The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1921-04-07
NUMBER al
MeEhE HISTORY

Sle ny w. "A. IltuS, entitled "Meeme, a
Frontier Settlement that Developed
Strong Men" Believing it will be of
interest to our readers we publish it in
full, It is as follows:
The pioneer days of Wisconsin,
when staIwart men and brave women
were reared amid surroundings OF pov-
crty and hardship, are now remem-
bered only by the oldest Of our peo-
pie; and ere long history alone can tell
the story of the reclamation of the
wilderness, SO bravely begun by the
settlers Of four score years ago. With
this thought, it becomes a pleasure to
hear from the lips of men still living
the early story of a locality that has
given the flower of its manhood to
Wisconsin and to America
About fourteen miles southwest of
Mauitowoc, in the township of Mecme,
is situated the inconspicuous hamlet
designated ON the county maps as Os-
man, but known in the early days as
Mccmc Post Office. It is today the cen
ter of rich agricultural district but
I''"N'S no ''''" q" importance except as
ID retains the two institutions, the
church and the public school, that
helped to mold men and women a gen
GRAFTON or more ago.
The Mccmc settlement, as it was
called, centered around the Catholic
church known as ST. lsadores and the
public school 1T embraced portion
of the townships of Neeme Newton,
and Liberty. The first settlers were
largely natives OF Ireland; and Meeme
was commonly known as the Irish
settlement With the btrthrIght OF
native ability and the fullest use of
their scanty educational opportunities
Jhe sons OF these irish pioneers made
their names known and their influence
felt far beyond the borders of their
restricted locally IN eastern Wiscon-
sin.
Mccme is said to mean pigeon in
the Chippewa Indian language; and
the name was probably applied be
cause there was ia the vicinity an eN-
tensye wild pigeon roost. Henry Mul-
holland of Manitowoc, whose father
Henry NIulhollaud Sr, was one of the
earliest settlers in the Mecme region,
states that i'm his boyhood days the wild
pigeons were SO numerous in the yicln-
ny as to aarNeh the sun IN their night
lie states lurther lhaV 'he viva pigeons
were destroyed oy tne indians ana oy
the carry settlers IN lhcreoIole mum
o'r'' nc remembers I"e l'''le "i'eH
'he nests were 'oreSneu from the trees
with long poles ana the young pigeons
or HPu"p' E"l"'I'u up oy lhe puShe' oy
inc Ioo''Il'' VINO iFI'u I"eln III IorSe
pans u" remove ON iron" 'nc'''. rms
pigeon OH was 'i' atl''Ie Oh pa'le' ana
was "H'I'" ID! 'ne uu'Ny natives III eA-
'I'"''Ee ''t "'''Nry ana So'ncl'"eS LOT
'n' more 'sS'''''a' arI''ieS OF ioou ana
'lo'''''S' Inc Ira"'rs lneu 'o'u II TO
'n' settlers Tor use IN lamps, y is sa'o
'n'i "n'n "o''Ney was exchanged Tor
~" ''' lT"''''' were ~ '''c nao'' oI put
l,..... ..,, -, a..
I I ~ i 'y' WV, t'.,,, . ,,, t,,,'''2 49, r.'',
w. w., ''' ',', ~ " WY ''
,',, '' 49, '',,,' ''.'
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- ~ '''l'''
\ Mee'ne ro'I once was on the ola
stage roau midway between Mah'to"oc
an" o"'o"H gun, an S'oHe 'cl''elcS
S,oPPe" "l l"c MuI"o'onu nome LOT
''I''''' """ 10 '"'"S' "o'Se'' Inc re-
sun was 'no' many ''''lor' passed.
,hro"gn ln' P''ce' almost any noon
''u' OF 'ne year 'o"''" '"' naluIet en-
,'''"'o ny 'rn"'''",s' even me" oi no.e
! ''"'' ''' '''''S. Inns was ''p'eI"i'S
true !" winter "'le' l''''' was no oo"'
service o''"'''' .'"'''lo"oc ana one
u"l s'" pom "'' "''''"' OF '''e stage
'"' '"'''' PoPu,''''" was won. 10
E"'ue' "l '"' N"''ol''nu tavern 'here
10 u'S'"'s ''' news oi the OUTSIDE
""''' '' ''''''c' IVY ''' ''''"-" pa
P''''