Clark County Press, Neillsville,

April 21, 2004, Page 15

Transcribed by Dolores (Mohr) Kenyon.

Index of "Oldies" Articles 

 

 

Compiled by Dee Zimmerman

 

 

Clark County News

April 1894

 

There will be a Methodist Church chicken pie sociable at the residence of Mr. Stephen Welsh, tomorrow night.  A cordial invitation is extended to all.  Everybody should make it a point to carry along cake, pickles or anything else eatable when they come to the sociable.  The guests are asked to bring along their spare change.  Come out and help Mr. Foster.

••••••••••

Recently, the Weston Town board appointed a committee of 24 taxpayers, 12 from each side of the Black River.  They were to view the old bridge over the river, in that township, to determine what to do with it considering its dangerous condition.  Tuesday, they met at the bridge pronouncing it utterly useless and then started ripping up the planking.  The town will take prompt action toward putting in a new iron bridge at the earliest possible moment.

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Notice: For nine years past, I have good-naturedly stood much annoyance and trespass on my premises by baseball players.  This is a timely notice so that the baseball players will stop trespassing this year.

••••••••••

Dewitt Hart has traded his residence, on Clay Street, to Ad Kimball our popular deputy postmaster, for the old Kimball farm in Western Pine Valley.  It is a good trade both ways and puts both in better shape.

••••••••••

John Reddan sold his residence property, last week, to Albert Harriman for $800.  It is known as the S.F. Chubb place and is at present occupied by Teddy Dryskow, the barber.

••••••••••

Mrs. M. L. Walker is doing the ladies of the city good service in the millinery line, this spring.  We have examined her stock and must admit the fact that it is unexcelled.  Mrs. Walker is a lady of the finest taste and her skill is well known.  She has put her prices in consonance with the times so those of smaller incomes may have hopes for a fair share of her patronage.

••••••••••

Dr. W. J. Brewster is to build a new residence on the site occupied by his present home.  The building work will begin as soon as the old house is moved off. The old upright house has been bought by Mr. Sherbinsky and will be moved to his lot.  Doc’s friends delight to see him doing this sort of thing.

••••••••••

The question has to be decided, at the coming city election, whether the city bonds itself for $3,000 with which to build an iron bridge over O’Neill Creek at Grand Avenue.  The Neillsville Times hates municipal expense at this time, but supposes it has got to be done.  But mark this: Years and years ago, we stormed against wooden bridges and now come our opportunity to point at the old condemned bridge and say, “We told you so.”  And that’s how it will be with the roads, thousands of dollars wasted yearly, without permanent benefit.

 

The whole secret of dirt road building is to so arrange things that water will get off the road and away from the highway in the quickest possible time.  A dry road is a good road, if kept smooth, not flat, but smooth.

••••••••••

H. N. Withee has his work of reconstruction and renovation well along at the old Gallaher place, at Fifth Street and Grand Avenue.  A new stone cellar is being put in and when all is done it will make a most desirable tenement.

••••••••••

Most of Pleasant Ridge’s young men intend to go to the bark woods, near the tanneries at Medford, for the summer.  We understand that they will be provided with mosquito protectors to prevent themselves being eaten alive by those pests with which the country is filled.

••••••••••

A petition has been sent to the Postal Department at Washington asking for the establishment of a Rural Office at R. W. Canfield’s, to be known as Carlisle, Town of Levis, Wisconsin.

••••••••••

Seth Chapel had an interesting time, last Saturday.  He had a drag, some other farming tools and some dynamite loaded in a wagon. 

 

As he was driving the team, that pulled the wagon, suddenly the team became unmanageable and ran away.  Fortunately, the dynamite did not explode and no bones were broken, but Seth was badly scared all the same.

 

April 1944

 

A modern telephone building, for Neillsville will eventually be constructed on the plot just south of the present Gamble store, according to the intention of William L. Smith, manager of the Badger State Telephone and Telegraph Company.  Mr. Smith, in reply to a question asked Tuesday evening, stated his purpose to be to erect such a building during his life and to make it worthy of the community.  Failure to construct such a building earlier was due to the Depression, Mr. Smith said, with its seriously adverse effect on revenues.

 

This information was given at the conclusion of an address made by Mr. Smith at the Rotary Club meeting.  He added that the site in question, long owned by the Telephone company, could be sold for other uses very readily, but it is being held as an ideal site for a telephone building.

 

Mr. Smith stated that the inability to build some years ago may have turned out to have been a blessing, for the type of building needs to fit the nature of the equipment.  It is entirely possible that equipment of a sort not now in use may be forced by the trend of the time.

 

Mr. Smith gave figures to show what the Depression did to the local telephone business.  The system had reached a top of 1,178 telephones in 1929 and dropped to a low of 835 in 1933; then came a slow gain, with 1,021 reached in 1942 and 1,084 in 1943.  The rate of recent growth, locally, has been on an even pace with the growth in number of subscribers in the Bell system.

••••••••••

Confirmation services were conducted, Palm Sunday, by the Rev. N. J. Dechant, at Zion Evangelical and Reformed Church.  The following young people were received into membership of the church: Benjamin Harder, Gloria Milton, Ruth Vornholt, Shirley Haugen, Russell Seelow, Frederick Seelow, Edna Shaw, Dorothy Subke, Bonita Van Gordon and Donald Anderson.  Two adults, Mr. and Mrs. Leo Staffen, were also admitted to membership.

 

The following group of young people was also members of the confirmation class, but was prevented attendance at the Palm Sunday service due to illness: Delores Staffen, JoAnn Staffen, Hannah Hediger, Mildred Neuhaus and Rose Neuhaus.  They will be confirmed at a later date.

 •••••••••

Cpl. Donald Kunze, Camp Pickett, VA., came Saturday on a ten-day furlough, which he is spending at the home of his parents, Mr. and Mrs. Arthur Kunze, at North Hewett Street.  Cpl. Kunze is in the Army Medical Corps.  He was transferred to Camp Pickett on April 1st.  This is his first furlough home since July 1943.

 

M. M. 3/c Glenn Uran of the U. S. Navy, who has been on furlough at the home of his parents in Princeton, Minn., stopped in Neillsville Saturday and Sunday for a visit with his two sisters, Mrs. Albert Marks, West Fourth Street and Mrs. Albert Tremmeling, Town of Grant.  Uran has returned from 20 months of service in the Pacific War area.

••••••••••

A new worry came to the dairy industry of Clark County this week when it became evident that licensed cheesemakers, under 26 years of age, have no preferred claim for deferment.  Up to this time, the local Selective Service Board, having an understanding of the urgency of the service of cheesemakers in this dairy region, has been able to retain, in the county, sufficient help to handle the milk production in the factories.  But now the local board has no authority to defer men under 26, unless they are directly engaged in farm production.  Young licensed cheesemakers appear at this time to have no better standing than any other non-farm boys.

 

The result is that some cheese factories, operating with young licensed cheesemakers, are on the anxious seat.  With the blessing of the local board, they have tried to secure deferment from the state board, but as yet there has been no favorable word from that quarter.

 

All the indication is that the National Selective Service will be tough in its demand for men under 26 years of age.  The Army and Navy want these young men, in preference to older men and the purpose is evidently to draw the line right and to take them, leaving civilian service even of important nature, to adjust itself as best it can. 

 

It is estimated that there are, in Clark County, from 100 to 150 men under the age of 26 and not working on farms who are affected by the new national order, concentrating induction upon the group of 26 years and under.

 

The Selective Service Board of Clark County has, upon its own motion and in the face of present manpower regulations, deferred 24 cheesemakers, under 26 years of age.  The board has notified the State Director of Selective Service of the action taken.  The members of the local board have jointly offered their resignations, in the event that their course of action is disapproved.

••••••••••

Mr. and Mrs. Forest Gault, now of Watertown but formerly of Neillsville, have purchased the George Broihier farm in south Pine Valley, located half a mile west of Day Corners.  The consideration of payment is understood to have been $90 per acre, which is perhaps the top price of recent record in this section.  Mr. Broihier retains possession until December 1, 1944 and will of course have the crops of the 1944 season.

 

The sale of the farm was the direct result of an advertisement, which Mr. Broihier inserted in The Clark County Press.  There were 30 or more replies to this advertisement, which reflects the demand for good farms.

 

Mr. and Mrs. Gault intend to make major improvements, giving them one of the finest farm homes in this section.

 

Mr. and Mrs. Broihier moved to Clark County from Iowa in 1915, locating on the farm now sold.  They bought from Mrs. Minnie Markham, who resides now in Neillsville.  Mrs. Broihier’s health has not been good lately and this prevents announcement of definite plans for the family’s future.

 

The Broihier family has taken root in this section.  When they came to Clark County, Mr. and Mrs. Broihier brought four children, all now married and residing in this community, as follows: Mrs. Ed Hauge, Mrs. Faye Wasserburger, Mrs. George Bryan, Jr., Neillsville and Mrs. David Bender, Granton.

••••••••••

Mr. and Mrs. Harold O’Brien have purchased the John Lastofka house on West 12th Street and expect to occupy it about May 1st.  The house, which has been occupied by the O’Brien family on South Willow Street, has been sold by Seif & Svetlik to Clarence Stiemke.  He, with his family, plans to move there about May 1st.

••••••••••

An emergency drive for waste paper is beginning at once.  Despite the bad roads, the campaign is being put through now because the paper shortage is so critical.  An announcement of the campaign has been made by Henry Rahn, co-chairman of the Clark County Salvage Committee.

••••••••••

A sheep-shearing school will be held in Clark County on May 3 and 4.  This school is sponsored through the cooperation of the extension service from the University of Neillsville and representatives of the Wisconsin Vocational Education Department.  The schools for Clark County will be conducted on the Phillip Capelle farm, Loyal, May 3 and on the William Tucker farm, Loyal, May 4.  Those interested may contact either Carl Laurenz, Agricultural teacher at Loyal, or W. R. Marquart, Clark County agent at Neillsville.

••••••••••

Congratulations and best wishes were extended to E. A. Beeckler on Wednesday evening.  He quietly observed his 90th birthday anniversary at his home with a dinner party attended by members of his immediate family and a few close friends.

 

Mr. Beeckler, who early in life showed a fondness for study, acquired a teacher’s certificate when very young.  After teaching in the country schools of Sheboygan County for a few years, he came to Clark County, where he was engaged in teaching at schools in the Town of Lynn for several terms.

 

When the Granton School District Board found it necessary to enlarge their school building, soon after its organization 77 years ago, they then employed two teachers, one being Mr. Beeckler who taught in the upper floor school room. 

 

Since then, the name Beeckler has been closely connected with educational groups in this county.

 

Mr. Beeckler settled on a farm near the village and his daughters were all teachers in various rural and village schools in the county.  Now, three of his granddaughters are teaching.

 

It is interesting to know that three generations of their family have taught in the local schools.  First, Mr. Beeckler taught school at Windfall Corners; next, Miss Daphne Beeckler, in the State Graded School and at present Miss Audrey Pickett, a granddaughter, the daughter of Tessie Beeckler, Mrs. Earl Pickett of Spencer, has charge of the primary grades in the same school building.

 

The same experience also is found in the records of the Merry Vale School, where Mr. Beeckler was one of the first teachers, to be followed by three of his daughters: Vera (Mrs. Clark Waterman); Miss Pearle, now supervising teacher in Vernon County and Holdu (Mrs. Raymond Smith) of Milwaukee and the present teacher, Miss Margaret Beeckler.

••••••••••

Joe Cardarelle has traded the house on West Fifth Street, which he purchased some time ago from the Charles Campbell estate, for the Mrs. Bert Dresden building on West Sixth Street, where the Exchange Store is located.  Mrs. Dresden expects to move soon to her new home.

 

Eugene Short has purchased the Kleckner farm in the Town of Grant, with all implements and stock.  This was the former John Dietrich farm.

•••••••••••

 

 

In 1887, the Granton School District voted to build a second story to the school building and hire two teachers.  E. A. Beeckler was one of the first teachers to teach in the upper room of that building.  The two-story building, on the right in the photo, is the 1887 structure.  The High School building, at the left was started in 1917, with construction completed for occupancy in February of 1918.  (Photo courtesy of “Granton Community Memories” Book)

 

 


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