Euren, "Oy-ren" and the Bottkols.........

 

Known far and wide because of its unusual sounding name, the Kewaunee County hamlet of Euren is just west of Algoma on County Highway S. Originally called Bottkolville after the Bottkol family, the name was eventually changed to reflect the family birthplace in Euren, Germany, a suburb of Trier located on the German-French border. And, in German, what became Euren sounds like "Oy-ren."

Born in 1805, patriarch Michael Bottkol served in the Napoleonic Wars. His older sons were compelled to serve in the Germany army. Bottkol despised war, and it was Germany’s glorification of it that prompted the decision to immigrate to America.

Letters said that military service in the United States was not compulsory and that forested lands could be purchased for $1.00 an acre. Possibilities of purchasing 100 or more acres, freedom of speech and religion, and thoughts of equal opportunities were overwhelming. It was even said that in America one could have meat daily. Meat consumption for those of Bottkol’s station was reserved for Christmas and Easter in Germany.

Bottkol was denied the right to immigrate, possibly because he had sons who would be eligible for military service. Whether a guard was paid off is anyone’s guess, but the Bottkols escaped across a bridge over the Moselle River and eventually sailed from France. Canal boats and steamers finally got the Bottkols to Milwaukee where they bought four 40-acre tracts, one with a stream, on the Door County Peninsula. On arriving at the tiny settlement of Kewaunee, Bottkol hired a land cruiser so inexperienced that he was afraid of the thickly forested area thus necessitating Bottkol return to Kewaunee to hire an experienced cruiser to search the blaze marks and finally locate Bottkol’s property.

Bottkol built a store, saw and grist mills, a tavern, cheese factory and more. Bottkols applied for a post office at Euren and when the post office was approved, the Bottkols ran that too.

Kewaunee County residents fondly remember Euren’s most prominent citizen, Dr. Edward Kerscher who delivered thousands of Kewaunee County babies before his retirement in the 1960s. He was married to Helen Bottkol. Though the Bottkol name is one that has disappeared from Kewaunee County directories, the family and its descendants have had a major impact of the county’s residents.

The above 1908 postcard was taken from Here Comes the Mail, Post Offices of Kewaunee County. By then Bottkol's mill had been destroyed by fire. The building on the right in the 1908 card was the Bottkol store. The building still stands and was Mel Hucek's tavern when the photo at the left was taken. Today the popular spot is called Tippy Canoe.