...How is Buster?

 

 

Not sure where this scene is near Menasha (looking up at High Cliff, perhaps?) but the frame around it is a nice touch and innovative for the time.  For all we know, it's a stock photo and the manufacturer just put any town's name on the postcard for locales all over the country. Whatever the case, our young correspondent, Clarence, still took the time to communicate with Bill, who I've found out from further postcards, is his uncle.  In the weeks to come, I will feature some other Menasha related cards addressed to the same family in Mishicot.  And Clarence gets a little more verbose with his writing, to boot. 

Grade's Pantorium

April 1945 N-M Phone Directory

 

September 11, 1958 Appleton Post-Crescent

February 3, 1960 Appleton Post-Crescent

 January 30, 1961 Appleton Post-Crescent

Grade's Pantorium, later known as Grade's Cleaners starting around 1961, was a fixture on Main Street for more than 40 years, from the '20s to the '60s.  As you'd expect, their ads were reflective of a more formal era...suits and top coats with just a dash of sexism.  And when was the last time you had YOUR felt hat cleaned and blocked?

B.F. Carter

Back in the heyday of excursion boats on Lake Winnebago and the Fox River, the sternwheel B.F. Carter was a popular craft.  Named after a pioneer brick manufacturer in Oshkosh, the boat was built in Oshkosh in 1876.   At 110 feet long and 24 feet wide, it was partially remade from a Menasha boat called the Island City, which saw its demise when it smashed into the Menasha lock in 1872.  The B.F. Carter saw service until 1910.

Early Settlements

This map from the book, Prairies, Pines, and People: Winnebago County in a New Perspective (1976) shows the Lake Winnebago area in the days before formal settlements were established with the names we know all too well.  Note the many Indian villages, to include the one on Doty Island.  It wouldn't be too many years after the original publication of this map that major changes would occur to shape the area and make it more recognizable to modern eyes.

New Banta Credit Union Location

  May 22, 1972 NM Northwestern

Having been headquartered off Mill Street in the Hotel Menasha building since 1962, the Banta Credit Union opened a new facility at the corner of Ninth and Warsaw Streets, forty-three years ago today. I'm sure the new facility was a vast improvement over the cramped second floor offices at the old location.  

This being Memorial Day weekend, I will take a short hiatus and return to the blog on Tuesday, May 26th.   

Henry E. Trilling

"HENRY TRILLING, a retired merchant and respectable pioneer citizen of Menasha, was born in Prussia, Germany, March 6, 1833, the son of Frederick and Francis Trilling. He remained in his native country until he reached the age of nineteen. Between the age of six and fourteen he attended school, and afterward learned the dyer's trade. In 1852 he accompanied his father, mother and other members of the family to America. On reaching this country they came directly to Wisconsin and made their home at Sheboygan. There his father became the owner of a grocery store and in this, Henry Trilling clerked about four years. Before the expiration of that period, he was married December 1, 1855, to Margaret Shubert. She was born in Bavaria, Germany, May 31, 1838, the daughter of John and Anna Shubert, with whom she came to America in 1844. In this country her father and mother were first located at Buffalo, N. Y.  A year later they moved to the Lake Superior region and resided at Copper Harbor and Eagle River; two years afterward removing to Sheboygan. 

In 1856, Mr. and Mrs. Trilling came to Menasha, where they have made their home. Soon after coming here Mr. Trilling engaged in store keeping with an elder brother, and he continued mercantile pursuits exclusively until December, 1875, since when he has been interested in various other branches of business, including foundry and milling. In most of his business enterprises he has had good success, and he is now permitted to enjoy a retired life in comfortable circumstances. Mr. Trilling and wife have had nine children: Maggie F., Matilda F., Augusta L., Hermina J., Henry, Arthur J., Theodore W., Richard J., and Alvina M., of whom Augusta L., Arthur J. and Theodore W., are deceased. Mr. Trilling and wife are members of the Catholic church. He has been treasurer of Menasha two terms, has been a member of the council and is at present a member of the school board. Besides other property, he and wife have a pleasant home in Menasha, where they enjoy the happy fruits of a well-spent life, respected and esteemed by a large circle of friends."

source:  Randall, Geo. A. / Illustrated atlas of Winnebago County, Wisconsin : containing outline map of the county, map of each township in the county, with village and city plats. Also maps of the world, United States and state of Wisconsin, together with other valuable information (1889)

Among his other civic achievements, Henry Trilling was a beloved member of the library board.  Upon his passing in 1929 at the age of 95, the library provided the following testimonial: 

February 5, 1929 Oshkosh Northwestern

Gardner Colby

Mr. Gardner Colby, a Bostonian, was the first president of the Wisconsin Central Railroad, incorporated in 1871 at the National Hotel in downtown Menasha.  Aside from that connection though, Mr. Colby remained a Massachusetts resident for most of hs life.  He took over a store his father had started in Charlestown, Massachusetts and eventually started his own store in Boston.  He made his fortune furnishing dry goods to Union forces during the Civil War.  He later became involved in various other businesses including railroads, shipping and manufacturing. As a lifelong Baptist, Colby was very involved in various Christian causes. During the Civil War in 1864 the college in Waterville was facing hardships, so Colby made the first of several large donations to the college and it was renamed "Colby College" in his honor. He served as a trustee from 1864 to his death in 1879 and many of his descendants became involved with the school. Colby also served as treasurer and made several large donations to what is now Andover Newton Theological School, which was a Reformed seminary located near Colby's home in Newton, Massachusetts.

The city of Colby, Wisconsin, west of Wausau in Clark and Marathon Counties, came into existence because the government gave Mr. Colby certain rights through that area for establishing the railroad from Menasha to Ashland.  As towns often did in those days, it named itself Colby after the biggest benefactor, or industry, in town. 

In later years, around 1885, Colby (the town) became the namesake for a new kind of cheese developed at a local cheese factory.  Today, Colby cheese is known throughout the US as a product of the only major natural cheese process native to America.  The name "Colby", lives on in perpetual fame, perhaps more so because of the cheese's popularity than due to the man's beneficence in education and other works of charity.

MHS Centennial Grads

May 19, 1975 NM Northwestern

 

Forty years ago today, the Northwestern published this list of upcoming MHS grads, an extra special list as it marked the centennial year commencement exercises for the high school.  Exciting, too, for me, in that this was the year I also graduated, though from St. Mary's.  But I grew up with a lot of the names on this list, I had had many of them as classmates through the grade school years.  As I approach my own 40th high school reunion later this summer, my hat's off to all of them; I hope all their lives have been as gratifying as the promise they anticipated on their graduation day. 

Cigar Box

 Historical Review of the State of Wisconsin: Its Industrial and Commercial Resouces (1887)

 

 

April 7, 1915 Paper

 

 

April 29, 1921 Oshkosh Northwestern

 

 January 11, 1937 Appleton Post-Crescent

 

With a smattering of articles, today we entertain the life of John Wise, citizen and cigar maker to Menasha.  Back when tobacco was a more acceptable vice, to be a good cigar maker was a valued profession.  It seems Mr. Wise fit the bill and was an inventor, to boot. 

Dear Brother, Why Don't You Send Me a Card

A man's plea to his brother, a Mr. Rudolph Hoffman of Plain View, Minnesota is shown on the back of this 1910 postcard,  which is really a study in perspective.  The streetcard tracks receding in the distance draw the eye through the entirety of the eastern downtown on Main Street.  The fanciful hues are a wonderland of color.  The pastel pallet used by the painter of this postcard is in dramatic contrast to the usual black and white "real photo" postcards and nothing like the sepia toned artifacts of years previous.  It is a joy to this fan and a welcome addition to my collection.

Early Schools

 

This map shows the locations of the earliest schools of the Twin Cities.  No. 8, the Clinton School, was located at what is now the soccer field of Smith Park.  Named for the Reverend O.P. Clinton, Menasha's earliest clergyman, the school existed from 1878 to 1894.  No. 6, on Water Street, is generally accepted as being the first school in Menasha, started in 1849.  No. 7, at Broad and Milwaukee Streets, sat across the street from the Congregational Church.

Wooden Ware Offices 1898

What more is left to be said about the Menasha Wooden Ware?  This wonderful wood cut of their offices from 1898 features a passing rowboat, complete with parasol-carrying passenger to add an air of dignity as well as keeping that torrid Wisconsin sun off her personage.

Aerial Shot

 

Overlooking the intersection of Third and Appleton in 1971, we view the St. Mary campus on what looks to be a wintry day. 

Streetcar A Comin'

The above downtown view dates between 1905 and 1910- the Hotel Menasha being built in 1905 and the street being paved in 1910.  Notice that the storefront at Milwaukee and Main says "Theatre," the first instance I've seen of that.  In later years, the location will be the Schultz Brothers drug store, lasting until the late 1940's.  We explored the interior of that store in this blog post:  http://menashabook.blogspot.com/2014/07/schultz-drug-store.html .  In my boyhood, the location was the office of Menasha Utilities.

Jensen Bakery

from 1935 Menasha Nicolet

I don't know a lot about the Jensen Bakery in Menasha, but I was taken by the little ad at the back of the 1935 Menasha High yearbook.  In a medium where the ads are largely text-driven "best wishes" or "good luck" along with the business' name and address, anything that deviates from the norm is appreciated.  The art deco lettering and the whimsical bakery man caught my eye.  Other than address listings in the city directories, I've come up short.  The aforementioned city directories list Morris Jensen as a tenant upstairs from the facility, so I'm going out on a limb that he was the owner and proprietor.  Although the ad says the address as 149, later directories list it as 151.  The following Sanborn Map bears this out, showing the bakery's location on Main Street, an area that was later demolished to build the First National Bank in 1964-65

 

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Cycling Map 1897

This 1897 map is a portion of one of 12 maps showing the best bicycle routes in the state of Wisconsin. The League of American Wheelmen (L.A.W.) published maps for many states, usually in book form, sometimes as separate maps in a case. The maps are keyed to show the type of road. The roads are rated by two different scales: Numbered - 1=Level, 2=Hilly, 3=Very Hilly; Lettered - A=Good, B=Medium, C=Bad.   Note the roads east of Menasha are labeled as level, but bad.

from the David Rumsey Historical Map Collection via oldmapsonline.org
Bicycle Road Maps In Sections of the State of Wisconsin.
Copyrighted and Published by the Wisconsin Division, League of American Wheelmen (L.A.W.)
C.B. Case, L.A.W. Map Department. 411 Milwaukee St., Milwaukee, Wis. 1897.

Wreath

December 10, 1957 N-M Northwestern

 

From our historical oddities department.   What more can I say?  And I wonder...is it still over at the Historical Society?

Lawson Canal View, 1971

Words seem hard to come by to express the sadness we feel as a community. Please keep all those affected in your thoughts and prayers.

Many Barrels and Boxes of Thanks

The back of this postcard tells the tale.  Although the card is postmarked 1911, the photo of the hotel shows what seems to be a dirt Main Street, and we know from history that it was paved in June of 1910, right before the Elks convention.  As detailed in the Menasha book,  Main Street was previously paved with cedar blocks; a thin layer of dirt on top provided an extra cushion, but made the road muddy when it rained. However, concrete paving was a matter of civic pride and efforts were made to have the work finished by the time of the convention.

The style of the card dates it between 1907 and 1910, because postcards before 1907 did not have divided backs.  Notice how this card directs the writer that the left side is for correspondence, a new experience for postcard writers at the time, who formerly had only that narrow white strip at the bottom of the photo to write on.  This must have been a transition card, for in a short time, the white strip would soon be a thing of the past.

Corydon P. Northrup

There are many history books out there, but none so fascinating to me as the biographical sketches of late 19th/early 20th century civic leaders.  I always find it an intriguing read, and continually marvel that the authors can take someone who, by many accounts, would otherwise be considered an ordinary character of community life, and make his life so interesting.  Among one of Menasha's civic leaders was Corydon Northrup.  The following is an extract from an 1895 tome expounding on the virtues of the man:

"Corydon P. Northrup is the leading insurance man of Menasha, Winnebago County, and one of its honored early settlers and valued citizens. With its best interests he has long been identified, and in its development and up building he has ever borne a part. He is a native of Oneida County, N. Y., having first seen the light there December 2, 1820, and is a son of Cornelius Northrup, who was born in Greene County, N. Y., January 20, 1796, the eldest in a family of three sons and four daughters.  

Corydon Northrup was a child of six years when his parents went to Ohio, and a youth of ten on their removal to Michigan, where he remained until 1841, during which time he worked on a farm, attended school and clerked in a store. In 1841, he returned to Cuyahoga County, Ohio, where he engaged in the manufacture of spinning wheels until 1846, when he came to the Territory of Wisconsin, locating in Neenah, which was then a mere hamlet. During the succeeding year and a half he built the first house in Menasha, and on its completion it was occupied by his father and his family. Our subject worked in a sawmill and at the carpenter's trade until 1852, when he went to Two Rivers, where he was employed as shipping clerk for the lumber firm of Aldrich, Smith & Co., until 1860. On April 15, 1845, he married Miss Catherine A. Smith, a native of St. Lawrence County, N. Y., whose parents died when she was quite small, and she was then reared by an aunt. She died in Neenah, January 8, 1847, and on May 11, 1854, Mr. Northrup married Ellen A. Knibbs, who was born in England, November 2, 1829. During her infancy her parents emigrated to Canada, where shortly after her father died, leaving a family of seven children - John, Charles, Isaac, Mary, Ann, Naomi and Ellen. To Mr. and Mrs. Northrup were born nine children: Catherine A., Mary A., Henry M., Hattie I., Carrie N., Alice A., Lucy E. and two now deceased.    

Mr. Northrup has been a resident of Menasha since February, 1860, at which time he entered a sawmill, and soon worked up to the position of superintendent of the Menasha Wooden Ware Company. In 1875, he left that business, and for a time followed carpentering and farming. Since 1887, however, he has given his entire time and attention to the insurance business in which he has met with good success. His life has been a busy and useful one, yet he has found time to devote to public interests. Some years since he served as a member of the board of county supervisors, and in 1888 was again elected to that office. In the spring of 1881, he was appointed city clerk of Menasha, but resigned the following fall. On May 1, 1888, he was again appointed to that position, and discharged his duties with a promptness and fidelity that won him high commendation. He has filled the offices of justice of the peace and alderman, and is ever true to the trusts reposed in him. Those who know him honor him for his sterling worth and strict integrity, and their high esteem he justly merits."

source: Commemorative Biographical Record of the Fox River Valley Counties of Brown, Outagamie and Winnebago, 1895, Chicago, J. H. Beers & Co.

Mr. Northrup, died in the summer of 1897 after the publication of this narrative, having lived and served in Menasha for well over 37 years.