Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1895-07-11
Geo. HiIes VS.. Cranberry Lands.

Geo. HiIes VS.. Cranberry Lands.
While the following article purportins
to have been written by Geo. Hiles
contains some facts and truths the
article as whole is misleading, especial
ly that part which implies that the
lands are worthless for cranberry
culture. If Mr.. Hiles attempted tc
buy out some Of the growers in WOOD
county he would soon learn that his
money would 60 but short way
towards it. The fact is that Messrs. S
n. Whittlesey, A. c. Bennett & Son
Gaynor Bros, Arpin Bros, Searls Bros.
Spafford q Trahern, I. Z. Nash, Geo
B. Macmillan and many others that we
could mention have made thousands Of
dollars in cultivating the cranberry. L
is true that the cranberry crop for the
past three years, due to excessive
drouth, fire and frosts, has been ;
failure. So has all kinds of farm
products for the same reason been {
failure. But the history Of the cram
berry crops for the past 20 years viii
not bear out Mr.. Hiles in his statement
If the cranberry man gets a good crop
Of berries once in five years he viii
make more money per acre than Mr.
Hiles can on the best hay or farming
land in the state of Wisconsin, There
is no doubt but what the higher Gran.
berry marshes would make better hay
and farming lands than for the cult
yation and growing of cranberries, but
the heavy black peet marshes are best
adapted for the cultivation of cram
berries with proper water supply.
am frequently asked what cranberry
land is worth in Wood, Juneau and
Jackson counties in this state, and with
your permission [ will answer the
question through the columns of your
valuable paper. For the purpose of
raising cranberries [ do not consider
the land worth one cent an acre, for
this reason: Cranberries cannot be
raised in Northern Wisconsin and
made a success of. First. The elements
are against the berry, the frost comes
too late in the spring of the year and
too early in the fall of the year, and it
is sure to kill the berry either in the
spring or fall as a general thing. Second.
Fires and the tireWorm are great
detriment to the raising of cranberries.
Third. There is no water that can be
depended upon to use when it is needed
to avoid all of these calamities.
A man may have a 200 acre cram
h. l.,
they have in either of three counties [
haye mentioned, and if be cultivates it
ten years he will have to have some
if he has not got that he will 60 dead
broke. He will have to wear Jeans
over-alls nine years out of ten and go
hungry. [ have lived in Dexterville,
Wood county, over forty years. When
[ first went there there was a cram
berry marsh right close to DeXterville
of some 5000 acres, and it was as nice
a cranberry marsh as there was any
where in the country in its state of
nature. On some parts of the marsh
there was cranberry crop every year.
All the cranberrles cost was to gather
them, and that was done principally by
the Indians in those early days. Then
there was some profit in cranberries.
But marshes got to growing drier and
drler every year.
About twenty years ago the craze
struck the people in that part of the
country that the cultivation of cram
berries was as good as a gold mine, but
every man that went into the business,
to his sorrow, now sees where he was
mistaken. | am we'll acquainted with
nearly all the cranberry growers in that
portion of the state and will venture to
say that nine out of ten are dead broke,
if they have no other business to
depend upon. [ began to cultivate,
spent about $4,000, got sick of the
business and threw it up. Nearly all
the marshes now have been we'll
drained for the purpose of the cultiva
ton of cranberries. I have one marsh
right close by the village of DeXterville
is the marsh | speak of above. After
to run out and grass came in their
place. Finally the marshes became so
dry that the fire burned all the moss
and the bark, III some places only the
grass.
| have been watching it for the last
six or eight years and [ became salts
fed that those marshes were the most
valuable lands that could be found in
the state for farming purposes. |
experimental on ten acres by sowing it
with oats this last spring, and [ also
sOwed about the same amount of land
with timothy and red top. [ will
venture to say that there is no man in
the state of Wisconsin who has got a
finer crop of oats or finer crop of
timothy and red top than now stands
on that ground. [ made up my mind
fully June that [ would 90 to work
and improve my marsh. In the month
Of June [ broke upand sowed 500 acres,
on 800 acres of which | sowed timothy
and red top and on 200 acres [ sowed
millet, and 1 sowed timothy and red
top with the millet. 1t is my intention
to keep right on breaking it up and
seeding it down with timothy and red
top to the amount of 1900 acres at the
least, upon which l shall put 500 cows
| have seen enough of it to know as
we'll as | know anything that it will be
a success. Now in those three counties
there are hundreds of thousands of
acres of just as good land as mine ard
very easily cultivated, and it will be a
sure thing to get a crop from it, and l
am certain that it will be a paving
investment. Instead of its being a
calamity the fires running through
there and burning over those marshes
and swamps it is the greatest benefit
that ever happened to the cranberry
man, and | will say to all my friends
and acquaintances, if you have any
cranberry marshes 90 and cultivate
them at once for farms and you will