USA > Wisconsin > Marathon County > History of Marathon County, Wisconsin and representative citizens > Part 51
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HISTORY OF MARATHON COUNTY
farm for a church site and in the same year, with the assistance of their neighbors, regardless of religious beliefs, finished a fine chapel costing about twelve hundred dollars-which was dedicated December 10, 1905, by Rev. Perry Millar, D. D., assisted by Rev. Oliver Saylor, local pastor. The memberships consisted of the following persons: Mrs. Jane Wilcox, Mrs. F. A. Wilcox, Mrs. St. Rogers, Mrs. Robert Brace, Mrs. L. Kuntzmann, Mrs. R. Wilson, Mr. and Mrs. Arleigh Peabody, Mrs. Maria Baxter, Mrs. Kate Richmond and Miss Bertha Richmond.
The lands east of the village which are yet nearly uninhabited, will, from present appearances, be taken up and settled upon in not far time.
THE TOWN OF BERLIN.
The oldest real farm settlements were made by German farmers in the towns of Berlin, Stettin and Marathon about the same time in 1856 and 1857 ; not that there were no other farms in other localities, as for instance, on Mechanics Ridge in the town of Wausau, and others mentioned in chapter on "Early Settlements," but those settlements were rather of a sporadic char- acter, made by loggers and mechanics who carried on farming only as a sort of side line to their regular lumbering employment, and who made not much progress as farmers. But the men that went into the town of Berlin-and that includes those who settled in the town of Maine and a few in the town of Hamburg-came for the sole purpose of farming, intending to live by farm- ing and make a living for themselves and their families, and grow up with the country. They all had families when they came, and few if any that ever settled in the present town of Berlin ever emigrated therefrom.
The heads of the families staid on the land, clearing and planting, letting their sons work in the pinery for some time and with the money thus earned improved their holdings, by getting stock and getting up better buildings. In ten years after the first settlements in the town of Berlin, there were already a number of good farms, and a populous town, this town growing faster than any other one. But the oxteam was still the team universally used, horses being at that time not much in use, because farmers thought they could not afford to pay the high price for them, and also because horses were more ex- pensive to keep than the oxteam.
In the size of cleared lands, the town of Berlin was far ahead of any other town in the first twenty years after settlement, but when a farm was large enough, had cleared land enough, the farmer was careful to preserve the rest of the timber. and by doing so, obtained a good price after railroads had come.
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The town of Berlin was created by the county board in February, 1859, to consist of township 30, in ranges 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6, and all of township 30, in range 7, west of the Wisconsin river. The first election was held at the house of John Kopplin, and William Drost was elected chairman.
The first settlers have all gone now to their long rest, and the second gen- eration is getting well along in years, but as a rule the land first settled upon by the pioneers is still occupied by their sons or grandsons. The buildings are exceptionally fine, good houses and barns ; houses with a heating apparatus and water supply are not a rarity ; the roads are in good condition all the year around, and the land in a state of high cultivation. The number of cheese factories and creameries has caused the farmers to improve their stock greatly. The town consists now of township 30, range 6 east, and is one of the smallest in the county, because the correction line on the west makes it a little less than thirty-six full congressional sections. But the town is one of the richest in the county. It is doubtful whether a single eighty acres is owned by anyone not an actual settler or occupant. There are one creamery and five cheese factories in the town, two general stores with a good stock of merchandise, one conducted at Naugart by Albert Fehlhaber, and one near the southwest corner of the town by William Beilke, both sons of pioneers .* There is located in this town a large saw mill owned by the widow of Henry Sellin, which is well stocked with logs by the farmers from Berlin and Ham- burg. It has been in operation for thirty years, sawing millions of feet of pine, and there is timber enough in the towns of Berlin and Hamburg to supply the mill for twenty-five years more.
There are seven school districts, each with a good frame schoolhouse, with a course of study up to the eighth grade, open eight months a year. There are three Lutheran churches in the town, one at Naugart in the center, one at or near the northwest corner and one on the south side of the town. These three congregations were originally one, founded about fifty-two years ago, but in later years they separated at least in two.
The congregation at Naugart has a fine church, as good as can be found in the county, costing $10,500, not reckoning much of the work done and material furnished without charge by the individual members of the congre- gation. There is a good parsonage for the resident minister. This congre- gation celebrated the fiftieth anniversary of their organization and the dedi- cation of their church (the first being a log building) on the 12th day of August, 1910, with great festivities. There was present on that occasion the
* See Little Chicago, town of Hamburg.
0
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first pastor who had assembled them together, and held missionary service, Rev. J. Strieter, who was then over eighty years of age. He had expressly come to visit his flock from Bay City, Michigan, bringing with him his wife. His voice was yet clear, although his eyesight had weakened. His sermon preached on that occasion was full of the love of God and love for man. Of course he found many changes; of the original congregation and of the men who signed the original membership roll of fifty-four, only two were left, to wit: Edward Nass and William Voigt.
The first minister at Naugart was Rev. J. J. Hoffmann, who was suc- ceeded in 1867 by Rev. William Hudtloff, but soon afterwards the congrega- tion separated and built a church and parsonage, and Reverend Schroedel was called as minister. Under his pastorage the present new church was built and the parsonage. He was succeeded by Rev. W. Bergholz, who remained about eight years and was followed by Rev. John Glaser, who remained with the congregation about nine years, and was succeeded by Rev. H. Brands, who directed the spiritual affairs until the year 1904, when the present minister, Rev. Theo. Hartwig, took charge of the congregation. The ministers serving this congregation also had charge of a congregation having their church edifice on or near the northwest corner of the town, which was established nearly at the same time as the one at Naugart. The present voting strength of this congregation is 90, with 275 communicants.
The German Evangelical Lutheran Trinity church stands on land deeded by Fred Aschbrenner on the south side of the town, which church was erected in 1888-1889, but services were held ever since 1861 in the schoolhouse by the resident minister, J. J. Hoffmann, who had organized the Naugart congre- gation. There was a parsonage erected on the land of Fred Krenz which was occupied by Rev. J. J. Hoffmann and his successors. The trustees of this church are : F. Aschbrenner, H. Grewin and Louis Fehlhaber.
Rev. A. J. Koepp is the resident minister of this congregation, and occupies the parsonage, about half way between this church and the Evangelical Luth- eran Immanuel church in the town of Main, which is in charge of the same minister.
There is another German Evangelical Lutheran church near the northwest corner of the town which was organized thirty years ago and which was served by the resident minister at Naugart. About twenty-five years ago the congregation built a church edifice and has become strong enough to warrant the calling for a pastor, and it will be but a short time when that church too will have its resident minister.
GERMAN LUTHERAN CHURCH, NAUGART, WIS.
1
VIEW OF NAUGART, WIS.
7
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NAUGART PO
POST OFFICE AT NAUGART, WIS.
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THE TOWN OF STETTIN (IN 1912).
The town of Stettin was created February, 1860, by the county board of Marathon county, to consist of township 29, ranges 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6 east ; the first election was to be held in the spring of the same year, which resulted in the election of Charles Buttke as chairman. The early settlement has been referred to in Chapter IX, the four brothers Buttke and their cousins being among the first ones, all strong, active, industrious and intelligent men. They soon had nice farms, but the lure of the west with its great prairies attracted them, and most of them went to the Dakotas after having made big farms here. One, the younger, Carl Buttke, died on his farm in Stettin when his children were very young, but his widow kept the property and family to- gether. The town consists now of township 29, range 6, and sections 27 to 34 in township 29, range 7 east.
The farm settlement in Stettin flourished together with that in Berlin, and while a great number of the original settlers have gone to the Dakotas, Nebraska, Iowa and as far as Oregon, the majority still reside on the original homesteads, the land being now held by their sons and grandsons. It is one of the richest towns in Marathon county, with splendid farms and fine buildings.
There are four cheese factories, all well supplied with milk. One little portable mill purchased in 1882 by Carl Buttke, William Buttke, Othmar Sauter and John Loy, which did a large amount of custom sawing for farmers for twenty years, has been sold and moved into the southern part of the town, where it is still in operation by August Seehafer. Another mill, owned by Fritz Erdmann, makes shingles and laths. Another mill is operated by Fitzke & Plautz on Little Rib.
The town is divided into seven school districts, each having a modern schoolhouse. There are two churches, each an Evangelical Lutheran church. The first congregation was organized by Rev. A. F. H. Gebhard over fifty years ago; the present frame church edifice was built in 1885. This congre- gation celebrated its fiftieth anniversary on the 2d day of June, 1912. It was a profound and solemn celebration. The anniversary services were held in the forenoon in the church, which had been renovated and decorated with flowers, and Reverend Ehnke and President Ahl of Oshkosh, and Reverend Gebhard, the founder and for twenty-eight years pastor of the congregation, spoke of the primitive conditions under which it was organized; and of the hardships with which the founder had to contend. Of the founders who had signed the roll of membership only two, the Reverend Gebhard and A. Kippke,
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were present ; some had moved away, but the majority rested in the cemetery around the church, and in words which sank deep in the heart of his hearers, Reverend Gebhard remembered the dead. In the afternoon there was a festival in the grove at the church, where greetings from neighboring congre- gations were read, addresses made and the women of the congregation did the honors to the many guests that took part in the celebration. Revs. P. Spiegel of Wausau and P. Ficken of Edgar each made an address fitting the occasion and the memary of this anniversary will not pale in the hearts of those who had the good fortune to be present. The present pastor is Rev Paul Martin Pilz.
Another nice little brick church is situated near the northwest corner of the town built about seven years ago, where Rev. Ernest Wendtland, the resident minister at the town of Rib Falls, holds service.
THE TOWN OF EASTON.
The town of Easton was created by the commissioners of Marathon county, who then constituted the county board, in the year 1861; the first election was ordered to be held in the house of A. L. Ackley, who lived in range 10. The town was given townships 28 and 29, north of ranges 9 and IO, and township 27, north of range 10. As now constituted it includes only township 29, north of range 9 east .*
The first farm settlement in the present town was made by Dennis Man- ning and his brother, who came there in the year 1859; there were a few otlier settlers in range 10, including A. L. Ackley and John Hogarthy, and a few Canadians who had Indian wives. Dennis Manning and brother Michael each made a large farm and left their families in good circumstances, and one of the sons still resides in the town.
The farms were very few and far apart for a long time, until the German emigration set in in 1866 and the following years. Carl Rick and August Uecker came in 1866 and Carl Sternberg, Herman Sternberg and William Jaecks came in 1867, and the town was more and more settled by the German emigration, which still for some years to come preferred the western to the eastern towns, apparently for no other reason than that the western towns were stronger settled upon.
Herman Zahrt owns a mill in this town for custom sawing. The farms
* This town was abolished in 1865. but reestablished a few years afterwards.
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are now as large as in any of the towns and there is a large amount of hard- wood still standing, which brings good prices now. One creamery and three cheese factories take all the milk that is produced and the output is large. There is a large stock of registered pedigreed Holstein cows owned by Nich- olas Grimm, who purchased the big farm of one Knowles, a native American who settled there at the end of the fifties. A blacksmith shop is kept by William Rollenhagen. The town is divided in five school districts, each with a modern schoolhouse.
The German Evangelical Lutheran St. John's church was built thirty years ago; it is a fine, large brick building where Rev. Martin Buerger, the resident minister from the town of Wausau, conducts religious services.
The Zion's Church, another Evangelical Lutheran church, was built eight or nine years ago with a parsonage, and Rev. W. Braem is the resident minister.
A Scandinavian congregation was organized a few years ago near the northwest corner of the town, where services according to the Lutheran rites are held in the Scandinavian language for the settlers residing in the towns of Hewitt, Harrison and Plover.
A Presbyterian chapel existed near the southwest corner of the town, which has lately been purchased by a newly formed German Evangelical Lutheran congregation, Rev. W. Braem being visiting minister.
THE TOWN OF MAINE.
The town of Maine was one of the first settled towns in this county. The first German settlement has been referred to as being made in 1856, with a slow influx of German emigrants from year to year until the town was fairly well settled, and it is curious to learn that the north portion, township 30, was sooner thickly settled than the southern portion, in township 29, and latest of all was the land settled nearest to the city of Wausau.
The town was set off from the town of Wausau in 1866 when the county was governed by the three commissioners, August Kickbusch, Aug. W. Schmidt and John Week, and the first election was ordered to be held in the house of August Kell. It was given all the territory in townships 28, 29 and 30, in range 7 east, although a small portion lying east of the Wisconsin river was cut off from the main part of the town and had no means of communica- tion with it, unless by the circuitous route to Wausau, or unless a crossing was made by boat, in the summer, or on the ice in the winter.
The present territory is limited to township 30, range 7 east, lying west
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of the Wisconsin river; and the greater portion of township 29, north of range 7, lying west of the river.
The town was given its name from U. E. Maine, who was probably the first settler ; he was a native American and at one time county surveyor. He had the largest farm when the town was organized. "His wife was a woman of Chippewa descent, with whom he brought up a large family of very intel- ligent and industrious sons. He sold his farm in the latter part of the seven- ties to Matt. Callon, who still owns and occupies the same. It was surmised at the time of the sale that the desire of U. E. Maine to keep his children from associating with Indians prompted him to sell his farm and move west. He had nearly eighty acres cleared and under good cultivation when he sold.
There is a small saw mill owned by Hackbarth & Laatsch, not operating at present, but which will be running in a short time again. One brickyard opened by Frank Mathie in 1868 is still making excellent brick; it is owned and conducted over thirty years by William Garske. Its close proximity to the city of Wausau is a strong point in favor of this establishment.
There are five cheese factories in this town, making annual distribution of scores of thousands of dollars among the farmers.
For the purpose of testing the lands of Marathon county on the produc- tiveness of apple culture, the state rented ten acres for a long term of years and planted apple trees, with the best of success. It proved without doubt that apples can be raised with profit and that soil as well as climate are favor- able to the culture. Encouraged by the result. B. F. Wilson, who owns a farm not over four miles from the city, has put a number of acres into an orchard and the young trees planted promise the best results. The farm with the experimental state orchard is now owned by Jacob Gensman of Wausau or his son.
The town of Maine is divided into seven school districts, each has a good modern schoolhouse.
There are five church congregations in this town.
The German Methodist church is probably the first, certainly one of the first Protestant congregations organized in this county, the first minister gathering the flock together appearing here either at about the same time, or a very little earlier, than Reverend Strieter, who organized the Evangelical Lutheran congregation at Naugard, in the town of Berlin.
It was in the time from 1859 to 1860 that a missionary minister, the Reverend Pfeffler, from Watertown, came in this territory and held religious service for the congregation at stated times. There was for some time no church building and service was held in a private house, but the members
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kept up their organization and adhered to each other. The next minister to visit it was Reverend Schaeffler, who held service in the house of one Pophal, and after him came Rev. William Meyer, under whose direction a log house was erected for a church at the site of the present church in the year 1861. Reverend Scheffler was succeeded by Rev. Nicholas Eiffler, and with the growth of the congregation in numbers and their better material condition a fine church edifice and parsonage was erected in the early eighties. It was dedicated by Rev. John Beinert. The first resident pastor was Rev. Conrad Eberhard, who was succeeded by Rev. Philip Hummel. The minister of this congregation also served two congregations, one in the town of Rib Falls and one in the town of Corning, at that time in town of Berlin in this county, now in Lincoln county, both of which congregations have neat church edifices. The present resident minister is Reverend Wagner.
German Evangelical Lutheran churches :
The oldest of the Evangelical Lutheran churches has its edifice at the postoffice, Taegersville, the organization of which dates back to the first organization of the Lutheran churches in Marathon county. It was united in the beginning with the congregation in Naugard, town of Berlin, and both had Rev. J. J. Hoffmann as their pastor, and afterwards Rev. William Hudt- loff, until the Naugard congregation separated. The first church was a log building put up over fifty years ago. A new church was built in 1899. Its name is the "Immanual's" church, and its trustees are Karl Klinger and Fred Hintz. The resident pastor is Rev. August J. Koepp.
Another German Evangelical Lutheran congregation has a fine church building on the Merrill road, in township 30, which was built over twenty-five years ago, with a large membership. The resident pastor is Rev. Joseph Fiehler and he serves another congregation as a mission in the town of Scott, in Lincoln county.
Another congregation of the same faith was organized about 1868 in the southern part of the town and held their service in a schoolhouse, where a minister from Wausau visited them, until a fine church was built in the year 1895. Its trustees are: H. Marquardt, F. Schuett and K. Ziebell. The religious services are now conducted by Rev. Aug. J. Koepp.
A fourth congregation was organized and erected its church in 1886-1887, the most prominent members of the time of its organization being John Ku- fahl, Edw. Nass and John F. Strehlow. It has a resident minister in the person of Reverend Meyer.
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THE TOWN OF WIEN.
This town was set off from the town of Marathon November 12, 1867, and established as a separate town, the first election to be on town meeting day in the following year. The town was named after the capital of Austria (Vienna), the first settler in that territory having come to America from that city, where he had followed the occupation of a "ladies' tailor." When asked how he came to go so far from every settlement, he said he had bought his land in Pittsburg, from speculators, and was shown a plat representing the city of Marathon City, showing the steamboat landing, church, school- house, market square, and was told that the country was well settled, and more settlers streaming into that territory; that believing in these statements, he did not wish to be too close to the city, because he wanted to keep cattle and expected to have more pasture room some distance away from Marathon City, and took up the land eight miles further west. When he came up there the bunch of settlers going to Marathon City, had not yet arrived; he found neither road nor path to go there, and returned to Berlin and waited for some of the settlers, with whom he came to Mosinee again, and they then made a sort of road to Marathon City, and he had a surveyor show him his land eight miles further west. He did not go with the very first settlers who went up to Marathon City by canoe, but waited for the second arrivals.
Being the first settler in that territory, the town was named after his home city, the other large cities having already been remembered by naming the towns of Berlin and Stettin. Charles Marquardt, Fred Hamann, Fred Bau- mann and William Garbrecht came later in the same fall, and some miners from Pittsburg, who did not remain, and returned to Pittsburg, and refusing to pay taxes, preferred to lose their land rather than undergo the hardships of pioneer life.
The town of Wien, being township 28, range 4 east, is distinguished by a more gently swelling surface, no hills of any dimensions are in this township. Of the oldest settlers, only one, Fred Baumann, is still alive, and he emigrated to the Far West about twelve years ago, where he is in good circumstances, having invested in western lands to good advantage.
There is one creamery and two cheese factories in the town, which are doing a large business.
The town is divided in five school districts, each with a fine schoolhouse.
This town was always distinguished for good schools, there being the town school system in vogue, by which the whole territory was taxed for school purposes, and the income divided among the school districts.
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There are two German Evangelical Lutheran churches in the town, both on the extreme west, which give the people of the town of Frankfort a chance to attend and become meinbers of the congregation, the eastern portion attend- ing divine service in the village of Edgar.
In the early years of the settlement Rev. J. J. Hoffmann, and after him Rev. William Hudtloff, visited the congregation monthly and held service in the schoolhouses, while the few Catholic pioneers attended service in Mara- thon City, they being near the east side of the township.
A regular congregation was organized in the year 1885 and a church built in the same year, and Pastor Busch was the first resident minister. He did not remain long, and was succeeded by Rev. P. K. Pitzler, who remained until 1890, when he was followed by Rev. P. Karl Schmlaz of Oconto county, who has been continually in charge to this day. Under his pastorage, the con- gregation progressed in every way, the membership is trebled, the church renovated and newly furnished, without any debts on the property. The congregation also owns a parochial schoolhouse.
There is a Ladies' Society, a Young Men's Society, a male and a mixed choir. The same pastor also founded the St. Peter's congregation in Fen- wood as a mission from Wausau and another at Stratford. The original con- gregation in the town of Wien celebrated its twenty-fifth anniversary in 1910; it has a membership of 115 families in the town of Wien, 56 in the village of Stratford and Io in Fenwood. The congregations are served by the same pastor, who has been the resident minister in the town of Wien for the last twenty-three years, and they live in the utmost harmony.
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