Block, Main Street, in Waupaca.”

            Have you been to see George Stoner lately?  He now has, “heavy and light harnesses, bridles, whips, combs, and brushes.  Repairing, well and promptly done.”  His shop is on Main Street.

            The Waupaca Post was only $1.50 a year in 1888, and they had, “the best equipped job printing office in the county.”

            Are your feet getting tired from walking?  Then go down to see J.D. Koontz and get a new Stude-baker, either a wagon, Carriage, or Buggie.  He also carries agricultural implements of all kinds, and McCormick Harvesting Machinery.

            “Fourth of July will be celebrated at Waupaca; 100 guns at sunrise, by Captain John Rosche.  Procession will form at the north end of Main Street at 9 o’clock, headed by the Waupaca Brass Band.  A Grand Dance will be given at the Opera House in the evening.  Tickets, only 50¢.  Everybody come and have a good time.”  (1893)

            “J.A. Hudson & Co. are leaders in coffee at 18, 20, 25, 30, 35, and 40¢.  Don’t fail to try our 25¢ tea, it has no equal.”  (1897)

            Say, let’s go down to the Palace and see “Clair Windsor” in “Fashion Madness”, the price is just 10¢.  (1928)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A CENTURY OF COMMERCE IN WAUPACA

By Bob Russell

 

            Have you ever walked down Main Street in Waupaca and wondered what it looked like one hundred years ago?  Waupaca City wasn’t the first settlement in Waupaca County but settlers coming to Waupaca seemed to move up the rivers from the South.

            It is believed that the first trading post in Waupaca County was opened by Bergstresser and Brickly on the East side of the Wolf River near the present site of Fremont, in 1850.  Later in the year 1850, as people started moving northward, a general store was erected by a Judge Beal from Indiana.  The location of his store was on the east side of the present site of Weyauwega.

            Businesses by C.L. Gumaer in Weyauwega and C.E. Hobart in the town of Mukwa were also established in the year of 1850.  The first hotel in Waupaca, built that same year, was called the Baxter Hotel.

Stores have played an important part in the building of Waupaca County.  It was in the Ogden store in Ogdensburg that the first county election was held in 1854.  Only 40 votes were cast and Weyauwega was given the county seat and also the candidates they nominated for election.  Representa-tives from Waupaca complained, and were expelled from the room.

And there was the Mead Bank in Waupaca where H.C. Mead, the founder, was murdered.  Because of insufficient evidence, the murderers were never apprehended and the case is still unsolved.  The old Mead Bank, which was the first bank in Waupaca, is still standing in its original site, on Jefferson Street, just north of Badger Street.

Early business places were built near the river and the city hall. Just north of the city hall Peter Mortensen had a cooper shop, and next to him was a tin shop, run by F.B. Hansen,  Just on the other side of the river, across the street from the mill, was Chris Johnson’s tannery.  The original building still stands and is now run by his son, Waldemar Johnson.

With the coming of automobiles the first gas station was built in Waupaca in 1920.  The building still stands on the corner of Badger and Jefferson Streets.  The station is not in operation and is to be torn down this summer to make way for a used-car lot for Lester Laux, the proprietor of the Waupaca Motor Sales.

 

 

LOYOLA VILLA

By Janet Birner

 

            Loyola Villa is located on a peninsula-shaped tract of land, which was washed by the waters of Hicks, Rainbow and Otter Lakes. It was built on ground which rises considerably above the water level and looks out over Rainbow Lake in the direction of Nessling and the subsequent lakes of the Chain. It also happens to be one of the most delightfully situated villas on the Chain o’ Lakes.

            Loyola Villa is a very large and handsome structure of its class.  It contains sixty-four rooms.  These include an exclusive chapel, the dining hall, the parlor, and the billiard room. The beauty of the villa is its long and spacious verandas, neat structural lines and the attractive though modest color-effect.  If it weren’t for its generous groves, Loyola Villa would present a very striking appearance from the Lakes.  The trees have been but sparingly visited by the ax and the result is favorable to the beauty of the Villa’s environment.

            Loyola Villa was established in 1896 as a summer haven of rest and recreation for the professors of various Jesuit Colleges of the Missouri Province.  Of late years it has also served the purpose of a normal school.  The name Loyola comes from the house of St. Ignatius or “Ignatius de Loyola” who was the founder of the Society of Jesus and was the most illustrious member.

            During the summer months Loyola Villa is represented with Jesuits from St. Louis University of St. Louis; Creighton University of Omaha; Loyola University of Chicago; the University of Detroit; Marquette University of Milwaukee; St. John’s University of Toledo; St. Mary’s College of St. Mary’s, Kansas; Sacred Heart College of Prairie du Chien; St. Ignatius College of Cleveland; St. Zavier’s College of Cincinnati.

 

 

THE HOLLY FUNERAL HOME

By Janice Strebe

 

            The originator of the Holly Funeral home was A.J. Holly, in the year 1882.  He conducted the funeral business along with the furniture and cabinet-making work.

            The original location of the funeral home was an old building west of the Neil Hotel, which has since been torn down.  In 1890, it was moved into the building now occupied by the Waupaca Fruit Store. 

            In 1904, A.J. Holly’s sons, Roy and Robert L., went into business with him under the firm name of A.J. Holly and Sons.  A.J. Holly died in 1917 and Roy Holly became sole owner.  He continued the furniture and funeral business until 1926, when he sold his furniture business and continued in the funeral direction work.  He remained in the same location until 1929, when he purchased a house on South Main Street, that had been the Chesley property and remodeled it to make a modern funeral home.  Assisted by his brother, Robert Holly, he devoted all his time to embalming and funeral directing.

            In the olden days, no embalming was done so embalming licenses were not required.  Bodies were prepared in the homes by friends and neighbors and the funeral services were conducted at the church or in their home.

            In 1904, it became lawful that embalming licenses were required.  Roy Holly attended school in 1904 and was the first person in this area to obtain a license.  The next year Robert Holly followed the same procedure and was also granted a license.

            In 1904, Tom W. Holly started his apprenticeship and secured his license in 1949.  He has been actively engaged with his father, Roy Holly, in the funeral business since that time.

            During all these years, the firm name has been left as A.J. Holly and Sons and is now in the third generation in the funeral work.

 

 

WARE DISTRICT

By Evelyn Johnson

 

            Ware District is located 2 miles north of Waupaca.  The Ware School is located on Highway 49 about 3 miles from town.

            Indians first lived on this land and a few arrowheads have been found in this locality.

            There have been 3 school buildings in this district:  a log school, a wood-frame school, and a brick school.

            Samuel Ware, from whom the district got its name, came to Waupaca County in 1849 and settled in this district.  Early in 1850 S.F. Ware taught in the log school and continued to teach for 4 terms. No one can remember when the old frame house was built. In early 1915 the frame school was bought by N.P. Peterson for $110.  The woodshed was sold to Peter R. Johnson for $21.50.  In 1915, the frame school was moved into town and a brick school was built in its place.  This school is still standing.

            At first the teacher would board at your house a certain number of weeks for each child you had going to school.  The school terms varied from 4 to 8 months.  The boys went to school whenever they felt like it.  All the kids went barefoot whenever possible.

            D.N. Ware and John Ware bought oxen and sold them. Sometimes they had as many as 10 oxen in their barn in one night.  They used horses for power on the threshing machine.  They had 5 teams or 10 horsepower.  It was owned by Ware and John Peterson.

            The county asylum was to be built where the Roy Montgomery farm is now.  The wall was already built and they had a dispute.  Manawa went with Weyauwega and they got the asylum at Weyau-wega.  Then Weyauwega went with Waupaca and we got our court house, so say the “old timers”.

            In 1904 a spur of the Green Bay and Western Railroad was built through the district from Waupaca to Scandinavia.  About 1947 the railroad was torn up.

            The gravel pit were started by Alvin Cartwright in 1908.  The sand was loaded into wheelbarrows and then into train cars.  When he quit, Messers. Whalen and Dressen continued in the business.  They loaded sand into the cars with a steam shovel.  A screening plant was built to separate sand from stones.  Later they moved to Lake Emily.  Then Olson and Rasmussen started in with a conveyor in 1912.  Ebbe and Rasmussen took over in 1916 and built a complete screening plant.  In 1929 the Ebbe boys took over the work until about 1940 when they closed down.

            I hope that the people now living in this district will enjoy reading this history of their district as much as I have enjoyed looking it up.  I am also a resident of Ware District.

 

 

WAUPACA ICE COMPANY

By Jack Gunderson

 

            The first icehouse in Waupaca was at a large lake now known as Shadow Lake.  It was built by Mr. Hans Benlick sometime in the 1890’s.  At that time a Mr. Blackwell from New London came to Waupaca in the wintertime and filled the icehouse.  Mr. Hans Benlick ran the ice business for five or six years and then sold it to Mr. Hamilton.  Mr. Hamilton owned the business for about two years.  By this time the ice company had enough equipment to fill the ice house without the help of Mr. Blackwell.

            Louis Larson bought the business from Mr. Hamilton.  About twenty-two years later, Oscar Larson, Louis Larson’s son, bought the business.  Oscar Larson ran the business for about two years and sold it to his brother, Charles Larson.

            In 1921 Oscar Larson built a new icehouse on Mirror Lake which is still being used.  Mirror Lake is connected to Shadow Lake by a small channel.

            In 1945 William Feathers bought the business from Charles Larson.  William Feathers had the business for one year.  He told me he lost $5,000 on it in that one year, so he sold it to Tom Gunderson.  Tom Gunderson had the business for two years and sold it to Mr. McAllister.  Mr. McAllister ran the business for two years and sold it back to Tom Gunderson who owns it now.

            Although the business is dangerous, no one has ever been killed, but there has been some bad accidents.  A couple times a team of horses went under the ice, but they were pulled out again.  While Tom Gunderson owned the business a Farmall H. Tractor with a hired man on it fell through the ice.  The man came up unhurt and the tractor was pulled up about three days later.  It cost about $450.00 to pull the tractor up and repair it.

            At the present time Tom Gunderson is trucking ice to Manawa for refrigerating railroad cars.  He must put ice in about five to eight cars a day. These cars hold about five ton of ice each.  Storms at Manawa have a government contract to supply butter for the school lunch program.  Waupaca say that Manawa couldn’t get our courthouse over there so now they are taking Mirror Lake!

 

 

WAUPACA’S FIRST AND ONLY RADIO BROADCASTING STATION

By Lila Olson

 

            The idea of establishing a broadcasting station at Waupaca, Wisconsin, was originated by Mr. Lee L. Yorkson.

            March of 1920, the Civic and Commerce Association of Waupaca was thinking of securing a wireless telephone to receive the daily weather reports.

            In April of 1922, concerts and market reports were being heard over a set installed in the office of the Civic and Commerce Association and plans were being made to broadcast the weekly concerts of Carroll’s Waupaca Band.  At this time market reports were being sent in by Morse Code by Mr. Yorkson, for those who had sets and could follow the code.

            A license to use or operate the apparatus for radio communication at Waupaca, Wisconsin was issued to the Civic Commerce Association of Waupaca on July 12, 1922.  This was the first license for broadcasting station ever issued to a commercial organization.

            Approximately two months were spent in building up the outfit and the erection of the antenna towers.  The work was done by Mr. Littleton.

            February of 1923, the plant was inspected and tested by a radio engineer of the Federal Govern-ment who pronounced it satisfactory and gave permission to start its operation.

            When the broadcasting station was completed, it was the largest in the United States with the exception of the plant of the General Electric Company at Achnestady, New York.  Their power was known and consequently credit was given them for being a larger station than the Waupaca station.

            The broadcasting studio was in the back part of the Holly Furniture Store and was partitioned off by a curtain.  The broadcasting was done from the balcony.

            There were two radio towers, one on the courthouse square in front of the jail, and the other back of the Western Union.  They were 110 feet high and the bases were 22 feet square.

            Waupaca could not give them the financial aid they needed nor guarantee them a program once a week, so the Bureau of Market offered the station to any city in the state that could fill their needs.

            The Department of Markets received requests for the station from Antigo, Appleton, Fond du Lac, Green Bay, Marshfield, Oshkosh, Rhinelander, Stevens Point and Wisconsin Rapids.

            Stevens Point was selected because of its central location and cheapness of receiving market reports.  It was expected that it could be heard further, possibly in countries across the Atlantic or Pacific Ocean.

 

 

IT’S THE TRUTH

Author Unknown

 

            We all have time to read available literature about the Milwaukee Braves, but how many of us bother to find out just what makes our city tick?  How many of us are honestly interested in the history of our city?

            First, I am going to tell you about our granite quarry; the quarry was opened in the fall of 1886.  Did you know that there are 276 pieces of Waupaca granite used in interior decoration in the capitol at Madison?  And that isn’t all, Chattanooga, Tennessee has a Soldiers Monument of Waupaca granite; the gateway leading into Lake Wood Cemetery and the Telephone Building, all of Minneapolis, Minnesota, are from this quarry.

            I hope that you are interested enough to keep on reading, for now I want to tell you about a little incident that happened during the War Between the States.

            Waupaca was cold towards the Union cause.  Captain E.S. Bragg held a meeting and called for volunteers.  The audience considered the entire matter somewhat of a joke, and only one gaunt, loose-jointed youth of sixteen came forward and signed his name.  This youth was Eugene F. Hardy.  Aren’t you glad that we had at least one youth to save us from total disgrace?

            Say, believe it or not, Waupaca actually had an electric road!  The Waupaca Electric Road was running on schedule every day from the depot to the Wisconsin Veterans’ Home.  August 20, 1907, the State EPU Picnic was held in Waupaca, and on that day the electric road carried 4,844 passengers.  Fares ranged from five to ten cents for the five mile road.

            You don’t think that those old settlers quit with just an electric railway, do you?  Not on your life, they even had a broadcasting station!  This broadcasting station was located in the back part of the Holly Furniture Store.  There were two radio towers – one on the Courthouse Square in front of the jail, and the other back of the Western Union on Union Street. The greatest distance reached was 4,200 miles; the first broadcast was January 5, 1923.  The call letters were WPAH.  The station was moved to the Point in 1924.

            Now, let’s skip a little time – it’s November 25, 1952, and Alderman Joe Nelson has just been sworn into office, making it the first time in Waupaca history that three pair of aldermen on the city council have the same name!  These aldermen are L.C. Krueger and A.B. Kreeger (spelled differently but pronounced identically); Julius Johnson and W.G. Johnson; and C.E. Nelson and J.H. Nelson.

            ZOWIE!  I’ve got about 400 words and I only need 300; guess that just goes to show you – history can be fun!

 

 

GRAND VIEW

By Marilyn Wyman

 

            Grand View, a one-time glamorous summer resort and hotel, was built in 1896.  The first owners were Hill and Nessling.  Other owners were Irving Lord and Lee Engebretson.

            Grand View was noted for its fine cooking, and provided many sources of entertainment, such as swimming at the sandy beach, using the popular toboggan slide on Rainbow Lake, fishing on the lakes, and dancing at the Amusement Hall.  Music was provided by an orchestra of three men and a red-headed lady.  The orchestra played music every evening during the dinner hour, and after dinner if the guests wanted to dance.

            During the earliest years of the hotel it was kept very formal.  At dinner men had to wear jackets, no matter how hot it was, and women had to look their best.  During this time the rules for children were strict, but as the different owners took over, the discipline became less strict.

            The class of people that occupied the hotel were society people from various cities.  Tourists came from any different states to enjoy their vacations in some of the Grand View housekeeping cottages.

            The main transportation to and from the hotel was the street car, when traveling by road; the popular steamboat when traveling by water.

            The hotel provided a place in which to meet new friends.  In one of my interviews with an elderly lady, she recalled a story which went something like this:  “Will (her husband) and I were fishing one nice day on Rainbow Lake.  A couple saw us fishing so they came over to our boat and asked if they could fish in the same spot we were, because we were catching so many fish.  They told us their names, and that they were staying at the hotel and wanted some fish to take home with them to show their friends.  So Will and I gave them our fish.  They were delighted, and to this day the children of these people write to me.”

            The High School Museum owns a tarnished silver sugar bowl, engraved with an H and N.  That dish and a few guest cards are all that is left to remind the students of a once important past.

            The popular resort was torn down in 1945-46, and the property was sold to the state.  It is still owned by the state and on the old property some old Grand View cottages still stand.  During the summer months, campers pitch their tents on the very spot where the hotel once stood.  This setting still offers the most beautiful view of the lakes.

 

 

BRICK MADE FROM LOCAL CLAY

By Orville Josie

 

            One of the oldest enterprises in the history of Waupaca and vicinity is the production of making brick from Waupaca clay.

            The origin of this clay has been the subject of a very comprehensive study by several nationally-known geologists because it is one of the very few bi-laminar varvial pre-glacial deposits in Wisconsin.

            E. W. Ellsworth and U. L. Wilgus in collaboration with Borrons Grarad De Gee have correlated the Waupaca deposit as belonging to the Glacial Period prior to the Red Ice Re-advance.  This establishes its origin and deposition between the years 6,867 and 6,956, before the final years of the “Ice Age”.

            The earliest commercial use for brick making dates back to about the year when two men discovered an outcropping just below the John Hom bridge in Waupaca.  This first operation was very crude.  The clay was pugged by hand, pounded into wooden molds, dried in the sun, and later burned in open scone kilns.

            Sometime later, a better exposure of the same clay was located about a mile further south on the river, now the site of the local Waupaca Brick Company where bricks have been produced ever since.

            Judge Chamberlain and Mr. Hansen acquired the property and built a sand mound brick yard.  This was as the “soft mud process” similar to the hand moved process except that the clay was pugged in a horse powered sweek and automatically pressed into molds with a machine.

            In 1908 Conrad Gmeiner purchased the yard from Judge Chamberlain which he operated until 1910 when he tore down the old plant and built what was then considered a modern mechanical sand mold plant.

            About 1920 the sand mold equipment was taken out and machinery and kiln were erected for making a stiff process mechanically for making brick.  The new brick produced by this advanced method were superior in quality and color.  Waupaca textured face brick soon became a product used extensively throughout Wisconsin and adjoining states, for schools, commercial buildings, and residences.

            Brick making today is a far cry from the old antique hand molded process and at this time, now located by the Waupaca Brick Company all processing is automatic.  Today the clay is dried by power shovel and the operation of forming are mechanical.

            The green brick are handled on cars and dried in artificially heated degree tunnels.  Burning is done in permanent round dover draft coal kilns equipped with heat regulators and measuring devices and the Daunt produces brick today by the same mechanical means as used throughout the country.

 

 

WAUPACA CITY SCHOOLS

By Rhodora Dopp

 

            The Waupaca City Schools are a great credit to the high reputation that Wisconsin has earned in connection with her system of public education. It all began on a summer day in 1951, when Miss Theodora Thompson opened a school with twenty-one pupils in attendance.  She received a dollar and a quarter a week and was paid by her pupils.  In 1855 the Parish sisters of Vermont conducted a private school for one year and in the same year a Doctor Marsh conducted a Ladies’ Seminary in his home.

            As the village grew, schools were conducted on both sides of the river.  In 1867 the people of Waupaa built a brick schoolhouse, then the finest in the county, which served until 1912 when it was replaced by the present building.  A regular course of study was not adopted until 1875 and the class of 1876 was the first to receive diplomas.  The present high school building, built in 1912, has all modern conveniences.  Music and a commercial course were added to the regular studies.

            One of the early principals was Justice Burnham, who was later called the father of Portland, Oregon, schools.  Duncan McGregor also was an able principal.  After leaving Waupaca he became connected with Platteville Teachers’ College, and became its president.

            A new elementary school was built in 1938 and the classrooms’ and corridors’ floors are covered with marbleized asphalt tile blocks in two-toned colors.  The ceilings are acoustically treated.  A new agricultural building is the latest addition to the Waupaca school property.  The high school, the elementary and the grade buildings are very conveniently situated in one block which makes it easy for the development of courses.

            The Waupaca school system has received ammunition from the state on the fine work done and the outstanding teachers employed.

            The history of Waupaca schools would not be complete without mentioning our history teacher and librarian, Miss Kurkowski.  It has been said by the president of the school board that Waupaca’s interest in history is due largely to Miss Kurkowski’s efforts and influence.

 

PARFREYVILLE

By Mary  Bille

 

            In 1851 Robert Parfrey settled in Section 11 of Waupaca County, which was later called Parfrreyville.  Parts of what now are Henry Bille’s farm, Mrs. Oscar Smith’s place, and Vern Hebard’s farm were laid out in lots for the village of Parfreyville.

            The people used to grind their flour in Mrs. Dayton’s coffee grinder.  That gave way to Mr. Parfrey’s gristmill, called Pepper Mill, which was built that first year.  The Sunday after the first grinding, before the benediction was finished, Mr. Parfrey jumped up, took a handful of flour from his pocket and shouted at the top of his voice, “Here’s a sample of my flour.”

            In 1855 Parfrey took a partner into his business and built a larger mill.  Two years later he sold his business and built a small mill at Junction lake near Rural.  In 1863 the mill at Parfreyville was repaired by J.D. Kast and did a large and paying business until it burned to the ground on Christmas, 1874.  In the spring of 1876 the high water, the highest it had ever been, destroyed the dam, uncovering ground that had been under water since the summer of 1851.

            Parfrey’s house, the first built in Parfreyville, stood on the south side of the river close by the two pine trees.

            In the summer of 1854, Miss Jane Lathrop taught the first school at Parfreyville, in a shanty on the lot where the school now stands.  W.S. Carr taught in the same shanty in the winter of 1855-56.  W.C. Barlow built a new school in the fall of 1856.  Oscar Gotham moved that school building to his farm in the early 1900’s when the present building was built.  They had church in the school building until the church on the hill was built.  The cemetery is behind the school because the church services were in the school until the church was built.  John Gotham put the windows that were for his house in the parsonage, which was where Mr. Keenlace now lives.  The present parsonage was built when D.B. Coffeen was pastor in 1898 and the present church was built in 1905.  People came to church with wagons and oxen and sometimes the oxen ran away.

            One time Mrs. Carr, while in her garden, saw something black that looked like a big dog.  She called Mr. Carr and he identified the bear.  It started for the tree fence when Mr. Carr grabbed for its hind foot and missed.  If he caught it there would have been a lively time in the garden.  He then had his son send the dogs after the bear until it was tired.  In 1853 W.C. Carr planted the first apple tree, which bore fruit about ten years later.

            William Caleym, the first blacksmith, had a small shop about 30 rods north of the first bridge on the north bank of the river.  The next shop was built two years later in 1854.

            N.P. Judson had a small supply of groceries in a shanty on the south side of the river about 100 rods west from Parfrey’s house.  He also cared for the mail.

            Mr. Buck built the stone house and put on a cupola made entirely of windows when he built it.

            Parfreyville was the stopping place for the teamsters who brought supplies from Gill’s Landing to Stevens Point.  After meeting the boats at Gill’s Landing and spending the night at a hotel in Parfreyville, they proceeded next morning to Stevens Point with their merchandise.

 

 

FIRST FOOTBALL IN WAUPACA HISTORY

By Bill Grunwald

 

            The first football team of Waupaca High School was in the grand year of 1897 and the identifica-tion of the players is recalled by Frank, Willys, and Roy Holly.

            Here are the names and positions:

                        Charles Nicol, right end; Will Evans, lineman; Jay McCarthy, manager; Gus Bronson,

right guard; Fred Gulldiger, right halfback; Will Lea, fullback; Manfred Devoin, lineman;

Will Dale, left halfback; Roy Holly, quarterback; Warren Kramer, left send; Ned

Churdid, right tackle; Don Dirimple, quarterback; Hans Anderson, center; Frank Stratton,

left guard; and Willys Holmes, left tackle.

            They had no substitutes and if a man was hurt they waited for him to recover or quit.  They played New London that first year, during which one of the New London players broke a leg and the game ended right there.  The teams of 1897 and 1898 started from scratch.

            At that time, if the fans wanted to know what the scuffling out on the field was about, they bought a copy of Spaulding’s rule book and studied it from cover to cover, learning about the tandern and flying wedge.

            Their mothers, aunts, or grandmothers made their suits and what suits they were, with canvas pants and cotton batten for padding, a tight little jacket which laced up the front, shoes without cleats, long stockings and, of course, a turtleneck sweater under the guard.  Two or three of the fellows had nose guards.

            They didn’t know anything about the forward or lateral pass.  Their first game was with Stevens Point Normal and the Pointers won, 60-0.  Waupaca’s alibi was that Point had been playing longer, and Waupaca was playing outside their class at that early date.

            Football was originated in Waupaca High School a year earlier, 1896.  They learned the rules out of a book practically by themselves for they had never seen the game played before.

 

(Note:  Per Dr. Roy Holly, son of Roy Holly listed above, his dad was the quarterback because he was so small, and when the team was facing the other team, they would pick Roy up and throw him over the  opposing line.)

 

 

WISCONSIN’S BRILLIANT HERO

By Wlady Strzelecki

 

            One sunny Sunday afternoon a history-minded high school student walked slowly through the park of the Grand Army Home at King.  He looked neither left nor right.  It was plain to see that something was puzzling him.  Finally he sat down on one of the park benches.

            “Well, young man, what’s bothering you?”  A friendly old soldier with silver-gray hair and keen, searching, blue eyes asked.

            “I’m trying to find out why this community was named King, and who the man actually was.”

            “Well, that shouldn’t be so hard, maybe I can help you.”  The kind old veteran filled his pipe and settled down to spin a long yarn.

            “This community was named ‘King’ in 1941 in honor of Wisconsin’s most brilliant general, Charles King.”

            “Charles King was born in Albany, New York, on October 12, 1844.  His father, Rufus King, was a politician, a Civil War hero, and later editor of the Milwaukee Sentinel.  Charles began his military career at the age of 12, when he became a marker in his father’s First Regiment, Wisconsin State Militia.  In 1859 he was elevated to the position of a drummer in Milwaukee’s Light Guard, Company A, Wisconsin State Militia, and finally, he became a mounted orderly in the ‘Iron Brigade’, Army of the Potomac.”

            The old soldier’s pipe had gone out; he filled and lighted it, then continued.

            “Three years later, upon entering West Point, Charles stood before a tall, gaunt, sad-faced man, who placed a hand on Charles’ shoulder saying, ‘Well, my boy, at last you have your wish.’  This was Charles’ only encounter with President Lincoln.”

            “After finishing his courses at the Academy, Charles moved to his real encounters.  In 1870 two foreign horse-races had issued a general challenge which friends forced King to accept.  He displayed excellent horsemanship; he trained, rode, and won.”

            “Next, he fought the Apaches in Arizona.  The rifles were racking, bullets were whining, arrows were zooming.  King’s eye was almost ripped out by an arrow and his sabre arm was shattered by a bullet.  These wounds lasted eight years.”  

            “After recovering from his wounds, he became Adjutant in the Fifth Cavalry.  In the Sioux campaign the Custer Massacre took place and King escaped being massacred while being on an expedition with William F. Cody, better known as Buffalo Bill.”

            “In 11880 Captain King became a Professor of Military Science at the University of Wisconsin.  Confronted with the lack of military equipment and general disinterest, he built up one of the best military departments in the country.”

            “At the outbreak of the Spanish-American War, Brigadier General Charles King of the volunteers, fought in the Philippines and Hawaii.  He saw men dying of yellow fever ad when he reported at Manila he was himself on crutches.”

            The friendly veteran seemed to awaken, cleaned his pipe, put it in his pocket, and concluded:  “There was something about that man that ‘got a guy’.  I can still remember the small decisive eyes, glittering behind the rimless spectacles, the precise voice, the close-cropped mustache, erect shoulders, and the general air of confident gentlemanliness.  He had personality, charm, respect, that compelling quality of absolute sufficiency and equalness to all occasions.”

            “His varied experiences and his military knowledge made him one of Wisconsin’s most voluminous writers. He wrote more than fifty books.  His first book was “The Colonel’s Daughter.”

            “Have you ever read any of King’s books?” the searching eyes turned on the student.

            “No, I haven’t.  I didn’t know all this, but I certainly will as soon as I can.”

            “Thank you very much.  You certainly have helped me tremendously,” the student, arising, said.

            “That’s alright, young fellow, always glad to tell about a great man.”

 

 

MARGARET ASHMUN

By JoAnn Stelter

 

            One of the proudest possessions of the Waupaca High School Library is the Margaret Ashman Memorial Case.  This collection contains an autographed photograph of our distinguished graduate, several of her personal books, ironstone ware she owned, her graduation picture and a collection of her poems.

            You will ask, “But, who is this person?  What has she done for people?”  Margaret Eliza Ashmun was born in Rural, Waupaca County, Wisconsin on June 10, 1875.  She was the daughter of Claude Samuel and Rachel Jane (Smith) Ashmun.

            Miss Ashmun, who graduated from Waupaca High School in 1892, was also a graduate of Stevens Point State Teachers College.  She received her Bachelor of Philosophy Degree from the University of Wisconsin in 1904 and her Master of Arts Degree in 1908.  She was head of the English Department at Stout Institute, Menomonie, Wisconsin, from 1904 to 1906, and a member of the Department of English at the University of Wisconsin from 1907 to 1912.  Then she went to New York, and from that year on she gave the greater part of her time writing.  She kept up her home in Rural, spent some winters in Madison, and was several times abroad for considerable periods.  At the time of her death, she was living in Massachusetts.

            Margaret Ashmun wrote several types of books, educational works, material published in magazines, and much poetry.  The greatest service of Margaret Ashmun to her generation is found I her books for children, especially the Isabel Carleton series.  Some of her finest writings include, “On an Old Russian Candlestick,” “The Lake,” and “Modern Short Stories.”  These books throw sidelights on her work in general, her interests in eduation and in the young, her critical theories, and her methods of writing.

            Miss Ashmun had property on Long Lake at the Chain o’ Lakes, and for a time lived in Rural. She was a member of the Daughters of the American Revolution, the American Association of University Women, League of American Pen Women, and the University Club, Madison.  While residing at Rural, Miss Ashmun was entertained by the Library Club at a tea, and the student guests enjoyed her talk.

            Those who knew Margaret Ashmun found her delightful.  Her good sense, ironic humor, human understanding, moderation, her resolute justness in mind, and her tastes for simplicity were outstanding traits.

 

 

INDUSTRIES OF THE 1880’S

By Sherry Pope

 

            The ‘80s constituted a period of industrial development for Waupaca, especially in the lines of flour and lumber manufacturing.  John Jardine and W.J. Chamberlain had been proprietors of the Eagle Planing Mill for some years (Mr. Jardine’s since 1895), and upon the death of the former, in 1882, C.J. Shearer, Mr. Jardine’s step-son, assumed the active management of the business.  O. Hambleton and Mr. Shearer afterward became equal partners, T.L. Jeffers bought the Hambleton interests and the firm of Shearer & Jeffers was formed.

            On January 26, 1883, the new city mills, which had been owned and operated by Baldwin (M.R.) & Oborn (S.T.) since 874, were destroyed by fire.  They were not rebuilt, but in the following spring Mr. Baldwin associated himself with R. Bailey, under the name of Baldwin and Bailey, and together they leased the Waupaca Star Roller Mills from Lord Brothers.

            In the summer of that year 1884 Mr. Oborn formed a partnership with R.N. Roberts, as Roberts & Oborn, and built the Crescent Roller Mills, which were in operation in September, of that year.

            In 1884 J.W. Evans, who had remodeled the old City Grist Mills into a woolen factory in 1866, came into the sole possession and management of what had become so well known as the Waupaca Woolen Mills.

            Another industry, which was a pronounced addition to the local industries, was the Waupaca Bottling Works, established in June, 1887.

 

 

CRYSTAL SPRINGS BOTTLING WORKS

By Dick Wanty

 

            The Crystal Springs Bottling Works was founded in June 1887, by Asa W. Hollenbeck, who was born at Pine River.  He was born in Waushara County, twenty years before.

            Mr. J. Bowers, who was born November 4, 1934 in Yorkshire, England, was admitted partnership at the end of the first year.  He had come to America in 1865 and to Waupaca sixteen years later.

            The Bottling business was getting better all the time, the next spring,a fter increasing capacity to pop, they were making shipments in all directions, but principally northward, sending from sixty to seventy cases of goods per week to Stevens Point alone.  Lemon seltzer and ginger ale were the most demanded of all drinks.

            The Crystal Springs Bottling Works was taken over by the Milwaukee Beer Company sometime between 1888 and 1912 because of the mortgage.  It had been bought by a Mr. Williams from the Milwaukee Beer Company and sold by him to Mr. Truden in 1912.  In turn it was purchased from Mr. Truden in 1920 by Mr. Wilson to whom owned it until 1936 when he sold it to Mr. Smith of New London, the present owner.

            The second year after Mr. Smith bought the place he built an addition on it where goods could be loaded on and off the trucks, and where extra goods could be stored.

            Three years later he purchased an automatic bottle washer which saved him time and money.  He also installed an automatic labeler for labeling Pepsi Cola bottles.  This drink was made popular in this territory by Mr. Smith.

            In 1940 a big truck with a capacity to carry about fifty cases of pop, which is delivered in certain routes every day, and another smaller truck was used to deliver goods around the city of Waupaca.

 

GOOD CITIZENS

By Carol Lindskoog

 

            Mr. and Mrs. Reuben Fletcher moved here from Royalton, Wisconsin, a few years ago.  They brought with them a part of their beautiful rock garden.  They now live at 607 Royalton Street, so I would like to tell you a little about their interesting hobby of rocks and flowers.

            In their backyard they have a birdbath, a miniature bridge, a small bench, and a lighthouse about three feet tall, all of which are made of stone from various parts of the United States.  Some other things they have as souvenirs from different states are:  petrified wood from a Navajo reservation in Arizona, also some from North and South Dakota, and some coral from the Caribbean Sea, which was brought to them by Mr. and Mrs. Harold Neilsen.  They also have stones from Lake Erie, Lake Superior, Lake Michigan, and the Straits of Mackinac.  A collection of sea shells and sand dollars were sent to them from the seaside in Oregon.

            Mr. and Mrs. Fletcher have many different kinds of flowers and plants too, such as Pennsylvania evergreens, Persian Lilacs, a number of rose bushes, and many more.  Their most interesting plant is their bamboo plant.  It grows to be fifteen feet high and at its fastest growing period it was measured at a twenty-four hour interval and it was found to have grown one foot.

            I have told you only a small part about this beautiful garden, but this is just to let you know about one of the interesting spots in Waupaca.

 

 

CATHOLICISM IN WAUPACA

By Jon Haebig

 

            Sixty-two years ago from last Palm Sunday, the first Catholic Mass was celebrated in the first Catholic Church of Waupaca, St. Mary Magdalen’s, on South Division Street.  The congregation has increased in size from fifteen families at the first Mass, to 200 enrolled members today.

            In 1890, the church, now owned by the Seventh Day Adventists was purchased from the Congregationalists, and Father John Dillion of Sacred Heart parish, Manawa, came here every Sunday to say Mass.  St. Mary Magdalen’s was a mission then, and had seven different missionary priests; notable among them were Frs. Steinbreacher and Clifford of St. Patrick’s, Lebanon, and Fr. Vollebregt, again of Manawa.

            Waupaca got its first resident priest when Fr. A.H. Billion came in March, 1902.  He also served in St. Peter and Paul Church at Weyauwega, and at the Chapel at the Veterans’ Home.  Fr. Billion was followed by Fr. Schroeder in 1903, and in 1904 Fr. William Mortell came to be resident priest.  The room and board of these early priests was provided by the parish members, who took turns doing this until the first rectory was built.  This building is now occupied by Bammel’s Funeral Home.

            Fr. Hortell spent fourteen years here, and in 1919 was replaced by Fr. J.C. Short.  Before Fr. Short left in 1922 he bough the property on the corner of North Division and East Badger Streets.  Fr. Dusold was here from 1922 to 1924, and then Fr. A.O. Rielander came, staying until 1937, when he became resident Chaplain at King.  Under his direction, the present Catholic Church was built and dedicated on November 20, 1932.

            Fr. Frank Schoettle, pastor for two years after Fr. Rielander, was replaced by Fr. D.L. Krembs, present pastor, who came here in September, 1939.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

EARLY AUTOS

By Dick Goldsmith

 

            As early as 1895 “Horseless Carriages” were making an appearance on the American scene.  It was in the very early 1900’s that Waupaca’s first garage was founded by A.M. Hanson where the A.M. Hanson machine shop now stands.  The first cars sold by Mr. Hanson were the old Ramblers which were made in Kenosha, Wisconsin by what is now the Nash Automobile Company.

            It is believed the first owner of one of these cars in Waupaca was a Mr. Slater.  Another early owner was Dr. P.J. Christofferson.

            The first gas pump in Waupaca was at a small brick building near A.M. Hanson’s garage.  This building was recently town down. Gas sold for 16 or 17 cents a gallon and oil was 8 cents a quart.

            By 1910 the number of cars on the market was staggering – 580 had been registered.  A book putout by the Association of Licensed Automobile Manufacturers of America listed 44 companies with 178 models.  The price range was from $600 for a car with 10 horsepower and 1 cylinder, to a huge metal monster with 72 horsepower and 6 cylinders for $7,500.

            The old cars used generous amounts of gas and large volumes of oil, and the small hard tires wore out frequently.  An old record kept by a grocery man in South Dakota listed in 1515 miles traveled he used 111 gallons of gas, 7 gallons of oil, and 22 dry cells.

            On April 26, 1913 an Auto Show was held at A.M. Hanson’s garage. Cadillac, Reo, Overland, Hupmobile, Krit, Oakland, Rambler, Buick, Maxwell, Ford, and Studebaker were all represented.  The show made quite a stir.

            What roads there were in those days were very poor in general.  The person who could get to Chicago from Waupaca in 36 hours had to be lucky, persevering and a good mechanic in that order.  P.J. Christofferson made a trip to Chicago from Waupaca in 24 hours and got a lot of publicity for it, as a trip that far in such a short time was almost unheard of in those days.

 

 

MILK STRIKE

By Sam Petersen

 

            One of the worst effects of the depression around Waupaca Count was the milk strike of May 13-19, 1933.  The strike was brought on when the House of Representatives refused to pass a bill upholding the price of farm produce.  Walter Slinger was the main organizer of the strike.  To prevent open warfare, Governor Schmedeman ordered the closing down of all of the dairies in the state.

            On Saturday, May 13, 133, over 2,500 angry farmers gathered in Shawano County to protest to the House’s decision.  National Guardsmen were rushed to the scene of the strike when it began to get out of hand.  In the first four days of the strike, 350 strikers were jailed and many were inured, 1,900 guardsmen were in Shawano County and more were on their way.  The wives of the strikers hurried to the scene of the strike to protest to the officials and roe into gas attacks.  Many of the women and children were overcome by poison gas.

            On May 18, Governor Schmedeman opened the dairies again.  Machine gun companies were moved to the “milk war” areas to prevent the spreading of hostilities.  The National Guardsmen and special deputies from Waupaca County barricaded all of the roads on the north and west boundaries to keep strikers from coming in.  Two milk trucks on rural routes were forced to turn back after the contents of the trucks were emptied by the strikers.  Except for these incidents, it became “all quiet on the Western front.”  By May 19, the strikers evidently saw the futility of their efforts and gave it up as a bad try.

            The strike cost the people of the Waupaca area $150,000 and it cost the State of Wisconsin well over a million dollars.  It didn’t raise the price of milk one penny.

 

 

 

RIVERSIDE  PARK

By Verna Pryse

 

            This project, Riverside Park, was started in November of 1933.  The (W.P.A.) Works Progress Administration put his through, with such men in charge as, Mr. Pete Nelsen, the foreman, and Mr. Roy Knudsen, working on the sewers, Mr. Donald Taylor the time keeper, and Mr. Bill Feathers was the dynamite man.

            The relocated the river and made it narrower as it formerly ran right behind the buildings.  They hauled sand from Mr. Nick Larson to fill in the old river bed.  Then they built a road, where the old river bed was in order that automobiles and trucks could drive down there.  Edsil Huntoon and his men shoveled the sand by hand and hauled it with wheelbarrows.  They also hauled stones from Mr. Sim Simpson’s farm to rickrack the edge of the river.  About seventy-five men worked here at this time.  Mr. Hougland was the worker who ran the gas shovels to break the frost.

            There were many big stumps that had to be blasted out. The trees were cut into pile wood and taken to the jail for the inmates to cut into stove wood.

            Mr. Nelsen said that about ten years ago they fixed up the old foot bridge, but the W.P.A. didn’t have anything to do with that.

            They now have a tennis court, and in the summer they sometimes have carnivals next to the river.

 

 

FASHIONS OF 1914

By Dorothy Nowak

 

            The fashionable skirts of this period were gathered or pleated.  They were made of dark colors such as brown, black, and dark green.  White blouses were most popular and had sleeves extending slightly below the elbows.  At this time high collars were disappearing leaving the small, dainty turned-down style of collar. The waistlines were slightly above the normal waistline and were accented by broad crocheted belts.

            Two petticoats, with wide ruffles at the bottom, were usually worn. Short corsets were heavily boned and were laced up the back and then tightened at the waistline.

            The high shoes, stylish at this period, had cloth tops and pointed toes.  They either laced or buttoned and were either of black or brown leather. The stockings were of dark colors, such as black or brown.

            Light tan dusters, with a tight sleeve, were worn for raincoats and had visor caps with veils which tied around the neck.  These coats and hats were also used for riding as most cars were the open type.

            The popular fashions of the men were Jersey sweaters with turtle necks and pants with tight legs.  Their dress-up shirts were starched in the front and they wore cufflinks.  Elastic arm bands were worn, tie pins were used to help hold the tie in place.

            Plug hats were worn in the summer but during the winter, fur coats and caps were worn.  The men also wore the light tan dusters and visor caps for driving.

 

 

CLASS OF 1953

By Phyllis Steinke

 

            Graduation!  I think we are all familiar with that word.

            This year the Class of “53” consists of 38 boys and 49 girls.  The class colors are red and white; their flower is the red rose, and their class motto is “Life is What You Make It.”  On June 3^rd we will have our graduation exercises at the Palace Theater.

            The name of our class play is, “Change of Heart.”  Many of the seniors have a part in this and practice every night to make their play a success.  It will be held in May, also at the Palace Theater.

            We have been an active group through all the years we have spent in Waupaca High School.  During our Junior year our class gave a historical pageant called, “From Pigtails to Poodle Cuts,” to raise money for a trip which was to be taken.  As our Historical Society Project in our Junior year, we went out and found old historic places in and about the city of Waupaca.  White signs with historical data were hung at each place.  We also numbered each sign.  To complete the project we made booklets this year and told about our project and its organization.  We are going to have this project explained in the October 1953 Badger History.

            We had a very nice Junior Prom.  Our theme song was “Make Believe,” and Marie Doro was Queen, for king, Bob “Ib” Hanson.

            Our boys played a great part in sports.  The A squad basketball team consisted of all senior boys, which Waupaca will lose this coming school year.

            Each and everyone of our class has bright prospects for the future.