Eagle River review. [volume] (Eagle River, Wis.) 1890-1927, 1906-07-13
DAM SITE AT OTTER RAPIDS HAS
BEEN SECURED.
$4,000 Paid for Land, and Obtained With
out any String Attached To It. Good
Work Done by Those in Charge. =

AZ last LuC CItlZCuS VI hdS@S
River will get what they have been
striving for, for the past IS years,
dam and water power at Otter
Rapids on the Wisconsin river.
At the last Legislature law was
passed, known at Chapter 483 of
Laws OF 1905, granting the Char
to. to the Town of Eagle River.
During the winter of Ioo5-Ioo6l
and the spring of 1856, public
meetings were held, often as twice
week and as such meetings the
most feasible manner of getting
the dam was discussed. A COM
mittee consisting OF John Rad
cliffe, Oh airman. and John z mpel-
mann and J. H. Bolte, Supervis-
ors of the Town of Eagle River,
together with the citizens com
mittee consisting of Geo. <.
|O'Connor. N. M. Emmons, DR.. W.
D. Neville, S. w. Smith, and Alex.
Higgins were early appointed to
devise ways and means for s.cur-
ing the dam SITE 1t was conclud-
ed by said Town Board and Com
mittee that the Eagle River Light
& Water Co. should be requested
to submit a proposition in writing
for the sale of all its property and
franchises and to surrender up Of
its II years contract for pumping
water and lighting the streets, to
the Town of Eagle River, 50 that
the town might be in position to
develop the power tor pumping
water and making lights for pub
lie use. The Light & Water O..
submitted proposition in accord
ance with said request, the pur-
chase price to be paid by the
town by providing electric current
to said Company for the period of
7 years. AS it is we'll known to
all of our citizens, that such prop
osition and contract was submitted
to the electors in May for their ap-
proval or disapproval, and the peo-
pie approved such contract by an
almost unanimous vote, only two
ballots being cast against such ac-
ceptance; at the same time the
question of issuin and negoriat-
ing the bonds of SAID town for
$4,000 10 provide funds for build
ing the dam and developing the
power was submitted to the peo-
pie, and was authorized by an
unanimous vote, Within 50 hours
the bonds were purchased by E.
q. Rollins & Sons, bankers of
!Chicago, and the money placed in
1.-The treasury of the town.
The question of acquiring the
site at Otter Rapids from the
Brown Bros. Lbr, Go. OF Rhine
ilander and the Alexander Stewart
iLbr. CO. of Wausau, was taken up
by Chairman Mart Hirzel and
| Attorney d. E. Riordan, who have
for the past 3 months, devoted
much of THEFT time to such negoti-
atoms. The owners Of the dam
lsite who were also heavily inter
lested in the water power on the
WISCONSIN river, insisted that
{ portion of the head of water Great
ed by the dam should be turned
over to them and diverted from
the Eagle River power, tor the pur-
pose of increasing the flow of wat
er in the Wisconsin river below
such dam during the dry season
and finally submitted to Messrs.
| Hirzel and Riordan the following
proposition in writing:
Wausau, Wis, June 26, 1905.
Mart Hirzel, Chairman, and
D. E. Riordan, Attorney for Town Of
Eagle River, Eagle River, Wis.
| Dear Sirs:
In response to your request to name
price for which we will sell and con-
vey to Town of Eagle River, govern
ment lots & 8 Sec 36, Town 40 N.
! Range 9 E, to be used by SAID Town for
the purpose of building ana maintain
| ing dam across the Wisconsin River,
| by your Town, for hydralic purposes,
as authorized by Chapter 4S3 of the
| laws of Wisconsin for 1905. Will say
that said property is not for sale, and
we would not care to dispose OF the
same at the present time.
| However we would be willing to
name price at this time, for which
we would convey said property to some
corporation interested in the hydralic
| interests of the Wisconsin River, to be
agreed upon by US and such intesests.
Said corporation to convey to your
Town the right to build and maintain
a dam as authorized by said chapter |