April 7, 1966, Neenah-Menasha Daily Northwestern
Dear readers, do any of you know what happened to this log? After this date, news coverage seemed to vanish completely. Did it ever make it to Smith Park? I don't recall it there but then again, I haven't been to the park in several years either. I am sure the moving/donation of the log was related to relocating Menasha Corporation's headquarters south of Neenah on Hwy 41.
The current champion Douglas-fir is 281 feet tall with a diameter of over 13 feet. It's located in Olympia National Forest, Washington.
ReplyDeleteAccording to "One Third Crew, One Third Boat, One Third Luck" by Mowry Smith, Jr. and Giles Clark, "after the fire," the 590-year-old, 12-foot segment of log of Douglas fir from Tacoma, Washington.was removed from its place "at the entrance to the plant in Menasha" (presumably, the North End of the Mill Street Bridge). It was moved to a small wedge of land provided by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers between the dam and canal "near the old Wooden Ware buildings." In 1969, examination of the log showed that the wood had deteriorated to the point where it was "useless for further display." In November 1969, a Corps of Engineers barge carrying a huge derrick hauled away the remains.
ReplyDeleteThere is no mention of where the log was disposed of.
I believe it is still on display along the canal across from Grignon mansion in Kaukauna. I had seen it about 10 years ago when our kids played soccer near there. I had even called the Army Corp. of Engineers to find out more about it. I was referred to a retired Corp gent who said he remembers he was on the barge that brought it in from Menasha. A must see!!!!
DeleteI was just there today, it is acoss the road from the Grignon mansion. Still on display. What year was the tree cut down? And was it not originally from WI?
ReplyDeleteI remember in the mid-1960s when "The Big One" was still on display near the old Menasha Wooden Ware building near the old Mill Street Bridge. I'm glad that Unknown mentioned that it was now on display near the Grignon mansion in Kaukauna. I no longer live in the area, but I returned to attend a funeral in November 2022. I made it a point to drive by the new display.
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