Clark County Press, Neillsville, WI

May 9, 2001, Page 20

Transcribed by Dolores (Mohr) Kenyon.

Index of "Oldies" Articles 

The Good Old Days

 

Compiled by Dee Zimmerman

 

Clark County News

 

May 1886

 

The Clark County Poor Farm expenses for this month were a rather large amount, $127.39.

 

Sam Calway and his crew of painters are working at Greenwood.  They are touching up the interior of A. S. Eaton’s residence.

 

The Dexterville Construction Co. put 50 more men to work on the new MD&N railway extension last week.  Over 100 men are now employed on the division.  The work will now be pushed rapidly forward.

 

The Klopf barn has been rented for the season by Chas. Cornelius.  Cornelius will use the barn as a warehouse for the train loads of reapers, mowers, seeders, threshing machines, stump-pullers, wagons, carriages and other equipment sold in his business.  Farmers know they can go to see Charley for anything they need in the line of machinery because he will have it.

 

W. S. Colburn & Co. has purchased a most substantial new express wagon to be pulled by a spirited horse fitted with a new harness.  It will be the most knobby outfitted delivery wagon of the city.  The delivery service will run in connection with the Neillsville Roller Mills, delivering flour, feed and goods to any part of the city or suburbs.

 

It is the police of every wide-awake city to make abundant provision for public parks.  This should be done in our city at the earliest date possible.  Progressive people understand the desirability of parks, so we direct the Neillsville people to that subject of needing a public park.  There are several beautiful pieces of forest inside the city limits which could be secured at but little cost. These plots would serve as public places of recreation.

 

Last week, Henry Myer received a bay Morgan-Bashow stallion, 10 years old, weighing 1,200 lbs. from Illinois.  The bay is a spirited animal, fine stepper, a most desirable addition to the stock of Clark County.  Myer didn’t respond when questioned as to the horse’s trotting ability.  But, we suspect Myer has something in store for us in the way of a dark horse in the up-coming trotters’ horse race.

 

A person is always startled when he hears himself seriously called an old man for the first time.

 

Nature gets us out of youth into manhood, as sailors are hurried on board of vessels – in a state of intoxication.  We are hustled into maturity reeling with our passions and imaginations.  Then, we have drifted far away from port before we awake out of our illusions.  But to carry us out of maturity into old age, without our knowing where we are going, Mother Nature drags us with strong opiates.  So we stagger along with wide open eyes that see nothing until enough snow has fallen on our heads to rouse our comatose brains out of their stupid trances.  (Written by Oliver Wendell Holmes)

 

Beaulieu has a crew of men working on the foundation of a new house on Clay Street, opposite S. B. Calway’s residence.  Also, Calway plans to more than double the size of his dwelling this summer.  The present upright part of the house will be moved to the rear of the structure for a kitchen and another room.

 

The interior of the Emery Bruley residence is approaching completion.  It is superbly finished. The original wing will now be remodeled to correspond with the upright portion.

 

The Lynn town board has made the decision to have a stage built in the Lynn town hall and will let the job to the lowest bidder.  They are anticipating that vaudeville shows will be coming in on the new railroad, wanting to rent the town hall for their performances.

 

The town of Marshall, in Dane County, is the first, we believe, to take advantage of the new law passed at the last session of the state legislature.  Through this new law, Marshall will establish a town high school.  The measure was thoroughly discussed in a town meeting called for that purpose early in April and carried by a majority of 20 votes.  We understand it is likely that such a move will be consummated to establish such a school in Clark County.

 

The North Side School house looms up large and lofty.  Neillsville may well feel proud of this additional monument to its intelligence and spirit.  The building stands in a very commanding position.

 

B. B. Crockett and sons have completed a fine new barn for Fred Hylier in the Town of Pine Valley.  They are now working on a new barn for themselves.  Their farm is located in the Town of Washburn, near the Levis town line.

 

May 1936

 

Seven Hills Grocery was opened May 14 by Mary Hagen and Vivian Schoenherr on the Myron Wilding land in the Town of Weston.  They have a fine assortment of goods very conveniently arranged in a neat store.

 

Also, there are a fine line of tobaccos and refrigerated goods on hand.  The refrigerated foods will sell well when warm weather comes.  Jerry Schoenherr takes care of their well-managed delivery service.  Victoria Schoenherr assists when the business is rushing.  Linus Prock now has some competition.

 

Lee Mills and Henrietta Schoenherr were married on May 16.  The Herman Schoenherr’s entertained a large crowd of friends and relatives at a supper after the marriage of their daughter, Henrietta.  The beautiful tables were loaded with food as only Mrs. Schoenherr can cook and there was plenty of good cheer to go with it.  Mr. Schoenherr enjoyed every minute of the good time but regretted the absence of his sidekick, Claude Mills.  Presently, Claude Mills is in the Morrison Creek Camp which is quarantined for scarlet fever. Those two men can get good clean fun out of any pleasant occasion.

 

Last Wednesday, the federal officers came to our area.  They raided a large still housed in a barn on an abandoned farm about 11 miles west of Neillsville.  Two men, on the premises, were arrested.

 

The elaborate illicit, alky plant discovered by the agents on the farm, was one of the largest to be uncovered in Wisconsin for many months.  It is believed that the operation was owned by a Minneapolis or Milwaukee bootlegging syndicate.

 

With a capacity of approximately 1,000 gallons of alcohol being produced per day, the plant was valued at $30,000.  It was equipped with its own electric light plant and water pressure system, deep well, oil burners, five 5,800 gallon vats and two copper stills.  The agents completely demolished the plant by using an acetylene torch in their wrecking operations.

 

The men arrested gave their residence addresses as Wausau and Milwaukee.  The third man escaped.

 

The plant has apparently been in operations since the first part of the year, in the Town of Hewett.

 

Two men, who a week ago, put on a drinking orgy and spending spree in this vicinity, are believed to have been responsible for the “tip-off” of the still.

 

Everett Skroch, Neillsville, is a graduate of the law department of the University of Wisconsin.  On Saturday, he appeared before the clerk of the Supreme Court in Madison where he was admitted to the bar to practice.  Skroch has been serving his legal apprenticeship with the firm of Rush & Devos.

 

On Friday evening, May 22, Keller’s new Silver Dome Club will hold its formal opening to the public. The new Silver Dome Club, formerly known as the “Fireplace” has been entirely remodeled.  The new addition thereon will accommodate the added entertainment features.  Approximately $12,000 has been expended to make it the entertainment show place of Central and Northern Wisconsin.

 

The new addition of two stories has the tavern part of the Silver Dome Club on the first floor.  A short stairway leads from the tavern through arched doorways into the enlarged dining and dance floor.  The ceiling of the new tavern part is of Spanish plaster with a terrazzo floor and a separate outside entrance.

 

On the second floor, a number of bedrooms for the accommodation of the floor show artists have been arranged.  Five new tourist cabins have been built in the nearby park to accommodate tourists.

 

The new bar in the tavern is of glass block structure, 20 feet long and with a rubber composition top.  All new back bar and other equipment necessary to a tavern has been installed.  An indirect lighting system throughout the building has been installed with current being supplied from their own generating plant.

 

Floor shows will be held nightly in the new Silver Dome Club.  The regular dance programs on Tuesday and Sunday evenings at the Silver Dome ballroom will be augmented by complete floor shows at the Club.  For Friday night’s opening, the management has secured a five-act floor show, direct from the large entertainment booking offices in Chicago.

 

In addition to the regular nightly floor shows, guests may enjoy dinner and dancing.  Orchestra music will be furnished each night with American and Chinese food served.  A Chinese chef will be one of the features of the new entertainment palace.

 

Scheduled entertainment for Sunday, May 24 will be: Ernie Gall and his tailor-made band.  Also, there will be a complete “big time floor show” featuring the famous Gibson and Irene, a deluxe dance team.  Eddie, the four mallet xylophone artist and Cecile Claire, the talented songbird, will be there too.  Tuesday evening, May 26 there will be an old-time dance with Frank Eikenbush and His Original Cowboy Band.

 

The first meeting of the new Forestry and Zoning committee was held Tuesday.  A tour of the forest setup projects and a consultation with Superintendent Ed Marlowe of the Globe CCC camp and Vern Hilliker, District Forest Ranger, will be features of the meeting.

 

Clark County Forester Alan Covell reports that his crew of men just finished planting 80,000 trees in the Town of Washburn.  The total cost of this project is about $1,000 and 35 men were employed to complete it.

 

About the middle of this week they expect to plant 50,000 more trees.  This planting is to be entirely of white pine.

 

The Girl Scouts held their third annual Mother’s Day banquet in the Kiwanis rooms on Monday evening at six-thirty.  This pleasant affair evolved from the Girl Scout custom of taking over the culinary duties on “Mother’s Day.”  The entire dinner was planned and executed solely by the Girl Scouts themselves.  However, Mrs. Rose Tompkins assisted them with preparing the meal.

 

The tables were decorated with green crepe paper and lovely wild flowers, which the girls had gathered.

 

Miss Joyce Kleckner was official spokeswoman and Miss Betty Cassler gave the welcoming toast.  Mrs. Art Russell gave the response in behalf of the mothers.

 

During the course of the evening there was group singing, a vocal duet by Marguerite Brown and Rachel Eide.  Several Mother’s Day poems were read by Marcia Russell.  Marian Calway gave a humorous selection.  Scout leader, Mrs. Jake Hoesley, gave a short talk and the meeting closed with the singing of “Taps.”

 

W. J. Kluchesky, D.C., and Selma Foemmel, N.D., are opening professional offices on the second floor of the Leo Miller building, 157 South Hewett Street.  They will open for business on Saturday of this week.

 

Kluchesky is a graduate of the Wisconsin College of Chiropractory and of the National School of Drugless Physicians.  Foemmel is a graduate of the National School of Naturopathy.

 

Both members have many years of experience in their line and are equipped to engage in complete drugless health methods.

 

Wallace J. Landry, Clark County’s Agriculture Agent, is a native of our county.

 

He was born in 1889, on the farm started by his father, John B. Landry, in the early part of the 1880s, in the Town of Reseburg, Clark County.  At the time John Landry purchased the land, it was an entire wilderness.

 

Young Landry attended rural school until the sixth grade; then attended the Thorp Public Schools.  He graduated from Thorp High School in 1907.  In following a teaching profession, he taught at the Goff and Boie Rural Schools for the five years, between 1907 and 1912.

 

Landry entered the University of Wisconsin in 1912 and graduated with his Bachelor of Science degree in 1916.  He was a member of the 1914 and 1915 Varsity football teams.  Also, he was a member of the 1914 and 1915 Wrestling teams, captain in 1916.  Always interested in athletics, he coached his school teams until coming to Neillsville.

 

Landry served as Principal of the Gilmanton High School in 1916 to 1925, inclusive, except for a year of service in the infantry during World War I.

 

Entering the University of Wisconsin in September, 1925, Landry studied post graduate work, graduating in June 1926, with a Master of Science degree.

 

Following his graduation, Landry was Principal of Dunn County Agricultural School at Menomonie.  He filled that position until beginning his duties as county agent of Clark County in October of 1929.

 

Landry’s mother passed away in 1924 and his dad in 1931.  He continues to operate the old farm at Thorp, so has known Clark County from the time when the rail fences and log barns were common.  He also remembers the pioneers telling of the early logging days and now sees the land as it has developed and transformed into one of the ranking dairy counties of the state.

 

Landry married Cleo Krampenter, of Gilmanton, in 1918.  They have two children, John Wallace and Lenore Louise.

 

Charles Cornelius, left, and friend, Chris Rexter, right, posed for this photograph, circa 1910.  In the late 1800s, Cornelius was an implement dealer.  Later, he purchased the corner lot on Hewett and Fifth Streets.  He removed the Walk building, then built a new facility for the First National Bank, established and secured by him in 1910.  He assisted in setting up other banking institutions in and out-of-state.

 

Cornelius’ second mark to be left in the city of Neillsville is the attractive home on the corner of Second and Clay Streets.  The rest of the block was designed with beautiful flower gardens and walkways open to the public for the enjoyment of area residents.

 

 


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