The Village of Thorp

Market Place for Sturdy Settlers

Two Great Catholic Churches Supported by Wealth from Farms

Thorp is a village in the northwestern corner of the county, on the Soo line and is known throughout the county as the center of one of the most thriving and prosperous Polish colonies in the United States. There are two big Catholic churches there, or rather one in the village proper and one about two miles from the village, the latter a Polish Catholic church, said to be the largest church structure in the country outside of a large city.

St. Bernard's Catholic Church, Thorp.

St. Hedwig's Catholic Church, Town of Withee, near Thorp.

Thorp was named after Hon. J. G. Thorp of Eau Claire Lumber Company, one of the prominent men of Wisconsin a generation ago, his daughter married Ole Bull and her father built a palatial home for them at Madison which afterwards became the executive mansion. It was the Eau Claire Lumber Company which developed this country after cutting off and removing all the timber. Mr. K. Rosolt of that company being the moving spirit for twenty five years or so in getting settlers upon the new land.

Although named Thorp, it was J. S. Boardman and his brother Ephraim A. Boardman who built up the town. They came from Rochester, Minn., about 1871 and took up 160 acres of government land, one on either side of the range line between ranges 3 and 4 west of the fourth Principal meridian, and that range line now runs through the main street of the village. J. S. Boardman disappeared from sight about twenty years ago and has never been heard from since but his brother Ephraim remained on the original quarter section and when the Soo road, or the Wisconsin Central as it was then, came through, platted his farm into lots, sold them and became the patriarch of the village until he died a few years ago, having sold out but 65 acres of his original farm, the 56 acre tract now a beautiful grove of woods north of the village.

The railroad attempted to found a town, platting out eighty acres half a mile west of the site of the present village but the Boardmans stole a march on the road and got the settlers to build on their lots. For years the depot was half a mile from the houses in town. The Nye, Lusk & Hudson Company started a saw mill in 1881 with a capacity of about 30,000 feet daily and it was largely through that fact that the town failed to start where the railroad had planned it. The mill is still running hut has about completed its work, now buying small lots from the farmers and sawing a comparatively few thousand annually. There is a stave and heading mill, however, which is a considerable concern.

High School Building, Thorp.

But the big creamery of Thorp which pays out $125,000 a year to the farmers is the industry of which the citizens are proud. The shipments of cheese during 1914 aggregated 1,238,310 pounds of butter 384,281 pounds, of eggs 83,682 pds., and this year there will be an average of two car loads of cheese and one car load of butter weekly. Fifty silos were erected around Thorp this year.

The village owns a municipal light and water plant which has been in operation for fifteen years, has a library of 2000 volumes, public schools and a big parochial school, gets its water from artesian wells, has a sewerage system installed at a cost of $16,000 so far, has ordered all the telephone wires put under ground and prides itself on the fact that it is going to be the banner cheese and butter producing center of the world within the next generation. The present officers are W. S. Parks, mayor; E. H. Wiley, treasurer; W. E. Barrett, clerk, William Wagner, postmaster. It has a population of about 1,000.

John Landry's Farm Home in Town of Thorp.  

Twenty years ago he was a Camp laborer, now an Independent Farmer

Business Directory

   Alberts, Chas., Confectionery.

   Baldeschweiler, Alois, Sawmill.

   Banderob, Herman, Harness.

   Banderob, T., Millinery.

   Barrett Bros., Elevator and Ward.

   Becker, Mrs. Geo. F., Millinery.

   Boardman, E. A. & Sons, Sawmill.

   Bogumill, John G., Furniture.

   Bogumill, John G. & Sons, Gen. Store.

   Borowick, Peter, Saloon.

   Brunner, H. J., Blacksmith.

   Burkhardt, August, Box Factory.

   Butterfield, C. L., Well Driller.

   Colby Brothers, Feed and Planing Mill.

   Connor, James, Saloon.

   Dedring, Otto, Jewelry.

   Dudkiewicz, Louis, Gen. Store.

   Farmers Exchange Bank. [Advertisement]

   Frank, Dr. W. J., Dentist.

   Garrison Mercantile Co., Gen. Store.

   Greisch, Matt,, Pumps and Windmills.

   Gruszynski, J. F., Box Mnfr.

   Hanson & Zaborowski Implement Co.

   Jackey, S. D., Physician.

   Klemp, F. A. Confectionary.

   Kriese, Mrs. R. J., Confectionery.

   Klouda, Joseph, Boot and Shoes.

   Lombard Dairy Co.

   Mallison, M. W., Restaurant.

   McCutchceon, W. R., Physician.

   Mokrzycki, John, Saloon.

   Malinowski & Anyzewski, Saloon.

   Morgan, Joseph, Livery.

   Nolechek, Dr. W. F., Veterinarian.

   Norton, James, Hotel.

   Nye, Lusk & Hudson Co., Lumber.

   Penana & Zuzwiak, Gen. Store.

   Peoples State Bank. [Advertisement]

   Phillips, L., Dry Goods and Grocery.

   Piwoni Theofile, Saloon and Grocery.

   Plucinski, Frank, Hardware.

   Rasmussen, Julius, Saloon.

   Riverside Dairy Co.

   Schneider, E., Grocery and Harness.

   Schroeder, A., Saloon.

   Selden, W. B., Physician.

   Snyder, Mrs. E. L., Gen. Store.

   Solvrud, O. A., & Co., Meats.

   Stookey, D. E., Real Estate.

   Sikorski, Charles, Saloon.

   Stracker, Miss Elsie, Millinery.

   Stryk, A., Box Mnfr.

   Thorp Dairy Co.

   Thorp Mnfg. Co., Staves & Heading.

   Thorp Mercantile Co., Gen. Store.

   Wagner, H., Publisher.

   Walsdorf, Aug., Mnfr. Soft Drinks.

   Walsdorf & Johnson, Hardware.

   Walsdorf, William, Saloon.

   Wiley, E. R., Gen. Store.

   Zielanis, Jos. General Store.

   Zukowski, M. & Son, Gen. Store.

Harvesting a Second Crop of Clover on C. S. Evanson's Farm, Thorp, Wisconsin.