July 1906

Marsh Brothers and the Masonic Lodge bought out the Hewett brick block, Tuesday. The lodge will make its home in the building’s upper floor the Marsh Brothers will be using the main floor for their dry goods store.

* * *

John G. Schmidt’s driving horse took first money in the scrub race on July 4th, on the Fifth Street track. Then, he won a race from Duck Wheaton, on the fairground track, the same day, by beating Duck’s flyer and causing a V to disappear down Ed Holvorson’s pants’ pocket, in quick time.

The good work of filling-in the street at the Simon-Schultz-Gates hollow is going steadily.  It will soon be possible to reach the sidewalk from the driveway at that point, without descending into the valley of the shadow-of-dead cats and old-boots.

* * *

Six coaches were required to carry the crowd that went to Marshfield, the morning of July 4th.  The day at Marshfield was a big one, so say the boys who went over.  Neillsville’s baseball team took the game, 28 to 13, and this was in spite of the professionals hired by the Marshfield team.

Claude Sturdevant, of this city, won the foot race, beating a sprinter who thought he had everything going his own-way. Nels Hase, of this city, carried away the wheelbarrow race pennant, and $4 prize money. Claude won $5.  The baseball boys got $50, and the Neillsville band got $85.  When they came back, they were an awfully weary crowd.

Neillsville had huge crowds from all over the country, Merrillan sending as large of a crowd here as had been sent to Marshfield.  The Augusta Band was here, with the streets blockaded.  The Sherman Guard did credit to themselves, and the city, in their display.

* * *

Jerry Bridge has traded his house and lot on Grand Avenue for Emery Bruley’s equity in the Bruley residence on Eighth Street, and is now running a boarding house there.

Principal E.B. Oakley and a party of young folks have been spending a week in camp, south of the city on the Black River.  One rainy night was too baptismal for them and they spent the night under the classic roof of the Ross Eddy schoolhouse (see sec. 26), which is located nearby.

W.L. Hemphill and a party of friends will be camping along the Black River, near the North Grand Avenue Bridge.

* * *

Gene Webster’s barn has arrived at its new site, and will soon be enclosed in brick. The old barn site looks like a man’s vest before dinner, vacant.

* * *

A new sidewalk has been laid in front of the J.L. Gates row of tenements on Hewett Street.  The grade was raised, which gives the place a Swede’s Hollow look that is it looks more hollow than it did before.

* * *

G.M. Wilson has leased, from Mrs. French, the lot opposite the Cook boarding house.  He will open, thereon, a wood yard, where he will keep on hand all kinds of chunk and stove wood, hard and soft.  The lease includes the French barn.

* * *

It is now possible to travel to Greenwood by rail, from Neillsville.

C.W. Funk, of Withee, has four deer for sale, $10 each, or all for $35.

* * *

M.C. Ring’s string of trotting horses and several other fast steppers were taken overland to Sparta late last week, to train for the races to be held there.

* * *

The scarecrow, which presides over the destinies of Judge Dewhurst’s garden, is a desperate looking villain.

* * *

The elegance of outline of the new Dickinson house is attracting a great deal of attention. The lot has been re-graded and is to be very nice.

* * *

The mill of the Colby Lumber Company had a narrow escape from fire, the other day.  The roof was discovered to be on fire and it took all of the business’ hands, and Mr. Graham’s to put it out.

 

Mr. Armstrong, of Colby, tells us that his crew did common quick work in building the coal kilns.  It took them just twenty-five days to build ten kilns and 600 feet of bridging and approaches.

* * *

A fire alarm, Friday evening, brought out the crowd and the fire department with a rush.  A pile of staves at the Hein mill, opposite the depot, was on fire. It had not so great of a start, so it was not dangerous, the firemen being able to soon put it out.  The cause of the fire was not known, but it could have started by a locomotive spark, a previous firecracker, or a tramp of an incendiary.

July 1946

First Sgt. Harley Jake, home on furlough, accepted a temporary appointment, Tuesday, as a county traffic officer. Sgt. Jake will serve through the July 4th weekend, when extra officers usually are needed because of heavy traffic.

* * *

The formal opening of Gates’ service station, on Neillsville’s South Side, will be held Friday. The station is the former Hauge station, which is being operated by Leo Gates, a veteran of three years’ army service. He served 14 months in the European theater.  Gates is the son of Mr. and Mrs. Ernest Gates, who are on the old Eberhardt farm, six and one-half miles east of Neillsville. He and his wife and their nine-month-old child reside in “Vets Village.”

* * *

Clark County’s farmers and dairy plants teamed together, last year, to push the county’s production of cheese and condensed and evaporated milk to record levels.

More than 32 million pounds of cheeses, of all types, were produced in Clark County’s dairy plants, ranking the county second in the leading dairy state of the nation. Condensed and evaporated milk production totaled more than 85 million pounds.

In its annual survey of dairy production in Wisconsin, the Wisconsin Crop and Livestock Reporter placed Clark County second in the production of American cheese, with 26,694,000 pounds.  This is an increase of more than 2 million pounds over the record level reached in 1944.  Marathon County led in the production of this type of cheese with a total of 28 million pounds.

In total cheese production, Clark County ranked third in the state with a total of 32,389,000 pounds.  This total included 
2,468,000 pounds of Italian type cheese, 348,000 pounds of Swiss cheese and 2,468 pounds of blue mold and other types of cheese.

* * *

A total of 44 deer were killed by automobiles in Clark County, during the first six months of this year, as has been reported by Game Warden Alva A. Clumpner.

* * *

Eighty Clark County soldiers lost their lives in World War II, according to the first complete list issued by the War Department.

 

The list includes those who have been declared dead, under Public Law 490, after a first listing as missing.

 

The total for Wisconsin was 7,038 soldiers, or 2.30 per cent of the nation’s complete fatality list.

* * *

Dr. M.V. Overman announced this week that he will be joined in practice here by Dr. Kenneth Manz on August 1. Overman and Manz will practice medicine and surgery, under the name of the Neillsville Clinic.

 

Dr. Manz is, at present, closing his practice in Black River Falls where he has been located for the last seven and one-half years. Prior to that, he practiced for about a year and one-half in Burlington.

Dr. Manz is a graduate of the medical school of the University of Wisconsin, where he was a classmate of Dr. Overman. Following his graduation, he took a two-year surgical internship at Augustana Hospital in Chicago.

 

He is married and the father of three children.

* * *

Carl Eisemann of Milwaukee, a veteran and former assistant principal of Kendall, has accepted the position of principal of the Granton High School.  He succeeds George Edelbeck, who has accepted a similar position at Manawa.

 

Mr. Eisemann will teach science and coach.  He holds a master’s degree from the University of Wisconsin.  Mr. and Mrs. Eisemann and their two children are expected to take up their residence in Granton, some time in August.

 

At the annual school meeting last week, a tax levy of $8,000 was voted.  This represents a decrease of $2,000 from the levy for the last year.

* * *

Vacationing together for the first time since 1926, General Dwight (Ike) Eisenhower and his brothers were able to show off their limit catch of 10 to 17 pound “Muskies” and an 8-pound Northern Pike caught in the Lac du Flambeau waters near Minocqua, Wis.  Joining Ike, were his four brothers: Arthur, of Kansas; Edgar, Tacoma, Wash.; Milton, Manhattan, Kan.; and Earl, Charleroi, Pa.

* * *

L.J. Chevrolet, of Neillsville, has new Oldsmobiles available to Disabled Veterans of World War II, with delivery in about 30 days!   These cars are put aside only for Disabled Vets, and are not connected with our new car quota.  If you are a Disabled Vet and are looking for a good new car, come in and talk it over with us.

* * *

Property changes throughout Clark County have reached a tempo equaling and possibly exceeding that of the lush days of the 1920s, with the peak is not yet in sight.

 

This is the situation as sized up by Register of Deeds Henry E. Rahn, whose office now is recording an average of 72 or more transfers per week.

 

As an indication of the extent of the turnover of both city and farm properties, Mr. Rahn’s records reveal that more than 700 transfers have been placed on record here since March 15, 1946.  That is at a rate of approximately 2,800 in a year.

 

In the week from June 10 to 16, inclusive of this year, there were 72 property transfers recorded.  During the same dates of 1941, recorded transfers totaled only 16.  This gives an indication of the increased buying of real estate, which has come about during the short span of five years.

* * *

Ten years ago, the scene of desolate wasteland in the Rock Dam area near Willard, today is rapidly becoming a pleasant resort area.

 

Already about 12 cottages have been built on lots along the lake, made by the backwater of the dam. And, were it not for the present day difficulties of securing materials and labor, the area might literally be a beehive of building activity.

 

The entire lakeside area has been carefully plotted, into lots, by the county. These lots are rented on an annual basis at rates ranging from $4 to $15 per year; the rental depending upon the size of the lot.

 

At present, according to County Clerk Herbert Borde, 34 persons have rented lots for the current year. This represents an income this year of $295 for Clark County.  While this may not seem like a large sum, Mr. Borde points out that it is far more than that wasteland ever produced for the county in taxes under private ownership, and far more than it ever before produced under the ownership of the county.

 

Most of the 34 persons, who have rented lots for the current year, have taken on more than one lot; and most of them who have not already done so plan to build a cottage as soon as material and labor conditions permit.  However, a few cottages are now under construction or have recently been completed, including those of John G. Bogumill and W. B. Parks, both of Thorp.

 

In plotting the Rock Dam resort area, the county has provided a space for public picnicking.  And, although the facilities for swimming are somewhat limited at present, two public bath houses have been put up by the county.

 

The county-owned resort area, according to Mr. Borde, is restricted to residential uses, and steps have been taken to protect the area from commercial inroads by a regulation prohibiting such enterprises on the portions controlled by the county.

 

About eight years ago, when the idea was fostered of establishing a resort area there, the area was in wasteland stubble. Now, however, the large areas around the Rock Dam Lake are covered with vigorous thrifty growths of pine.  These plantations were made by the Clark County Forestry Department in 1939. The plantations were unusually successful, as the transplants which then measured four to five inches high now rise some eight of nine feet above the ground.

 

Those who presently are renting lots represent virtually all sections of Clark County, with people residing in Milwaukee, Chicago, Durand and various other Wisconsin cities.

 

Among the cottages now with vacation homes on the lake are: Elmer Anderson of Neillsville; Gordon Wolf, Charles Fischer, Mr. Bogumill and Mr. Parks, all of Thorp; Bill Kuester of Greenwood; Earl Goodrich and Robert Staire, both of Durand; Joe Verschay of Willard.

In addition to these, County Clerk Borde’s records show that lands have been rented by: S. Ustruck of Milwaukee; Lapp and Scheel of Dorchester; Hiram Bestel, Withee; Adeline Collar and E. Prock, both of Owen; Thomas Johnson of Withee; J. S. Borowick, Edward F. Pawlak, Robert Carter, John Verhunce, Mike Szerlong and Wilford Vanderhyden, all of Thorp; William Bell, Abbotsford; Walter Nixdorf, Dorchester; Thomas Eisler, Chicago; Mr. Rosenbaum; Rae Ingham and George Moore, George Matkovich, all of Willard; Mrs. George Metz of Evanston, Ill.; George Neiman of Milwaukee; Warren Nicholson and Kelley Nicholson, both of Fairchild; Eugene Nicholson of Chippewa Falls.

The Mead-Webster Livery Barn, which later was owned solely by Webster, was located in the Grand Avenue area.  The business provided hackney service to and from the train depot, and also rented out horses, buggies and wagons within the Neillsville community.  (Photo courtesy of the Bill Roberts’ collection)