History of Barron County Wisconsin, Part 186

Author: Franklyn Curtiss-Wedge
Publication date: 1922
Publisher:
Number of Pages: 1767

USA > Wisconsin > Barron County > History of Barron County Wisconsin > Part 186

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to 1903, and was subsequently county treas- urer, residing at Barron. He is now a mem- ber of the firm of Johnson Ecklie Co. of this city. J. F. Fuller was postmaster from 1903 until 1907 and died at Cumberland in 1917. H. A. Pease succeeded Mr. Fuller in 1907 and served until 1915. He is still living in Cum- berland and is engaged in the commercial printing business. William C. McMahon was appointed postmaster in June, 1915, and is still serving in that capacity under a com- mission that expires in 1923. On July 1. 1917, the Cumberland postoffice became an office of the second class, and in December, 1918, moved into a new building built for it at the corner of Second and Lake streets, in the center of the city. The new building is of brick, has new equipment throughout, and the space occupied is 25 by 72 feet. Carroll E. Cavanaugh, assistant postmaster, is an officer in the American Legion, having served in the World War. Miss Katherine Cosgrove is despatch clerk and Miss Grace Cosgrove is window clerk at the parcel post and general delivery. There are four rural routes and one Star route, each from 26 to 30 miles in length and serving from 105 to 165 families. George F. Toynbee is carrier on Route No. 1, having entered the service in October, 1918, vice Lewis C. Tappon, who resigned after thirteen years' service to enter the employ of the state bank of Cum- berland. William C. Brown, World War veteran, serves Route No. 2, vice John H. Oren, who was retired in August, 1920, on account of having reached the age of retire- ment as provided by law. August B. Eck- land serves Route No. 3, having succeeded C. E. Stow, who served the route for over ten years and resigned to enter into busi- ness for himself. Mr. Eckland is a World War veteran. Wilbert E. Tewksbury serves Route No. 4, which takes in the Italian set- tlement of 150 families. He entered the service May 1, 1919, taking the place of An- drew Stoll, who served for fifteen years, and who resigned to go into business for him- self. Patrick L. Cosgrove is the contract carrier on the Star Route which serves the postoffices of Loraine and Andrus, Wis., in Polk County. The Cumberland postoffice, with its several routes, serves between 5000 and 6000 patrons, and at this time it is quite possible that another rural route will be added in the near future. It remains only to mention one more individual, who will be remembered by all the surviving old settlers in this region. In pioneer days Lars Gun- derson, who lived in Section 10-but who was no relation to L. L. Gunderson-though not officially connected with the postoffice, made himself extremely useful by carrying the neighbors' mail from Rice Lake and dis- tributing it in his community, making bi- weekly trips for that purpose. He contin- ued this practice for a number of years after the establishment of the postoffice in Cumberland. He received no pay save the appreciation and thanks of those who bene- fitted by his services.

The State Bank of Cumberland was started as the Bank of Cumberland by J. F. Miller and Jeff T. Heath, with a capital of

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$2,500.00. and began business on Oct. 8, 1883. E. V. Benjamin was the first cashier and acted in that capacity until August, 1887, when Mr. Heath sold his interest to Mr. Miller, and C. F. Kalk, who came here from Fond du Lac, Wis., became cashier. On Aug. 25, 1903, the bank was incorporated as the State Bank of Cumberland, and the cap- ital increased to $10,000.00. On Sept. 5, 1919, the capital was again increased, this time to $50,000, at which figure it remains. Mr. F. W Miller has continued as president up to the present time and is still serving (November, 1921). C. F. Kalk remained cashier until June, 1896, when he was suc- ceeded by E. Huser, who served until Sep- tember. 1899, when he was succeeded by A. H. Miller, who still holds that office. In the meanwhile Mr. Kalk, who had become vice president, served in that capacity until his death in the spring of 1921, his succes- sor being E. L. Miller. Miss E. M. Miller is now assistant cashier. The above men- tioned officers constitute the present board of directors. This institution is now the largest state bank in Barron County. Early in July, 1916. the bank moved into a hand- some new building on Second street, con- structed of fine tapestry brick and Bedford stone, the building, furniture and fixtures being valued at over $17,000.00, and which is regarded as one of the best buildings of its kind and dimensions in the state. The growth of deposits has been a marked fea- ture in the progress of the institution. On Dec. 31, 1900, these amounted to $59,470.84; on Dec. 31, 1910, to $245,962.66, and on Dec. 31, 1920 to $757,578.73. On the date last mentioned the surplus fund was $12,676.26, with undivided profits of $9,697.71. The bank operates a number of different depart- ments, including the Commercial (checking accounts), Savings, Insurance, Safety De- posits and Farm Loans. It has now ren- dered 38 years of good service and enjoys in a high degree the confidence of the com- munity and the people of the surrounding territory.

The Island City State Bank was estab- lished as a private bank July 1, 1896, by O. A. Ritan and Jens Swenson, the latter act- ing as cashier. The bank commenced busi- ness with a capital of $2,500.00 in a frame building at the corner of Second and Grove streets. On June 1, 1899, Jay S. Hamilton succeeded Mr. Swenson as cashier. About three years after the organization, S. W. Hines, P. D. Jacobson, John Axilrod and Peter Wachter became associated with Mr. Ritan, and Mr. Wachter became cashier. At this time Mr. Swenson withdrew and went to Minneapolis, where he is still living. On Oct. 15, 1901, Lewis Larson became a part- ner of Mr. Ritan, with a half interest in the business by purchasing the interests of the other partners. In 1902 A. L. Morken be- came assistant cashier. Less than two years after that, on July 29, 1903, Mr. Ritan sold bis half interest to F. W. Miller, and the institution was then reorganized and adopt- ed the name of the Island City Bank. The capital was placed at $5,000.00 and business was continued, with F. W. Miller as presi-

dent; Lewis Larson, vice president and cashier, and A. L. Morken, assistant cashier. The three directors were F. W. Miller, Lewis Larson and Mrs. Larson. With this working force the bank continued business until Aug. 25, 1905, when F. R. Townsend of Sycamore, Ill., bought the stock of F. W. Miller and be- came president of the bank, the other offi- cers remaining the same as before. On Sept. 1, 1905, the capitalization was in- creased to $25,000.00, and a new board of directors came in, consisting of F. R. Town- send, Walter Langlois (of Sycamore, Ill.), S. W. Hines, T. O. Mason, A. L. Morken, John D. Olson and Lewis Larson. The board then authorized Mr. Larson to buy a lot and build a two-story brick and stone build- ing on Second street, which was completed in the summer of 1906 and occupied, and which has remained the home of the institu- tion ever since. In July, 1907, Tom O. Ma- son and Lewis Larson bought the interest of F. R. Townsend and Walter Langlois, and T. O. Mason thereupon became president and continued as such until July 12, 1913, when Lewis Larson bought his interest and also a controlling interest in the bank and became president. After this there were no changes in the official board until July 10, 1921, when Mr. Morken was advanced to the position of vice president, S. L. Larson (son of Lewis) becoming cashier. The pres- ent directors are John D. Olson, Albert John- son, O. A. Ecklie, L. A. Reese, A. L. Mor- ken, Lewis Larson and S. L. Larson. The present surplus (November 1921) is about $5,600.00; undivided profits, $4,000.00, and deposits varying from $285,000.00 to $290,- 000.00. The institution stands on a sub- stantial basis and has for some time ex- erted a beneficial influence in inducing the farmers of the surrounding territory to en- gage more largely in raising pure bred live stock.

The Cumberland Milling Co., one of the largest and most substantial concerns in the city, was incorporated Oct. 10, 1890, the prime movers in the enterprise being O. A. Ritan. O. W. Mosher, S. W. Hines and Frank Algeo, all of whom, after a lapse of 31 years, are still interested in it, though Mr. Ritan is now a resident of Portland, Ore. The original stock was $10,000, but in 1901 two thousand dollars' worth of additional stock was issued, one thousand to Bert H. Water- man and one thousand to F. W. Miller. Sub- sequently Mr. Waterman left town, and, wishing to dispose of his stock, it was taken over by the company at their annual meet- ing Aug. 3, 1908, and cancelled, leaving the capital stock at $11,000, as it is at present. The company's buildings are located at the corner of Front and Elm streets, just west of the Omaha railway tracks, and originally consisted of the mill and elevator, a building 28 by 60 feet in surface dimensions and four stories in height; a storehouse 24 by 50 feet and engine and boiler-room 24 by 28 feet. Soon after starting the company built a hay storehouse 24 by 50 feet. The plant has since been considerably improved. About three years ago steam power was discarded in favor of electricity, obtained from the

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lines of the Apple River Milling Co. Several years ago an addition was made to the ele- vator, and in 1922 the company will con- struct a storehouse 40 by 80 feet, on the south end of the mill. They have recently purchased a corn crusher of the most mod- ern and improved type to grind ear corn. The present officers of the company are: O. W. Mosher, president; F. W. Miller, vice president; S. W. Hines, treasurer, and Frank Algeo, secretary and manager. The company manufactures all kinds of flour and feed, their brands of flour being known as "Veribest" and "White Rose".

The Cumberland Fruit Package Co., an- other large and important enterprise, was organized as a corporation with a capital of $25,000, in November, 1909, by Julius Ewald, H. C. Monstad, Lewis Larson, W. L. Hocom and others. Mr. Monstad was chosen presi- dent, Mr. Hocom vice president, Mr. Larson treasurer, and Mr. Ewald secretary and manager. A brick building, 60 by 60 feet, was erected at a cost of $3,000, and is lo- cated on the east side of the Omaha rail- way's right of way, between its tracks and Beaver Dam Lake. The ground for the plant which now covers about three acres was donated by citizens. After organization and the building of their factory the company began the manufacture of fruit packages, general boxes, baskets and berry crates.

In 1911 changes occurred in the official board, Louis A. Reese becoming president, Andrew Bachhuber vice president, and Her- bert Ewald secretary and assistant treas- urer, Mr. Larson remaining treasurer. No further change in officers has since oc- curred. The present board of directors is composed of Andrew Bachhuber, August Ewald, Herbert Ewald, William N. Hedback, D. D. S., Lewis Larson and Louis A. Reese.

In 1915 the company was reorganized and the capital stock increased to $50,000.

In 1912 a two-story addition was made to the north side of the factory, 70 by 25 feet in ground dimensions.

In 1913 the company built a one-story addition on the west side of the original building, measuring 24 by 75 feet.

Another addition was constructed in 1916, on the east side of the original factory, two stories in height and with a surface measurement of 24 by 80 feet.

At the north end of the yard is a ware- house 72 by 128 feet, and two auxiliary sheds, and within the yard are also 176 open sheds which are used for drying purposes.

The factory is well equipped with the most modern and effective machinery for stapling and box and crate nailing.

The Cumberland Livestock Shipping As- sociation, a co-operative concern, was start- ed by the farmers of the neighborhood in 1918. The first officers were: H. H. Wil- liams, president and manager; J. B. Sher- bon, vice president, and L. C. Tappon, sec- retary and treasurer. In 1919 A. H. Solum became president, Mr. Williams remaining manager. In 1920 Mr. Solum was elected both president and manager, A. L. Morken was elected secretary-treasurer, and Mike

Paulson vice president. The officers wbo were elected in 1921 were: John C. Nelson, president; R. B. Phillips, vice president; A. L. Morken, secretary- treasurer, and A. H. Solum, manager. During the first year of its existence the association handled 40 car- loads of stock, including cattle, hogs and sheep, to an approximate value of $71,000. In 1919, 46 carloads were shipped, the value approximating $95,000. A considerable in- crease was noticed in 1920, when the num- ber of carloads shipped was 74, and the value of the stock $122,000. The association handles all stock shipped from this point and the vicinity, none going through out- side buyers.

The Barron County Holstein Breeders' Association has a club in Cumberland, and there is also a small organization called the Cumberland Holstein Bull Club, which is a partnership concern, recently formed, and consisting of Ernest Le Jeune, August Ro- bery, Oscar Oldeen, William Meisegeier, John Busch and Bjurman Brothers, who in May, 1921, bought a fine Holstein sire for breeding purposes.

The Cumberland Creamery was organized many years ago by the farmers as a co- operative concern, but as such was not suc- cessful. After changing hands several times, it was purchased in 1911 by H. A. Curt and A. W. Swinghamer (then of New Richmond, Wis.), who bought the plant from the Rice Lake State Bank. Mr. Curt operated it un- til June, 1920, when Mr. Swinghamer bought him out and took charge of the busi- ness, which he is now conducting. The amount of business done by the creamery in 1920 was about $100,000, a figure that will be considerably exceeded in 1921. A new plant is now being constructed in the cen- tral part of the city, one block west of the railway depot, the building to be fireproof and up to date in every respect. It will be operated by a stock company and will handle butter, cheese, ice cream, poultry, eggs and general farm produce.

Another important concern, closely con- nected with the farming industry, is the Fame Canning Co., which was organized by Grafton Johnson of Greenville, Ind., about 1910. The factory was built by William Christenson, who became manager, and as such conducted it for four years. Then he and Lewis Larson bought it and for one year conducted it as the Cumberland Can- ning Co. They then sold the plant back to Mr. Johnson, who thereupon organized the Fame Canning Co. About one year there- after the stock of the company was sold to the Thomas E. Wilson Co., the well-known meat packers of Chicago. Two years ago the stock was sold to and owned by the off- cers of the Austin Nichols Co., of New York City, a large grocery house, whose general offices were moved one year ago to Chicago. Of the nine factories owned by this com- pany, three are in Wisconsin, namely, at Cumberland, Clear Lake and Ladysmith, and of these three M. A. Dunham is general man- ager. The principal product handled is peas, which are bought from the farmers in large quantities, though farm products suit-

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able for canning purposes are also pur- chased.

What is known in Cumberland as the Pickle Factory is a receiving station of the Magedney Co. of Minneapolis, which con- cern buys cucumbers and cauliflowers from the farmers, and after salting them, ship them to Minneapolis, where they are trans- formed into bottled pickles.

There are also several potato warehouses in the city, two of which are operated by S. W. Hines. Another is operated by John- son & Ecklie, who also have a hay ware- house.

The firm of Alfred P. Ast & Co., was or- ganized in 1919 by the gentleman whose name it bears. Later, Daniel Knellwolf and Robert Hall, both of Cumberland, were taken into the firm. The company buys cheese from some 25 factories in and adja- cent to Cumberland, and ships it to all parts of the United States, the primary mar- ket being the Twin Cities. They also handle cheese accessories, supplies and ma- chinery. In 1920 they sold about one and a half pounds of cheese.

There are three telephone companies operating in Cumberland-the Cumberland Telephone Co., the Mckinley Telephone Co. and the Bell Telephone Co.

The Cumberland Telephone Co. was in- corporated Feb. 19, 1898, under its present name, by Fred Miller, S. H. Waterman and F. L. Alcott. About 1904 or 1905 it was bought by E. V. Benjamin, who con- ducted it until his death, Jan. 1, 1919. In 1898 it was incorporated, with Mrs. Ida Benjamin president, Lilah Benjamin secre- tary, and E. V. Benjamin treasurer and gen- eral manager. After the death of E. V. Benjamin, his son, L. W. Benjamin, suc- ceeded to the office of treasurer and gen- eral manager, which he still holds, the other members of the family being inter- ested, as before, in the company. The com- pany has free service with the Mckinley Telephone Co., and toll connections with the Barron County Telephone Co., and the Wisconsin Telephone Co. They have 338 phones within the city limits, and twelve farmer lines, which include 162 phones in the country.

The Mckinley Telephone Co. was estab- lished in 1909 with a capital stock of $3,000, and with E. J. Pfluger as president and C. J. Poulter, secretary. In 1911 Charles A. Ness became president, and in 1914 John Le Jeune became secretary, but the latter was subsequently succeeded by C. S. Gar- rett, who in turn was succeeded by J. H. Le Jeune, the present secretary. The cap- ital stock has been gradually increased and is now $8,000. The company has approx- imately 450 phones, the territory covered including a radius of from six to ten miles in all directions around Cumberland. The company has connections with the Bell and city telephone companies' lines.

The main street of Cumberland, which is called Second street, is an unusually long thorofare for a town of this size, and its length might prove inconvenient were it not for the fact that the most important

and frequently used buildings, such as the city hall, the two banks and the public library are all centrally located. The schoolhouse is several blocks farther north and in the same neighborhood are the Methodist and St. Mary's Catholic Churches. The two Scandinavian churches are in the extreme south end of town. All these buildings are on Second street, which is given up for two-thirds of its length to business blocks and public buildings, the north end of the street consisting almost entirely of residence property. The Epis- copal and Congregational Churches are off the main thorofare, but not far from the center of the city. The places of business, not counting the factories, number between fifty and sixty.

The Island City Hospital was estab- lished in Cumberland in 1914 by Dr. George A. Grinde, who has since taken a partner in its proprietorship and management in the person of Dr. S. O. Lund. The insti- tution contains twenty beds and is fur- nished with modern equipment, including X-ray facilities for diagnosis and treatment.

There is one newspaper in Cumberland, the Cumberland Advocate, which was started as the Cumberland Herald in 1881. The editor and principal owner is R. B. Hart. Its more detailed history may be found elsewhere in this volume.

The city officers of Cumberland in 1921 were as follows: Mayor, August Wolff; clerk, A. J. Chubb; treasurer, A. H. Miller; assessor, H. A. Pease; city attorney, H. S. Comstock; city marshal, John Doar; chief of fire department, L. A. Reese; city en- gineer, A. E. Ledgering; president of Coun- cil, Ole Paulson; health commissioner, Dr. F. Babcock. Aldermen-First Ward, Wil- liam Nyman, H. O. Jacobson; Second Ward, A. W. McGeorge, Ervin Linn; Third Ward, Ole Paulson, R. E. Hopkins; Fourth Ward, August Schneider, W. C. Jeffery. Board of Public Works-August Wolff, H. S. Com- stock and A. J. Chubb.

The city water supply is obtained from a six-inch well, about 615 feet deep, located near the lake. . Its capacity is about 360,- 000 gallons a day. About sixty per cent of the houses are connected with the water supply system. The best information that can be obtained indicates that the city well shows 179 feet of drift, and 436 feet of sandstone and soft clay or shale, most of the shale being of a soft red variety of unusual character for the Potsdam forma- tion. The private wells in the city vary from 20 to 125 feet in depth.

In the vicinity of Cumberland there is a considerable colony of Italians, numbering about 150 families. When the Omaha rail- road was being built through this place a strike occurred among the men engaged in its construction. Whereupon the foreman, a man named McNaughton, acting on the au- thority of the company, went to St. Paul and engaged a number of Italians to take the places of the strikers. They came here and finished the work, and some of them afterwards remained, settling south of the town, where they bought twelve or fifteen

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shanties which the railroad company had built, and converted them into homes. For a while some of them continued at rail- road work in one capacity or another, while others bought a few acres of land and started small farms averaging, perhaps, ten or twelve acres each. Industrious and economical, they have for the most part prospered and a few of them have operated business places in the south end of the city. For a number of years their leading representative was Sam Palmer, though he is now less active in public capacities than formerly.

There are now seven active church socie- ties in Cumberland or its immediate vicin- ity. This includes St. Anthony's Catholic Church, the building of which, located a mile or so south of the city, was recently destroyed by fire, but is soon to be rebuilt and the members of which reside mostly near the site of the church, though some are residents of the city. The other churches are: St. Mary's (Catholic), the Methodist Episcopal, Congregational, Nor- wegian Lutheran, Swedish Lutheran and German Lutheran. There is also a good church edifice belonging to the Protestant Episcopal denomination, but no services have been held in it for several years. The Baptists had an early organization, which lasted for a number of years, and during the eighties an attempt was made to start a Presbyterian Church, but it was unsuc- cessful.

St. Mary's and St. Anthony's Roman Catholic Churches. The history of these two churches, forming, as they do, one par- ish, is so closely interwoven that it cannot be divided without needless repetition, and hence will be given in a single article. It extends back for nearly forty years. The original congregation consisted for the most part of loggers employed by the lum- ber companies, and railroad construction men. the latter being mostly, if not alto- gether, Italians, who were brought here to take the places of striking workmen, and who, after the completion of the railroad, remained in the vicinity and established a community of their own race and nation- ality known as the Italian Settlement, that has continued to exist and to flourish up to the present time. The earliest Catholic services were held in the hall building now occupied by, or forming a part of, the large "Company Store," and were presided over by missionary priests from New Richmond, Haywood and Ashland, among them Fathers De Paradis and Oderic. The use of the building was permitted free of charge by its owner, Fred Miller. In 1883 the con- gregation, which, in addition to the Ital- fans, included French, Germans, Poles and English. under the direction of Father De Paradis. began the erection of the church edifice on Second street now known as St. Mary's, and services were occasionally held in the building before its completion in 1884. In 1885, the Italians, who were the most numerous, decided to build a church of their own, and accordingly erected one about a mile south of town,

which they called St. Anthony's. It stood near the center of the Italian settlement, and close to it a large cemetery was laid out, which is now used by both congrega- tions. Among the first members of St. Anthony's who took an active part in the building of the church, were George Al- fonse, Sam Palmer, Martin D'Nuzzi, Victor Caponi, Joe Zappa and Lawrence Donatelle, besides a few others.

From the beginning the two churches have been served by the same priests, the first of whom to have regular charge as resident pastor being the Rev. George Kel- ler. He was succeeded by the Michael Schorlek, who came here in 1886 and re- mained until Aug. 30, 1887. A rectory had been built next to St. Mary's Church in 1885. Father Schorlek was succeeded in 1887 by Rev. Peter Becker, the latter's suc- cessors being as follows: Rev. Charles L. Jungblut, of Eau Claire, from June, 1889, to February, 1892; Rev. Sebastian Rohr, to July, 1892; Rev. P. Dickopf, to 1895; Rev. N. Stoltz, January, 1895 to September, 1896; Rev. Gerhard Vadder, 1896 to 1897; Rev. Stephanus A. Leinfelder, Ph. D., July. 1897 to 1905; Rev. Louis Charron, (_ brother of Dr. Charron of Rice Lake), No- vember. 1895; Rev. P. Condom, July, 1906, who served a few months during the ab- sence of Father Leinfelder in Europe; Rev. Stephanus A. Leinfelder, who returned and again took pastoral charge in September, 1906; Rev. A. M. Henderson, June. 1907; Rev. Henricus Thamerling, Dec. 8, 1907; Rev. Norbert Scheid, Dec. 22, 1907; Rev. G. Reuter, April, 1908; Rev. Louis Colaganni, October, 1909; Rev. Joseph Tognoli, April, 1914; Rev. Michael Pulch, November, 1914; Rev. Bernard Habraken, January, 1915; Rev. Louis Colaganni, August, 1917 to 1920; Rev. H. Teuwisse, who came in July, 1920, and is still pastor.

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History of Barron County Wisconsin, Part 186

Author: Franklyn Curtiss-Wedge Publication date: 1922 Publisher: Number of Pages: 1767

Author: Franklyn Curtiss-Wedge
Publication date: 1922
Publisher:
Number of Pages: 1767