Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1899-04-27
VALUED H|STORY-P|ECES.
Continued from first page.I
From j. Fl. Lang.


Rapids: | am happy to respond to
your kind invitation to either appear
in person at your old folks gathering
or drop you line. Nothing would
give me more pleasure than to visit
your thriving city and 60 over again
the old stamping ground. Every foot
Of Wood county became dear to me
from travelling over it SO much and l
can hardly realize the changes that
have taken place since I left you over
thirty years ago.
In the days Of slavery master
caught one Of his slaves in the act Of
loading pistol and inquired what it
was for. He replied that he was going
to fight a duel with Tom. "Why,
what has Tom done?" the master
asked. ''He called me niger, niger,
niger, once, twice, tree times and me
no bear him, Massa." But are you
not a negro, Nero?" Eyes, | knows |
is negro, but who wants to be told
Vi WIldU lie kl1OW dlIoduy.
At the risk of telling you some
things you know already, l will give
you some of my recollectionS of the
years / spent at. Grand Rapids and
vicinity, hoping that they may be OF
interest to the few that remain of my
old friends and neighborS and to the
younger generation that has come on
to take our places. Being present
with you to look into your faces and
talk over the old times would be much
more satisfactory, but as that is i'm
possible / will do the best | can to
interest you with my "reminiscences.
1t is now forty-three years since |
first saw Grand Rapids l can hardly
realize the flight Of time. Marvellous
changes have taken place in our cOun-
try during that time and your city
has grown from a struggling hamlet
of two or three hundred souls to a
beautiful and prosperous twin COM
munity Of 5000.
In 1856 the nearest we could get to
Grand Rapids by rail was Oshkosh.
From there we Travelled by boat on
Wolf river to Gill's Landing and
thence by stage to Stevens Point.
In the summer of 1856 my wife and
myself took trip to Stevens Point to
visit relatives, intending to return in
the fall At the United States land
office | met John Edwards, who had
recently entered into partnership with
Henry Clinton at Frenchtown, with
whom | made an engagement to serve
the company as bookkeeper and gen.
eral business manager for the term of
one year. At that time there were
but two houses there, a blacksmith
shop and an old Sawmill. One of the
houses was fitted up for my office and
residence and the other was used as a
board ing house.
During the following winter we put
in new dam, boom and piers, thor
Oughly OVerhauled the old mill pre-
paratOry to manufacturing lumber the
coming season. My contract for SER
vices was made with Mr.. Edwards
who was an English gentleman of the
old school and very precise and meth
Odical in business matters. He in
formed me that my business would be
to keep the books, employ and keep
the time of the men. He said the
management of the building the dam,
piers and boom would be intrusted to
a man by the name of Hezekiah Rip
ley, who, he had been Informed, was
man of ''heXellent Judgment" The
winter Of 1S55-56 was an extremely
cold one, snow falling to the depth Of
four feet and the ice forming in the
river six feet thick, so you will readily
see that the labor of cutting and haul
ing timber for piers, dam and boom,
the blasting rock and the removal Of
the ice for the foundations was no
child'S play. But we had men Injured
to hardship and exposure and the
work was pushed to completion. I
recall the names Of Charles Richards,
Hank Retburg, Hamilton Canning
Moses NerbOncOeur, the Ripley boys,
John and Pat McShane and Nick
Heating as the leading men in the
work. There were others whose names
| do not now remember. l think we
worked a crew of about twenty-five
men and a number of teams, and the
work was completed in time for the
spring drive. The mill was completed
and the following summer a large
quantity of lumber manufactured and
the whole enterprise put in successful
operation. The money we used had
to come from Mr.. Edwards at Galena,
who sent it to us in gold English SOW
ereignS, which were worth S4.S4 but
readily passed in the pinery for $500.
Mr.. Edwards did not stay with us
at all and we were all under the
general management of Mr.. Clinton.
Mr.. Clinton was typical lumberman,
rough and ready, man of warm heart
and generous impulses who was ever
ready to answer the call of suffering
and whose untimely death will be
remembered by the older citizens.
Clinton was diamond in the rough
and very popular with the men in his
employ. At the close of my engage
| mont with Edwards and Clinton in