The setting and subject of this History, the Township of
Washington, is located in the extreme southeastern section of La
Crosse County, Wisconsin. This county having its seat at the city of
La Crosse is on the eastern shore of the Mississippi River at a point
155 miles south of St. Paul and 78 miles north of Prairie du Chien.
The geological setting of the Township is the area of Wisconsin
known as the Western Uplands region. This region, extending
approximately twenty miles into the state from the Mississippi, consists
in a system of continuous, raised hills and valleys geologically formed
by the many smell streams located there. This system is especially
accentuated in the Township of Washington because of its proximity
to the Mississippi River. In fact, Washington was one of the last
townships of La Crosse County settled partially because of the
ruggedness of its terrain.
The hills and valleys spoken of are not of the butte (hog-back)
type but are continuous and have been shaped and created by the
How of the water. The hills are "offshoots" of the main, central core
ridges to which the crests are attached and at an equal elevation. At
a point on the crest of the hills at the extreme opposite of the point
of conjunction with the core ridge is generally located the bluff orprecipice of the hill. The precipice consists in exposed cliffs of
orange and (or) brown sedimentary rock. These cliffs expose the rock
upon which the terrain of the entire Township is based.
This terrain is characterized by a large central ridge running
through the entirety of the Township's northern and central section
from east to west. This is a short section of the watershed of the
La Crosse River and Coon Creek. The entire Ridge is approximately
fifty miles long culminating at La Crosse on its western end. Because
of its strategic importance as a link between producer and consumer,
the Ridge became an important artery of transportation. Attached
to this central ridge in Washington Township are two secondary ridges
of significant size. These are: 1) Bohemian (originally Norwegian)
Ridge in the southwestern quarter of the Township; and 2) North Ridge
in the southeastern quarter. All of the ridge dwellers in this Township
live on one of these principal ridges or their adjourning branches. All
valley residents live in valleys directly adjacent to these ridges.
The hydrography of the township is entirely, if indirectly, related
to the Mississippi River. Three important streams directly drain the
township- They are: 1) Bostwick Creek, a tributary of the La Crosse
River, draining sections or parts of sections three, four, five, six,
seven, eight, nine and ten; 2) Dutch Creek, a tributary of the La
Coon Creek, a tributory of the Mississippi draining all remaining
sections of the Township.The topsoil in the Township of Washington consists, in general,
of a dark colored highly productive variety. The soil was produced
by the transformation of decayed animal and plant materials growing
on it. It is usually from six to eight inches thick. The quality of top
soil is universally suited for high production but the overall topography
is not. Production of crops is impossible, in modern agricultural
conditions, on approximately 65% of the acreage because of prohibitive
uneveness of the terrain. Even some of the land used for agricultural
purposes is on steep hills and used for that purpose, only because of
high soil productivity and the economic conditions of individual farmers.
Most of those areas too inclined for. agricultural use are and have
been wooded throughout the Township's history. Much inclined land
has been cleared of forest growth to be used as an open grazing area.
Because of the extensive acreage of such cleared areas, the Township
of Washington is ideally suited for dairy farming. Most of the
productive acreage in the Township is on the ridges. The
proportionately small amount of valley land that is used is too steep
or damp for efficient production. All farmsteads located in the valleys
depend on ridge acreage of the same farm for the bulk of the farm's
production.
Approximately twenty per cent of the land in the Township of
Washington is fully forested. Most of the trees growing naturally
there are hardwood trees usually of the red and white oak type. Some
elm, maple, birch and hickory can also be found. The amount of softwood trees growing there is negligible.
The Township's only commercially valuable known mineral is
lirnerocft. Several small quarries have been opened to secure the rock
for use as a construction material and for fertilizer. Quarrying of
this rock was never economically important to the Township.
The climate of the Township is one characteristic of the upper
midwest. Very cold winters and hot summers are the rule. The mean
annual temperature is *43°F., with extremes reaching +110°F. and
-50°F. The mean annual rainfall is thirty-one inches with about seventy
pep cent of this falling during the growing season. The growing season
is from 130-150 days in length.
Another natural asset of the Township that cannot be ignored
is its great physical beauty. Though having no objective economic
importance, it is a source of deep spiritual satisfaction and wonder.
The rugged greened hills and valleys, indiscriminately carved out and
created by valley streams, bordered by high rugged hills climaxed by
their bright orange and white sandstone cliffs, create an aura of
beauty seldom repeated and never surpassed.
The Township on the Eve of Settlement—1854
In January of 1854 the present Township of Washington was
just another small tract of wild unsettled and largely unknown land
in the southwestern section of the new state of Wisconsin. No fences,
claim stakes, boundaries or cabins cluttered this scene of natural
tranquility and silence. The sounds heard were those of unrestrainednature. Flocks of passenger pigeons were occasionally of such size as
to cloud the sun.1 Prairie chickens, quail, and partridges filled the
land. Fox were commonly seen and numerous wolves occupid the
Township's forests. Racoons, badgers, bobcats and some black bears
are said to have inhabited the region. Though most of the beaver
streams abounded in the trout and suckers common there today.
Rattlesnakes and other reptiles were frequently seen. The forests
were decorated by an abundance of May apples, skunk cabbage, and
blue cohoches.2
The one unusual feature which characterized parts of Washington
Township and the surrounding district was the lack of a fully developed
forest growth.3 According to the memories of pioneers, some areas
of the township had had their forest growth removed three or four
years before the first settlement in the township in 1854. When the
settlers came, the entire ridge area and much of the valley area was
wooded by small shrubbery and saplings of approximately three years
growth. From the evidence available, it is concluded that a forest

1L. H. Pamrnel. Some Reminiscences of La Crosse and Vicinity
(LaCrosse: Liesenfeld Press, 1927), p. 15.
2Ibid.
3William Charles Arentz, Bangor, Wisconsin, personal interview,
3 September, 1963. Hereinafter referred to as William Charles Arentz,
interview.fire swept through the area in approximately 1852. Of course, the
lack of a mature forest was highly advantegeous to the first settlers
arriving in 1854, since the problem of forest removal was virtually
eliminated for many.
According to available records, the only possible residents of
the Township before the 1854 settlement were the American Indians.
Though no accurate record of the activities of this Township exist,
some information concerning the Indians in this general area was
recorded.
Removal of Indians in order to open the area to settlement
legally began with the separation of the area of the present state of
Wisconsin from Michigan Territory. That change, which officially took
place on July 4, 183G, through Congressional action, created the new
Wisconsin Territory.4 Henry Dodge, appointed the Territory's first
governor by President Andrew Jackson, was specifically assigned to
wrest this land from Indian control. He began his task immediately.
On July 27, 1837, Chief Hole-in-the-day and Governor Dodge
signed the Treaty of Fort Snelling (Minnesota). By this treaty, a
large section of northwestern Wisconsin was ceded to the United States
by the Chippewa Indians. On September 29, 1837, United States
Secretary of War, Joel Poinsett, Big Plunder and twenty other Sioux

4C. W. Butterfield, History of La Crosse County, Wisconsin
(Chicago: Western Historical Company, 1881), p. 41.chiefs signed a treaty ceding all land previously held by that tribe in
Wisconsin to the white men.5 Thus, the last remaining Chippewa lands
on the Territory were ceded to the United States. After the signing
of this treaty, the entire state could legally be opened for settlement.
Regardless of legal documents, many Wisconsin Indians lingered
affectionately on their old hunting grounds. Local villages lived on.
On the La Crosse River at West Salem, the village of Big Canoe was
located, while at the present site of Bangor the Winnebago Chief
Black Hawk maintained his hunting lodge. The Winnebago Tribe, the
last Indians to call the Township of Washington area home, did not
leave within eight months of the signing of the final treaty as it
stipulated but lingered in its old haunts until 1849. At that time the
new state of Wisconsin forced their removal to Minnesota's Crow
River Reservation. Until 1848 the majority of the population of La
Crosse, then a community of twenty-five residents were Indians. In
1853, the La Crosse Democrat noted that a good number of Indians
still inhabited the area but that 'They appear harmless and inoffensive
and are dangerous only to game and an occasional porker."6 In light
of this evidence, it is conclusive that the first settlers of the Township

5John G. Gregory, editor-in-chief, West Central Wisconsin, a
History (Indianapolis: S. J. Clark Publishing Company, Inc., 1933), Vol.
II. 110.
6Quoted in Benjamin F. Bryant, editor, Memoirs of La Crosse
County, (Madison: Western Historical Assoc., 1907), p. 25.of Washington in 1854 were not harassed by hostile or troublesome
Indians. Occasional theft and breakage of game regulations were
generally the most grievous offenses of the natives.
Initial Government of the Site of the Township of Washington
The settlement of the village of La Crosse was forerunner to
the settlement to La Crosse County which included the present
Township of Washington. La Crosse, soon after its founding, become
a Mississippi River port at which immigrants landed, examined the
possibilities for settlement and some finally bought land and settled.
The village of La Crosse was founded in 1841 when Nathan
Myrick of western New York built his'trading post on Barren's Island
(present Pettibone Island). In 1842 the post was moved to the present
intersection of State and Front Streets by Myrick and his new
commercial partner, H. J. B. Miller.7 The post met with immediate
success in Indian trade since it was the only post between Fort Snelling
and Prairie du Chien. Located within twenty miles of the junctions
of the Black. Trernpealeau, La Crosse. Coon, Root, and Bad Axe Rivers
with the Mississippi, Prairie La Crosse had long been the setting for
Indian rendezvous and was the logical site for Myrick's post.
IN 1844 Myrick and Miller began the La Crosse lumber industry
which was to characterize the Town and to attract many of its first
settlers, Norwegians and Swedes, to operate the lumber mills and

7Gregory, West Central Wisconsin, a History. p. 582.logging oarnps.8 Until 1849 La Crosse was an untamed, lawless, frontier
town primarily inhabited by Indians. The non-Indian minority of the
occupants consisted in undesirable drifters and travelers who had little
or no interest in permanent residence and development of the land.
In 1849 Myrick's post closed following the forced removal of most
local Indians.
In 1851, with a population of approximately six white families,
the village of La Crosse was politically organized. In 1854, when the
Township of Washington received its first settlers, the village of La
Crosse had fifty families in residence while the county had 700 people.9
Regardless of the small size and remoteness of this frontier
post, La Crosse was already considered a village of numerous
opportunities both in itself and as a gateway to the surrounding area
and to the river valleys culminating at La Crosse. The village was
frequently spoken of thoughout the nation as being a potentially
important river port, a nail center, and as a site for the processing
of cotton shipped from southern states. Others felt the village would
some day lead in the production of bricks from locally plentiful red
clay and limestone deposits.10 However, the most widely accepted
economic prediction related to the agricultural potential of the area.

8Ibid.
9lbid., p. 583.
10lbid., p. 584.SAINT MARY'S COLLEGE
THE ECONOMIC AND POLITICAL HISTORY OF THE TOWNSHIP
OF WASHINGTON, LA CROSSE COUNTY, WISCONSIN
1853 - 1900
A DISSERTATION
PRESENTED TO THE FACULTY
OF SAINT MARYS COLLEGE IN PARTIAL
FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE
DEGREE OF BACHELOR OF ARTS
COPYRIGHT 1988 BY PAUL A. HUNDTSAINT MARY'S COLLEGE
THE ECONOMIC AND POLITICAL HISTORY OF THE TOWNSHIP
OF WASHINGTON, LA CROSSE COUNTY, WISCONSIN
1853 - 1900
A DISSERTATION
PRESENTED TO THE FACULTY
OF SAINT MARYS COLLEGE IN PARTIAL
FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE
DEGREE OF BACHELOR OF ARTS
COPYRIGHT 1988 BY PAUL A. HUNDTof Washington.
In order to assure the reader's greatest comprehension of the
struggle of the people of the Township 1 will begin my study at a point
in history long before the site of the Township was conceived as a
site for settlement. Chapter One is devoted to that purpose. The
remaining three chapters review the Township's history from 1857 to
1900. Following the chapter is a brief conclusion and a bibliography.
The discussion concentrates on economic and political factors.
However for purposes of clarity and interest other aspects of its
development are occasionally included.
At this point I would like to express my sincere appreciation
to the many interested people who contributed either time, personal
knowledge or the use of source material to aid me in this undertaking.
Special note must be made of the skillful efforts of Brother J. Robert,
Chairman of the St. Mary's College History Department, who guided
my efforts throughout. Similar note must be made of the generosity
of Joseph Schumaeher, John Bosshard and WInfield Christopherson for
the use of rare volumes necessary for the completion of this account.
Each of those pioneers with whom 1 conducted personal interviews,
listed in the bibliography of this work, also have my special
appreciation.It was thought that this hilly country would best support sheep farming
and even dairy farming.
In 1853, the famous New York Tribune made a typical eastern
remark about the small struggling and remote village of La Crosse:
"La Crosse must figure as the second city of Wisconsin" and hotels
are crowded with "everybody busy but the doctors."11
The Initial welfare of La Crosse and its surrounding area was
important to the settlement of the Township of Washington. This is
true since the welfare of that post was the only concrete indication
of the area's potential to settlers pondering migration to the vicinity.
It was generally true on the frontier that the potential of the area
was determinant of the calibre of the settlers. Immigrants entering
the country at New York were vehemently encouraged to settle in
Wisconsin by the Wisconsin State Commission of Immigration located
there.12 However, that commission, headed by G. W. Henwyck. was
one of many such commissions maintained by most new western
settlements at important ports of entry and in Europe to lure the
highest calibre immigrants to their respective areas. Such commissions
were known for their gross exaggerations, falsifications and

11Bryant, Memoirs of LA Cross^ County, p. 35.
12Ibid., p. 35.outshine all others in apparent potentiality.13 These campaigns to
lure immigrants to western locations enjoyed greater success when the
commissioners could point to a thriving center such as La Crosse in
the area which employed them. La Crosse was a concrete example
of what couid be accomplished in this area.
The Wisconsin Commission of Immigration made an appeal to
the poor western European immigrants. Specifically it advertized
Wisconsin as being a type of Europe but not having the disadvantages
of Europe. The Commission claimed that the climate and natural
resources of Wisconsin were similar to those of Europe but even more
desirable. The immigrants were told of the limitless rich land available
at nominal cost and of Wisconsin's free school system, including a
state university. The Commission claimed that immigrants preferred
Wisconsin to other states since only one year of residence, instead of
the five usual in other states, was required for voting. It also said
that foreigners were accepted as natives in Wisconsin, since they were
so plentiful there that in each election some were elected to office.
In 1852 the Commission publicized the transportation facilities
available for immigrants to southwestern Wisconsin. Specifically it
spoke of the Erie Canal Route. This Hudson River-Erie Canal-Great
Lake.s Route permitted rather comfortable travel from New York City

13 Ibid.to Michigan for only $3.00.14 The remainder of the route to Western
Wisconsin followed the military road from Fort Howard (Green Bay)
to Fort Crawford (Prairie du Chien).15 From there Mississippi River
steamboats left for La Crosse. This advertising campaign was important
to the future Township of Washington since the vast majority of the
Township's citizens were to be western Europeans.
Land Regulations Affecting Settlers of the La Crosse Area
Land regulations affecting settlers in Wisconsin were
fundamentally created by the Land Ordinance of 1785.16 This ordinance
provided for the cartography and sale of the Ohio Country at that
time. The Ohio Country included the present Township of Washington.
The Ordinance provided the structure according to which the Township
of Washington was created. Specifically the law provided that all
government-owned land open for settlement must be divided into
townships six miles long and wide. The townships were to be subdivided
into thirty-six sections of one square mile each. Townships accidentally
deformed (rather than square) by state borders, lakes, rivers or
legislative decision were to be called fractional townships. Today
Washington is one of thie two non-fractioned Townships in La Crosse

l4Ray Alien Billington,Westward Expansion (New York: The
Macmillan Company, 1960), p. 303.
15Paul Prucha, Broadaxe and Bayonet (Madison: State Historical
Society of Wisconsin, 1953), p. 37.
16Billington, Westward Expansion, p. 265.County (the other is the Township of Bangor).
One of the purposes of the Ordinance of 1785 was to provide
an effieient, just and profitable method of distributing eminent domain.
At that time, the profit motive was of great importance since the
money was needed to get the new United States on its feet. To fulfill
this end the first Land Laws set high prices on land, the terms being
immediate cash payment only. However, as national financial stability
and the desire for western land increased the terms of payment were
adjusted to favor the [»or pioneer farmer rather than the wealthy
speculating entrepreneur. The iand law affecting the settlement of
the Township of Washington from 1853 to 1857 was t6hat written in
1820.17 It set the price of land at $1.25 per acre, the land to be sold
in sections of 160 acres and to be paid for in four equal payments
or less.
An important problem encountered in the purchase and setting
of frontier land was solved by the Pre-emption Law of 1841.18 This
law granted settlers (squatters) the right to purchase at land law
terms land on which they had settled before it was open to settlement.
Anyone making a settlement on public land was authorized, by that
law, to claim a quarter section at the minimum price. If one was to
settle and improve the land, he had to inform the local land office

17Ibid., p. 350.
18Ibid., p. 380.and within a year of that information purchase it at the same land
office. Though no exact information exists on the use of the pre
emption system in the settlement of the Township of Washington, it
most likely was used there.
The sale of land for settlement required a system of land offices.
Each office had its own district. The Township of Washington was
made a part of the Wisconsin Land District of Michigan Territory in
1334.19 An act of Congress of May 3, 1847, made this Township a
part of the newly created Chippewa Land District of Wisconsin
Territory.20 The land office of this district was located at Mineral
Point, Wisconsin, in tlie southwestern part of the state, approximately
100 miles southeast of La Crosse. All the very early settlers of the
La Crosse area had to make the long, tedious, horseback trip to that
town to buy their land. The great distance from the Mineral Point
land office to the Township of Washington was considered a detriment
to the speedy settlement of this township. In order to encourage
faster settlement and more efficient land distribution the La Crosse
Land District was created by an Act of Congress on July 30, 18S2.21
Centralized at La Crosse, the district was responsible for the

19Butterfield, History of La Crosse County, Wisconsin, p. 222.
20ibid.
21lbid.. p. 225.Buffalo, Trempealeau, Eau Claire, Clark and parts of Chippewa.
The presence of a land office at the port of La Crosse was
an important advantage to the speedy settlement of La Crosse County.
Its importance as a stimulant to settlement is partially proven by the
statistics. From 1847 to 1852 only about 700 people lived in La
Crosse County. However, four years after the La Crosse Land District
opened the previously unsettled Township of Washington alone had at
least 300 residents.22
The Settlement of Rural La Crosse County, 1841-1853
The first permanent settlers of La Crosse County, other than
the speculators and traders already'mentioned, were the lumberjacks
and sawmill operators who appeared in 1845 and 1846 immediately
after Myrick and Miller built their lumber mill. In 1847 Timothy
Burns, sometimes called the founder of La Crosse, arrived.23 He
bought an interest in the land and property of the city, advertised
the land, and hired a surveyor to develop it. His work greatly benefited
the growth of La Crosse.
Until 1850 most settlers of the area were lumberman. During
that year, however, some settlers moved into the rural areas, for the

22Township of Buchanan (Washington), First Annual Meeting, 1857,
Minutes of the Town Clerk.
23The present Township of Burns, La Crosse County, was named
after Timothy Burns. Burns died while serving as lieutenant governor
of Wisconsin in 1852.purpose of farming. This movement was at first considered beginning
of the demise of the area. The critics of the farmers based their
judgment on: 1) the poor economic condition of the rural settlers; and
on 2) the fact that those settlers caused the removal of wild game
which the critics felt was the only chance for a respectable living.
After 1850 some present day villagers near the Township of
Washington received their first settlers.24 In 1851 the cabins of
Thomas Leonard, Julius Segar, Thomas Bostwick and James Hogan were
built near the present site of West Salem. Meanwhile, one mile south
of the present site of Bangor the earliest residents of that township
settled. Those settlers were Michael Darrnes, John Bosshard, and
Christian Reudy. Settlement also progressed rapidly in Bostwick Valley
northeast of the Township of Washington. In 1853 there were twenty-
three families living in Bostwick Valley as compared to two families
in 1851.

24Bryant, Memoirs of La Crosse County, p. 33.CHAPTER II
THE SETTLEMENT OF THE TOWKSHIP OF WASBINGTON 1854-1860
The original claim and settlement within the present borders of
the Township of Washington was made by John Johnn in the present
section seven during the spring of 1854. Later in the same spring
John P. Shafer located in section eighteen and John P. ailey in section
four. It is notable that sections seven and eighteen are on the western
border of the Township and section four on the northwest in Bostwick
Valley, the portions of the Township nearest La Crosse.1 The fact
that these early settlements were ali so located adds support to the
contention that La Crosse was the base for nearby settlements.
Bostwick Valley connects directly to La Crosse by the La Crosse
River while sections seven and eighteen are located on the Ridge land
route from La Crosse.
The settlement of the Township continued rapidly after the
original entries were made. In 1855 Nic Wiertz, Jacob Halvorson, (?)
Nidividek, Jacob Stein, Adolph Huett, Caspar Newburg, Conrad Rittburg,
Alois Newburg, and John P. Roenen made their claims. In 1856 Andreas
Cornell, Joseph Schnteder, Theodore Blume, (?) Koblitz and Michael

1see map on page iii for further inforAhrentz settled.2 The influx continued so rapidly that by 1859 most
of the desirable locations in the Township had been claimed.
The poeple who claimed land and settled in the Township were
usually immigrants from western European countries. Of these, at
least fifty per cent were Germans while Bohemians represented another
fifteen per cent. Another fifteen per cent of the settlers came from
the Scandinavian Countries while Irish, Poles and Americans filled out
the remainder of the population.
In most cases the settlers reached southwestern Wisconsin by
the Erie Canal route. For several reasons they arrived first at La
Crosse. La Crosse was the terminal for several leading inland routes.
Those were the six rivers in the Wisconsin and Minnesota territories
and the well developed military roads running north to Fort Snelling,
south to Fort Crawford, and east to Portage and Madison. There was
also the Mississippi itself.
At the La Crosse Land Office the settlers were shown the
location of land for sale and the routes to plots and their prices3
They often purchased their general supplies in La Crosse. The supplies
needed by the European immigrants were usually many since the
transporting of goods from Europe beyond the minimum amount was

2Supra, p. 13.
3The price for all land available in the Township of Washington
before the Homestead Act in 1362 was $1.25 per acre.almost impossible. The goods sought were those most essential for
settling, such as an axe, a gun, basic household utensils and perhaps
some sugar and salt. In addition to food and hardware, some pioneers
attempted to buy the beginning of a herd of cattle, a draft animal
r two and some other farm animals. A single calf, a couple of pigs,
a few chickens and a sheep or two were usually the maximum purchased
by the settlers before moving their claim.
Though seemingly impossible, many farms in the area were
settled without the use of home-owned draft animals.4 In fact,as
late as 1872 only 66 of the 149 farmers of the Township had draft
animals.5 The shortage of draft animals was often solved by
cooperative use of the few owned. In some cases, family and other
groups, from the time of embarking from Europe, cooperated in the
purchase and use of supplies, including draft animals. This serious
shortage implies, among other things, two points: 1) the poverty of
the settlers; and 2) the courage and endurance they possessed to win
in the face of such obstacles. Carriages, wagons and sleds were also
in short supply in the Township. In 1872, only 98 of the 149 farmers
of the Township owned one or more of these three.G

4Township of Washington, Assessment of 1872.
5The draft animals recorded were horses owned by 59 farmers,
mules owned by two farmers and oxen owned by five farmers.
6Township of Washington, Assessment of 1872.The usual limitation on the purchases of the pioneers was their
financial condition. Though not wealthy, they were not financially
destitute. As far as records reveal, none of the Township's residents
paid their ship far, {from Europe) after reaching the Township. This
alone indicates substantial financial ability. According to one student
of immigration of Western Europeans into La Crosse County, "The
foreigners were nearly always of a good class of Germans, Swedes,
and Norwegians, hardy and industrious and willing to accommodate
themselves to the strenuous conditions of frontier life."17
At least one settler in the Township of Washington was wealthy.
This was William Drueger whose parents, Martin and Annie of
Brandenburg, Prussia, were well-to-do.8 After landing at Castle Rock,
New York, in 1852, Drueger worked at a Jesuit College in Arkansas
until 1856 when he received a gift of $2000 from his parents. With
this money he traveled to Washington Township where, in 1857, he
bought and developed a 500 acre tract. Being a literate man, Drueger
served at different times as Clerk and Treasurer of the Township.
Another indication of the financial ability of the new immigrants
is the fact that they bought the land they settled. Until the Homestead
Act in 1862 land was not free but cost $1.25 per acre. If the minimun

7Benjamin F. Bryant, editor. Memoirs of La Crosse County
(Madison: Western Historical Association, 1907), p. 48.
8Biographical History of La Crosse. Trempealeau and Buffalo
Counties (Chicago: Lewis Publishing Co., 1892), p. 450.claim of eighty acres was made, a down payment of $ 30 was necessary.
Almost half of the settlers of the Township purchased more than eighty
acres, however. Obviously fifteen or twenty acres was sufficient to
provide the basic needs of the frontier family. Therefore, it is obvious
that settlers purchasing more than the minimum amount had considerable
financial means. Land purchased in excess of eighty acres could not
be profitably farmed due to an inadequate technology and labor supply;
it contributed nothing to survival in the early days. Investment in
extra land was a long range capital investment to the frontier farmer.
After basic preparation in La Crosse, the immigrants set out
for their new homes. The departure of a family of immigrants for
the Township of Washington may have been a sorrowful sight, but
basically it was a cause for optimism. The parties usually consisted
of several families who had left Europe as a group, and who traveled
together for general companionship and mutual assistance. The men
walked, leading the way through the forest, while the women rode
the wagon if one was available and if the condition of the frontier
paths made riding more comfortable than walking. Children did not
generally present a problem since most families had only a very few
small children, if any at all.
That children of settlers on their arrival in the township were
few and small is indicated by various facts. First of all, it was only
Older families of greater size Were difficult and expensive to move,had found a means of livelihood in Europe, were more conservative
in nature, and did not want to break their social ties in Europe.
Additional evidence of the youth of families is the fact that the Civil
War draft in the Township of Washington caused the entry of only
original pioneers, not their children. The Civil War draft was enforced
in the Township in 1864 while most of the settlers had arrived between
1854 and 1859. The fact that the Township school system was not
organized until 1864 may be taken as additional evidence that few
children were among the original settlers.9
Routes frequently traveled by the arriving pioneers were those
parallel to the waterways. During the years of early settlement, most
settlers followed Bostwick, Dutch and Coon Creeks into the Township,
often claiming the first open plot having a stream running through it.
The availability of fresh water was the primary consideration of settlers
in their selection of a particular tract. The numerous streams and
springs located in this Township made it a desirable place to settle.
The desire for a close, abundant and continuous water supply
caused the Township's valleys to be fully settled before the ridge
areas were settled at all.
In the valleys, pioneers preferred to locate where the valley
was broad and where they could look forward to easily clearing ten

9Township of Washington Records of the Superintendent of
Schools, 1859.23
or fifteen acres of lowlands. While wanting a water supply nearby,
pioneers sought to build at least 300 yards away from the streams to
prevent flood damage, which the height and steepness of the hills
made possible.
Flooding and erosion of valley areas seldom occurred before
1860.10 By then the first settlers had begun to remove the forests
and to farm the land on a large scale. Prior to settlement and
farming, erosion was apparently prevented by the heavy undergrowth
soaked up the bulk of potentially erosive water after rains and thaws,
and prevented torrents form rushing to valley streams. As a result,
the valleys as originally seen by the settlers were not marred by large,
uncontrolled, meandering streams but had only straight, narrow, shallow
and naturally controlled waterways running down their centers.
Because of the orderly streams, not only a constant supply of fresh
water but also land of great quality and insufficient acreage became
the property of the pioneers who were lucky enough to locate in valleys.
The result of this preference for valley locations was the
creation of a valley-oriented society, a type of society which existed
until the reasons for the initial valley preference had been removed
by technological innovations. Until 1875, the heavily populated valleys

10willian Charles Arentz, Bangor, Wisconsin, personal interview,
3 September, 1963. Hereinafter referred to as William Charles Arentz,
interview.were the centers of economic, political and social activities and
leadership. Men of leadership and progress either lived in the valleys
from the beginning or attempted to buy into an expensive valley
A majority of the settlers in the Township of Washington could
not obtain such locations and had to accept ridge plots. These people
usually selected ridge claims and a building site which were somewhat
protected from the weather and as near as possible to a stream or
spring. The quantity of cultivatable land located on a plot was a
secondary consideration in its selection. The average pioneer's desire
was to secure fifteen or twenty acres of relatively level land for
cultivation. Beyond that amount land could not be farmed since labor
and technical aids were in short supply. Therefore,ridge lands,
however hightly prized today, were considered to be of least value at
the tiem of initial settlement.
Yet, there was a distinct advantage gained by settling the ridge
areas in the Township of Washington, viz., the absence of a mature
forest growth. It is well known that settlers interested in farming
sought claims having openings in the forest, usually called "oak
openings". Small openings, sufficient for cabin and building location,
were considered of great value since there the removal of trees and
roots before construction was unnecessary. Large level openings,
commonly called "prairie rhondes", were considered even better since
they could accommodate the homestead tand the veginning of a farm.When the ridge area was settled it was free of mature forest growth.
During 1854, 1855, and 1856 the forest growth was so light and young
that the pioneers could easily plow it over with a team of horses or
mules and a steel bladed plow. By 1857, this type of plowing was
no longer possible.H
Obtaining fresh water was usually the most troublesome problem
of ridge dwellers. During the years of primitive technology this
problem was solved in various ways. Initially, ridge dwellers merely
traveled to nearby valley streams or springs for the water. This
method was impractical since it entailed driving all cattle, horses and
mules to the source of water each day. Few water containers were
owned by the settlers and at least one third of the settlers were
ithout sleds, wagons or carriages, so that carrying a water supply to
be used later was usually impossible. By approximately 1870, it became
common for settlers to own jointly a barrel mounted on a wagon
chassis to take care of their water needs. Though all creeks and
springs in the Township were used for water supplies, dependable
streams located in sections two and twenty-two were frequented by
many ridge dwellers. Their popularity was partially due to their
location near well traveled roads.
' As the ridge pioneer became more secure, he sometimes dug

11 William Charles Arentz, interview.surface wells to help alleviate the water problem.12 The surface well
of those early days consisted essentially of a hole in the ground,
twenty to twenty-five feet deep and four to six feet wide. The
earthen sides were covered by a wall built of loose sand and pieces
of limestone. This stone wall, usually constructd with a weak and
quickly deteriorating stone mortar, extended from the floor of the pit
to the surface. It did not extend beyond the surface since such
construction would prevent the entrance of flowing surface water.
For the same reason, wells were often located in low, wet gullies so
as to fill quickly and often with water from natural runoff. Wells
were also frequently placed near the cabin or barn in order to allow
the entry of roof water though eave thoughs or similar contraptions.13
Suspended about four feet above the surface of the rock wall on a
wooden frame was a roof large enough to cover the well opening
itself.14 In the wooden frame below this small roof was a wood or
steel shaft having a crank at its end and a rope attached to the shaft.
This windlass was used to elevate water from the well on a bucket
attached to the rope. In some cases a board cover was laid over the

12 Peter Cavadini, Bangor, Wisconsin, personal interview, 9 July,
1963. Hereinafter referred to as Peter Cavadini, interview.
13 Peter A. Hundt, La Crosse, Wisconsin, personal interview, 15
July, 1963. Herinafter referred to as Peter Hundt, interview.
14 In many cases wells had neither a roof or windlass but remained
open.top of this rock wall to prevent small animals from entering or members
of the farmer's family from doing the same.
Wells of this type consistently provided water during all seasons
except the abnormally dry and during the winter. Judging by present
day standards tne water was never pure. Besides impurities of
microscopic size, all sorts of little animals, e.g., frogs, turtles,
rattlesnakes and polecats were found floating and swimming on the
surface and domesticating in the crevices of the loose rocks walls.
One pioneer said: "You looked in there and you would see a frog
sitting on one rock, a little snake on the next..."15 Regarding those
impurities the average ridge dweller would say "a little dirt never
hurt anybody" before drinking it and serving it to his family. It was
water and it was usually a mile or two closer than the fresh water of
a spring or stream.
Some ridge dwellers attempted to solve their water problems
by building surface ponds.16 However, since the pioneers did not have
the necessary equipment for the construction of large and deep ponds,
few were built. Those built were of low quality and capacity. Such
ponds were almost worthless.
In winter many ridges dwellers had to resort to melting snow
for water. Providing for the household water needs was a light task

15Peter Hundt, interview
16Peter Cavadini, interview.compared to that of providing for the livestock. The pioneer was
forced at times to melt at least ten gallons of water for each cow
and horse each day to sustain their lives.
For thirty years this deplorable system of water supply harassed
ridge dwellers. Not until approximately 1880 when Edward Roesler
began to drill deep wells in the area was this problem solved.17
The economic structure of the Township of Washington until
I860 was geared almost entirely to survival. Until 1860 and in many
cases far beyond that date, the goal was to sustain life. There were
virtually no profits, no luxuries in the Township before that date. Of
course, this situation was not necessarily unique in the Township was
Washington. Most of Wisconsin's frontier areas experienced their
period of hand-to-mouth ecomony. That period is this Township was
free of instances of starvation, crop failure, disease, general exodoses,
and other radical frontier abnormalities. The settlers there met their
time of trail and conquered in a manner traditional on the American
frontieer.
During the early period settlers carried on very little economic
intercourse with others outside the Township. Most commodities never
left their first owners. However, a small trade was carried on during
this era, the result of having to meet needs from other than local
resources and having to pay for their purchases by goods produced in

17 Peter Hundt, interview.the Township. Hence, to an extent, interdependence is shown from
the first.
Though available records do not indicate the volume of
production during the early days it is known that by hunting and
trapping individual pioneers harvested large supplies of furs. Since
the time of the first French voyageurs in the early sixteenth century,
this area WHS known, along with the entire Great Northwest, for its
abundant supply of valuable furs. Though the valuable fur preserves
had been greatly depleted by 1854, the amount remaining could not
have been small if the operation of four furriers in the small city of
La Crosse in 1861 is any indication.18 The particular type of furs
sold on this trade is not known.
Besides the sale of furs, the sale of eatable game to city
dwellers was another means of livelihood. Deer, bear and small game
were bountiful in the area. They were killed and sold frequently for
cash but usually exchanged with storekeepers for merchandise.
Lumbering was another means by which the settlers could obtain
activity along this line, due primarily to the lack of a market and of
transportation. Until 1858 there were no railroads in the vicinity,
thus eliminating the tie business. The only dependable market was in

18C. W. Butterfield, History of La Crosse County. Wisconsin
(Chicago: Western Historical Company, 1881), p. 497.cordwood sold as fuel to the Hussa Brewery in Bangor. However,
even this business was harassed by the roads between Bangor and the
Township of Washington. These roads were virtually non-existent and
made the transportation of heavy leads usually impossible in summer
and very difficult in winter.
Dairy, beef and hog farming represented almost no real source
of income. Herds consisted in two or three beasts or less and their
products were usually consumed by their owners, so that there was
little or nothing left to sell.
Energetic and imaginative settlers made various attempts to win
a little extra income. For instance, John P. Koenen of section twenty-
one was convinced that his claim contained gold.19 Shortly after
arriving on it in 1855, Koenen set to work in his spare time to
capitalize on this good fortune. The result was a catacomb "big
enough to walk into." but he failed to find the gold he sought.
The enterprise of John P. Koenen seems somewhat humerous.
However, we can assure ourselves that his skeptical neighbors watched
with shovels secretly at hand, just in case Koenen's amusing endeavor
paid off. The settlers of this area were sufficiently familiar with
the American frontier to realize the possibility of success for lost
causes or sufficiently naive to have confidence in the impossible.

19Frank Joseph Sedevie, Coon Valley, Wisconsin, Personal
interview, 29 September, 1963 Herinafter referred to as Frank
Joseph Sedevie, Interview.Retail business of any type was not carried on in the Township
of Washington before I860 when a general store is said to have opened.
Until that time, all commercial commodity purchases by residents were
made outside of the Township, usually in either Bangor, Coon Valley
or La Crosse.
Domestic consumption commodities were obtained during the
early years in manners customary to the wisconsin frontier. The
forest was a major source of supply in the struggle for survival. "It
was only the hunter's skill that carried the family through the first
year to two and it was called upon to supplement the larder for years
to come."20 Plentiful at first, the. supply was radically decreased
during the severe winter of 1858.21 During that winter the snow
accumulated to such depths as to prevent the deer from finding food
or moving about easily. As a result, many froze or starved to death,
if they were not clubbed to death by pioneers. Whatever the case,
the deer population was virtually wiped out. As late as 1890, the
sight of a deer was a neighborhood newsmaker.
Encouraged by necessity, hunting became a favorite activity of
the pioneer. As a result, when the necessity to hunt for survival
ended, the activity became a pastime. Since the steepness of much

20 R.C. Buley, The Old Northwest (Bloomington: Indiana
University Press, 1950), p. 148.
21L. H. Pammel, Some Reminiscences of La Crosse and Vicinity
(La Crosse: Liesenfeld Press, 1928), p. 35.of the land in the Twonship made useless forest removal on those
hills, the game was never deprived of a habitat. The result was that
some settlers had a hard time deciding whether to farm or hunt for
survival. Some decided to farm, some to hunt, some never decided
and some procrastinate even today.
Other natural sources of food were available. The many streams
of the Township made trout and suckers staples in the diets of many
valley families. The forest also provided the settler with nuts and
berries of all sorts, honey, and wild vegetables.
Food produced for home consumption of farms was usually grain
only. Rather than corn being the staple grain as was common in the
frontier, wheat was the grain of survival in this Township22 Wheat
could easily be made into flour and it flourished on the virgin soil of
the area.
Political Development During the Period of Settlement
A government just for the Township of Washington did not exist
until 1857. In 1853 the area became a part of the Township of Pierce
(now Barre) when that Township was carved out of the origional La
Crosse Township.23 7ne Townships of Barre, Bangor, Burns and part
of Hamilton were also part of the Township of Pierce. In 1856 the
eastern seventy-two sections of the Twonship of Pierce were set off

22Peter Cavadini, interview.
23Bryant, Memoirs of La Crosse County, P. 51.and called the Township of Burns. In 1857, the La Crosse County
Board of Commissioners set off the southern thirty-six sections of
Pierce and called it the Township of Buchanan. Since 1862, that
Township has been known as the Township of Washington.
Immediately after creation of the Township, officers were chosen
at a Township meeting held on April 7, 1857. That meeting held at
an unknown location, was attended by twenty-six eligible voters,
"freeholders and residents of the Township of Buchanan," and is
regarded as the first annual township meeting.2'1 The officers elected
there were; Conrad Rettburg, Chairman of the Board of Supervisors;
James Halvorson and Jacob Stien, Supervisors; Adolph Hutt, Clerk;
William Drueger, Treasurer; and Nicolas Wiertz, Assessor. Besides
these administrative officers Joseph Nidividek was elected permanent
Superintendent of Schools.
Throughout the formative years 1857 to 1875 conservatism was
dominant in the Township government. This frontier attitude was
caused by two factors in the case of Washington Township; 1) the
mistrust by immigrants unfamiliar with the workings of democracy; and
2) the traditional distrust of American frontiersmen for elected
officials.25 Though it may be true that neither factor was consciously

24Township of Buchanan (Washington), Official Minutes of the
Township Meetings, 1857.
25Ray Alien Billington, .Westward Expansion (New York: The
Macrnillan Company, 1960), p. 51.felt by the settlers, it is certain that these factors provided at least
a subconscious motive for those people to govern themselves as they
did. The conservative Wisconsin state constitution written in 1846
obviously indicates the existence of conservatism on a state-wide level.
In the Township of Washington the conservative attitude was
indicated by many political practices. First, the number of law
enforcement officers in the Township was six for a population of about
200.26 The main argument for so large a force was that state and
county forces were inoperative in the Township because of its distance
from the nearest station of foth, viz., La Crosse. The argument
against the large force was tfiat the population was very small and
the laws to uphold were few. Whatever the case, at no time before
1880 do Township record books record appropriations for jail use or
construction, for legal fees of any sort or for transport of prisoners.
By 1880 the Township government reduced the number of law
enforcement officials to two. This change occurred before any
significant increase in the speed of local transportation and
communication and after the population had increased from 200 to
900. It seems that the creation of a six-man law enforcement force
in the Township of Washington in 1857 indicates a conservative
government.
A second indication of conservatism in the early government of

26Butterfield, History of La Crosse,.County, Wisconsin, p. 780.this Township was the bond system imposed on early Township officers.
Before officially taking office, each officer was forced to post a large
bond to insure his integrity in office. Besides the bond, each officer
had to take an oath which was carefully written in the Township
clerk's record book and signed by the new officer.27 The most unusual
characteristic of these bonds was their large amounts in proportion
to the objective worth of the several office holders. The bond posted
by the original Treasurer was $1500, while that of the School
Superintendent in 1857 was $1D00.28 All bonds and oaths had to be
signed by two trusted pioneers who could vouch for the integrity of
the elected officer. The amount of these bonds were veritable fortunes
in the economic conditions of that time. The size of the bonds were
adjusted to the relative, not objective financial worth of the officer.
Accordingly, William Krueger, the first treasurer, posted a $1500 bond
while his successor, John Koblitz, had to post only a $400 bond. In
1862 Michael Ahrentz posted a $500 bond before becoming Treasurer.
The wealthy Krueger thus had to post a bond three times as large as
did Ahrentz, whose financial means were average. By 1870, when the
origional conservatism had begun to lose some of its force in the
Township, the practice of listing bond postings and oaths for officials

27Township of Buchanan (Washington), Official Minutes of the
Township Meetings, 1857.
28 Ibid.
was discontinued.
The third indication of conservatism in Washington Township's
early years was the system of official governmental recordings.
Initially, many items were recorded which one would consider
unnecessary to record. For instance, until 1866 the name of each
voter attending each meeting of the Township government was recorded
in at least two record books. After that date, the procedure was
gradually discontinued. Until 1865, the Clerk had to record two
accounts of all financial transactions of the Township. After that,
financial records were kept in one book only.
The frequent elections of officials of the Township is the final
indication of conservatism durning the early years. The one-year tenure
of all offices was, in itself, a conservative trait. Until 1877, no man
held the position of Chairman of the Board of Supervisors for more
than two terms consecutively. From 1860 to 1875 James Halvorson
was Chairman of the Board six years but only once did he succeed
himself in offiee.29 Before 1870 Halvorson was the only man to serve
twice consecutively. The ban on self-succession of all township
officials remained throughout this era. Frequent turnover in office
was designed to prevent any official from becoming too secure in
office, and from becoming too sure of the powers granted him by his
constituency. The tendency to replace officials frequently began to

29Butterfield, History of La Crosse County, Wisconsin, p. 780.disappear in the decade between 1870 and 1880.30
Many developments occurred in the government of the Township
between 1357 and 1860. The first tax was levied in 1857.31 This
law called for the payment of one dollar to the Township for each
forty acres of property owned. It brought between two dollars and
five dollars from each farmer. However, this amount was not all
collectable since one dollar could be deducted from tax payment by
a farmer for one day's work on a Township road. The amount collected
during that first year was $137 of which $122 were spent on highway
maintenance.
Throughout the first half century .of existence of this Township,
highway construction and maintenance was the chief political and
financial concern of the government of the Township of Washington.
The roads on which the initial settlers mowed could hardly be called
roads by any comemporary criterion. The road common in early years
on the American frontier has been described by one author as
"intolerable, shocking, wretched and devilish".32 The same author
points out that the settling of some parts of the west was delayed by

30An example of a trend in the liberal direction was the four
consecutive terms as Chairman and Clerk held by L. Hoswold (1877-
1881), and John Schomers (1878-1882), respectively.
31Township of Buchanan (Washington), Official Minutes of the
Township Meetings, 1857.
32Buley, The Old Northwest, p. 460.the poor condition of local roads. On some western roads teamsters
maintained franchised touring services at mudholes. In fact, teamsters
sometimes watered the section of road they patroled during dry season
to keep the road impassable and their franchise productive.
Early roads in the Township of Washington were especially
muddy because they were usually parallel to the valley streams and
side by side with them. In such eases, some roads became streams
or mere ditches. In the Township, the first valley roads were not
graced with bridges; crossing took place at convenient shallow places
in the streams.
Besides mud, another serious obstacle to use of the highways
was stumps and trees. Roads were created by use in frontier days,
pioneers were "dead-set" against the removal of a tree or large rock
from the road if his cart, sled or wagon could proceed without moving
the obstacle. If a road was improved it was usually done at the time
of need only. Even if a tree was moved out of the center of the
roadway, the stump usually remained, since removal of the tree alone
was ordinarily sufficient and removal of the stump was twice as mucn
work. Roads winding through wet forests, as most valley roads did,
usually chose very haphazard routes to accommodate themselves to
widely, spaced trees and shallow places in streams. On the ridges
roads were usually mapped so as to be most economical to the Township.
One means of doing this was to purchase only the undesirable land
from farmers for roads. In many cases roads were located at farmboundaries to prevent the disruption of the layout of a farmer's field.
Sometimes roads were directed through the individual homesteads to
satisfy one farmer while inconveniencing others. Whatever the case,
roads were not mapped with primary consideration for the convenience
of the majority of travelers.
Private roads were generally distinguishable from public roads
only in ownership- Farmers were paid for working on public roads
but not for work on private roads. It is thought that many farmers
successfully petitioned to have private roads made public so that they
could lower their tax bill by working on the improvement of trails
they used most. The settlers felt they had to maintain local roads
anyway, so why not make those roads public adn be paid for the work.
As has been mentioned, most of the tax receipts of the Township
were expended for road construction and maintenence. These funds
also paid surveyors' costs and for the land on which the roads were
built. Noticeably absent from this short list of expenses are: 1)
equipment costs, because each worker used his own simple tools; 2)
bridge construction costs, since no bridges were built; 3) gravel and
surfacing costs, since nothing was added to the natural ground; 4)
snow and grass removal costs, since neither service was offered; and
5) road sign costs, since road signs were not erected.
From 1857 to 1860, the number and length of roads owned by
the'Township increased markedly. All the recorded petitions (eighteen)for new roads received between those two dates were accepted.33
The existence of some forty-five miles of public roads in the Township
in 1859 led to its division into four road districts. By popular election,
a roadmaster was selected for each district. The duties of the
roadmaster were: 1) to check the road work for which tax exemptions
were claimed by farmers; 2) to prevent farmers from growing crops
in the roads; and 3) to keep fallen trees and limbs out of forest roads.
Most important Township roads were connected to State roads
which traversed the central ridge of the Township. Notable were the
roads from Thompson's Coulee, Bangor, Bostwick Valley, irish Coulee
and North Ridge. The State Road is recorded as being present in
1857 when the first petitions for roads were received by the Township
government. Known only as State Road, it entered Washington after
passing through the Irish Coulee area of the Township of Bangor.
From that point in section eight where it reached the Ridge, State
Road proceeded eastward through Washington Township and emerged
in section one. 34
Before concluding the chapter, something should be said of the
prestige attached to holding Township offices during the early years.
During the first half century of existence of the Township of

33Township of Buchanan (Washington), Official Minutes of the
Township Meetings, 1859.
34See map on page iii for the locations mentioned here.Washington, any one of the sixteen offices of the government of the
Township of Washington was considered a most desirable position.
These offices were sought for the social, financial and legal benefits
they offered. Township offices brought power because Township affairs
were directed almost entirely by that government, with little
interference by county, state, or national governments. Office holding
was also enhanced by the realization that the officers were affecting
not only the conditions of the present but also the many generations
to follow. Being an official was financially beneficial in the case of
the Clerk who received an annual salary of thirty dollars. Other
officers could find compensation by appointing themselves to some of
the jobs which they were legally authorized to create.35 Due to these
considerations, the Township official was a highly respected and
influential person in the eyes of his people.

35The Clerk was paid that salary because his ability to write
was highly valued.CHAPTER III
ECONOMIC AND POLITICAL STABILIZATION OF THE
TOWNSHIP OF WASHINGTON 1860-1880

From I860 to 1880, little actual political, social or economic
progress was made in the Township of Washington. The idea and
institutions which characterized the era of settlement were the
hallmaorks of the succeeding period. The primary difference between
the periods was that the years from 1860 to 1880 saw the actualization
of what was often potential or the stabilization of what was insecure
during the period of settlement.
Politically, the Township government: 1) successfully made the
adjustments demanded by a larger population; 2) experienced new
liberality in political thinking; and 3) actively supported the Civil War.
The most important effect of the Civil War on the Township
was the change of its name. Originally named the Township of
Buchanan after President James Buchanan (1857 to 1861), in 1862 the
La Crosse County Board of Commissioners suddenly changed the name
to the Township of Washington. Since Township records make no
mention of the change and since the County Board of Commissioners
made the change, it is most likely that forces outside the Township
were primarily responsible for it. Whatever the case, the change was
made as a response to a wave of feeling hostile to Buchanan unleashed
42by the beginning of the War.1 BucHanan was from the North but was
considered "soft" on the South.
The history of La Crosse County during the Civil War was well
recorded by military leaders, authors, newspapers and historians, but
Some facts, however, are Known.
When the Civil War started in 1861, the Township of Washington
was not prepared to aid the United States in its cause to the extent
expected of a population its size. Specifically, the Township provided
only seven men from its population of 850 to the War effort. This
small figure should not be attributed to lack of patriotism or interest
but to social conditions in the Township. The situation was that few
of the men physically able to serve in the Union Army were also free
enough of obligations to their families to leave them. The lack of
unmarried young men is attributed to the fact that the first arrivals
in the Township from 1854 to 1860 were relatively young having few
and small children or none at all. When the war started, the sons of
these pioneers were too young to serve while the pioneers themselves
could not serve due to heavy family responsibilities.
When the first draft was imposed in April 1864 only four

1Joseph Schumacher, Coon Valley. Wisconsin, personal interview,
19 July, 1963. Hereinafter referred to as Joseph Schumacher, interview.Township citizens, whose names are not known, were called.2 Three
men, John Luther, Andreas Cornell, and Ole Olson, volunteered when
the second draft was imposed in September I864.3 All three of these
men had pioneered in Washington during 1858. Most likely the other
four volunteers were heads of families who had arrived between 1854
and 1360.
The bounty paid to those entering the service was a most
convincing factor in their decision to enlist. A $200 bounty was paid
by the Township government to residents of the Township who entered
the service. Two hundred dollars was considered a great deal of
money in the Township at that time since, according to the Assessment
of 1872, the mean value of the personal property was then about $175.
Though Township residents during the Civil War were staunchly
behind Lincoln and his cause, they did not give their allegiance to
the party he represented. In fact, throughout its first half century,
the Township of Washington favored the Democratic Party. Though
the Whig and Republican Parties usually carried La Crosse County,
the opposition held a slight majority in this Township.4
The Township experienced several political changes during the

2Township of Washington, Official Minutes of the Township
Meetings, 1864.
3Ibid.
4Benjamin F. Bryant, editor, Memoirs of La Crosse County,
Western Historical Association, 1907), p. 54.years from 1860 to 1880. These changes may seem minor today but
they were significant on the context of Township government then.
A more liberal political attitude reflected a revolution in the thinking
of the pioneers. It derived from a new feeling of flexibility and
freedom, a maturing adjustment by the settlers to the rigorous physical
environment which was their daily challenge.
An important economic boost for the Township came from the
passage of the Homestead Act by the federal government in 1862. By
this act the government gave 160 acres of land to any settler provided
that he resided there five years and during which he improved the
land. The Homestead Act caused a-major increase in the Township's
population. This is indicated by election figures. In 1857, twenty-
six people voted, in 1859 sixty-three voted and in 1866 seventy-seven
voted. This increase is proportionally great. The earliest existing
Township Assessor's report, that of 1872, indicates that twelve farms
in the Township were being homesteaded at that time.5 Excluding
the land being homesteaded, only 1400 of Washington's 23,040 acres
remained open and unclaimed in 1872. New land owners brought an
increase in tax receipts since the tax levy was one dollar for each
forty acres of land owned. The larger populations also permitted a
more closely knit society, a factor allowing improved social and
economic conditions.

5Township of Washington, Assessment of 1872.Governmental activity in the Township during this era was
characterized by modest liberalism, competent direction, and slight
expansion. The school system, initially planned by Township School
System Superintendent, Joseph Nidtvidek, in 1859 began operating in
1866.6 During that year, school districts I, II, III, and IV operated in
for three months for the first school term in the history of the
Township.
A second governmental achievement was the beginning of
Township sponsorship of bridge construction. Before that, all local
streams were crossed by fording or on private bridges. Since at least
seventy of the seventy-four streams flowing within the boundaries of
offer frequent places for fording with a minimum of trouble. Fording
was so easily done that as late as 1850, one important county road in
the Township had an unbridged stream flowing across the roadbed.
The first bridges were somewhat flimsy and impermanent and required
frequent replacement. However, they were far from costly; the price
of a new bridge, including labor, materials and planning, was about
fifteen dollars.
In 1871 the Township government instituted a welfare program.7

6Township of Washington, Records of the School Superintendent,
1866.
7Township of Washington, Official Record of the Treasury, 1857-
1905, p. 86.Its purpose was to provide for the needs of paupers. The recipients,
usually widows, were legally termed "town paupers" or, in one case
and for no good reason, "county pauper." Paupers were given direct
cash payments of from $4-7 per month. In 1873 the La Crosse County
government began to help by appropriating $131.50 to the Township
for welfare support.8 Subsequently, there was a large increase in the
numbers of paupers. The County and Township aid continued throughout
the century with the total Township outlay reaching a maximum of
$500 in any particular year from a total government income $1100.
A trend twoard mechanization of road construction began in
1867. During that year the Township made its first purchase of
equipment, viz., a hand scraper, from Frank Zander, a St. Joseph's
Ridge merchant, for three dollars.
During the same year the first Township dog tax was levied
and six dollars was collected through it. Apparently dog taxation met
with dissent since it was never mentioned after 1867.
Road construction was a constant preoccupation with the
Township during the era from 1860 to 1880. However, little genuine
improvement of transportation facilities was made since no surfacing
was done. Anything but a ground surface was still unheard of in 1880.
Hence, the government of the Township of Washington can be

8Township of Washington, Official Record of the Treasury, 1857-
1905, p. 52.credited with maintaining certain services but not with making much
real progress. The economic activity of the Township during the era
follows a similar pattern.
The most common occupation during this era from 1860 to 1880
was, of course, farming. In general, it was mearly an accelerated
version of that begun during the era of settlement. Dairying was
aimed at home provisioning only. Dairy products were not sold off
the farm. The lack of dairy animals along with the lack of a market
caused this situation. Few farmers owned more than three or four
poorly fed cows and a few young stock.9 City dwellers usually owned
and milked their own cows during those years. Dairy plants were not
operated because the necessary market did not exist.
Feed for cattle was very sparse, it consisted primarily of wheat
and barley straw left after the grain had been separated. Very little
domestic grass (timothy, clover) and less corn was grown. Wheat with
a little barley and corn covered the fields. The wheat and barley
were sold as cash crops and the corn went to the pigs and chickens.
Little remained for the cattle. Since cattle brought no cash profit,
their welfare was the last considered. If the hay crop was poor and
the straw short, some of the cattle were butchered (and one probably
gold) while the poorest ones were left alive. The heaviest eating

9Peter A. Hundt, La Crosse, Wisconsin, personal interview, 15
July, 1963. Herinafter referred to as Peter Hundt, interview.horses were provided for before the cattle because they were necessary
for winter hauling. Milking of cattle was often unnecessary during
winters of little cattle food because they simply could not produce
on what they were fed. In some cases the hungry cattle had to be
raised to their feet by the farmer and his neighbors when spring finally
relieved the shortage of food.10
The profit from agriculture during the period was derived
partially from the sale of beef. Beef cattle were usually sold to
butchers in La Crosse. Transportation was one of the big problems
in this type of sale. Usually the animal was tied behind a horsedrawn
wagon. To ease the job of the horse a man or boy was often assigned
to follow the steer prodding and pushing him and giving him frequent
whacks with a well chosen hickory or leather whip. The steer was
usually tied to the wagon by a rope bound about his horns and tied to
the rear axle of the wagon. Unless the wagon was fully weighted
down, he would jerk and pull the wagon at will. He often braced
himself against trees at the roadside or in ruts in the road, harassed
passing teamsters, lifted up the rear of the wagon and caused a geneal
deterioration of himself, horses, wagon, driver and teamster. It was
always important to make sure that the strength of the steer did not
exceed that of the horses lest he dictate the direction to be traveled.
Farmers usually used the Bostwick Valley route to La Crosse since

10Ibid.that paralleled a stream which provided the necessary water. Water
was vitally necessary for the steer if he was not to lose his spirit or
robust appearance. His appearance was, of course, the primary
determinant of the price finally received. After reaching La Crosse,
the beef was usually sold to a butcher for about $25 if the purchaser
thought it weighed about 1000 pounds.11 No scale was used.
If a cow was to be sold, the birth of the calf was awaited.
The newly born animal was thrown into the wagon to provide an
incentive for the mother to pursue the wagon. These cow-calf
combinations were usually sold to cow buyers in Bang or or La Crosse.
Some farmers bought as well as sold on the trip to La Crosse.
After having sold their cattle in La Crosse, they would buy calves
from farmers on the return journey from La Crosse. These animals
were hooked behind the well-used wagon and "dragged" home. Later
the best calves were sorted out; the others were sold to La Crosse
butchers for veal.
However, the herd was small and the sale of a steer or cow
occurred no more frequently than once or twice a year. The profit
from such sales was little. The sale of crops was a larger source of
income. From the mid-1860's until well into the twentieth century
barley.-was one of the most important cash crops of Washington farmers.
The market stimulating the production and sale of barley was the

11Ibid.brewing industry of La Crosse and Bangor. In Bangor the John Hussa
Brewing Company (at the present Sprehn Mill location) operated (since
1855), while in La Crosse the City Brewing Company (1858-1872), the
Empire Brewing Company (1873-1882), the John Gund Brewing Company
(1882 - turn of century and beyond), and the Michel Brewing Company
(from before 1857-1865) operated and served as a barley market.12
In the Township, about one-fourth of the open acres of each
farm were sown in barley. The average amount of open land of each
Farm varied from fifteen acres on one of 120 acres in 1860 to about
forty acres on a farm of the same size in 1880. The average yield
was forty bushels per acre. Based oil the average price of fifty cents
per bushel, the farmer's average annual income from the sale of barley
was $800, a substantial sum in that day of more valuable currency
and lower standards and costs of living.
Barley as well as other grains were delivered to the buyer in
winter when snow and sleds made delivery an easier job. Many farmers
returned home with their sleds loaded with malt, a nutritious cattle
food which is a waste product derived from barley in production of beer.
The sale of both spring and winter wheat was important to the
ecomony of the Township. Wheat was sold to local mills for the
production of flour. The mills frequented by Washington farmers were:

12C. W. Butterfield, History of La Crosse County, (Madison:
Western Historical Company, 1881), p. 759.Bosshard and Kegler Mills, Bangor; Ratanyan Mills, Bangor; Harker's
Mill, Bostwick Valley; Peter Blomer's Mill, upper Coon Creek; and the
Nidividek Mill, upper Coon Creek.13 All farmers tried to raise enough
wheat to provide for their own domestic needs and to pay the cost
of the milling. The common practice was for the miller to grind seven
bushels of wheat for the farmer for the sale price of a single bushel.
Since the great plains of the Middle West were not yet settled
in 1870, the most important wheat producing area in the nation was
the Middle West east of the Mississippi. As a result, Township of
Washington farmers found their greatest profit in wheat and therefore
grew as much wheat as barley. In fact, they produced so much wheat
that they ruined the land. The production of both spring and winter
wheat on the same land without fertilization, rotation, or conservation
of the soil caused a loss of soil vitality which earne to a climax in
the latter years of the century (1885-1900).
A small amount of rye was also produced in the Township during
this era. This was either sold to the mills or consumed by the farmer's
family.
Tow cash crops for consumption by animals owned by city
dwellers were also sold by Township farmers during this era. A very
small amount of hay (clover and timothy} was sold in La Crosse and

13A. H. Sanford, editor, La Crosse County Historical Sketches
(La Crosse: Linesenfeld Press, 1934), Series 4, P. 41.local towns for use of draft animals and cows. Municipal governments
(police fire, street departments), stores and industries bought this feed
for their animals. City dewllers owning cows commonly bought hay
for winter feeding.
In greater demand than hay and sold for the same purpose was
oats. Sold at twenty cents per bushel, however, oats was a less
profitable cash crop than wheat and barley.
Potato production was more important than it is today.14 Most
farmers (particularly ridge farmers) would grow at least an acre or
two of potatoes for commerical use. Virgin land was and is important
for the production of huge vegetables. Washington Township is not
an exception. Land yielding 400 bushels of potatoes per acre exists
in the Township. Upon harvesting the potatoes were taken to La
Crosse and peddled from door to door- for twenty-five cents per bushel.
Ridge-grown potatoes were said to be of greater quality than those
produced in the valleys. As a result more ridge potatoes were produced
and for a higher price.
The final important source of income in the Township from 1860
to 1880 was the production of wood products. In contrast with the
economy of much of the remainder of La Crosse County, the production
of lumber (for construction) was never more than a weak sideline in
the economy of the Township. According to existing records, no

14peter A. Hundt, interview.lumber mills or large scale lumbering operations were ever undertaken
in the Township.
Until about I860, the only lumbering done was the production
of logs for private use. An opportunity for entering the railroad tie
business was offered by the extension of the Milwaukee and La Crosse
Railroad to Bangor in 1856. That company made a general offer to
buy railroad ties of the proper specifications. Subsequently it bought
ties at Bangor and at Coon Valley where a spur of the same railroad
line ended. The ties were made by the farmers in their spare time
from timber on their farms. In winter the ties were hauled by sled
to either Bangor or Coon Valley where a railroad agent offered from
ten to eighty cents each for the ties, depending on quality. Eighty
cents a piece, the maximum price, was paid for properly cut white
oak ties while ten cents was offered for incorrectly cut "cull" ties.
Cordwood (firewood) was also sold by Township residents during
the last half of the nineteenth century. Many non-farmers, industries,
stores, and businesses used wood as fuel.15 Most of the cordwood
produced in this Township went to the John Hussa Brewery. The
Hussa Company bought from 500 to 600 cords per year at approximately
$2.75 per cord.16 Most farmers in the Township sold at least a small

15Peter Cavadini, interview.
16 A cord of wood consists of logs arranged in a compact pile
eight feet long, four feet wide and four feet high.55
amount of cordwood each winter.
With the cash reaped from activities of this type progressive
farmers in the Township invested in some of the new farm equipment
being offered in the market for the first time. Once secured in the
ownership of his land and sure of the necessities of life, the settler
could hope for more than a survival existence. He then felt free to
invest in capital items for his farm.
Though the period of hand-to-mouth existence usually ended
after the first three or four years following settlement, the time of
genuine scarcity continued for a long time after. In this Township
the real estate owned by the farmers constituted almost all of their
gross worth in 1872, fifteen years after settlement. By 1872, a 120
acre farm originally costing $150.00 was valued at $2,000 to $2,500.
In personal belongings many farmers were desperately poor. For
instance, according to the Assessment of 1872, only 49 of the 149
farmers owned a wagon, carriage, or sled, while only 59 of them owned
horses. Two more farmers owned mules and five had oxen. Six of
the 149 farmers owned only one head of cattle while the average herd
consisted in five head.
It is the consensus of the original pioneers interviewed for this
writing that during the era from 1860 to 1880 the dairy and beef
aspects of the farming operation remained constant in volume produced
and secondary in the minds of the farmers since they offered little or
no profit. Pigs were still left to care for themselves. The usualhalf-dozen or less needle-nosed, rabbit-eared, razor-backs still had to
seek their food in the forest without the aid of the farmer who owned
them. Butchering time was usually preceded by hunting in the forest
for these semi-wild creatures. They were killed on sight since they
were usually too wild to chase to the homestead. Almost all pork
was domestically consumed.
A few chickens were kept for home use. Many of them were
killed prematurely by the numerous foxes, owls and hawks. In the summer
the chickens ate what they could find, while in winter they stayed in
the barn eating what the other animals "left behind."
Some sheep were raised for the wool for home use. Little wool
or mutton was known to have been sold. The disadvantage in keeping
sheep was the danger of wild animals killing them.
Horses, mules and draft oxen were the only animals whose winter
food allotments exceeded the minimum for subsistence. These animals,
numbering from two to twelve on each farm, ate the bulk of preserved
animal food and received the bulk of human attention and affection.
The most important objective reason for this treatment was the need
of them to haul produce during the winter.
Keeping the draft animals at their best usually required great
amounts of hay, corn, grist and oats. The quality and volume of horse
feed usually increased with the owner's affection for his animal. The
constant companionship and mutual necessity of horses and owner
usually produced a close and permanent relationship between man andbeast. Men developed intense pride in their teams. Nothing was
spared in assuring the comfort of the horses.
Farmers were extremely conscious of the appearance of their
horses because the calibre, worth and ability of the farmer was
estimated by his horses. Hence, the width of the rump, the lay of
the mane and the angle of the ear became important factors. Nothing
so reduced the farmer's standing in the community as habitual horse
whipping or beating. Nothing so improved a farmer's community
standing as owning the winning horse of a pulling contest.
Good farmers usually kept a full stable of horses to prevent
overwork of any one of them, but farmers had to be very adept in
their business to provide for more than two of these food and time
consuming animals.
Farm buildings met with little improvement during the era from
1860 to 1880. Most changes were in improvement of existing structures
or in construction of secondary buildings. Secondary buildings were
Chicken, sheep and hog houses. The settler's original cabin of wild
looking, unevenly cut, or unshaven logs was usually disposed of within
a short time after settlement in favor of a new cabin of larger size
and of more refined appeaarance. From 1860 to 1880 most housing
costs went for improving the cabin. Shingles replaced slab clapboards
on the roof; board doors and window panes were added; brick fireplaces
or stoves were installed; an additional room was added or an old one
divided; a wood floor was placed under a room or two; and a loftwas added for warmth and living space. Privies or "out houses" were
not yet common. Most settlers simply had to locate an "appropriate
location."17
One of the popular ways of improving log buildings in the
Township was to add boards over the logs of the buildings. This
offered good insulation as well as a new appearance. It was a common
method in the Township because at this time lumber could be bought
inexpensively at La Crosse. That city, known as "The Sawdust City",
had from twenty to thirty sawmills most of which were willing to sell
a farmer all the wood he could haul on a single wagon for one dollar.18
Some log buildings with board covers still exist in the Township.
Though paint would have enhanced these frontier houses, it was
not known to have been used until almost 1900.
Very few frame buildings were built before 1880. The only
buildings of this type known to have existed previously were the
Nidividek (1870) and Young and Vane Mills (1862) and the Schomer's
Tavern (1877). Neither exists today.
The final change in the farming picture in the Township of
Washington during the period from I860 to 1880 was the addition of
limited technology. The methods of growing, harvesting and handling
grains was the first to be technologically improved since farmers of

17 Peter A. Hundt, interview.
18Peter Cavadini, interview.this Township made their' greatest profit in that aspect of farming.
McCormiek reapers and similar makes became common in the Township
between 1860 and 1870. The threshing machine also became common
in the Township at this time.
Grain harvesting in the Township of Washington began in mid-
July and lasted until mid-winter. It began with reaping the grain and
tying it in bundles or sheaves with straws of the grain. The bundles
were then placed in large stacks to dry.19 By mid-October the grain
was dry enough to thresh.
The threshing operation began upon the arrival of the wooden
horse-drawn thresher and aOout fifteen neighbors. In Washington the
thresher used by most residents from approximately 1867 to 1875 was
that owned by Ferdinand Martin of section three. From about 1875
to 1896 Frank Sedevie of section 29 did this job; while Jake and
William Koener and Joseph Kistler took over after 1886. All were
residents of the Township.20 Threshers were relatively expensive and
as a result scarce in the Washington area. The men who owned and
operated the machines had to operate them until January of the year
subsequent to the harvest, often boarding at the homes of farmers for
whom they were working.

19stacks were composed of twelve loads of grain piled twelve
feet high and the same in width. The stacks were pointed at the top
and concave on the sides to prevent the entrance of moisture.
20Peter Cavadini, interview.Horses provided the power for operating the machines. The
method, called the horse-power method, consisted in placing a power
transmission on the ground approximately twenty-five feet from the
thresher. Three teams of horses pulling in a circular direction turned
the transmission. The transmission was attached to the thresher by
means of a semi- flexible steel rod which carried the power to the
thresher. It was a slow and inefficient method yet far faster and
easier than the traditional flail method of threshing.
The Township of Washington was the scene of one of the most
important inventions in tiie long history of grain harvesting. Though
the final invention was first utilized in other areas, it ultimately
influenced not only the future of the Township of Washington but the
future of farming in the entire nation and world.
The setting began to take shape in 1856 when Michael Ahrentz,
a well educated German, purchased and occupied a 200 acre farm in
the northwest quarter of section sixteen of Washington. Township.21
He was of the classic type of pioneer who struggled hard for success
and obtained it. In 1862 he was elected Township Clerk in 1863,
Township Chairman and subsequently to other offices. By 1872 his
personal property holdings were worth S270. among the ten highest in
the Township.22

21Sutterfield, History of La Crosse County Wisconsin, p. 730.
22WilIiam Charles Arentz, interview.Ahrentz raised a considerable amount of grain each year, and
in time realized the potential value of a reaper having an automatic
knotter. Ahrentz saw that the inventor of such a machine could reap
great financial rewards. For that reason, he listened with great
interest to a traveler named Barta who told Ahrentz his ideas for the
ideas and his determination, Michael Ahrentz consented to sponsor
Barta's work for a share in the finacial returns. In 1867 Barta went
to work in a small log cabin on the Ahrentz farm in present Korn
Coulee. Barta, a bachelor who lived alone, devoted all his working
hours for ten years to this project. Living like a miser, the determined
inventor was very seldom seen by outsiders. Meanwhile, Ahrentz's
funds ran short, forcing him to borrow money from the John Hussa
Brewing Company in Bangor in order to support Barta.24 Ahrentz
as periodically called to the shack of Barta to test a reaper with
the latest version of Barta's device attached.
While Barta was busy with his invention, the adage, "necessity
is the mother of invention" was proving its validity. Other men were
striving to develop a knotter for the binder. In 1872, Cyrus McCormick,
who had invented the reaper in 1834, patented and began to produce

23 The first name of Barta was impossible to determine. However,
it is known that the Barta spoken of here was a different man than
the Frank Barta discussed on page 82.
24Peter Cavadini, interview.the first of 50,000 automatic wire-tie binders.25 However, this
invention did not end the search since wire strands were often lost
in cattle feed and were thus a great danger to the cattlw. Since for
that reason farmers were not satisfied, inventors set out to produce
& twine-tie knotter. Two important inventors working on such a
project were William Doering of Chicago and John F. Appleby of De
Pere, Wisconsin. These men soon combined their efforts and worked
Around 1875 Barta produced a successful knotter. It was made
entirely of wood.26 Instead of first patenting this device, the
uneducated Barta set to work on a new and better version.
At approximately the same time two men interested in inventing
a knotter heard of Barta's attempts and set out for Bangor to locate
him. Upon reaching Bangor they found that people knew little of the
man and that Barta's secret was rather well kept. In their search
for information on Barta, the travelers met John Hussa, a leading
citizen of Bangor. Hussa was well informed on Barta since he had
lent Ahrentz money to support Barta. A short time later the men
located Barta in his cabin. He proudly displayed his work to them.
The men, apparently pleased with that they saw, quickly offered Barta

25McCormick, Reaper Source Material, International Harvester
Company, 1931, p. 32.
6 William Charles Aretz, interview.$500 for his finished knotter.27 Barta, not realizing the legal
significance of the sale of the device, accepted the money, a vertitable
fortune to him. One of the two men who purchased that device at
Barta's poor cabin is today regarded as the inventor of the knotter.
His name was William F. Appleby.28 Though the name of his companion
is not positively known, most likely it was Appley's partner, William
Deering.29
Shortly after selling his device, Barta realized the mistake he
had committed. When he told Ahrentz of the sale, the latter also
saw the magnitude of the mistake. Barta, apparently in despair, took
the $500 and boarded a train in Bangor. He was never heard from
again. With him went his only chance for immortality as well as a
fortune for himself and Ahrentz. Within ten years the binder, a reaper
equipped with a twine-tying apparatus was harvesting much of the
grain grown in the entire world.
As the Township and its economy developed, so did favorable
opportunities for local stores and businesses. In the era of settlement

27William Charles Arentz, interview.
28frank Joseph Sedevie, Coon Valley, Wisconsin, personal
interview, 29 September, 1963. Herinafter referred to as Frank
Joseph Sedevie, interview.
29 There exists no proof that Barta's invention was identical to
that utilized by appleby in his first knotter or that even a definite
connection exists between the inventions of Appleby and Barta.
However, that possibility that Barta's knotter caused, in one way or
another, Appleby's invention is very good.retail concerns were not feasible or necessary since farmers could
afford to purchase only a bare minimum of commercial supplies and
did so only a few times annually. However, as the farmer's financial
means increased, he was able to buy more supplies and services.
Locally situated stores and mills would relieve him of long trips to
Bangor (nine miles), Coon Valley (nine miles) or La Crosse (twenty
miles).30
Answering the obvious need and seeking opportunity for profit,
the first know retail business firm in the Township was opened in
1862.31 During that year John Vanes and John A. Young arrived in
the Township and purchased portions of section twenty-two. There
these men erected and operated a water-powered grist mill. The mill
was driven by water power but a unit worked by horses always stood
by in case of emergency.
No feed or grain was sold by the mill to farmers as later became
customary. Instead, grain was brought to the mill by farmers, ground
and then returned to tftem. Wheat was ground to flour at the price
of one sack for every seven sacks of wheat ground. This system of
payment of milling fees was called "tolling."

30A round trip to La Crosse took from fifteen to eighteen
hours, while a trip to Bangor or Coon Valley took about eight hours.
Bad roads during spring and summer often made the trips unfeasible.
31Township of Washington, Official Minutes of the Township
Meetings, 1862.As the Township's only mill it immediately becoame an important
center in the society, commerce and government of that community.
The mill was ideally located for that role. First of all, it was located
on the bank of Coon Creek, the largest stream in the Township and
only about one-half mile from the geographic center of the Township.
It was located at a junction of the principle roads in the Township.
Near the site of the mill were joined the roads from Norwegian Ridge
(Bohemian Ridge today), Tompson's Coulee (Bohemian Valley today),
State Road in section sixteen and the Coon Creek Valley Road.32
Within one mile of the mill, two streams flowed into Coon Creek.
Hence, for geographic as well as commercial reasons the mill became
an important center. The mill became a factor in Township government
since numerous Township meetings were helpd there. Being the only
commercial center in the Township, it became a center of social
intercourse for the lonely frontiersmen. That geographic site
mainitained its sway even today when the ridge oriented society
centralizes its government only one mile from the mill site at Newburgs
Corner.
The first general store in the township was that owned by
Henry Laedecke in section fifteen. The date of its founding is unknown.
Though little is known of its establishment, all evidence indicates that
it was located on the ridge about one mile north of Yound and Vanes'

32See map on page iii.mill.
On September 20, 1863, the Township's first postoffice was
located in Laedecke's store with Henry Laedecke as postmaster.33
The United States post Office Department named the post office
Germany. On May 27, 1864. the post office at Germany was closed.
Germany and Laedecke were never again heard of in the history of
the Township. Most likely the store failed because the location on
the ridge was then a poor one. Other services (mill, school and shops)
has not yet located there.
On May 27, 1864, when the post office at Germany was closed,
a new one was established at Peter Blomer's Mill (formerly Young and
Vanes' Mill)34 under the name of Bohemia. The village surrounding
it was known by the same name.
From its beginning, Bohemia was the governmental center of
the Township of Washington. As mentioned, most government Township
meetings were held at Young and Vanes' Mill after that was built in
1862. After 1866, when Bohemia was blessed with the school of
Township district number II meetings were frequently held at this
school.
Peter Blomer sold the mill on August 23, 1865, to Joseph

33United States Post Office Department, Record of Appointment
of Postmasters, sheet No. 512.
34 Ibid.Nidividek.35 He also succeeded Blornev as postmaster. On December
30, 1867, John Nidividek became postmaster, a position he maintained
until 1883.36 Sometime during the 1870's the mill at Bohemia was
abandoned in favor of a new one built by the Nidivideks on their land
in section twenty seven, about one mile south of the site of the first
mill.
Sale of liquor was also begun during the 1860's. It was in
frequent demand in the German and Scandinavian settlement. The
Township government issued its first license to sell liquors to Peter
Wirtz on February 6, 1366, for ten dollars.37 On November 13 of
the same year, William Janson purchased a license for five dollars.38
In 1867 both of these men were again issued licenses. There exists
no solid indication of where these two businesses were located.
However it is known that a relative of Peter Wirtz, Nicolas Wirtz,
owned a strip of land on top of the ridge bordering the State Road
in section seven. It is also know that teamsters from towns east of

35Ibid.
36Ibid., sheet No. 754
37No liquor stores ever existed in the Township. The first inn
built in the Township was that built on Middle by Peter Arnetz in
1837. Guests were, however, usually aceomodated by tavern keepers
in all Township taverns before that time even though they did not
have proper facilities.
38Township of Washington, Official Record of the Treasury,
1857-1905, p. 53.Washington Township (e.g.. St. Mary's and Cashton) frequently traveled
Slate Road to La Crosse.39 These teamsters usually had to stay at
an inn on the Ridge for a night after traveling to La Crosse. An inn
or tavern at the site of the Wirtz farm would have been mutually
beneficial to tavern-keeper and teamster. Hence, it ts highly possible
that Peter Wirtz's business was located in section seven.
According to the Assessment of 1872, David Janson owned land
in section thirty on the North Ridge Road of the time. It is safe to
assume that David Janson was a close relative of William Janson since
immigrants usually traveled in family groups. Since they traveled in
groups they often settled and lived together after arrival. It is highly
possible that William Janson at one time operated an inn or tavern
in section fifteen to accommodate the many travelers on the route to
Coon Valley.
Both of these businesses lasted for about two years; neither
left any physical evidence of their existence. This is understandable.
According to living pioneers, most early liquor and grocery buildings
were formed by adding rooms or converting sections of log cabin
homes.10
Joseph and John Schmitz next took out a liquor license in 1869
and again in 1870. Though the location of this tavern has not been

39peter A. Hundt, interview.
40Frank Joseph Sedevie, interview.established, it is known that John Schmitz owned a fourty acre plot,
considered too small to sustain two families, in section three.41 Their
tavern may have been at this location. There is an alternative
possibility that the tavern was operated at the newly born hamlet of
Middle Ridge on State Road approximately one-half mile from the
Schmitz plot.
In 1871 the first tavern destined to some degree of permanence
was constructed by Alois Newburg in section seven at the present site
of Newburgs Corner. Located at the junction of State Road and the
road to Bohemia, the log cabin tavern was built about 200 feet south
of the present L & L Tavern Located -there. An outside dance floor
was attached while a grocery and general store were located in the
same building. The business was operated by Alois Newburg from 1871
to 1882; by Casper Newburg from 1833 to 1884; and again by Alois
Newburg during 1885. The tavern was closed during 1886, but was
operated by Herman Newburg during 1887. Newburgs Corner became
a post office on July 13, 1373, with Alois Newburg as postmaster.42
After July 13, 1875, Peter Newburg was postmaster until the post
office closed on May 29, 1888.43

41Township of Washington, Assessment of 1872.
42United States Post Office Department, Records of the
Appointments of Postmasters, sheet No. 234.
43Ibid.In 1869, St. Peter's Roman Catholic Mission was established.
The majority of the population attended it.44 This mission church
was built in section two, slightly south of the school of district number
1. The mission was served by a priest from St. Joseph's Parish, seven
miles east of St. Peter's Mission on the Ridge.
St. Peter's became the name of the hamlet surrounding the
mission until 1878 when the Post Office Department designated Middle
Ridge its official name and founded a post office there. The name
Middle Ridge was first associated with the hamlet as a result of its
central location on the ridges. Teamsters traveling from the Cashton
and St. Mary's area learned at an early date that St. Peter's Mission
was located at the approximate middle of the Ridge. Middle-of-the-
Ridge was soon shortened to Middle Ridge.
Middle Ridge had begun its existence in 1877 as a pernament
commercial center with the construction of a frame tavern there.
Located in the far southwestern corner of section two, the site was
considered to be of high commercial value. There were several reasons
for this. First of all several roads crossed there; the Old Bangor
Road approaching from the north, Thompson Coulee Road from the
south and State Road moving through the section from east to west.45
The second reason was that the district I school was located nearby.

44The La Crosse Register, 6 January, 1956, p- 1.
45See map on page iii.This was commercially important because the meetings and classes
held there lured potential customers to the hamlet. The final reason
was that St. Peter's Mission church was nearby. This also brought
potential customers to the vicinity. Combined these factors promised
success to the owner of the right business located here.
Recognizing this potential, Michael Arentz of section thirteen
urged a friend of his, John Scomers of Chicago, Illionois, to come to
Middle Ridge and build a store there.46 Schomers, whode religious
goods store had been destroyed by the great Chicago fire of 1871,
decided to accept the invitation but only after a brief and unsuccessful
attempt in the construction business in Chicago.47
In 1877 Schomers arrived from Chicago with his family. After
purchasing a small plot in section three from William Elsen, Schomers
erected a frame building with his own hands.48 In 1877 the Township
of Washington granted him a liquor license and he began the operation
of his tavern during that year. On May 31, 1878 the Middle Ridge
Post Office was founded in Schomer's store with John Schomers as
postmaster. During the summer of 1878 Schomers built onto his tavern
a sraall blacksmith shop and hired Herbert Brown to operate it. Also

46In approximately 1870, the Ahrentz family changed its last
47The La Crosse Tribune, 15 September. 1963, p. 9.
48The original tavern was located at the site of the present
residence of Frank Schelmedine.in 1878, he built an outdoor dance floor onto the tavern. With the
addition of this twenty by twenty platform, Schemers' business became
the social center of the northeast portion of the Township of
Washington.
In 1877 Thomas Fines purchased a liquor license. Owning land
in section twenty-two, he most likely operated his tavern in Bohemia
which is in that section. That business closed after one year of
operation.
During the era from 1860 to 1880, groceries and dry goods were
usually sold by mills and taverns. Newburgs' and Schomers' Taverns
and the mill in Bohemia all maintained grocery businesses. The only
business known to have been entirely dependent on its grocery trade
was the Henry Laedecke store which closed in 1863.
This concludes the discussion of the second segment of the
History of the Township of Washington. In it an attempt has been
made to show that it was a period of some overall progress and of
general solidification of what was begun during the period of
settlement.CHAPTER IV
THE BIRTH OF A PROGRESSIVE SOCIETY
The final twenty years of the nineteenth century were
characterized by obvious and progressive change and transformation
in the Township of Washington- It was a time in which the inhibiting
hardships of settlement came to an end in favor of a permanent social,
economic and political society. The new type of society which was
one devoid of temporary frontier characteristics common in a new
society. It was a time in which the poeple of this Township first
fully recognized the potential of themselves and their surroundings
and became dissatisfied with the progress they had made. Indeed, it
was time for action.
One aspect of the Township's progress was the disappearance
of the valley-oriented society in favor of a ridge-oriented society.
The construction and operation of retail concerns on the ridge during
the 1870's first indicated the change that was to come. The factors
responsible for this change were many. THe large tracts of level land,
the better roads and the improved water supply were the important
causes for the change. The construction of several dairy pocessing
plants, of new mills, taverns and stores rrade the switch complete by
1900. Perhaps, however, the chief cause for the movement to the
ridge was the mechanization and increase of labor on the farm. Thesefactors both increased the demand for new land and made the necessary
water available. The concentration of farming on the ridges caused
the subsequent concentration of retail business there.
The most complete and effective economic change was the
development of a permanent cornmerical dairy industry at the expense
of the grain industry. The demand which stimulated dairy farming
came from an increased urban population, especially in La Crosse. By
1880 La Crosse had reached a population of 14,570 and Bangor was
approaching 1000.l Town dwellers began to rid themselves of their
single cows and to purchase dairy products from nearby farmers. Soon
the production and sale of processed dairy foods became an important
source of income for that Township of Washington.
The size of dairy herds reflected the new conditions. By 1900,
the average size herd consisted of seven or eight cows, whereas before
1880 the average size herd had been two or three cows. The increase
resulted from the growth of a market for milk. Larger herds could
have been obtained earlier by natural reproduction but until the market
for milk existed, a need for larger herds did not exist.
Before the existence of dairy processing plants, all the milk
produced and not separated into skim milk and cream was consumed
by the farm family or animals. Cream was used for the production

1C. W. Butterfield, History of La Crosse County, Wisconsin
(Chicago: Western Historical Company, 1881), p. 474.of butter, most of which was consumed at home. Skim milk was used
to make brick cheese to be sold in the city.
Brick cheese was the most popular home processed dairy food
ever sold by Township residents. It could easily be made by any
farmer knowing the simple formula and having a supply of skim milk.2
At first, skim milk alone was used in brick cheese production. This
produced hard, shiny, rather bitter cheese and was not easily sold.
Later, some whole milk was added to the formula, thus producing a
softer, less bitter, more tasty and desirable cheese. After accumulating
approximately a dozen bricks of it, the farmer hauled it to La Crosse,
selling it at private residences fdr fifty cents per brick.
The existence of this profitable private cheese business soon
attracted the attention of local entrepreneurs. In 1890 some of them
erected in Bostwick Valley the first creamery to serve the Township
of Washington.3 Known as the Barre Mills Creamery Company, it
employed the services of August Hundt, a young German farmer from
Washington's section ten, as its cream collector. At the same time,
some of the Township's residents were already selling their dairy
products to the newly opened Bangor Creamery Company and the West
Salem Creamery Company.

2peter A. Hundt, La Crosse, Wisconsin, personal interview, 15
July, 1963. Hereinafter referred to as Peter Hundt, interview.
3Benjamin F. Bryant, editor, Memoirs of La Crosse County,
Wisconsin (Madison: Western Historical Association, 1907), p. 184.These various creameries provided a market for cream (for
making butter) but no market for skim milk. To take advantage of
the surplus of skim milk, four cheese factories opened in the Towenship.
The first of them, and the first factory in the Township, was the St.
Joseph's Cheese factory.*' Frank Strupp simply converted an old log
house on North Ridge into a factory in 1897. Most of the farmers in
the far southwestern portion of the Township sold their mild to this
factory. Strupp customarily sold his cheese to La Crosse grocery
stores and returned the by-product, whey, to the farmers. The factory
closed in 1909 while Nicolas Arentz was its proprietor.
The northern, eastern and south1 central sections of the Township
were provided with a milk market by the Middle Ridge Cheese factory,
built in that hamlet in 1900.5 It was ereoted by three Middle Ridge
and Bangor businessmen: Caspar Anderegg, Peter Arentz, and John
Beddison,6 The factory is still conducting a profitable operation in
the same building in 1964, ultimately served the bulk of the Township.
The average price paid for milk during the early years of the twentieth
century was sixty cents per hundred pounds. During the first years
of its operation the factory bought milk from approximately

4Ibid.
5Ibid.
6William Charles Arentz, Bangor Wisconsin, Personal interview,
3 September, 1963. Herinafter referred to as William Charles Arentz,
interview.thirty-five farmers for a total of about 3500 to 4000 pounds each day.
In 1907, the Sorge Dairy Company converted the former Alois
Newburg Tavern into a cheese factory. Thsi factory also exists today
but under cooperative ownership and in a new building in Newburgs
Corner.
In 1905 Frank Strupp built and operated a new factory at the
junction of State Road and Irish Coulee Road in section eight. It
went out of business after two years of operation.
The concentration on the dairy industry had a visible effect on
agriculture in the Township of Washington. Feed crops replaced cash
grain crops. Corn and hay became familiar sights in the fields.
However, wheat and barley were still widely planted and sold to La
Crosse and Bangor buyers.
Farm buildings were greatly improved during the last twenty
years of the century. Frame houses became commonplace on leading
farms. Frame barns appeared on the farms of Frank Sedevie and
Frank Sitter. Before the era ended, many Township farmers had built
similar barns.7
Farm machinery improved and new equipment appeared during
this era. Horse drawn harrows and grain seeders arrived in the early
1880's. In 1887 at least one farmer in the Township bought an

7Frank Joseph Sedevie, Coon Valley, Wisconsin, personal
interview, 29 September, 1963. Hereinafter referred to as Frank
Joseph Sedvie, interview.automatic tying grain binder, a Valley Chief. In 1894 Bill Daaner
bought the Township's first steam engine.3 With this he drove his
thresher thus making the operation much more efficient. It is
noteworthy that most nineteenth century mechanization in the Township
of Washington involved grain production indicating that it was the
most important source of income.
Besides sweeping agricultural changes, commericat transitions
occurred during this period. The successful future of Middle Ridge
was assured by events of the last twenty years of the nineteenth
centerury. Due to general dissatisfaction with his business, John Schomers
left Middle Ridge to begin a La Crosse business in 1882. Upon his
departure, Frank Brown took over the tavern, blacksmith shop, general
store and post office.9 In 1885 and 1886 the same businesses were
operated by John P. Weber.1° When Weber sold these businesses,
then located in one building, the tavern portion of the original Schomers
building ceased operation. In 1887, Peter Bell bought the building
and there operated the blacksmith shop until at least 1900. Bell was
the postmaster of Middle Ridge from July 7, 1898, until September
15, 1900.

8Peter A. Hundt, interview.
9Township of Washington, Official Record of the Treasury, 1857-
1905, p. 152.
10lbid., p. 157.The success and vitality of Middle Ridge as a service center
for dairy farms was assured with the work of Peter Arntz during
the closing years of the nineteenth century. The son of Micheal
Arentz, one of the Township's most distinguished original pioneers,
Peter Arentz deserves, if anyone does, the title of Father of Middle
Ridge. Peter Arentz cannot be credited with actually founding the
hamlet; St. Peter's Mission was responsible for its birth. However,
Arentz deserves credit for injecting new life into a community whose
decline had apparently begun. Middle Ridge could easily have met
an early death, as did Bohemia and Germany, hamlets similar to Middle
Ridge in origin. To sustain its life, Middle Ridge needed a broad
minded, courageous and optimistic entrepreneur. Middle Ridge found
him in Peter Arentz.
In 1887 Peter Arentz arrived at Middle Ridge. He built and
operated a tavwern and general store, today known as Wuench's
Tavern.11 On the second floor of the building Arentz maintained the
Township's first inn. It accommodated eight people. In his grocery
store, the Middle Ridge post office was maintained until 1898 with
Arentz as postmaster. In 1895 he added a dance hall to the original
building.12 The hall was later changed to the present general store.

11Township of Washington, Official Record of the Treasury,
1857-1905, p.178.
12Peter Cavadini, Bangor, Wisconsin, personal interview, 9 July,
1963. Hereinafter referred to as Peter Cavadini, interview.Arentz continued to operate his business until 1909 when Peter Cavadini
and John P. Weber bought it.
Arentz vitalized the hamlet in many ways. In 1890 he built
the hamlet's first mill, a steam powered operation located about 400
feet northeast of his tavern.13 in 1895 he built another mill about
one-eighth of a mile south of his inn. In 1901 that mill was burned but
in 1902 it was replaced. As already stated, Arentz aided in founding
the Middle Ridge Cheese Factory in 1900. He also founded a blacksmith
shop which competed with that of Peter Bell. It was built in the form
of a barn south of his tavern, and employed the services of Herb
Brown (who had formerly operated Schomer's shop) to operate the
shop. The Arentz shop operated from 1890 to 1895.14
In 1895 Peter Arentz introduced the telephone to the community,
primarily for emergency business and medical purposes. Doctor (?)
Newton M.D., of Bangor, and Arentz collaborated in extending a line
hung on trees, from Middle Ridge to Bangor. The line terminated at
the Newton house in Bangor and at Arentz's Tavern in Middle Ridge.15
Due to Arentz's many activities Middle Ridge was a mowing and
progressive community when the turn of the century arrived. Little

13This mill was located on the site of the present William
Arentz farmstead.
14William Charles Arenlz, interview.
15Ibidthat it had could be attributed to any other person than Peter Arentz.
Newburgs Corner, the Township's other contemporary community,
and seat of the Township's government also became permanently
established at this time. The log tavern and general store constructed
by Alois Newburg in 1871 were used until 1900. The business was
operated by the Newburg family until it closed in 1888. In 1891
Ernest Munzenberger bought the building and reopened the business.
He operated until it finally closed in 1900. In 1898 John Mashak
constructed a new tavern (the present L & L Tavern) at Newburgs
Corner. A dance hall was built onto this tavern shortly after 1900.
Economic prosperity from 1880 to 1900 was matched by genuine
Progress in the Township government. The first important improvement
was the erection of the facility of the first Township Hall, in 1884.16
Previous to that date, meetings had been held in mills, stores, schools
and private residences, although never in taverns. The Township Hall
was built at a cost of approximately $250 about one-half mile east
of Newburgs Corner on the road to Bohemia.17 It was located within
one-half mile of the geographic center of the Township. Local
carpenters, Christian Halback, John Nidividek and Frank Baxter,
built the hall during two weeks in July, 1884. The same hall is still used

16Township of Washington, Official Record of the Trei
1857-1905, p. 348.
17It was located near the present John Richards farm.as the Township government building, but it has been moved to Newburgs
Corner.
The Township's pride in its new hall was rudely shaken in the
spring of 1885 when a strong north wind removed the roof of the
building before it had celebrated its first birthday.18 The services
of local farmers, Frank Barta and Matt Newburg were secured to
repair it. They completed the job for $126.04, more than half its
original cost.
Significant improvement of Township services was made in 1893
when crushed cock was first used to surface roads. Before that all
Township roads had earthen surfaces. In fact, a total of less than
$900 was spent on road surfacing from 1893 to 1900. The county
government provided $695 of that amount.19
In 1894 another important precedent was set when the Township
government first paid for the plowing of snow from Township roads.
During that year it paid 0. J. Ophus a total of seventy-five cents and
an undisclosed amount to J. J. Burback for that purpose.20
Technological improvements for highway maintenance were
important during this period. In 1894 blasting powder was used for

18Township of Washington, Official Record of the Treasury,
1857-1905, p. 349.
l9lbid., p. 325.
20Township of Washington, Official Record of the Treasury,
1857-1905, p. 235.the first time in highway construction. During 1894 the Township
bought its first horse-drawn road grader for $200. In 1899, the first
fourwheeled scraper was purchased.21
Significant progress was made in other aspects of Township
Weed Commissioner was established. Wenzel Korn was first to serve
in that office and did so in 1889 for a salary of $47. Another
development was the Township library program, initiated in 1894 with
Frank Sedevie as director. It was his job to distribute the Township's
school booKs among the four school districts.
From these facts concerning, the last two decades of the
nineteenth century, it seems that there was economic progress and it
was paralleled by an increase in the services offered by the Township
of Washington.22 Obviously, the latter was dependent upon the former.
Governmental improvements resulting from increased government
spending was in the long run, a result of this economic progress which
would not have found increased taxation possible without the increased
ability of the constituency to pay higher taxes. The increase in

21Ibid., p. 352.
22It is notable that the national Panic of 1893 did not have a
distinct, notable effect on the economy of the Township. None of
the pioneers interviewed have any recollection of a depression of this
type.Township population also caused a government revenue increase since
all Township taxes were on real estate. Township records verify the
increase in spending. In 1372 when taxes brought in $811.24, the
government spent $569.88.23 Twenty years later, in 1896, when tax
collections amounted to $1449.84, the government spent $354.13.24
Since all the new programs were financially based, the increase was
the important factor in making the new program possible.

23Ibid., p. 93.
24Ibid., p. 338.This study of the Township of Washington has traced the
development of a 23,400 acre section of what was at first part of
the American frontier. This entailed the examination of forces
responsible for the transition of a wild, uncivilized, and largely unknown
area to a well populated, organized and economically secure society.
The transition was so complete at the beginning of the twentieth
century that the Township was not dissimilar from other communities
of its type in the United States at that time.
The forces involved in the settlement and development of this
township were not unique on the frontier but only in the sense that
as unique problems were encountered in the settlement of each
township, unique answers to them were found.
In the case of the Township of Washington, we saw that the
basic disadvantage to settlement was inadequate arable soil due to
the hilly terrain. This problem was sufficiently solved by the immigrants
that settled the area.1 These people were responsible for the formation
of an agricultural community which, by 1900, enjoyed an above-average
production and standard of living. Facts verify this conclusion: in

1Those spoken of here are those European immigrants whose
ancestry can be traced to the Germanic tribes. These peoples include
Germans and Scandinavians.1900, four cheese factories, two general stores, two inns, two dance
halls, two post offices and one blacksmith shop were located in the
Township. Since all of La Crosse County has seven cheese factories,
the location of four of them in Washington was a measure of its
production relative to the other townships in the county. Four public
schools and one Catholic school provided for the educational needs of
the children, while one Catholic church, St. Peter's, provided for the
religious needs of most of the people. A Township program to provide
for the welfare of paupers, stone road surfacing and mechanized road
maintenance indicated an effective Township government. The struggle
begun by the first settlers had resulted in success by 1900.
The spirit that won these ends was that which possessed the
minds and bodies of the courageous, sturdy and confident middle class
Germans, Norwegians, other Western Europeans and Americans who
settled this Township. These people came to Washington out of choice,
not out of compulsion. They were confident that tecrain and conditions
so reminiscent of the old world were at least practical assurance of
ultimate success. Besides confidence, these settlers, and especially
the Nordics, possessed a spirit of industry—a necessity for success on
the frontier. Finally, these settlers were courageous. They abandoned
their middle class European standard of living, the enjoyment of their
culture and traditions, their homes, families and friends for an unknown
destiny in an unknown land. Their thirst was quenchable by success
alone and their success came from their relentless and ingenious hardwork. They foresaw the struggle they faced. I have told you some of it.BIBLIOGRAPHY
Abell, Aaron I., A History of the United States of America. New
York: Fordham University Press, 195L 700 pp., illus., maps,
biblio., index.
Billington, Ray Alien, Westward Expansion. 2nd ed. New York: The
Maomillan Company, 1960. 894 pp., maps, index.
Bryant, Benjamin F., ed., Memoirs j)f La Crosse County. Madison:
Western Historical Association, 1907. 428 pp., illus., maps.
Buley, R- C., The Old Northwest. 2 vols. Bloomington: Indiana
University Press, 1950. Illus., maps, biblio., index.
Butterfiekj. C. W.. History of La Crosse County. Wisconsin. Chicago:
Western Historical Company, 1881. 862 pp., illus., maps.
Gregory, John G., ed., West Central Wisconsin, a History. 2 vols.
Indianapolis: S. J. Clark Publishing Company, 1933. Illus.,
maps, biblio., index.
Pammel, L. H., Some Reminiscences of La Crosse and Vicinity. La
Crosse: Liesenfeld Press, 1928. 102 pp., illus., index.
Prucha, Francis Paul, Broadaxe andJiaggnet. Madison: State Historical
Sanford, A. H., La Crosse County Historical Sketches. Series of 5:
1931, 1935, 1937, 1938, 1940. La Crosse: Liesenfeld Press.
469 pp., illus., maps, biblio.
No author indicated, Biographical History of La Crosse. Trempealeau
and Buffalo Counties. Chicago: Lewis Publishing Company,
1892. 794 pp., illus., index.
ARTICLES AND ESSAYS
McConrnch Reaper Source Material. Chicago: International
Harvester Company, 1931. No author given.NEWSPAPERS
The La Crosse Tribiine, 15 September, 1963.
The La Crosse Register, 8 January, 1956.
BIBLIOGRAPHICAL NOTE
Besides these secondary sources, a great deal of information
contained in this thesis was derived from the following primary sources.
The original governmental records of the Township of Washington was
the most important written source. These records include: 1) the
Official Minutes of the Township Meetings, 1857-1905; 2) the Official
Minutes of the Meetings of the Board of Supervisors, 1859-1885; 3)
Assessment of 1872; 4) Records of the Superintendent of Schools,
1866-1930; and 5) the Records of the Township Treasury, 1857-1909.
Together they provided an authoritative check on all other sources.
My use of these records was made possible through the generous
cooperation of Joseph Schumacher, present Clerk of the Township of
Washington and custodian of its records. He resides at Rural Route
#1, Coon Valley, Wisconsin.
Information concerning the Township postal system was obtained
from the United States Post Office Department, Washington, D.C. The
Post Office Department sent this author photostatic copies of the
original records maintained in the National Archives, Washington, D.C.
A primary source which contributed a great deal of minor but
colorful detail and some major points was the oral interviews withoriginal Township pioneers. In this capacity, a great deal of aid was
received from Mr. Peter A. and Mrs. Mary Hundt. At ages eighty-
four and eighty-two respectively, they contributed information which
was most extensive and usually accurate. Their qualifications for such
contributions are: 1) their residence in the Township for fifty years
beginning shortly after 1900; and 2) the fact that Mr. Hundt held
various educational and commercial positions during that time. They
now reside at 3008 So. 22nd Street, La Crosse, Wisconsin.
William Charles Arentz of Rural Route 2, Bangor, Wisconsin
was also very helpful as a primary source. His qualifications are: 1)
a lifetime of sixty-nine years lived in the hamlet of Middle Ridge; 2)
the fact that he is very familiar with the life of his father, Peter,
Middle Ridge's most important pioneer, and 3) the fact that he has
been and is a most important leader in the Township's political,
religious, educational and social life.
Equally helpful as a source of valuable information was Peter
Cavadini, aged eighty-four, of Rural Route 2, Bangor, Wisconsin. He
has: 1) resided in Middle Ridge since 1909, 2) owned the tavern and
general store in that hamlet from 1909 until 1946; and 3) held political
and educational offices in the Township.
Mrs. John G. Larkin of 618 Avon Street, La Crosse, Wisconsin,
also contributed valuable information derived from her personal
experience. She is the daugher of John Schemers who founded and
operated Middle Ridge's first retail business in 1877. Mr. Larkin wasborn in 1874.
Frank Joseph Sedevie, aged eighty-four, was another valuable
aid, since he has lived his entire life in Washington Township, Mr.
Sedevie, his grandfather, Joseph, and father, Frank, were influential
and progressive farmers. His address is Rural Route 1, Coon Valley,
Wisconsin.
Joseph Schumacher, aged seventy-three, Clerk of the Township
for the past forty years, contributed much valuable information based
on his personal experience. He resides at Rural Route 1, Coon Valley,
Wisconsin.
Numerous other sources were closely examined for information
useful in the production of this dissertation.