USA > Wisconsin > Eau Claire County > History of Eau Claire county, Wisconsin, past and present; including an account of the cities, towns and villages of the county > Part 45
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Notions-Independent Five and Ten-Cent Store, S. S. Kresge, Walter Tauseh, F. W. Woolworth.
Plumbers-Bartingale Company, August Burkart, William D. Craney, Fred E. Grosvald, Gunderman & Wing, William H. Heide- man, Charles Mitehell, Andrew Moe, Henry T. Triggs.
Printers-Ashbaugh Printing Company, Eagle Printing Com- pany, Eau Claire Press Company, Fremad Publishing Company, HIerald Printing Company, F. T. Meggett Company, Pauly Print- ing House, James H. Tifft.
Refrigerator Manufacturing Companies-Atlas Manufacturing Company, Cold Storage Refrigerator Company, Wisconsin Refrigerator Company.
Restaurants-James M. Charles, William Cleghorn, Mrs. Anna Cook, Mrs. Orpha J. Fryslie, Mrs. Anna Gillet, Harlam W. Hateh, Home Bakery Lunch Room, Henry L. Horrigan, Conrad Johns, Jacob Klein, Yon Lee, Frank MeLaren, Mortimer MeMillan, Robert Perry, Martha Radinske, C. H. Shaver, News Company, Omaha Depot, Michael Weber.
Photographers-Benjamin S. Alilquist, George Claus, Electric Studio, Andrew C. Isaaes, Carl G. Johnson & Co., Charles Lewis, Arthur B. Nelson, Rasmus G. Shaker.
Tailors-Peter W. Beek, Hjalmar E. Berg, Syver Bergset, John Barton, Edward J. Brunner, Martin Christianson, John Hanek. Jens Hanshus, John Harrigan, The Ideal, Otto A. Johnson, Korger Brothers, Martin Oleson, Peter Peterson, Simon Rosenberg, Albert E. Ulrich.
Tea and coffee stores-Grand Union Tea Company, Home Tea Company, Edward Syverson.
Telephone companies-Chippewa County Telephone Company. Tri-State Telephone Company, Wisconsin Telephone Company.
Theaters- Grand Opera House, Lyrie, Orpheum, Rex, Star. Unique.
Tinsmiths-Harry C. Austin, George Fraley, John Schimanski. William A. Standen.
Undertakers-Alexander Dean, Fleming & Son, Lenmark & Son, Robert H. Stokes.
Upholsterers-Norman Bailey, Frank II. Button, August Hansen.
Wagon makers-Louis Knudson, Moldenhauer & Damm, Tietz & Guenther.
The following incorporated companies are now (1914) doing business in the city of Eau Claire :
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HISTORY OF EAU CLAIRE COUNTY
Allen Land Company, incorporated in 1887; capital, $55,000. Charles L. Allen, president and treasurer; F. M. Allen, vice- president and secretary.
Atlas Manufacturing Company, incorporated in 1908; capital, $10,000. F. II. Graham, president; J. H. Brooks, secretary and treasurer.
Barber Land Company, incorporated 1905; capital, $80,000. B. A. Buffington, president; James A. Smith, vice-president; John S. Owen, secretary and treasurer.
Bradford-Culver Timber Company, incorporated in 1909; cap- ital, $100,000. A. E. Bradford, president; T. B. Keith, vice-presi- dent; B. W. Culver, secretary and treasurer.
A. E. Burlingame Company, incorporated in 1908; capital, $24,000. A. E. Burlingame, president; C. W. Fiske, secretary and treasurer.
Burnham-Benson Hardware Company, incorporated in 1907; capital, $20,000.
C. W. Cheney Company, incorporated in 1908; capital, $50,000. C. W. Cheney, president and treasurer; I. D. Davis, vice-presi- dent; M. Ruth Kelley, secretary.
Chippewa Valley Casualty Company, incorporated in 1902. James T. Joyce, president ; E. W. Heiss, secretary ; C. W. Fiske, treasurer.
Chippewa Valley Light & Power Company, incorporated in 1897 ; capital, $1,265,000. O. H. Ingram, president ; John S. Owen, vice-president; B. A. Buffington, treasurer; George B. Wheeler, secretary and general manager; A. E. Pierce, assistant manager. Culver Realty Company, incorporated in 1906; capital, $60,000. A. Emma Culver, president; Earl S. Welch, secretary; B. W. Culver, treasurer.
A. A. Cutter Company, incorporated in 1907; capital, $150,000. Belle F. Cutter, president; W. P. Bartlett, vice-president; W. J. Carpenter, secretary and treasurer.
Iver Anderson Shoc Company, incorporated in 1911; capital, $15,000. Gunder Anderson, president; H. A. Christensen, vice- president; Iver Anderson, secretary and treasurer.
Cameron Meadows Land Company, incorporated in 1911; capital, $110,000. C. L. Allen, president ; Charles J. Kepler, vice- president ; A. J. Branstad, secretary ; M. B. Baumberger, treasurer.
Bartingale Company, incorporated in 1913; capital, $4,000. Robert O. Bartingale, president and treasurer; Thomas A. Bar- tingale, vice-president ; E. M. Bartingale, secretary.
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EAU CLAIRE BUSINESS HOUSES
Campen Clothing Company was incorporated in 1910, with a capital of $25,000. Palmer Campen, president; J. Al Campen, vice-president : George Campen, secretary.
Cary Transfer Company, incorporated in 1913; capital, $25,000. J. B. Cary, president; Leo F. Cary, vice-president ; H. V. Cary, secretary and treasurer.
Chippewa Valley Construction Company was incorporated in 1897, with a capital of $100,000. O. II. Ingram, president ; John S. Owen, vice-president ; B. A. Buffiington, treasurer; George B. Wheeler, secretary and general manager; A. E. Pierce, assistant manager.
Davis Falls Land Company, incorporated in 1904; capital, $50,000. W. L. Davis, president; J. T. Joyce, vice-president ; E. S. Pearsall, secretary.
Davis Holding Company, incorporated in 1908, capital, $48,- 000. W. L. Davis, president and treasurer ; J. T. Joyce, secretary.
Davis & Starr Lumber Company, incorporated in 1886; cap- ital, $250,000. William J. Starr, president; I. M. Starr, vice- president ; Burt E. DeYo, secretary and treasurer.
Del Norte Company, incorporated in 1902; capital, $1,500,000. N. C. Foster, president; Frank D. Stout, secretary; William Bigelow, treasurer.
Dells Paper & Pulp Company, incorporated in 1894; capital, $1,000,000. W. L. Davis, president; S. R. Davis, vice-president ; J. A. Stilp, secretary ; J. T. Joyce, treasurer ; E. O'Brien, general superintendent.
Drummond Packing Company, incorporated in 1903, with a capital of $125,000. David Drummond, president; John Drum- mond, vice-president; F. W. Thomas, treasurer; D. G. Calkins, secretary.
Eau Claire Bedding Company was incorporated in 1902, with a capital of $5,000. R. H. Loether, president; E. J. Loether, vice-president ; J. H. Mucherheide, secretary and treasurer.
Eau Claire Book and Stationery Company, incorporated in 1885; capital, $40,000. G. C. Witherby, president and manager ; E. B. Putnam, secretary and treasurer.
Eau Claire Club, incorporated in 1906 ; capital, $80,000. James A. Smith, president ; S. G. Moon, vice-president; Marshall Cousins, treasurer; C. W. Churchill, secretary.
Eau Claire Commercial Club, incorporated in 1908; capital, $6,000. R. F. Kennedy, president; G. J. Lange, vice-president ; R. K. Boyd, secretary ; G. N. Childs, treasurer.
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HISTORY OF EAU CLAIRE COUNTY
Eau Claire Concrete Company, incorporated in 1904; capital, $20,000. J. W. Ross, president; H. T. Lange, vice-president : R. K. Boyd, secretary ; George M. Childs, treasurer.
Eau Claire Cornice & Heating Company, incorporated in 1904; capital, $25,000.
Eau Claire Construction Company, incorporated in 1909; cap- ital, $25,000. E. P. Tibesar, president; G. L. Blum, vice-presi- dent; J. T. Tibesar, secretary and treasurer.
Eau Claire Creamery Company, incorporated in 1905; capital, $100,000. Guy Speirs, president and treasurer ; J. T. Joyce, vice- president ; F. N. Herrick, secretary.
Eau Claire Dells Improvement Company, incorporated in 1879; capital, $200,000. W. L. Davis, president and treasurer; J. T. Joyce, vice-president : E. S. Pearsall, secretary ; J. A. Stilp, treas- surer.
Eau Claire Driving and Athletic Association, incorporated in 1902; capital, $15,000. H. D. Davis, president ; George B. Wheel- er, vice-president ; John S. Owen, treasurer.
Eau Claire Gas Light Company, incorporated in 1894. J. T. Joyce, president; David Drummond, vice-president; C. Luebke- man, secretary-treasurer.
Eau Claire Grocery Company, incorporated in 1883; capital, $100,000. C. M. Merrill, president; A. J. Marsh, vice-president ; T. F. Branham, treasurer; C. E. Shane, secretary.
Eau Claire Press Company, incorporated in 1912. with a cap- ital of $80,000. K. Rosholt, president; E. S. Welch, vice-presi- dent; C. W. Fiske, treasurer; P. C. Atkinson, secretary.
Eau Claire Pythian Castle Association, incorporated in 1901; capital, $15,000. G. B. Blum, president; Marshall Cousins, vice- president ; II. Helstrom, secretary ; Louis Levy, treasurer.
Eau Claire Realty Company, incorporated in 1902; capital, $30,000. J. T. Barber, president, W. A. Smith, secretary; S. G. Moon, treasurer.
Eau Claire Savings, Loan and Building Association was organ- ized in 1877 with a capital of $2,000,000. The present officers are: Dr. E. C. French, president; William Rowe, vice-president ; J. T. Joyce, treasurer, and J. F. Ellis, secretary.
Eau Claire Sweat Pad Company, incorporated in 1905; cap- ital, $25,000. William Hoeppner, president; George C. Hoeppner, vice-president; J. F. H. Miller, secretary and treasurer.
Eau Claire Trunk Company was incorporated in 1901. Its capital is $75,000. W. E. Wahl, president; F. Hoeppner, vice-
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EAU CLAIRE BUSINESS IIOUSES
president; William H. Hoeppner, secretary ; George Hoeppner, treasurer.
The Evans-Lee Company was incorporated in 1904; capital, $25,000. J. I. Evans, president; C. S. Lee, vice-president ; E. B. Ingram, secretary and treasurer.
Ben F. Faast Land Company, incorporated in 1908; capital, $30,000. T. B. Smith, president; A. J. Keith, vice-president ; Ben F. Faast, secretary and treasurer.
E. M. Fish Company, incorporated in 1902; capital, $35,000. E. M. Fish, president; Ferd Folsom, vice-president; Eda M. Fol- som, secretary and treasurer.
Foss-Armstrong Hardware Company, incorporated in 1907; capital, $150,000. A. G. Foss, president ; F. J. Bowers, treasurer ; B. N. Foss, secretary.
Frawley Land Company, incorporated in 1892; capital, $60,- 000. Thomas F. Frawley, president; John G. Owen, vice-presi- dent; John S. Owen, secretary and treasurer.
Fremad Publishing Company, incorporated in 1901; capital, $4,000. Rev. O. Refsdal, president; Prof. J. J. Skordalsvold, vice-president ; F. L. Tronsdal, secretary ; William Ager, treasurer,
Germania Farm Company, incorporated in 1901; capital, $5,000. W. H. Frawley, president; T. F. Frawley, secretary- treasurer.
Guaranteed Investment Company, incorporated in 1904; cap- ital, $76,000. L. A. Doolittle, president; M. II. Schroeder, vice- president ; George W. Williams, secretary.
Hillside Feed Company, incorporated in 1909. Capital, $4,000. C. Seyberth, president; E. J. Neuser, vice-president ; William Rasch, secretary-treasurer.
W. II. Hobbs Supply Company, incorporated in 1906; capital, $60,000. W. II. Hobbs, president and treasurer; Roswell Hobbs, vice-president; E. A. Carroll, secretary.
Iloeppner-Bartlett Company, incorporated in 1904; capital, $50,000. F. J. Hoeppner, president; J. A. Davidson, vice-presi- dent ; A. F. Johannis, secretary-treasurer.
Howe Shoe Company was incorporated in 1904. C. W. Lock- wood, president and treasurer; C. M. Buffington, vice-president ; A. G. Weizenegger, secretary.
Huebsch Laundry Company, incorporated in 1903. Joseph Huebsch, president; John Huebsch, secretary-treasurer.
Ideal Land & Loan Company ; capital, $100,000. J. J. Selmer, president; A. Qvale, vice-president.
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HISTORY OF EAU CLAIRE COUNTY
O. H. Ingram Company, incorporated in 1907 ; capital, $50,000. O. H. Ingram, president ; E. B. Ingram, vice-president; Dr. E. S. Hayes, treasurer.
The Jackson Ageney, incorporated in 1908; capital, $5,000. W. G. Jackson, president; M. C. Jackson, vice-president; F. D. Jackson, secretary-treasurer.
John H. Kaiser Lumber Company, incorporated in 1905; cap- ital, $100,000. John II. Kaiser, president; J. J. Ott, vice-presi- dent ; W. A. Kaiser, secretary-treasurer.
The Kepler Company was incorporated in 1907; has a capital of $100,000. R. J. Kepler, Sr., president; A. G. Geske, vice- president ; A. E. Kepler, secretary ; C. J. Kepler, treasurer.
Lange Canning Company, incorporated in 1901; capital, $100,- 000. G. J. Lange, president; Dr. E. S. Hayes, vice-president ; F. A. Lange, secretary ; E. B. Ingram, treasurer.
The H. T. Lange Company, incorporated in 1893; capital, $85,000. H. T. Lange, president ; 1I. C. Weidenbaeher, vice-presi- dent; M. B. Hubbard, secretary ; C. F. Mittelstadt, treasurer.
Linderman Box & Veneer Company, incorporated in 1895; capital, $40,000. D. R. Moon, president; T. J. Wilcox, viee- president and general manager; George H. Chapman, secretary.
Main Valley Land Company, incorporated in 1905; capital, $15,000. The officers are: B. W. Culver, E. J. Lenmark, Ben Faast and J. A. Playton.
Masonic Temple Association, incorporated 1897 ; eapital, $50,- 000. George B. Wheeler, president; David Drummond, vice- president ; F. H. L. Cotton, secretary ; B. A. Buffington, treasurer.
MeDonough Manufacturing Company, incorporated in 1889; capital, $150,000. Joseph C. Culver, president; Joseph Gilbert McDonough, vice-president; J. W. Hubbard, secretary-treasurer and general manager.
R. L. Meader Company was incorporated in 1902; capital, $20,000. R. L. Meader, president and general manager; J. A. Platter, vice-president; August Stock, secretary; W. K. Coffin, treasurer.
Northwestern Lumber Company, incorporated in 1873; cap- ital, $443,900. J. T. Barber, president; S. G. Moon, first vice- president and treasurer; George H. Chapman, second viee-presi- dent ; C. D. Moon, secretary ; F. H. L. Cotton, assistant secretary.
Northwestern Motor Company, incorporated in 1912. Kim Rosholt, president; Raymond Rosholt, secretary-treasurer.
The Sallie F. Moon Company, incorporated in 1906; eapital,
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EAU CLAIRE BUSINESS HOUSES
$400,000. S. G. Moon, president; D. R. Moon, vice-president ; C. D. Moon, secretary-treasurer.
New Dells Lumber Company, incorporated in 1889; capital, $233,700. O. H. Ingram, president; G. J. Lange, vice-president ; M. B. Hubbard, secretary ; E. B. Ingram, treasurer ; J. E. Hosford, manager.
Northern Farm Land and Investment Company, incorporated in 1907; capital, $1,200. T. F. Frawley, president ; J. C. Culver, secretary-treasurer.
Northwestern Flour & Grain Company ; capital, $25,000. A. J. Branstad, president; Frank Harriman, vice-president; George D. Thorson, secretary-treasurer.
Northwestern Steel and Iron Works was incorporated in 1905; capital, $200,000. Kim Rosholt, president and treasurer: T. W. Rosholt, vice-president ; E. R. Hamilton, secretary-treasurer ; R. S. Wells, manager.
John S. Owen Lumber Company was incorporated in 1894; capital, $175,000. John S. Owen, president and treasurer; A. R. Owen, vice-president and manager; John G. Owen, secretary; G. E. Anderson, assistant secretary.
Phoenix Furniture Company, was incorporated in 1899; cap- ital, $40,000. R. J. Kepler, president ; T. A. Hobbs, vice-president ; S. Damm, secretary-treasurer.
Phoenix Manufacturing Company was incorporated in 1875; capital, $200,000. C. S. Tolles, president ; C. F. Coffin, vice-presi- dent; Robert B. Briggs, secretary-treasurer.
Pioneer Furniture Company was incorporated in 1888; capital, $150,000. John W. Scott, president ; W. K. Coffin, vice-president ; J. T. Joyce, secretary-treasurer.
Polk County Farm Land Company, incorporated 1906; capital, $33,000. W. J. Starr, president; E. Pennington, vice-president ; C. T. Jaffray, treasurer ; O. O. Searle, secretary.
Robbins Implement Company, incorporated 1906; capital, $10,- 000. W. L. Kane, president; William Gilchrist, vice-president ; E. W. Robbins, secretary-treasurer.
George W. Robertson Company, incorporated in 1903; capital, $50,000. George W. Robertson, president and treasurer; F. E. Stannard, vice-president; George W. Schroeder, secretary.
Louis Running Company, incorporated in 1905. Louis Run- ning, president.
Rusk Land Company, incorporated in 1903; capital, $75,000.
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HISTORY OF EAU CLAIRE COUNTY
P. C. Atkinson, vice-president; F. B. Keith, secretary ; A. J. Keith, treasurer.
William Samuelson Dry Goods Company was incorporated in 1893 ; capital, $25,000. William Samuelson, president ; T. Slagsvol, secretary-treasurer.
Schwahn-Seyberth Saddlery Company, incorporated in 1904. Leonard Seyberth, president; W. A. Schwalin, vice-president; W. L. Seyberth, secretary-treasurer.
Stanley, Merrill & Phillips Railroad Company, incorporated in 1902 ; capital, $100,000. S. G. Moon, president; C. D. Moon, vice- president ; F. H. L. Cotton, secretary ; J. T. Barber, treasurer.
Steven & Jarvis Lumber Company. J. D. R. Stevens, presi- dent; Arthur Jarvis, vice-president; Bert E. DeYo, secretary- treasurer.
Traders Land Company, incorporated in 1904; capital, $10,000. L. A. Doolittle, president; Martha H. Schroeder, secretary-treas- urer.
Wisconsin Pipe & Fuel Company, incorporated in 1893; cap- ital, $10,000. B. G. Proctor, president and treasurer ; F. R. Proc- tor, vice-president and secretary.
Wisconsin Refrigerator Company. William J. Starr, presi- dent; C. T. Bundy, vice-president; Orlando G. Brice, treasurer and general manager.
Wisconsin River Land Company, incorporated in 1885; eapital, $50,000. James Jensen, president; II. N. Knudtson, vice-presi- dent; A. T. Tenneson, seeretary-treasurer.
Eau Claire Vulcanizing Company, incorporated 1912; capital, $2,000. Fred Ballett, president ; F. E. Hul, vice-president ; B. F. Headly, secretary and manager.
Egg-O Baking Powder Company, ineorporated in 1911; cap- ital, $15,000. A. G. Foss, president; George J. Neher, vice-presi- dent; T. B. Farmer, secretary ; G. J. Lange, treasurer.
Farmers Co-operative Produce Company, incorporated 1910; eapital, $10,000. S. S. Wethern, president ; C. O. Fisher, secretary- treasurer.
Farmers Land Company, incorporated ; capital, $10,000. T. F. Frawley, president ; J. T. Joyce, vice-president ; J. C. Culver, sce- retary-treasurer.
Horn & Blum Manufacturing Company, incorporated in 1913; capital, $10,000. M. M. Horn, president; A. Blum, vice-president ; J. R. Kolliner, secretary-treasurer.
Reliable Poultry Farm, incorporated in 1913; capital, $10,000.
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EAU CLAIRE BUSINESS HOUSES
O. S. Johnson, president; J. N. Schneider, vice-president; A. E. While, secretary-treasurer.
Ritsch Alluvial Land Company, incorporated in 1912. Capital, $40,000. J. F. W. Ritseh, president; Charles Kepler, vice-presi- dent; J. C. Culver, secretary-treasurer.
Rusk Farm Company, incorporated in 1909; capital, $35,000. Ben F. Faast, president ; A. G. Schlieve, vice-president; Chris N. Dinger, secretary ; John Bauman, treasurer.
Sheldon Land Company, incorporated in 1911; capital, $10,000. Ben F. Faast, president ; E. B. Lacey, viee-president; Harry II. Kleiner, secretary-treasurer.
Smith Baking Company, incorporated in 1908; capital, $10,000. George Blum, president; Ernest Johnson, vice-president; K. A. Jacobson, seeretary-treasurer.
Washington Realty Company, incorporated in 1912; capital, $300,000. H. W. Chase, president ; L. A. Bu Dalm, viee-president ; W. S. Woodruff, secretary-treasurer.
Wenzel Broom Company, incorporated 1913; capital, $15,000. A. J. Wenzel, president; HI. F. Schroeder, vice-president; W. J. Eberwein, secretary ; E. F. Wenzel, treasurer.
White Lake Land Company, incorporated in 1911; capital, $200,000. A. L. Arpin, president ; J. T. Joyce, treasurer ; Marshall Cousins, secretary.
Williams Furniture Company, incorporated in 1902; capital, $25,000. A. L. Williams, president ; II. M. Howe, vice-president ; A. P. Bonnot, secretary-treasurer.
L. H. Starkey Company, incorporated in 1910; capital, $7,000. L. H. Starkey, president; C. W. Vaugh, vice-president and trea- surer ; Harry Thompson, secretary.
Tanberg Auto Company, incorporated 1907; capital, $50,000. J. C. Tanberg, president ; A. J. Poclawiltz, vice-president ; Frank E. Drake, secretary ; G. R. Wood, secretary and manager.
Truax Building Company, incorporated 1913; capital, $25,000. 4. J. Branstad, president ; B. W. Culver, secretary ; J. C. Culver, treasurer.
Union Construction Company, incorporated in 1912; capital, $16,000. T. F. Frawley, president ; J. C. Culver, vice-president ; G. A. Weizenegger, secretary-treasurer.
Union Mortgage Loan Company, incorporated in 1906; capital, $100,000. Julius Rosholt, president ; Kim Rosholt, vice-president ; H. F. Schlegelmilch, secretary-treasurer.
CHAPTER XXXIV.
EAU CLAIRE INDUSTRIES.
THE A. A. CUTTER SHOE FACTORY
The man on the drive, the cruise or in the woods-the lumber- jack-is the most discriminating person in the world about one thing. He is as exacting in that as the Beau Brummel of the boulevards is about his dress. That one thing is his shoes. The shoes of the lumberjack must fit comfortably, since the nature of his work demands foot comfort. His shoes must be made of the very best leather and fashioned in the very best way in order to stand the heavy strain. The lumberjack has his shoemaker just as the boulevard dandy has his tailor, and usually his shoe- maker is the A. A. Cutter Company, of Eau Claire, Wis. Ask almost any lumberjack what make of shoe he wears and his answer will probably be "Cutter." The Cutter make means par excellence to the man with the ax and saw or the peavey, pike pole and cant hook.
Back in 1870, when Eau Claire was a great sawmill center, with twenty-two mills busy sawing northern timber, A. A. Cutter was the leading shoe retailer in town. The lumberjacks who occasionally came out of the woods in large numbers demanded a distinctive shoe. To meet this demand Mr. Cutter kept two cobblers busy making shoes that suited the lumberjacks. The lumberjacks, who were mostly of French or Irish nationality, demanded quality in their shoes and did not heed the cost. At that time it was customary for them to leave their measure in the fall before going into the woods and on their return the following spring their made-to-measure shoes would be ready. Mr. Cutter did not create a lumberjack's shoe. The lumberjacks created their own shoe. It was their criticism and their "kicks" that led to the making of a shoe that was the best of its kind, and today criticism and "kicks" are just as welcome with the A. A. Cutter Company as they were many years ago. The result is a perfect driving shoe.
For a few years making shoes for lumberjacks was only local in its extent. It was not until a lumberjack had left Eau Claire to become a foreman in the Pennsylvania woods that the fame of
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EAU CLAIRE INDUSTRIES
Cutter began to spread. He took two pairs with him and gave one pair to a fellow-worker. The shoe attracted so much attention that several lumberjacks induced Joseph Lechner, a local shoe merehant at Emporium, Pa., to order shoes for them. That was the first outside order that the Cutter concern ever received. Later a lumber company, of Pennsylvania, sent a crew of forty lumberjacks to New Mexico. They had all been wearers of Cutter shoes and on reaching New Mexico found they could not get along without their favorite make. The forty sent an order to Eau Claire. So the fame of Cutter shoes began to widen until today they are sold in every State except one, and the exception is Rhode Island. Rhode Island is not a State of Lumberjacks.
In 1892 Mr. Cutter discontinued the retail business and began manufacturing exclusively for lumbermen's needs. Today the concern is considered one of the leading manufacturers of high- grade footwear for lumbermen, miners, cruisers, surveyors, pros- pectors, rangers and sportsmen in the United States. The com- pany has a model factory at Eau Claire. A force of nearly 100 are employed in making handmade shoes, and the output is from 200 to 350 pairs a day. Mr. Cutter died a few years ago and the following year the company was incorporated. Mrs. Belle F. Cutter is president, William P. Bartlett vice-president and W. J. Carpenter secretary and treasurer. Mr. Carpenter, who started to work for Mr. Cutter when a mere lad and who has been thor- onghly schooled in every phase of the high-grade shoemaking business, is general manager.
The making of Cutter shoes is an interesting story. Only skilled custom shomakers-old-fashiond eobblers-are eni- ployed. These old-style cobblers call to mind the saying, "Let the cobbler st'ek to his last." The tale goes that a cobbler detected a fault in the shoe-latchet of one of Apelles' paintings, and the artist rectified the fault. The cobbler, thinking himself very wise, next ventured to criticise the legs, but Apelles answered, "Keep to your trade-you understand about shoes but not about anatomy." A proof that the cobblers employed at the Cutter plant do stick to their lasts and keep to their trade is found in the fact that one of their number, Halvor Johnson, started with Mr. Cutter when he established his cobbling shop in 1870. While Johnson has served the Cutter concern for forty- three years, ten others have been employed there at least thirty years. The Cutter cobblers certainly understand about shoes.
The Cutter shoes are almost entirely hand-made, the only exception being a minor part of the stitehing. Only solid leather
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HISTORY OF EAU CLAIRE COUNTY
throughout is used. No leather substitute ever entered the Cutter factory. Some leather reaches there that inspection shows can not be used, and in such case it is returned to the tanners. Only the heart of the imported hide is used and the remainder is disposed of to other manufacturers or used in cheaper low-cut shoes. The cobblers employed are chiefly German and Norwe- gian, who served apprenticeships in their native countries. The only difficulty that the Cutter company experiences is in obtaining skilled workers. Since the introduction of machinery into most shoe factories of this country and Europe, fewer young men have been apprenticed to the cobblers' trade.
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