Clark County Press, Neillsville, WI

June 2, 1999, Page 24

Transcribed by Dolores (Mohr) Kenyon.

Index of "Oldies" Articles 

The Good Old Days   

Compiled by Dee Zimmerman

 

Clark County News

 

June 1879

 

The Black River Bridge on the Humbird Road, built last summer by a Detroit firm, is already badly impaired by a stringer which had sprung.  There is still a portion of the contract money due the firm which the town board will withhold until the bridge is put in proper shape.

 

There will be an ice cream and strawberry festival at the Fireman’s Hall, on June 13.  The purpose of the festival will be to raise funds to purchase new instruments for the Brass Band, which will be present that evening.  After the festival, the Neillsville Quintet Band will furnish music for advance.  Some other events will be added to the occasion.  The band has some excellent talent, and all of its members are residents of the village.  All they lack is a good set of instruments, to enable them to give weekly concerts during the summer at the courthouse square.

 

If the ladies of Clark County persevere a little more, they will be entitled to recognition in the sporting circles.  We noted the catch of an 11 ½ pound pickerel by Mrs. J. W. Ferguson last week.  Already her feat has been slightly surpassed by the taking of 13 ½ pound fish of the same kind by Mrs. Ed E. Stanley, at Weston’s Rapids, on Monday.  It is no small job for an experienced fisherman to land a pickerel of that size, but they did it nicely.

 

Something new in Neillsville – C. H. Gates wants the attention of the public.  He now has a new refrigerator that is complete and in running order which will enable him to furnish the very best of roasts, steaks, cutlets, etc., on short notice.  All meats ordered before ten a.m. will be promptly delivered free of charge.

 

Rossmans new bowling alley is nearly completed.  It will be a nice one, and a good place to get some healthy exercise.

 

Cole & Pashell’s would like to buy 10,000 pounds of beeswax.  They will pay the highest market price, so see them soon.

 

Joe Sterling, the efficient manager of Eau Claire Lumber Co., in the Town of Thorp, visited us recently.  Among his other duties is the management of a farm of 400 acres under plow.  Just think of it, a farm of 400 acres in the northern part of Clark County.  That area is counted by most people as a wilderness, but which is not, by a good deal.  We have known Sterling since childhood and we do know he is qualified for the important position he holds.  He will make a still bigger hole in the northern woods before he dies.

 

Poor old Chief Winneshiek, who, with some of his people was carted off to Nebraska by the government, is back.  Winneshiek, of the Winnebago tribe, has resided near Black River Falls since he returned from Nebraska about five years ago.  He arrived in La Crosse the other day, accompanied by three braves for the purpose of seeing Senator Angus Cameron.  We wish him well in receiving something in the shape of justice from the government for the unnecessary removal to Nebraska.

 

The Grange building in Humbird was recently purchased by the Masons and moved up near Carter’s store.  It will soon have a solid foundation again.  The upper story will be fitted up for store purposes.

 

The whistle of the engine in E. D. Carter’s new saw mill, in Humbird, will soon be heard.  The mill will be ready for planing and finishing lumber in a few days.

 

June 1909

 

A whole week of amusement will be in Neillsville starting Monday when the Metropolitan Carnival Company will arrive.  They will set up its tents for a week’s street fair.  The company provides its own band and many shows, besides several free attractions. There will be a free band concert every day, an ocean wave, Ferris wheel, electric theatre, plantation show, and other attractions.  Take a day off work and come to the carnival.  Bring the whole family for a good time.

 

Sunday night, the Pleasant Ridge creamery burned to the ground.  About 8:30 p.m. the fire was discovered.  After much hard work, 40 tubs of butter and some cream was saved.  The loss was thought to be about $3,000.

 

Monday, a meeting of the stockholders was held, and it was decided to rebuild at once.  The Pleasant Ridge creamery is one of the best in the county, and does a large business.  The stockholders are influential farmers and large dairymen who are making a great success of the creamery. 

 

There will be a picnic at Lynn Park on Sunday, June 12.  A baseball game will be played between Granton and Lynn.  Music will be provided by a Marshfield orchestra.  Everybody is invited to enjoy the day. 

 

The overseer of the beet industry in the Town of Grant is living in Herman Krause’s granary.  The overseer had a young man helping him move his household goods last Friday.  While riding on top of the wagon load, he fell from the load, and received a broken shoulder.

 

Good things come in a bunch at Loyal lately, it seems.  The Catholic Church congregation is now laying foundation for their new school.  It is to be a modern structure in every particular.  It will be built of pressed cream brick, with a tile roof.  The dimensions are 72’x52’, and will cost about $11,000.

 

Loyal is also getting a new opera house.  The management is planning on a building about 45’x120’ with a 30 ft. stage; a floor of 40’x80’; and a 10 ft. area for ticket office and cloak room.  There will be a basement which will be used for suppers, lodges, etc.  The building will cost in the neighborhood of $5,000 to $6,000.  It will be located near the Allen block.

 

Stop in at Howard & Johnson show rooms in Neillsville to see the REO touring car, $1,000, (top is extra).  The 4-passenger roadster, with top, is $1,000; the 10 H. P. Runabout, $500.

 

The North Side Store, J. W. Herrian, prop., has groceries and dry goods.  This week’s grocery specials are cans of salmon at 10¢, 11¢, 15¢, 16¢ & 25¢; cans of tomatoes, 10¢; soda crackers, 5 1/2¢.  Dry Goods specials: Calico cloth, 6¢ yd; dress gingham, 10¢ yd; men’s work shirts, 43¢ each; men’s dress shoes, $1.85 pr.; ladies dress shoes, $2.75 pr.

 

Albert Neis of Christie was moving the house he bought from Richardson last Saturday.  Sparks flew off the engine and started the house on fire in several places on the roof.  Fortunately, plenty of water helped extinguish the flames.

 

June 1949

 

The York Dairy, located three and a half miles northwest of Granton, was destroyed by fire, last Friday.  Plans are being made to rebuild the factory, according to Al Breseman, its owner.

 

The fire damage is estimated at nearly $20,000.  Breseman suffered a severe hand laceration and other injuries during the fire.

 

Breseman plans to build a new one-story factory on the same location. They will use cinder block in the structure with a flat roof.

 

The York Dairy was handling a run of about 20,000 pounds of milk daily.  The Breseman trucks are now hauling the milk to the York Center factory, where facilities are straining to take care of the additional load.  Two of the York Dairy factory workers are working with the York Center factory.

 

St. Mary’s Catholic School held graduation exercises for seven students on Tuesday evening.  The graduates were; Ruth Ann Burr, Frederick Dux, Louis Koran, Lorraine Meissner, Delores Statz, Joanne Wasserburger and Thomas Tibbett.

 

The former Episcopal Church building in Neillsville, recently remodeled into office space by W. B. Tufts, has been purchased by the Lynn Insurance Companies.  The purchase was made on June 1st, which incidentally is the 71st anniversary of the Lynn Insurance companies.  The building is located on the intersection of Court and Fourth Streets, adjacent to the Neillsville Armory.

 

A ten-year plan, Neillsville style, has been completed by Joe Lewerenz as a restaurateur in Neillsville. 

 

Starting a small restaurant on a side street in 1937, the Sweet Shop owner said this week that he had little then but dreams.  As the restaurant prospered, the dreams were brought into reality, until it is now a complete far-to-consumer operation.

 

In addition to the restaurant, there is an ice cream manufacturing business; two complete and independent locker plants; the operation of several farms, from which the milk and produce is grown, processed and sold through the Sweet Shop outlet; meat curing and smoking department; a pastry bakery, and enterprises operating under one roof.

 

Marking the 10th anniversary, Lewerenz is holding an open house in his plant on Saturday and Sunday, when the public is invited to view their operation.

 

The Wisconsin State Board of Health will have a mobile e-ray unit available in the central and southern Clark County area for free chest x-rays.  This service will be available to all adults in the county 18 years of age or over, free of charge.  The purpose of the service is with the state’s effort to locate all cases of tuberculosis in Wisconsin. 

 

The Rev. and Mrs. George Longenecker will bring to a close their long residence in Neillsville.  They will remain at Sunset Point through this summer.  In the fall, they will rid themselves of their real and personal property.  Plans are that they will move to Wauwatosa, where they will make their home with their daughter, Mrs. Gladys Edwards.

 

The Neillsville Athletics baseball staff has been strengthened by the addition of Hank Lukes, a La Crosse State Teacher’s College star.

 

Lukes will join the pitching staff as the Neillsville A’ face four opponents in the next eight days.  Tonight, they meet Marty Crowe’s St. Patrick’s team of Eau Claire at 8:15 p.m.  Big Jim Haas and Jim Baierl will be forming the starting battery for the Athletics.

 

The “go-ahead” has been given for some extensive work to be done on county parks, granted by the Clark County Board.  The most extensive of the work ordered was that of completing the Greenwood dam, leveling off of islands around the dam, and placing gates in the dam. 

 

Other projects receiving attention included the erection of a shelter house at Memorial Park; repairing and marking the trails with signs at Wildcat Mound and Bruce Mound as well as clean-up of brush and developing parking areas.

 

Improvement work will be done at Rock Dam, replacing rip-rap at the dam site, and general clean-up of the grounds.

 

Members of the Park Committee include: Lowell Schultz, Chairman; Joe Plautz, Elroy Broeske, Otto Hiller and H. R. Baird.

 

The camping season at Camp Higichari, on Lake Arbutus, will get under way Sunday when 16 boys of the local scout troop settle in for a week’s stay.

 

Mr. and Mrs. Tim Nugent, camp directors, arrived Tuesday to prepare for the summer camp period, which will continue through August 4th.  Throughout the summer approximately 168 Neillsville children, representing seven boys and girls organizations, are expected to have a taste of camp life there.  Camp cook will be Mrs. John Stanton.

 

As far as a lot of people west of the city are concerned, the Southern Clark County Baseball league championship pennant will be at stake Sunday afternoon.

 

On that afternoon, Grand View and Globe – two contenders who rub elbows everyday – are going to meet in their first encounter of the season.

 

Any game between these two teams is good for a record crowd.  But, inasmuch as the hopes hinge on both teams wanting to win this game, it is likely to draw as many west-of-Neillsville residents as a quart of molasses draws flies.

 

As a result of the season’s play thus far, Globe is leading the southern circuit with five wins and one defeat.  Grand View currently is tied for second place with Lynn.  Should Grand View win while Lynn is winning, a three-way tie would develop.

 

On the other hand, should Globe out-class Grand View, it would remain on top of the southern Clark County league heap, and probably stay there the rest of the season.

 

Only time will tell.

 

Clark County marriage licenses issued: Henry Neilsen, Greenwood and Beatrice Schwarze, Owen; Delbert Sloniker, Greenwood, and Shirley Schafer, Spencer; James Bradshaw, Loyal and Janet Luchterhand, Loyal; James Knops, Glenwood City, and Patricia Siegden, Owen; Ortan Dahlby, Greenwood, and Lorraine Balcerek, Cornell; Vernon Baumgartner, Colby, and Dorothy Young, Colby; Clarence Hagedorn, Neillsville, and Anola Tews, Spencer; Warren Thomas, Birch-wood, and Verena Price, Unity.

 

A circa 1950 scene of the Fifth Street and Grand Avenue intersection in Neillsville: The building (center of photo) on the northwest corner was Stelloh’s garage.  Paulson’s car dealership and repair shop was on the lower level of the northeast corner building.  The Moose Lodge Hall occupied the second story portion, serving many community needs for dances, various parties, meetings, etc.

 

 

 


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