Clark County Press, Neillsville,

September 19, 2007, Page 17

Transcribed by Dolores (Mohr) Kenyon.

Index of "Oldies" Articles 

 

 

Compiled and contributed by Dee Zimmerman

 

 

Clark County News

September 1897

 

Rufe and Claude Sturdevant and Spence Marsh went to Sherwood Forest, Tuesday morning to do some chicken hunting.  The next day, Wednesday, Spence was seen in town and many wondered why he was back so soon.  Upon investigation, the fact developed that Rufe, in the excitement of the moment, had forgotten his gun, so Spence had to come to town to get it.  Rufe was afraid of the razing that would be indulged by the guys, at his expense.

•••••••••

Tony Hein left Tuesday morning on the Soo railroad, headed for their new location in the northern part of the state.  He took along a small crew of men, from here, with him. The town of York sawmill will be moved in about a month, and his mill in this city will be moved in about a year.

•••••••••

Saturday was one of the greatest stock-shipping days in the annals of the history of the city of Neillsville.  It is now one of the leading shipping points on the Chicago, St. Paul, Minneapolis and Omaha railway, over which line the shipping is exclusively done.  No less than eleven cars of livestock, almost a trainload, were shipped from the Neillsville station Saturday, which necessitated a special train.

 

From Granton, a station about nine miles from Neillsville, on the same railroad line, had two cars of livestock shipped on Saturday.  The shippers from Neillsville were James McMaster and Charles Burpee, and from Granton, the shipper was Fred Davis.

 

Without a question of doubt, Neillsville is one of the leading stock raising and shipping centers in the Northwest, and Granton is not one of the smallest shipping points by any means.

•••••••••

Dr. Brewster has purchased the residence of Mrs. F. D. Lindsay, on Fifth Street, near the courthouse, and plans to occupy it soon.

•••••••••

Rev. G. N. Foster, who has so acceptably filled the pulpit of the Methodist Church in this city for the past five years, will now have to leave as five years is the limit of time they are allowed in one pastorate.  Saturday night, a number of his friends gathered in the parlors of the church and held an informal reception in his honor.  In the course of the evening, he was presented with a silver tea service as a token of remembrance by his many friends in the city, for which he desires through these columns to return their heartfelt thanks.

•••••••••

A week ago Tuesday, Jesse Lowe bought a yoke of fine oxen from two young men, Claude Bingham and Albert Doughner without any suspicion but what everything was all right.  But on Saturday morning, he was somewhat surprised to hear from Joseph Gibson that the oxen were his and had been stolen from his pasture on Monday night.

 

A search was immediately commenced to locate the guilty parties.

•••••••••

On account of the damage done by the ice last spring, a new abutment will have to be built under the bridge that crosses Black River at the end of Grand Avenue.  A special town meeting will be called to levy a tax for that purpose.  The county will pay one-half of the expense.  The estimated cost of a solid stone abutment is between $500 and $600.

•••••••••

Fred Seif, of Globe, has started packing his camping kit for another season of logging and plans to be up near Withee.

•••••••••

Quite a number of people from Lynn attended the dance at Rock Hall, Friday evening and reported a good time.  A concert and free dance will be held at the hall on October 2nd.

•••••••••

The Temperance Lecture given in Frasier’s Hall, in Chili last Saturday night, was well attended.  Mr. Larson, the speaker, proved to be quite entertaining.  Music was furnished by Misses Frasier and Messrs. West.

 

 

September 1957

 

When the 24 pupils of the Christie School returned for classes last week, it almost was like coming to a new schoolhouse.  This newness is a result of planning and executing a program of remodeling and modernizing the school premises.  When the teacher, Mrs. Della Botnen, was asked how she likes the changes, she replied, “It is wonderful!”

 

Both she and the children will enjoy the modern plumbing with running water, the fluorescent lights and the larger schoolroom, which resulted from removing an old partition to add eight feet to its length.  This addition was the old entry at the front of the building.  The new entry was built at the rear of the building to get it farther from the highway, for reasons of safety, and it houses the new modern toilets.  Another new feature is a lowered ceiling, which makes a pleasanter room and facilitates heating of the building.  A few years ago, a playground was made at the rear of the building.  Work is now in progress on leveling the lawn.

 

It is quite a different setup from conditions prevailing when the following teachers were there: J. H. Fradette, later Clark County Treasurer; Claude Mills, father of Calvin Mills; Ella Richardson, daughter of the late John Richardson; Mae McNamara, who later became Mrs. Archie Sparks and taught at Humbird; Clara Geeslin, now Mrs. Clara Neff of Neillsville; and Celia Tyler, now deceased, was a sister of Mrs. Charles Poole.  According to old records, teachers’ salaries in their day ranged from $30 to $40 per month.  Some members of he building committee of that time were: Calvin Mills, grandfather of Calvin Mills of Owen; Orlo Robinson, father of Miss Ferne Robinson of Neillsville; Steven W. Jones, a prominent citizen who lived on the present Fred Buchholz farm; S. E. Morse, father of Mrs. Grace West of Neillsville; and Elmer Brown, father of Nina Brown, a former Clark County Nurse.

 

Clerk of the district was Albert Barber, whose daughter was Mrs. Viola Barber Stempel of New York.  Claude Mills and Len Shaw were among early pupils in the old school.

 

The present school board members are: Mrs. George Schaefer, clerk; Mrs. Donald Acheson, treasurer; and Albert Zank, director, who succeeded Henry Harder in July.  Six of the present 24 pupils came this year from the former Forman School.

 

The improvements on the school building, this year, were done for a cost of $7,000.

•••••••••

Subject for much discussion and inquiry amongst duck hunters particularly, of the area, is the closing of two areas comprising approximately 1,300 acres, in Eastern Jackson and Southern Clark Counties.

 

These areas have been closed by the Conservation Department primarily for the protection of Canada geese, according to Conservation Warden Arthur Schroeder.  Large fields of buckwheat, corn and other grain have been planted in the area by the Game Division of the Conservation Department.

 

One closed area lies along the east boundary of No. 17 refuge, and includes the old Eric Peterson fields.  The other area lies along the south and east shores of the East Fork of Black River and Lake Arbutus.

 

The refuges will be posted with yellow paper signs reading: “Closed Area – no hunting or trapping except during deer season.”

 

Bow and arrow hunting will be forbidden in the area, Warden Schroeder said; but they will be open during the regular deer gun season.

•••••••••

The former Otto J. Warren farmland, in the Town of York, has been sold.  The house, with one and a half-acre of land, has been purchased by Mr. and Mrs. Gary Northup, of Neillsville.

 

The Warren farm was pieced together in 1917 through the purchase of an 80 from William Imig and another 80 from William Radke, on which the house is located.  Later another 80 was bought from Mrs. Ben Brown, bringing the total to 240 acres.

 

In 1944, Mr. and Mrs. Neil Warren, son and daughter-in-law of the Otto Warrens, purchased the farm.  They later sold 158 ½ acres to Earl Luchterhand and 80 acres to Wallace Erickson.

 

Gary Northup, who purchased the house, is a grandson of the William Radke’s who sold the buildings to the Warrens back in 1917.

•••••••••

The city of Neillsville’s first storm sewer, installed more than 50 years ago, was found quite by accident last weekend.  It is located in the block on Fourth Street, between Grand Avenue and Clay Streets, and empties into Goose Creek under the Fullerton Lumber Company building.

 

But, until a Boon Bros. truck, working on the Fourth Street project, dropped into it, city officials were not aware of the presence of the storm sewer.  A few old timers could have told them, had they thought to ask.  But with no record of it in the city engineer’s files, how could they think to ask?

 

The storm sewer was an old-fashioned clay tile one, and when the weight of a truck came upon it after about 20 inches of roadway surface had been dug out, it was just too much for the 50-year-old tile.

•••••••••

Five volunteers filled Clark County’s Selective Service quota September 11, when they left Neillsville for army induction in Minneapolis, Minn.

 

The volunteers were: Richard P. Baughman and Jerome R. Horn of Greenwood; George M. Brenner of Loyal; James Freedlund of Pittsville; and John F. Szymanski of Withee.

•••••••••

There will be a Free Firemen’s Street Dance at Chili, Wednesday, Sept. 25, with a Hard-time Party and prizes.  Charcoal Broiled Chicken will be served starting at 5:30 p.m. and Dancing from 8 p.m. to midnight.

•••••••••

The Christ Lutheran Congregation at Chili will celebrate the 50th anniversary of its organization with three special services on Sunday.  Guest speaker in the 9:00 and 10:30 a.m. services will be the Rev. Arthur H. Oswald, pastor of the St. Martini Lutheran Church in Milwaukee and a member of the board of Directors of the Lutheran Church, Missouri Synod.  He is the father of the Rev. Arthur A. Oswald, pastor of the Chili church.

 

In the afternoon service, which will begin at 2:30, the guest speaker will be the Rev. Wm. A. Lauterbach, Mayville.  The Rev. Mr. Lauterbach served as pastor of Christ Church from 1944-1949.

 

Activities also will include an anniversary dinner served by the ladies of the church.

 

The Chili congregation was organized April 28, 1907, when the church constitution was signed by Albert Degener, Emil Bosselman, Albert Gotter and Edward Duchow.  Mr. Degener, who now lives in Neillsville, is the only charter-voting member still living.  He and Mrs. Degener, Mrs. Anna Duchow, and Mrs. Emma Reisner will be honored guests on Sunday.

 

Mr. Degener recalls that before the congregation had its own church building, another church was rented for 50 cents a week.

 

“Our beginning was small,” he stated, “but the Lord God was on our side.”

 

The congregation now numbers 200 baptized members.

 

In recent years, the church building has been enlarged and extensively remodeled.  As a 50th anniversary thank-offering, new art glass windows have been installed.

 

This year marks the 30th anniversary of the Ladies Aid Society.  It was organized in 1927 at the home of Mrs. Anna Montag, with 11 charter members.

 

Present officers of the congregation are: Elmer Steffen, secretary; Melvin Bandt, treasurer; Gerald Nelson and Rueben Wundrow, deacons; and Gerald Dankemyer, Marvin Menger, and Oscar Bartsch, trustees.

•••••••••

Ten good stout men pulled the Town of Lynn to a tug-o’-war championship at the Granton fall festival, last weekend.

 

“Anchored” by Chuck (Tiny) Wesenberg, whose 285 pounds were effective in the stretch, the Lynn team out-pulled the Town of Grant in the finals.  Lynn beat the York team in the opening round; and Grant gained the finals by out-beefing Granton.

 

Non-pulling captain Art Riedel fielded a formidable team for the events.  In addition to the 285-pound anchorman, he had: Clifford Riedel, Walter Helm, Albert Haas, Arno Gotter, Earl Chubb, Oscar Sternitzky, Jr., Herb Sternitzky, Allen Reisner and Gene Cattanach.

•••••••••

A cornerstone laying service at Calvary Lutheran Church, Neillsville, will be held Sunday, Sept. 29, at 2:30 p.m.

 

The Rev. Idar J. Tanner, pastor, will be in charge.  The pastor’s father, Dr. J. Tanner of Forest City, Ia. will give a brief address.  Also taking part will be the Rev. Ira Tanner of Greenwood, son of the pastor of Calvary Church.

 

Mementoes, which will be sealed in the cornerstone, according to Mr. Tanner, will include: a list of present members of the congregation, a copy of the Bible, Luther’s Catechisms, a copy of this issue of The Clark County Press, copies of the church constitution, the Lutheran Herald, the Sunday service bulletin giving the cornerstone laying program, and a picture of the seven local people who were responsible for beginning the organization of the church.  The seven are: Tom Dorski, Hilbert Naedler, Fred and Melvin Appleyard, Kenneth Olson, and James and Charles G. Jordahl.

 

Since July first, when construction was begun, progress on the building has gone ahead steadily.  The finishing of the lower level is about completed, and the congregation expects to begin worshipping there in the latter part of October.  At the moment, there is some delay in certain materials for the upper structure, but it is expected the entire building will be completed before the end of the year.

•••••••••

 

 

The Omaha Railroad Depot was razed in 1981, just short of Neillsville’s 100th Anniversary.  The above photo taken in the 1920s shows how the building looked before it was torn down.  It was located along Eighth Street, west of Grand Avenue.

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