A Joint Honeymoon and a 75th Anniversary

After perusing three large card stores, it was obvious that a 75^th anniversary card was not to be found. Thinking about it, the market for such cards must be quite small as only two other 75th anniversaries are within memory. In a world where it is easy for a marriage to end in divorce before the thank you notes are written,  making 75 years takes more than good genes.

Ruth and Ray are celebrating a remarkable life together. They were born less than 10 miles apart just after the U.S. made its entry into World War l.  They were children during the Depression. They were in high school during the depths of it and were married as the country was coming out of it, only to be gearing up for a new war.

They participated in the same church and yet went to high schools 20 miles apart. There were no school buses in the 1930s and Ray lived with his aunt and uncle during the week, returning to his farm home 8 miles away on the weekend. Sharing a room with his cousin of the same age, the two were as close as brothers. On the first day of high school, Ruth met the junior with the locker next to hers. The upper classman was friendly to the freshman, a quiet country girl from a rural school. The girls were friendly but not part of the same crowd. Clarice was boarding while serving as a mother’s helper and domestic. She lived almost 20 miles from school and it was only her service that allowed her to go to high school during the Depression.

For the two girls and the two boys, high school was a time of scholastic awards, music awards, being prom royalty, participating in plays and school clubs. The Depression meant there was little money for anything other than necessities, however the boys had a little money and were known to chew gum. They were able to offer a piece to others. As simple as gum is, it wasn’t a thing most could not afford. The boys could even take the car to Kewaunee. It was a time when those who had cars didn’t use them because gas cost money that most did not have.

Clarice graduated first, not because she was the eldest, but because there was an error in her birth registration. Being second youngest in a large family, the year was forgotten and she entered first grade a year early. The mistake was found when her baptismal records were needed for Confirmation. She turned 17 just before high school graduation. Finding another boarding-domestic arrangement with a high school principal’s family, she was able to attend Door-Kewaunee County College. She was there when she met the boys at the high school just down the block. She and Maynard were married 6 years later.

The Depression was easing when Clarice and Maynard double-dated with Ray and his girlfriend. Imagine the surprise on the faces of the two women when they realized they’d gotten to know each other during the two years they had adjacent lockers. From then on the two couples were almost inseparable. Maynard often commented that Ray and Ruth were the “salt of the earth,” people who never gossiped or “kicked a man who was down.” After Maynard’s death, they were always there for Clarice and meant the world for her children.

In today's world nobody would think of honeymooning with another couple. But that’s just what the two couples did. Ruth and Ray married during threshing. That was not the time for a farmer to honeymoon.  Clarice and Maynard married the following June, just before haying. Pooling their meager funds, the foursome planned a trip to "The Soo" to see the locks.

Weddings were different in 1940. Breakfasts and dinners were generally at the bride’s home. An evening dance often capped off the day. Maynard had responsibilities on his parents’ farm while also being employed at Algoma Plywood. The plant was geared up for war production and getting a day off was almost unheard of, wedding or not. Maynard got his day and the couples wanted to leave immediately after the wedding dinner. Tires had inner tubes and highways were paved with gravel that was more like stones when compared to today’s graveled roads. Estimating time on the road always had to include tire changing. With three days for the trip, time was precious. Maynard’s father didn’t make things any easier as he owned a dairy and insisted on a dance for his customers.  Friends and relatives too, of course.

Finally the couples got on their way in the wee hours of the morning. The first stop was at a tourist cabin in Manitowish Waters near the site of Little Bohemia, the place made famous by the 1934 FBI-John Dillinger gang shootout.

Thoughts of the beautiful northern Wisconsin vacation spot brings uproarious laughter in our families, but that has nothing to do with Dillinger. The financially strapped, honeymooning couples rented a cabin with two beds, not two bedrooms. To offer some privacy, they strung a cord from one wall to the other and hung a blanket. At Ray and Ruth’s 70^th anniversary celebration, Clarice told stories of that trip, stories the young people found hard to believe. Sharing the room on a honeymoon brought looks of disbelief and then peals of laughter. Tire blowouts, the inner tubes, the graveled highways, and a groom who was lucky to get a day off work for his wedding – all unheard of today. And, to look at the pictures…..the well-dressed men wore suits, hats and Spectator shoes. Unseen garters held their socks up.  The women wore hats and dresses and held up their silk stockings with garter belts. The silk stockings had seams in the back and every self-respecting woman checked those seams often. They had to be straight. To be traveling in less casual attire was also unheard of.

To be married for 75 years is to have seen continually changing social mores. It is more than a look at history through books and videos. It is living. Experiencing joint honeymoons and blankets affording privacy because there was no other way was part of it. All four were born during World War 1. They were children and young adults during the Depression. They married on the cusp of World War ll and lived through that. They lived through the Cold War, the Korean War, Vietnam, two Gulf wars and now Afghanistan.

Ray and Ruth have seen everything and yet are not jaded.  They have always worked hard. They are positive and optimistic. They give to God, family and community. In that order. They are truly an inspiration. And, to quote an area TV commercial, “You can’t do better than that now, can you?”

 

Kewaunee County & The Arrival of the Roberts

Just as the cement mixer was pulling out of the drive, threatening storm clouds began brewing in the west. Within seconds, and just as a farm pick-up pulled in, the rain began coming in torrents. A very agile, slightly older fellow jumped from the truck and came running with tarps that were quickly spread over the setting concrete. Emery Roberts introduced himself, told us where the tarps could be returned, jumped back into the truck and continued down the road.

It is said nobody is truly forgotten until his name is mentioned for the last time. Since that July day over 30 years ago when rain was not in the forecast, Mr. Roberts has remained in our minds. Our patio is a wonderful place, in part because of Mr. Roberts' kindness. Over the years, one Roberts or another kept surfacing in all kinds of research projects. In reading about earlier generations of Roberts, it seems the hard-working Emery was always going forward, following in the footsteps of the family that came before him.

Farmer John Roberts arrived in Wolf River* in 1856 and Jonathan Roberts, Wolf River's first blacksmith, arrived a year later. Jonathon set up in a small log shanty in  the newly platted Youngs and Steele Block 11 on land that was later George Sachtleben's shoe and harness shop on the south side of Steele, just around the corner from Jane Lovell's 1st Street Union House. Roberts held the location for some time before moving to larger quarters near the bridge, which was then at the foot of Church Street.

Jonathan, 24, and Joseph R., 17, were living with 20 year old Evan in 1860. They appear to be the sons of Godfrey. The Record referred to Jonathan as John Roberts when it reported that he was still at his craft in 1907. At the time, he was located on S. Water, now called Navarino.  Roberts purchased Lots 4 & 5 in Block 3 from Abram and Elvira Eveland and Roberts, along with Utnehmer and Perlewitz, smithed on that river site for years. Roberts was operating his blacksmith shop as late as 1907.

John married Mary White who was listed as Kate when they sold land to Ed Decker in April 1893. As early as 1861 John Roberts - not Jonathan - bought Lots 14 & 15 in Block 9 in Youngs and Steele Plat** from G.W. Elliott. John sold to Charles Hennemann a year later and Hennemann built his Cream City House, home of the most delectable 5-cent pies. Steele Street Floral is there today. During the late 1870s, one of the Roberts was engaged with Meverden in the tannery along the river on the west side of 4th, the approximate site of Bearcat's Fish Shop today. There was no 4th Street bridge at the time.

There was another blacksmith named Roberts. The Welsh-born Godfrey was listed on the 1860 census with his sons David and George, 14 and 12, respectively.  Early accounts have him living about three miles upriver on the Forestville road. Whether it is indeed true, those same accounts say his wife was the sister of John Jones, a prominent English millionaire and Queen Victoria's private banker. True or not, it made for heady gossip in the sparsely populated area. Joseph Roberts was yet another blacksmith who was running ads for his Forestville shop in 1883. Born in Wales, he too arrived in Wolf River in 1860, married Bertha Paape, and died on Christmas Eve 1905.

John and George are names found throughout the early generations and it gets confusing. George Roberts - but not the one who was a 12-year old boy in 1860 - relocated from Carlton Town to Ahnapee and was contracted to supply piles and timber for harbor work in 1871. The 1870 census for the Town of Carlton says George was 35 and born in Illinois. His 3 year old son, another George, was born in Wisconsin. George and his business partner, Mr. Johnson, got out 1,000 Norway pine timbers 22' to 30' by 12" in diameter. In the days of axes and cross-cut saws, they were busy! The spot along the river that Roberts bought from Math Kumbalek in February 1872 - Lots 1 & 2 in Block 2 - was a good place for that harbor work. There was another Roberts from Carlton who was no doubt connected to George. Thomas R. Roberts was a Civil War corporal in Kewaunee County's Co., A. His short stint in the military began on August 15, 1862 in Captain Cunningham's contingent of county men. Contracting disease, Tom Roberts was sent home to die and did so on November 6.  Also a blacksmith, George D. Roberts sold his 5th Street business in 1902 to move to Baileys Harbor where he intended to open another such venture. George D. appears to be the son of Godfrey.

An 1874 Record  article said John Roberts was remodeling the extra space in his 4th store. Roberts' Hardware stood on the site later purchased by Tifft and Hay, the northwest corner of 4th and Steele. It is not clear whether this is John the farmer or a case of Jonathon being called John.

In its first edition in 1883, the Kewaunee Times reported that Christian and James Roberts had just purchased the Ahnapee Drug Store. Dr. James A. Roberts practiced in both Algoma and Kewaunee where he and Christian had another drugstore. Christian married Kewaunee's Lizzie Wallender and James A. was involved in county government, elected coroner in 1886.

Evan Roberts was 20 when he arrived in Wolf River. Listing his occupation as a laborer, Evan bought land following  his 1860 arrival and then sold it to David Campbell. Evan seems somewhat elusive, but he must have been a carpenter because it was he who remodeled a house purchased in 1892 by his brother George D.

The 1870 Clay Banks census indicates 38 year old George M. Roberts was a fisherman. Living in household was another fisherman, Elijah Phillips. George had a son who was also George M., a 16 year old born in Maine.

George M. Roberts owned one of the six known piers in the Town of Clay Banks. His pier was at the foot of what is known as Mt. Lookout. It was one of Clay Banks' ghost piers in a forgotten community that existed only during the lumber boom following the Civil War. George M. operated a boarding house and pier in addition to his sawmill on Woodard's Creek where the small body of water that formed behind the dam was called Mirror Lake. When Roberts purchased his pier in the 1870's, he built a logging road along the lakefront north of Mt. Lookout. Because Roberts' logs were rafted out to waiting ships, it would seem his pier was probably not as long as the other Clay Banks' piers. Roberts made the Door County papers in 1873 when he rescued the crew of The Glenham, a ship loaded with bark that had just left Clay Banks' pier.

An August 1936 Algoma Record Herald reported the purchase of Mt. Lookout, Clay Banks' most historic site, and recounted its history. The paper said that when a sawmill was erected on the old mill stream in 1856, the creek was diverted across the road and a wooden dam was built. Then a water-wheel was constructed. As water became low late in summer, an engine and boiler were put in to run the mill. George Roberts - the one born in 1845 - said it was his father who purchased the land from the government and built a cabin on the creek bank.*** Roberts' property had a number of owners including Lee Woodward for whom the creek appears to be named. The article went on to say that Mr. Roberts, Sr. was the one who opened the road north of Mt. Lookout and up the hill. It was written that was the road on which logs for the mill were hauled and later brought down the hill to be made into rafts that could be towed to Spear's mill in Sturgeon Bay.

Clay Banks' historian D. Weimer said, "The creek bed goes north under the road, but there is another creek bed that runs parallel to the road!  One of those, probably the one running next to the road, is likely the streambed from the original mill.  My bet is the one next to the road, in the south ditch and the cedar trees." The lay of the logging road remains evident. Weimer further points to "the remains of a tram road running through the lawn" of a nearby home and felt the road served to transport logs from above the dam down to the mill.

One hundred fifty years after the arrival of Kewaunee County's first Roberts, descendants can be found all over Kewaunee and Door County. Glancing through a phone books reveals a couple of Johns, a James, Ivan and Tom. No Georges. More than likely, most of them are like Emery.

* Wolf River was the first name of the place that was renamed Algoma from Ahnapee in 1897. **Youngs and Steele Plat makes up most of today's downtown Algoma. It runs from the lake and river and includes the east side of 4th, making it a triangular plat. ***Patent searches do not indicate that a Roberts Patented any land in Clay Banks. Samuel and Benjamin Roberts did receive Door County land as a result of their military service, but the land was in the northern part of the county. George Roberts Patented two parcels in Kewaunee County's Town of Carlton.

Kewaunee County's Connection to the Titanic: The Minahans

When love-stricken Leonardo DiCaprio was gloriously shouting from the bow of the Titanic that he was king of the world, nobody was thinking of Kewaunee County. Why would they? Titanic was a movie that put a little romance in a tragic event. But, what was romantic in the drownings of over 1,500 people? What was romantic when people were lowered into lifeboats in the dead of night only to watch the ship split in half, knowing loved ones ere drowning? The screams and the struggling survivors in the water being pushed away from the overcrowded lifeboats paddling through floating corpses to flee the carnage were indeed remembered by two who had something to do with Kewaunee County, but DiCaprio had nothing to do with that.

Dr. William Minahan was one of about 1,500 casualties on the ship that was too big to fail, and he had Kewaunee County interests. Minahan and his brothers John and Hugh owned a maple syrup camp near Scarboro. Though William Minahan lost his life, his wife Lillian and the brothers' sister Daisy survived. They never forgot that night.

Minahan's brother Dr. John Minahan served Algoma and appears to have been practicing in Ahnapee before 1891 when a newspaper article reported that he was going to New York to further his education, after which time he intended to return to Kewaunee County. About 1900, his office was upstairs in the Boedecker Drug Store, the building on the southeast corner of 4th and Steele. His location was convenient for those patients who required medications and most convenient for those needing an excuse to use Boedecker's answer to a " one armed bandit." The building on the northwest corner of 4th and Clark, the Rouseabout today though remembered by many as Red Zastrow's bar, was built about 1900 by Dr. McMillian, the man who brought x-rays to Algoma. John Minahan practiced there in the early 1900s, a time during which he also practiced in Casco. John Minahan was a busy man as he was also an attorney who covered his bases advertising as physician, surgeon and lawyer. It is unclear just how long Dr. John was in Algoma, but he was there in 1909 when he signed this blogger's great-grandfather's death certificate. He owned property in Algoma at least to 1916 when he still had the orchard on the south side of Fremont just east of its intersection with Frank. John Minahan was born in Green Bay and died in January 1941.

John Minahan practiced in Casco, at least during 1901 and 1902, and, no doubt, longer. Brother Hugh was there too, operating the Casco store known as H.A. Minahan & Co. It is quite likely that Dr. John saw patients in quarters in Hugh's store. It is also possible John Minahan practiced there with his cousin Dr. P.R. Minahan who bought Dr. G.A. Hipke's Casco practice in 1899. P.R. served Algoma as well and located in an office in the Lidral & Andre Hardware building at the northwest corner of 4th and Steele. Hugh was another Minahan attorney. Earlier, in 1894, Hugh Minahan and Charles Slama formed a law partnership in Kewaunee where Hugh married a Kewaunee girl, Clara Moore. Hugh died in San Diego in 1936.

The maple syrup camp owned by the Minahan brothers was east of Luxemburg, off Kewaunee County Highway A near Scarboro. Over the years, the camp was operated by a number of owners, mostly notably the Milton Thibaudeau family. The Minahans had business interests throughout northeast Wisconsin, and probably beyond. The stone barn in the Town of Chase, near Pulaski, is on the State and National Historic Register. Dr.Minahan once owned that too.

About 35 or 40 years ago this blogger was in Lena helping an elderly aunt. It was on the anniversary of the Titanic,  the same day as some family birthdays. Aunt Dee was a teenager in 1912. She called to mind that  overcast, damp and dreary April 12, 1912 and said it was a day that was eerie. There were those predicting something bad would happen. “Just mark my words.” Two days later when news of the terrible event was well-known, there were a number of Lena residents there to say, "I told you so," pointing out is was they who predicted such a catastrophic event.

One would think that as obscure as Kewaunee County is on the national stage, there wouldn't be much associated it. But, there isn't much that lacks some kind of connection.

 

Pictures: The top photo is the cover of Ken Marshall's Art of Titanic, a book of his beautiful paintings. The photo of William Minahan's crypt in Allouez Cemetery was taken by this blogger.

Kewaunee County Summer: Get It While It Lasts!

Algoma's spectacular Crescent Beach and boardwalk was photographed in mid-May.

Living in Wisconsin means summers are short. Sometimes there isn't much time to get it all in. Summer means festivals, church picnics, outdoor concerts, family reunions, trips, baseball games,  the county fair and more. From Memorial Day to Labor Day, there are all kinds of events, most notably Algoma’s Shanty Days and Kewaunee’s Trout Festival, though most of the smaller communities have unique events as well. Throughout the county’s history, summer has brought people together in social activities, though in the early days “summer” started with steamer traffic just as soon as the ice broke.

Harriet Hall was 9 when she settled with her parents Orin and Jane Bennett Warner in the wilderness called Wolf River, Wolf River trading post or by the Ojibwa name that asked, “Where is the River?” The Potawatomie sometimes referred to the area by a word that meant “bear’s head.”* But, whatever it was called, it didn’t matter to the few residents who were always glad to see a traveler and get the news. When a traveler or a new settler had a violin, that was a reason to dance and, according to Harriet, there was always good, homemade beer to ward off the thirst.

In the later 1850s and again following the Civil War, Capt. Henry Harkins ferried people up-river to the county line home of Joseph McCormick, or even as far as Forestville, for a night of dancing. At dawn he brought folks back down river to begin the day’s work that followed dancing until the sun came up. Plying the river during the dark night or following a trail along its course was the path to disaster. Some would say those early people knew how to party, however all night parties were also respect for the darkness. Eighty or so years later when Dr. Suess wrote The King’s Stilts, he described the king as one who, when he worked,  really, really worked, and when he played, he really, really played. Suess could have based the king on the people of Ahnapee.

Although culture and refinement was said to have come to Wolf River with the 1854 landing of Simon Hall's wife Desiah, the daughter of Hanford and Elsie Smith, it took another two years before the settlement had an event about which it could boast. That first notable social occasion was the marriage of Mary Yates to Captain Charles Fellows. While the Yates-Fellows wedding was big in the small settlement, the July 4, 1858 picnic was an even bigger celebration. Held above Hall's Mill, it was the earliest settlers’ first picnic and dance.

One of Kewaunee County's largest and most impressive early social gatherings was the 1858 house warming for Mr. and Mrs. James Slausson who had moved into their Lake Street home in Kewaunee. Printed invitations were sent to everyone in the county and it seemed as if most made the trip to enjoy the party.

Other dances and parties followed, always with homemade beer. Harriet Hall often said that Wolf River was a fun-loving, music-loving community with dances such as quadrilles and waltzes, and she reminisced how Irish Sam Perry "could dance." For years following the large influx of immigrants, it seemed as if preferences in music and dance steps led to billings for American dances or for German dances. There were, however, those who felt the dances reflected the differences between the Yankees and the foreigners.

Nearly twenty years after the 1858 Independence Day party at Hall's Mill, Ahnapee celebrated the country's centennial largely because of Wenzel Wenniger. DeWayne Stebbins had just taken over the Ahnapee Record and tried stirring up interest in Independence Day, but to no avail. Then Wenniger got involved. Wenniger owned the hill, known as Wenniger Heights, on the north side of the river. On that property Wenniger built Wilhelmshoeh, a dance hall, bowling alley, two saloons - one brick and one frame - and shooting gallery. The bowling alley featured iron balls and wooden pins. Called the music pavilion, the hall was regularly used for dances and concerts and, on the last Saturday of each month, for cattle shows. It was an opportunity to buy and sell at "fair prices." Surrounding the hall was a grove of hundreds of trees, used for picnicking, a bandstand and a beer stand. Entertainment was important and sometimes came from distant areas. Before Wenniger purchased the property, it was called a “resort”  known as Summer Gardens.

Arranging the Independence Day festivities that centennial year, Winneger engaged the Ahnapee Brass Band to play for the picnic at Wilhelmshoeh. The Ahnapee String Band played for the ball on July 3 in Weilep's Hall* on the corner of Second and Steele. The First Baptist Church held a dinner and there was a centennial party and program at the school. The Record spoke of "good times" at Dettloff's and at Burke's in Pierce Town and of celebrations in Kewaunee and Sturgeon Bay. The village added to the celebration by wrapping itself in bunting, displaying flags and holding dances, ice cream socials and fireworks. Over the years,

Ahnapee was the site of number of bandstands besides Wenniger’s – on 4^th, on Steele and along the lake - where the various village musical groups delighted appreciative audiences.



The photo from the L. Schwedler Andre collection dates to about 1915 when the bandstand was near the site of Algoma's present bandstand. At the far right is the first lighthouse on the end of the north pier. The pier and lighthouse were less than 20 years old at the time of the photo. The railroad and ferry depots are in the background. In 1915, the power pole and  fire hydrant were signs of progress and added to the photo's story. The women are not identified but one is no doubt a Serrahn.

As Ahnapee grew, culture and social life grew with it. Arriving immigrant populations brought more music and social societies. There was even theater in the popular McDonald Hall, and in the smaller halls as well. The Lutheran Church was opposed to what it called secret societies, such as the Knights of the Iron Band. The Sons of Herman was accepted and the Sons of Herman were not accepted. It was a German organization and it depended on who was approving or disproving. Bohemians congregated in the Sokols, and the St. George Society was the Bohemian men’s Catholic organization. The Baptists spearheaded the Temperance Society, which frowned on alcohol, and the Girls’ Friendly Society raised funds putting on community dinners. There were sporting organizations.

Baseball had such a following that the steamers carried as many as 900 passengers to games at Kewaunee, Sturgeon Bay and Two Rivers.
 

One would think that all was right, but it was not. The celebration of Independence Day 1880 was anticipated by the entire town. Heralded as a celebration that would be the largest ever, the event was advertised in nearby towns with the notice there would be "no end" of amusements for young and old. The day began with a 38-gun salute, one shot for each state in the union. There were games, bands, a parade, dancing and fireworks, but the festivities did not hide feelings of ill will within the community.

Judge Charles Griswold Boalt** was one of the speakers. In his address he seemed to be pointing out that those with less than he, financially and intellectually, should not infringe on others such as himself. Boalt’s speech railed against a minimum wage. He talked about the ignorant people accepting communism and a religious fanaticism that seemed to be directed toward Catholics. The industrious Germans were often praised by the papers, but Judge Boalt complained about them and other immigrants as well.
 

Though the Fourth of July was usually celebrated, there were years when Americans - meaning those who came from such places as  New York and Pennsylvania -  and German immigrants held their own dances, possibly due to the ill will in Ahnapee. In 1881, some said the celebration was "humbug" because it was controlled by the "damn Yankees." Fireworks continue today, but they are in the sky met with oohs and aahs.
 

Ahnapee residents celebrated Decoration Day with ceremonies befitting the veterans both alive and dead. The celebration in 1871 was no exception. Graves of deceased soldiers were decorated with flowers and evergreens. About 200 people visited the cemeteries, a number limited only by the capacity of the conveyances. Chief Marshall Major William Henry was assisted by Michael McDonald. Both men had served in the 14th Wisconsin. Captain F.W. Borcherdt, 21st Wisconsin, commanded the firing party. Rev. Overbeck gave a prayer and brief address at each grave. Flowers were scattered by 30 young ladies dressed in white, and Ahnapee's Liederkranz sang appropriate hymns. After it was all over, the Enterprise made the comment that "no village its size gave more to the soldiers than Ahnapee."

 

The following year was much the same. Major Henry again served as marshall but prayers and remarks were given in German only as Rev. S.H. Corich, who was to give prayers and remarks in English, was absent. Four hundred people and 37 teams were in the 1873 parade. At the services Michael McDonald commanded the column, J.H. Leonard was the Officer of the Day and Civil War veteran Chauncey Thayer*** commanded the firing squad. Elder T. Wilson gave the address.
 

Decoration Day 1876 was celebrated with a parade consisting of a large number of people, color bearers, the Ahnapee brass band and a firing party. They processed to the cemeteries and heard remarks by church elders. During the Civil War, when 1 of every 17 served, social life continued with such events as Donation Parties. Widows and orphans were assisted by the funds raised. Looking critically at some of the events, it could be said a bunch of “do-gooders” was making themselves feel good, but whatever the situation then, Kewaunee County has never forgotten its veterans.

 

By the mid-1880s, Civil War vets reuned at Kewaunee County fairgrounds, which was then in Kewaunee. Luxemburg is now the site of Kewaunee County’s fairgrounds and the scene of the ever-popular fair and weekly races. Kewaunee County's first fair, November 23 and 24, 1860, was held in the dance hall of the Steamboat House* in Kewaunee. The weather was cold, the turnout disappointing and the men and women of Kewaunee took most of the prizes. In the span of  150 years, there were years when there was no fair. Over all those years, the fair changed to the anticipated summer event that it is today.
 

Today’s papers list the events that those of 1870 would not comprehend. They would, however, recognize summer and social activities. They would empathize that winter always looms and for many winter frequently means isolation. Not foreseeing advances in transportation, they would surely tell today’s residents to hitch up the wagon and get out there because it is summer, and there is always plenty to do in Kewaunee County.
 

Notes:.*Weilep's Hall still stands as the remodeled and refurbished Stebbins Hotel. **Charles Griswold Boalt was said to have come to town with $400,000 in his pocket. That made him the richest man in town in those days and he was one with whom most did not trifle. His one term as a county judge earned him "Judge Boalt," rather than "Mr." The community of Bolt was named for him, first being named Boalt. For more on Boalt/Bolt, see Here Comes the Mail: Post Offices of Kewaunee County, c. 2008 by Kannerwurf, Sharpe & Johnson. ***Chauncey Thayer was the first Kewaunee Co. enlistee in the Civil War. Kewaunee's Steamboat House was on the approximate spot of the hotel best remembered as the Karsten.

Sources:  An-An-api-sebe: Where is the River? c. 2001, Johnson; The History of Commercial Development in Algoma, WI, Vol 1, 2008, Johnson, Nell, Wolske; Here Comes the Mail: Post Offices of Kewaunee County, c. 2008 Kannerwurf, Sharpe & Johnson collection and the collection of L. Schwedler-Andre.



 

 

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Ahnapee, Algoma and Furniture Meant to Last

Algoma is not regarded as a furniture manufacturing center today, and it never really was, however, the manufacture of chairs, tables, bedsteads and bureaus filled a niche early in the community's history. Until the coming of the railroad in 1892 and the increasing reliance on motor vehicles in the 1920's, furniture manufacturing provided village residents with incomes for about 60 years. It was furniture that was built to last. And it did.

When William Perry opened the Ahnapee Chair Factory in 1860, it was the first manufacturing plant for anything other than lumber. Located near Hall's Mill*, the factory moved into the Sterret building on the northwest corner of State and 4th in November 1870. Eighteen months later, the Enterprise reported that Ahnapee Manufacturing Co. was erecting machinery for turning out bedsteads and chairs. Over the years that company was sold and resold and resold again.

J. Anderegg and Co. took over the company in 1873. According to the Enterprise the new management included John Densow, Frank Feuerstein, William Boedecker, P.M. Simon and Simon Haag, and with those men there was sure to be an increase business. The Record noted in August 1878 that at least 2/3 of the community's businessmen had owned the establishment at one time or another during its 18 years. The table at the left is stamped "Patent, March 25, 1875.

Six years after Perry organized the chair factory, he and Rufus Wing opened a broom handle company. During the factory's construction, Perry was ridiculed by those who were sure the company would be a failure. Perry was a good businessman who was not easily discouraged. Those who predicted failure were proven right. Though the factory was completed, broom handles didn't make for a lasting business.

Today's Netto Palazzo was once Detjen's furniture factory. Herman Detjen had his beginnings in the early 1880s. In July 1890 he opened Detjen & Co. furniture store in the Seibt building at the northwest corner of 4th and State Streets. By then he was also manufacturing doors and other wood products, changing the company name to Ahnapee Manufacturing Co. Two years later the Record called attention to the factory's new patented dust collection system that took dust and shavings to the fire room for burning. The company again made news when it purchased a sanding machine and a machine to groove locks in drawers. The dresser at the left has those locks in all drawers.

As early as 1881, Kumbalek and Pies were manufacturing and repairing harnesses while also advertising their furniture making. Most of their ads pointed to their coffins, a sideline of most furniture manufacturers.

Ahnapee Veneer and Seating plant came about in 1892 on the approximate site of the old chair factory on the east side of the South Branch, just below the old Hall's Mill dam site. The plant built church pews, benches for railroad stations and any other kind of seating one wanted. The Veneer and Seating plant was a success from the beginning and is known as Algoma Hardwoods today, though seating is no longer part of the business. The plant was operating as Algoma Plywood and Veneer during World War ll when it distinguished itself with boat hulls, airplane wings and noses.

In May 1897 the wealthy Charles Griswold Boalt announced he'd build tables for both Herman Detjen and Paul Gablowsky. Gablowsky operated a planning mill and produced mostly cheese boxes, though he was also known to build coffins. Gablowsky was even advertising how much money his coffins could save a family. After all, they were locally made. A year after Boalt began manufacturing the tables, Gablowsky announced he'd make kitchen cabinets with zinc lined drawers, one of which was so large that it could hold 100# of flour. All that for $10.00.

Plumbers Woodwork made toilet seats for most of 100 years. To some, the manufactured wooden seats were regarded something special. For some, having that quality ranked as furniture. In the 1920s Algoma Wood Products was producing office and hotel furniture in the Navarino Street building constructed for the purpose. The building was eventually acquired by the Plywood as Plant 2 and is now Cape Townsend.

Area craftsman and hobbyists still build pieces of furniture, but furniture manufacturing in Algoma is long-gone. Many area residents enjoy beautiful pieces of old furniture handed down in families or found at area yard sales. Most don't realize the pieces were made in Ahnapee/Algoma with virgin maple, oak, hickory and black walnut cut from the thick forests that once made up Kewaunee County. Each piece has its own story to tell. And many do. The stamp below is on the underside of the table above.

* Hall's Mill was on the South Branch of the Wolf - now Ahnapee - River, beyond what became The Plumbers and then Olsonite.

Ahnapee & Dreams of Ore Docks

Had the village fathers of the 1870s gotten their way, perhaps today’s Algoma harbor would sport a piece of history such as the unused ore dock at Marquette, Michigan.  A September 1873 Record ran an ad looking for “men of capital” to establish a blast furnace, a paper and pulp mill, and more.

Ahnapee was a place with a harbor, the finest Lake Michigan harbor between Manitowoc and Baileys Harbor. Many saw it as a point of refuge. As early as 1859, Enterprize* Editor Dexter Garland said Ahnapee was equal to any port on the lake. Even Milwaukee papers lobbied for improvement of Ahnapee’s harbor. Many years later, on September 18, 1898,  Door County Advocate columnist  Doug Larson speculated it was only because of the ship canal that the railroad reached Sturgeon Bay. He felt Algoma (Ahnapee), because of its location on the lake shore and easier access to railroad service, could have been the commercial center of the entire region, and that  Green Bay developed as it did because of the canal.

Until the U.S. Engineers straightened the course of the river to what it is today, the mouth of the Ahnapee – or Wolf River then – was at the foot of Michigan Street.**A sandbar guarded the entrance of the river which lazily meandered downstream before making its "S" curve over that sandbar to flow into Lake Michigan. Boats with shallow drafts could usually make it over the bar, though that sandbar prevented all but the most adventuresome schooner captains from making the river. While the sandbar was a problem, a ridge of seemingly impenetrable  limestone was the  real sticking point.

By the late 1860s townsfolk were well aware  that although the harbor offered protection, it was the river that was the problem. Attendees at a February 5, 1870 harbor meeting felt harbor improvements would make it practical for rafts and other shallow vessels to be floated out to the schooners waiting in the lake, thus enabling cargo to get into the river. Residents wanted a protective pier and moved to secure government appropriations by asking the Legislature to authorize $20,000 in improvement bonds payable in one, two or three years. The $20,000 tax levy was voted in, 262 - 23, at a town meeting in April. When the Ella Doak entered the river in July 1873, townsfolk knew they were right.

But, the obstruction in the river was still there and it was the key.  Rock, about seven hundred feet long and one hundred fifty feet wide, needed to be removed to a depth of eight feet to ensure twelve feet of water at its lowest stage to ensure a sufficient basin. Enormous financial outlays seemed to make the rock removal impracticable, but since Ahnapee's harbor was the most central point for refuge along the shore, something had to be done. The U.S. Engineers felt Ahnapee's outer harbor might be constructed as Chicago's, only smaller. They knew the lake bottom was mostly clay, affording good holding ground, thereby eliminating the need for dredging before putting in cribs. Work went forward. One hundred and forty years later, dredging continues, though not for the same reasons.

Ahnapee’s natural advantages made it a prime manufacturing location, at least according to the Record. The fine harbor offered cheap, available transportation to Chicago, “the greatest market in the West.” The editors felt Upper Michigan iron ore was being shipped to distant cities while Ahnapee was much closer. Ahnapee labor costs were at least 50% less than in Eastern cities and natural resources abounded. Rent and insurance were much lower in Ahnapee, and the Record opined that it would not take long for “the intelligent mind” to realize Ahnapee’s superiority. Ahnapee was about 100 years ahead of its time offering free, desirable lots for manufacturing to “gentlemen of capital.”

Iron ore processing  and manufacturing remained in Chicago, Gary, Cleveland and the rest while citizens dreamed of what such industry could do for the area. Ironically, the only thing Ahnapee/Algoma  got from the iron ore business was the pollution coming north. Jutting out into Lake Michigan as it does, the peninsula with little industry is ripe for attracting pollutants from places such as Chicago and Gary. One hundred forty years later, Algoma is affected by iron ore. Just not the way our ancestors dreamed.

*The Enterprize became the Enterprise in 1865. **Michigan Street runs perpendicular to and east from Church Street one block south of North Water Street.  It was a street with a purpose in Algoma's early days. Finding it today is a  bit of a challenge.

LaSalle Park and the Majestic Bluffs of Clay Banks

When The Abandoned Shore-Lines of Eastern Wisconsin was published in 1907, the 100 foot bluffs of Clay Banks – a Door County township named for those majestic bluffs - were by far the most impressive along Lake Michigan’s western shore.  A little over 20 years later, Governor Walter J. Kohler flew to the area to dedicate Door County’s newest county park. Named for French explorer Robert de LaSalle who is believed to have landed there in 1679, LaSalle Park is tucked into the southeast corner of Clay Banks, between County U and Lake Michigan.

Governor Kohler’s plane landed near the park that 1930 day, a day planned to mark the 250^th anniversary of LaSalle’s landing. He didn't stay long as another speaking engagement forced him to be in and out. Congressman George Schneider and UW Professor Briggs also spoke, while the Carnot Band played throughout the program and all day. Following the speeches Door County Agent Rusy organized games and sporting events for those in attendance and those who were picnicking. Picnickers included the annual University of Wisconsin short course graduates from the 9 counties in Northeast Wisconsin. Door County historian and author Hjlamar Holand, who introduced the governor and the congressman, spoke on the park’s historical significance.

When LaSalle, the second* of Door County’s county parks, was created in 1929, it was a only 6 acres.  The upper part of the park was accessed from Co. Highway U via an entrance made of logs three feet in diameter.  The level terrace 100 feet above the lake along the highway served as a navigational aid long before the county’s first lighthouse.  The lower area was a place that offered camping and sports. Bisecting the two sections, was a forested hillside. At the time of the dedication, an 8’ by 3’ limestone shaft was erected as a monument to LaSalle. Two bronze plaques were inscribed with, “The most illustrious son of Normandy, storm driven and without food, in October 1679, Robert LaSalle with fourteen men, on a voyage to explore the interior of America, landed at this place. Expecting hostile Indians, he erected a barricade, but instead of war, they brought provisions and saved his life. Erected by Door County Historical Society, 1930.”

There were some who doubted the monument’s veracity as information was gleaned from the French explorer’s notes. Holand met the apprehension by saying, “As this peninsula was the scene of some very important events in the great explorer’s first expedition across the continent, which was endowed with historical glamour certain parts of our shores not otherwise famous, we do not want to lose this interesting historical legacy. Miss L. Schultz of the University of Wisconsin has therefore kindly made us a verbatim translation of that part of LaSalle’s official report which deals with his journey along the Wisconsin shore of Lake Michigan in 1670.” LaSalle’s report was written in the third person and Schultz’ translation was believed to be the first ever published.

As the story is told, LaSalle and about 20 men left what is now Washington Island to explore the (now named) Mississippi River to gain a New World foothold for France when a sudden storm forced them to seek shelter at the place that became the park. Uncertainty of hostile Indians prompted the men to climb the bluff and, using the bluff and slopes to their advantage, used logs to create a kind of fort on the south side of the park along a ravine. LaSalle had sent three men to buy provisions from an Indian village about 6 miles north when a band of Indians appeared on the north side of his camp. Besting the Indians didn’t appear to be an issue, if it came to that, but what about the three men? While at Washington Island, the head chief of all the Pottawatomie presented LaSalle’s party with a peace pipe, and it was that recognizable gift that acknowledged the chief's friendship thus ensuring there were no hostilities. Neither would the Indians Indians accept payment for the food they provided.

LaSalle Park began with a mere 6 acres. Volunteers cut down brush and pulled stumps, planted hundreds of new trees and leveled the terrain to provide ball fields and more. When the County Park Commission report was presented the following January, it seemed incredible that in about a year the acreage went from a tangled wilderness to a beautifully improved park. A concrete stairway protected both the environment and the public, and the toilets were an added convenience. The 5,000 who showed up for the dedication on the previous August 10 made up the most successful event the county had ever seen. And, it didn’t cost the county one penny! At the dedication of Kewaunee’s Marquette Monument in 1923, the speakers told not only of Father Marquette saying mass on the spot on All Souls Day, November 1, 1674, but also that “Jean Nicolet first met the natives” there in 1634 and that LaSalle, De Tonti, Hennepin, St. Cosme and others camped there.

Many a Kewaunee County resident has read about the explorers in history books that never mentioned Kewaunee County. As for LaSalle Park, a generation of Algoma High School students in groups such as FFA, FHA, GAA, debate, band and more had year end picnics there, as did Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts and 4-H. LaSalle has been the site of countless family reunions. Carefully tucked away in Clay Banks, it isn't widely known and over-run. But, if those bluffs could talk, the stories would be astounding!

Note: Tornado Memorial Park was the Door County’s first county park.

Information comes from The Abandoned Shore-Lines of Eastern Wisconsin, c. 1907, Door County Advocate and Algoma Record Herald.

 

 

Kewaunee County: A Home for Amelia

Amelia had just turned three when her parents married. She was born out of wedlock. In the area of Saxonia in which she was born – as in other areas of Germany – fully 50% of the children born about that time period were to parents not yet married. Economic conditions were such that marriage was not sanctioned unless the couple had a place to live and see to their own livelihood, or were immigrating. Amelia’s parents were married just months before they left their homeland.

Arriving in New York in October 1853,* Amelia and her parents proceeded to Sheboygan where there were relatives and fellow countrymen. Not long after, Amelia’s father walked to the federal land office in Menasha to purchase land, sight unseen, in 2 year old Kewaunee County, on its line with Door Co. just north of the fledgling community of Wolf River. After spending weeks and weeks on an ocean-going vessel, then a canal boat, and then a schooner through the Great Lakes, in Spring 1854 the family was again on a schooner, this time from Sheboygan to Wolf River where they boarded yet another boat that would take them up the Wolf River to the county line. It was a time before the wide, deep Wolf was nearly denuded by logging, baking in the hot dry sun, no longer kept within its banks. To disembark and to follow the land cruiser to the purchased property over a mile from the river was no small feat. The cedars near the river were so tightly packed that one could barely push oneself through. Cedar branches slapping exposed skin left welts as itchy as the mosquito bites. To finally reach an area of hardwoods was to see no sun. Tree canopies formed a roof that left in little sunlight.

Alone in the wilderness, Amelia's parents began the arduous clearing the huge virgin timber. All they had was a saw and ax. Just as soon as there was a tiny patch of sunlight, her mother planted what she could. Amelia's family ate beets and potatoes in Germany, but it wasn't until they arrived in Sheboygan that they learned about squash and other vegetables that would keep well. They had to think of winter. Always winter. Birds were snared for meat. Finding pigeon eggs was like finding gold. There were deer, rabbits and squirrels, but what if traps failed or if deer were elusive? There were fish in the river, but that meant going through the thick woods.

Survival meant 24-7 work. Winter would come and Amelia's family would depend only on itself for subsistence. Never ending chopping down mammoth trees provided a sun-reached plot of land to, hopefully, ensure food crops. There were so many trees that building a shelter was no problem, but then where to go with all the branches when the trees were cut? Those trees offered enough wood to cover all their purposes over a lifetime. Or so they thought. By 1860 things were a little better. Land had been cleared and during the winter snow cover allowed the constant burning of the branches. There were times that the huge fires provided more warmth outdoors than the fireplace inside did. But then there were new worries.

Abraham Lincoln had been elected. Amelia’s father heard disturbing things the few times he walked to Marcus, now Forestville, or the community renamed Ahnepee from Wolf River. And when William Fagg brought the news about the firing at Fort Sumter and war between two parts of their new country, Amelia’s father knew it would not affect them. They were so far away in the wilds of Wisconsin. They were Germans. What did they have to do with it? From what he heard, he knew the liberty of people he did not understand was part of it. He did understand liberty though. Wasn’t that part of the reason he immigrated? He was 39 years old and too old to soldier. Conscription existed in Germany, not the United States. Not to worry.

Amelia’s father was wrong. On September 4, 1864, he was drafted.  He was placed on the roll of Co. E, 17th Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry with the remark that he was a conscript, temporarily assigned to the command from the 14th Wisconsin Volunteers.  His brother, younger by 7 years, was drafted at the same time.

Thousands of histories are written about the Civil War and its men. What of a family who’d eked out a living in the wilderness? What of the farm with no man? Taxes had to be paid. Women who did more than their share to settle the country could not vote. They stepped in for the men who left.  Fourteen year old Amelia was able to be of much help to her mother, who by then had a toddler. They made it through the 10 months that her father served. He got sick a few weeks after being drafted and before being mustered out in June 1865, much of his service time was spent in the hospital. Continued ill health forced the sale of the farm in 1868. Moving to Ahnepee in 1870, Amelia’s father opened a butcher shop. He had some experience as his father was a butcher in Saxony. Amelia married in 1871 and a few years later, her father and new husband began making soda pop, the first such business venture in the community. How much her father did physically is questionable because everything written about him from then until his death in 1889 indicates he was unfit for any kind of manual labor.

With her father's death, her mother owned the Steele Street butcher shop, however the estate was put in the hands of Amelia's husband. It was said her mother was incompetent. She wasn't incompetent by today's standards. She was a widow in her 60s and, of course, old ladies were indeed incompetent. How could a mere woman handle money or take care of herself? Amelia's husband sold the property to the Melchiors who in 1896 built a shoe, boot and gentleman's furnishings store on the southeast corner of 3rd and Steele. Another Melchior built a jewelry store across 3rd St. The shoe store is now Algoma Sew 'n Vac while the jewelry store is Steele Street Florists and time continues to march on.

Amelia was born in Germany and died in Algoma, Wisconsin. The circumstances of Amelia's birth, and indeed her entire life, provides a reflection on social mores. Eleven years following her husband's death, hastened by Civil War injuries, the 19th Amendment was passed. Amelia voted. The Progressive Era brought some awareness. Nobody called Amelia incompetent just because she was a woman.


Amelia is the blogger's great-grandmother. There are discrepancies. Civil War Pension Files indicate Amelia's parents were married in December 1853 in their native land, while her father's Declaration of Intent indicates he arrived in October 1853. It is most probable that her parents were married in 1852 and an error was made in the pension records. 

 

 

Luxemburg & Belgium: No Postal Mix-Up

It's a good story, and one that's been around for a long time. It is humorous, and even plausible, but it never happened. Or at least it didn't happen with the naming of Luxemburg, Wisconsin.

From time to time the story about the Wisconsin villages of Luxemburg and Belgium surfaces. Some wags contend they were misnamed in a postal mix-up by the Post Office Department in Washington D.C. back in the 1800s. When Peter Hanbrich* requested  a post office for the area in Northeast Wisconsin in 1880, he requested the name Luxembourg. Of that, there is no doubt. A portion of his approved site location request is at left. At the time, today's Town of Luxemburg didn't exist. It was mostly carved out of Casco Town by action of the County Board during a late night session in March 1883, three years after the naming of the post office.

It was the Belgians who populated the Towns of Red River and Lincoln, and there are Belgians living through out Kewaunee County, but it was Luxembourgers who settled what is now Luxemburg.  One who had a notable impact on the area was Nick Kaut, born in Luxembourg, Europe in 1847. He was 8 when he came with his parents John and Katherine Kaut to the Wisconsin wilderness. While initially living in a brush hut, the family began clearing land and building a new life. It was Nick who was later called "The Father of Luxemburg." His land purchases included four 40-acre plots along what today is the west side of Luxemburg's Main Street. In 1891 he began selling parcels and building homes, a grist mill and a hotel.

There were other Luxembourgers such as Nicholas Merens who were also were forces in the area.  When Michael Arndt filed his Naturalization documents, he said he was born in Luxemburg, however his brother Peter noted Saxonburg, Germany on his documents. Peter Mittler was Naturalized in 1914, saying he was born in Luxemburg. A look at Naturalizations in Kewaunee County reveals family members being born in the same place but noting a different country. It is especially true with those from southwest of Pilsen in today's Czech Republic who identified themselves as German, Austrian or Bohemian.

Luxembourg's post office was established at Freiman's Place in the Town of Casco, which was just about a mile south from today's location.*  Freiman was the operator of a saloon and store at the NE 1/4 of the NE 1/4 in Section 28, but it was Peter Hanbrich who filed the application. On his application, Hanbrich noted the closest post office was at Peot, about a mile directly east of his, and the post office at Ellisville, a few miles south on the same road as his. Hanbrich said the Kewaunee River was the closest river and that School Creek was the nearest creek. Hanbrich indicated he would be serving about 350 families, but that line was crossed off. A note at the bottom said the post office "would serve 10-15 families, if that." It appears that Walhain postmaster J. B. Puissant added the notation.

The Enterprise felt Hanbrich would provide excellent service and that the office would be a great convenience to the populous neighborhood, which would be supplied with mail three times weekly from Walhain by the Green Bay carrier. Walhain was a commercial center that had one of Kewaunee County's earliest post offices. Of the three postal communities listed on the site request, Walhain and Ellisville each today have a crossroads' business while Peot is made up of farmers' fields. On the other hand, late-comer Luxemburg is Kewaunee County's most vibrant and fastest growing community.

Luxembourg's post office operated from April 21, 1880 and, for some reason, discontinued on October 12, 1882. The office remained at Freiman's Place at Joseph Filz' appointment when service was reestablished on January 17, 1895. Albert Liebl was postmaster on October 1, 1924 when the official name of the office was changed from Luxembourg to Luxemburg. Note: Luxembourg postmark.

So, where did the story of the postal mix-up come from? The following is from Belgium, Wisconsin's website, http://www.village.belgium.wi.us/ : "Belgic Luxembourgers - from the part of old Luxembourg annexed by Belgium - settled in the area of the present Township and Village of Belgium, Wisconsin, in the middle of the 19th century. Descendants of the original families still live in the area today, and preserve their heritage. While the first immigrants came from Luxembourg, neighboring settlers referred to this as "the Belgium area" because at that time much of Luxembourg was ruled by Belgium."

Both Luxemburg and Belgium have fascinating histories. Much is available on Northeast Wisconsin's Luxemburg in Kewaunee and Brown County libraries and in the Archives at UW-Green Bay. More about the Belgic Luxembourgers and the rich heritage of all Luxembourgers can be found by visiting the cultural center museum at Belgium or by going to its website: http://www.luxamculturalsociety.org/directions.html.



* In 1903 the Post Office Department ordered the office to move north into the village.

Peter Hanbrich signed the request with that spelling of his name. The approved document was sent to Peter Hanbrecht in care of the Walhain postmaster because it was the postmaster of a federally recognized post office that, in effect, vouched for the new office.

Information is taken from Here Comes the Mail: The Post Offices of Kewaunee County, c. 2010. Photos and documents are from the blogger's collection.

   

Algoma-Ahnapee House Histories: Cox & Nell

Here and there home owners are interested in the history of their residences. Construction methods of the periods, woods, craftsmanship and more tell stories of  homes. If homes were built or lived in by the prominent or famous, there is more of a story. If George Washington slept there, the house could star in a movie.

Nearly 10 years ago, Wes Cox, Sr. learned he was living in a funeral home. What happened next is mind-boggling. It culminated on April 26, 2014 with Wisconsin’s Historic Preservation Excellence Award being presented to Cox and Harold (Hans) Nell. Born in Northeast Wisconsin, Nell has always been interested in local architecture. As an employee of the City of Algoma, he had a view that very few do. Cox is a transplant from Missouri who relocated to the city about 10 or so years ago. His natural curiosity set the stage for what came next.

The Weisner and Massart families began their undertaking services in Casco before 1900. When the company opened a second location, it was in the old Wunderlich home on Algoma's Fremont Street, a classy area being known as "Residence Street" around 1900. Cox learned a great deal and eventually compiled a history of the Weisner-Massart Funeral Home which included the family histories and genealogies of those connected with it. He learned Charles Nelson, foster son of State Senator DeWayne Stebbins - after whom the Stebbins Hotel is named - lived next door and started in on that. Five McDonald families lived on Fremont at the same time, and Cox kept right on going. By then he had 3 substantial binders. Enter Nell. After men finished Residence Street, Cox said they'd do the whole city. Being as tenacious, focused and hard-working as they are, they did. But, there was a lot more.....

Cox and Nell chronicled each of Algoma’s more than 1,300 homes, going block by block while scouring the microfilmed newspapers from Ahnapee/Algoma, and those of Kewaunee which originated 14 years earlier. They used available records in Algoma’s City Hall, tax and land records available in Kewaunee Co. Court House, records available in the Area Research Center at UW-Green Bay and records on Ancestry. They combed through histories of the area, commemorative biographies, plat maps, Sanborn fire maps and birdseye views dating to 1883. Research didn’t stop with those 1,300 plus homes. The men went back to research the homes that no longer exist in the City of Algoma and then compiled the history of each home in the Town of Ahnapee. Their index is cross-referenced by surname and address.

The Algoma compilation alone fills 19 binders in Algoma Public Library, where the donated collection of almost 8,000 pages is being scanned for safe-keeping, and key-worded for instant access.

Cox and Nell's house histories are an on-going project that is constantly being updated. A project of this kind and magnitude is unprecedented. It is a remarkable addition to Algoma Library’s local history and genealogy collection and a source of community pride. Use of their copyright has been assigned to Algoma Library, to which the entire compilation has been donated.

Historical preservation of the community, its people and its architecture is impressive. But there are other factors. Most of the information would have never surfaced without the research methods employed. It is not only the location and construction of the homes: local history and genealogy are huge parts of these homes. The work provides a social commentary that would possibly have never come to light. Cox is a civil engineer who was able to use that education in looking at trends over 150 years and explaining them. Nell, as a popular city resident, was given access and information that few others would. The two men point to the abilities of the other and say it would have never happened without the partnership. If there were questions or disagreements about a particular property, it was not added to the collection until all the evidence pointed to certainty.

Hans Nell and Wes Cox, Sr. have made a significant, and on-going, contribution to the City of Algoma, and to Wisconsin as a whole. While their preservation is in print form, rather than hands and bricks and mortar, they were certainly most worthy of Wisconsin’s Historic Preservation Excellence Award and serve as role models for others.