Eland Country
by
Ellen Lyons
The first white men to penetrate the wilds of Northern Wisconsin were surveyors sent out by the State and Federal Governments to form boundaries and explore the timberlands and swamps. They were closely followed by lumbermen and pioneer families who came over the old military roads from the East and on wagon trails hewed from the wilderness as they made their way North.
Eland was named from the great herds of deer that inhabited the Western part of Shawano County. The eland is a member of the deer family native to Africa. Eland Junction came into existence in 1879-80 when the Milwaukee, Lake Shore and Western Railway Company extended their line to the Eland terminal. From this point one line was extended north, a branch East ward through Shepley. Shawano and to Green Bay. Another branch, twenty miles in length ran West between the Junction in Shawano County. through the Villages of Elderon and Galloway; Towns of Franzen, Elderon and Norrie, in Marathon County to Rosholt, in Portage County. The line was built to accommodate the Nye Lumber Company and to move farm produce. particularly potatoes, the main crop on many farms.
In 1893, the line was sold to the Chicago & Northwestern Railroad Company at a time when logs, farm machinery and merchandise for the stores were shipped by freight. The Green Bay Branch is still in existence, but the Eland-Rosholt line was discontinued in 1956. Thousands of tons of rails were removed and sold to steel mills for reconversion. The old right-of-way is now overgrown with vegetation. Even the ties are gone but their imprints are still visible. The only reminder of a once busy railroad branch.
This marked the decline of the railroads and the beginning of the trucking era. Transportation was transferred from the rails to the highways for both freight and passenger use. The depot. a replica of all depots on the Northwestern Line. was erected as soon as the last rails reached this Northern outpost. The red painted building was equipped with two waiting rooms. freight room. ticket and telegraph offices and a large charcoal burning heater. Travel from all directions centered at the Eland Depot. A crossing guard. Henry Lutzenchin was engaged to keep wild animals. cattle and children from the tracks.
Charles Kuckhausen, was the depot agent. followed by Jake Stephen. Albert James. Charles Fuchs. W. C. Pickering, William Burke and Arthur Bigford. Now Arthur Ecker is the agent. Bob Holmgren and Jerome Szutkowski are operators. Perry Angus was an early telegrapher Arthur Bigford was telegraph agent in 1912, when John Jones was killed in a wreck near Lindhurst, on the Green Bay line. Heavy rains had washed out the roadbed and undermined the track. The train derailed and engineer Jones was killed. His death was mourned by the people of Eland and their children, for he had been a friend to both.
Mr. Jones owned the first automobile in the village and through his kindness each child was given a ride in the new machine. His death was a shock to Mr. Bigford and he had given Jones his orders that day. Mr. Bigford was agent at Monico, Pelican Lake and Birnamwood but the death of John Jones engineer on train 212 was the tragedy of his career.
The first locomotives were lighted with kerosene head lights and powered wit h steam, equipped with a huge fire box that consumed tons of cordwood and coal. A long mournful whistle sounded as they rounded the curve, black smoke poured from the stack and steam hissed as the train stopped at the platform.
Locomotives were turned, inspected and repaired in the big smoke blackened old round house on the side track. For many years a crew of mechanics, that included Robert Babcock, W. D. Brown and Charles Warning, kept the engines repaired and operated the turn table. It was work of great responsibility when sixty-four trains ran through the Eland yards every day. Fourteen went West to Wausau and beyond and the same number East to Green Bay. The remainder were North and South bound.
Train hopping was a great sport for the kids of that time. They would hop on at the Junction, ride a few miles and hop another one back. Werner Wolfinger, a boy in 1910, remembers times when they rode to Norrie Lake to swim and back in the same afternoon.
The seats in the passenger trains were upholstered in red plush, sometimes decorated with cinders. A conductor in resplendent uniform called the stations and a candy butcher offered his wares as the train rolled on. The train whizzed past farm houses and villages at thirty miles an hour. Telegraph poles marched along in swift parade. Along the way there were stops to take on fuel and water.
Their are still old timers in Eland who remember the steam locomotives before the diesel replaced them. There are many who remember the great fire of 1913 that destroyed the depot, the Shannen house and almost the whole town.
The late W. C. Pickering was the first mail clerk on the railroad line to Eland. He and Mrs. Pickering came to Eland in 1889 and resided there the remainder of their lives. They were married June 27, 1885, in Milwaukee, spent one year in Medford and two years in Kaukauna, before locating in Eland. Mr. Pickering was depot agent for four years before entering the mail service. He served as mail clerk for 29 years before retiring in 1922. After his retirement he served as village president and village clerk.
Mrs. Pickering was president of the Congregational Church Ladies Aid Society for twenty-five years. Although they had six children of their own, they made room in their hearts and home for three more, C. B. Robert and Otto Brown. They were among the citizens who represented Eland in public spirit and civic progress.
Besides the railroad men who worked and railroad station attendants there were "section" men who maintained the right-of-way, cleared brush away, inspected rails and switches and made the track safe for travel. Many Eland boys began work on the "section" at the ages of twelve and fourteen and spent the rest of their lives there.
Felix Szutkowski is one. He finished school at fourteen and went immediately to work as a section man. He retired in 1964 after fifty years on the right-of-way. He still lives in Eland and remembers the old pick and shovel days, ten hours long.
William Frank, is another trainman, still living in Eland. He has a remarkable memory of the days when children rode to school on the train. He now is retired and resides with his daughter, Mrs. James Ringstad. Orville Rutter is a second generation railroad man.
The year 1956 marked the beginning of the decline in railroading. Within the next three years many trains had ceased to run. Depots all along the line were abandoned. The Eland depot is the only one standing today. Freight trains still run, but passenger travel is a thing of the past. The transition from steam to diesel was a milestone in railroad history. The old steam locomotives are now antiques. The young people of today have never seen one. The last chance to see one came on September 24, 1957, when the last steam powered locomotive hauling passenger coaches on the C&NW Line, made an exhibition run from Green Bay, through Eland and Antigo and on to Land O'Lakes and back to Green Bay. The locomotive is now in the Green Bay railroad museum. On that historic day depot platforms along the way were lined with adults and children released from school to view a steam locomotive for the first and last time.
The old excitement of seeing the trains come in, the strangers on mysterious business, the hustle and bustle at the depot is gone. The old man-powered hand cars are obsolete. Electric cars now run the rails. Only a few section men remain. Trucks now haul the mail, deliver everything from cattle to automobiles and merchandise for the stores.
The railroad era is gone and the space age is at hand. The children of today study air currents and air ways, scientific explorations into space and subjects undreamed of by their grandparents.
The Village of Eland and part of the Town of Wittenberg were once a part of the Town of Birnamwood. There were no boundaries until 1900, when surveyors established lines separating the townships. At an organization meeting held in 1900 John Shannen was elected chairman; Fred Stipp, clerk and Charles Grabbert, treasurer. In 1901, Eli Elefson was elected chairman; Edward Franklin, clerk; Charles Grabbert, treasurer.
In 1905, Eland became a definite unit with its own officers. F. S. Gaylord was instrumental in the incorporation of the village. Application was made to the Shawano County Court and approval was granted. In 1908. At the first election J. F. Franklin was elected president; C. A. Perry, Jr., clerk and Clarence Grabbert, treasurer. The trustees were C. L. Graves, Z. E. Keister, E. C. Fuller, E. H. Franklin, John Shannen and Charles Warning. In 1973, village officers are Clarence Graves president; Mrs. James Ringstad, clerk and George C. Smith, treasurer: "Swede" Larson is village Marshall.
Before incorporation streets and highways were laid out. John Sherlock was the first superintendent of highway construction. His parents, William Sherlock, I, were among the first settlers. They celebrated their Golden wedding anniversary in Eland, the first one held there.
The horse and buggy era ended and the motor age began when Henry Wolfinger established the first Ford Agency and Garage in Eland, and in 1916, took over the Buick Agency. Mr. Wolfinger, who came to Eland in 1910 with his parents, the late Mr. and Mrs. John Wolfinger, had an eventful business career.
Besides the automobile agencies, he was in the hotel business; ran a bowling alley in Tigerton; the Mayflower Lake Resort; Club Normandie and purchased the Ford Garage in Birnamwood in 1947. Later he retired and his sons operated the business. Henry, Jr., and his wife, Caroline. now operate the Ford Garage. The brothers, Ray and family live in Appleton, and Earl and family in Sebring, Florida. Mr. Wolfinger died May 9, 1972, in Sebring, Florida, where he spent his retirement years. He was 83. Mrs. Wolfinger, the former Thelita Stelter, Eland, still resides in Sebring.
An interesting episode in' his life was revealed after his death. Henry Wolfinger was the driver of the Overland car in which Theodore Roosevelt rode from the Gilpatrick Hotel in Milwaukee to the hall where he was to deliver a campaign address on October 14, 1912. Mr. Roosevelt was shot as he was about to enter the car, driven by Mr. Wolfinger. According to history Mr. Roosevelt made light of his injury, but collapsed on the platform. He recovered and went on with his campaign.
Among the advertisers listed in the 1911 edition of the Shawano County plat book are: "The Eland State Bank, Established in 1905; Directors: A. J. Plowman, L. S. Jacobson, August Pukall, Gus H. Bartleme, Adam Rettig, T. J. Mahon, J. H. Walechka, I. E. Kinny; Cloverleaf Creamery, butter. Mr. Kinney had the first creamery in Eland and J. T. Henderson, the first cheese factory. Charles Westphal also was an early cheese maker.
Thomas J. Mahon, attorney. had a professional card in the book. C. H. Alley, advertised general merchandise, flour and feed. P. W. Holgendorf, sold general merchandise, cedar posts and poles. R. S. Hause advertised shelf and heavy hardware and also tin ware. The Hilgendorf Store is now the village hall. Albert Schmidge had a store and dance hall.
Three physicians practiced in the Eland area with offices in the village: Dr. L. Lewis, Dr. Porter and Dr. John C. Petty, who had been at Birnamwood for several years previously. He came in about 1900 and remained until his death in 1907. Dr. Lewis also had practiced in Birnamwood and Aniwa. Eland also supported a weekly newspaper, the County Line Journal, for a few years.
Ernest Grabbert who came to Eland, with his parents in 1886, at the age of nine, remained a resident until his death in 1969, at the age of 92. His parents operated a 180 acre farm on land now owned by Jo Zutkowski. Not all of his years were spent in Eland. He learned the tinsmith trade at the Puchner Hardware Store in Wittenberg. He was also head sawyer at a Michigan sawmill, but his home and family, wife and daughter, Mrs. Leonard (Meta) Brumm were in Eland.
Mr. Grabbert was a member of the first orchestra in Eland. Other members were William Woodruff Bloomfield Brown, Edward Franklin, Mr. and Mrs. Sherlock, (first name unknown) and Miss Marcia Clark. They played for dances in Clausen's Hall and a dance hall above Franklin's Store. The old square dances were popular pastimes on Saturday nights. Those were the days of music and fun.
Adam Rettig operated the first meat market. Like all old time butchers, Mr. Rettig slaughtered his own meat, and made his own sausage, Before refrigeration he kept the big old ice box filled with cakes of ice. The Rettig Market supplied the hotels, boarding house, lunch room, local homes and rural districts.
His son, John, left the old hometown to seek success in California. William saw the world with the U. S. Navy, and now with his wife, Alice, resides in Birnamwood. The daughter, Anna, now Mrs. Emerson Cottrel, also traveled far.
From 1941 until 1945, her husband. was employed by the U. S. Government on the Panama Canal construction project, and they were stationed in the Village of Gatun, in the Panama Canal Zone. They had many interesting experiences and have pictures of the natives and the construction site as mementoes.
The McLaughlin Family was prominent in early Eland. William McLaughlin was killed at Pearl Harbor, the first Eland Soldier to die in that war. Edward Ellison and Louis Floo were killed in World War I. The latter's mother, Mrs. Andrew Floo, was honored as a Gold Star Mother by the Birnamwood American Legion Auxiliary during her latter years. The late Art Aanonson, was a member of the Birnamwood American Legion Post, a 'veteran of World War I. Fred Stelter also served in that war.
In the early 1890's electricity brightened up the dark corners and refrigerated cars brought fresh meat, fruit and vegetables and did away with the kerosene lamps and lanterns. Running water was added to this modern convenience to modernize the Saturday night bath. Tele- phones brought communication. These original methods were abolished and this village of less than three hundred inhabitants is now as modern as tomorrow.
There is an automobile in almost every garage, TV antenna on every roof, good highways, school, shopping centers, nearby hospitals to keep the residents of this County Line Town up to date.
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