KENNEDY MILL SAWING 100,000 FEET DAILY -- Rib Lake is a busy little city, and on some other occasion the Fat Man [nickname for the editor/owner of the Star & News, Peter Danielson], may take a notion to write of the town and its industries, This disjointed tale simply mentions one or two personal friends, and is intended more to advertise the fact that the Fat Man is a genuine horseman than it is to call attention to the beauties and possibilities of the village of Rib Lake.
Everybody in the city is more than busy; the large plant owned by the Kennedys is in full operation and sawing lumber day and night at the rate of 100,000 feet a day. The businessmen are all enjoying a liberal patronage, and there is no better small town in Northern Wisconsin than Rib Lake. (emphasis added)
Owner and editor of the Taylor County Star & News, Peter Danielson, had promised to write an article on Rib Lake and this is what he wrote. It is a terse and disappointing article in sorry contrast to those of former editor, Edgar T. Wheelock.
The Kennedy mill is operating both night and day; its daily cut of 100,000 board feet of lumber puts it in the category of a large saw mill; it was the largest of the approximately two dozen mills operating in Taylor County at the time.
About 1953 the Rib Lake Commercial Club erected a memorial log in the Village which purported to codify the output of the RLLC sawmill; it said its total was “1,450,000,000 board feet.” It did not way who or how that figure was determined.
The RLLC was created on 5/6/1902 when the W.A. Osburn Lumber Co renamed itself the “Rib Lake Lumber Co.,” see image 10999.
There were at least four different owners and four different, successive sawmills of the site on Rib Lake which ended up being named the Rib Lake Lumber Co. of Delaware. What was the total cumulative output of these mills? That figure is lost in time. It surely was vastly more than 1,450,000,000 board feet. RPR 1/16/2018.
2/10/1900
TC STAR & NEWS
WESTBORO -- The Heidrick-Matson [Lumber] Co. will discontinue skidding and put all their teams to the hauling of logs.
The Duncan Bros. finished their last side of leather today, and their tannery will soon be under new management.
Wm. Arndt is foreman at the Mitchell [cedar] shingle mill. P. M. Campbell is also employed in an important capacity at the same place.
Heidrick & Matson were two of the investors from Pennsylvania that had just purchased the Duncan holdings.
The Star & News of 3/17/1900 reported that: “The Duncans are moving to Green Bay, having disposed of all their Taylor County holdings.” Sawmill owner John Duncan was one of the earliest residents of Westboro, coming just after the Wisconsin Central built through in 1874.
A couple of weeks earlier, the Star & News made its first mention of the Mitchell shingle mill. Beautiful stands of virgin white cedar on the numerous wetlands in the region provided the raw material. Besides cedar shingles, telephone and telegraph poles and fence posts were routinely made from this tree because of its natural resistant to rot.
3/10/1900
TC STAR & NEWS
LITTLE BLACK -- The Davis & Star Lumber Co. sawmill at Little Black, which has stood idle for a number of years, has been sold to the Connor [Lumber & Land] Company of Marshfield. A crew of men is now engaged in tearing down the mill, and packing the machinery preparatory to shipping it to a point on the Soo Line in Forest County, where it will be re-erected. Two months will be consumed in the work.
The Connor firm rebuilt the mill in Laona, Wisconsin five miles south of the Soo Line. Connor also constructed its own railroad to connect the mill to the Soo Line; in 2012 that railroad operates during the summer as a tourist carrier “Laona & Northern” between Laona and a replica logging camp, “Camp 5.”
4/14/1900
TC STAR & NEWS
RIB LAKE--GAIL BLANCHARD ACQUITTED OF MURDER CHARGE --NOT GUILTY! WAS THE VERDICT OF THE JURY IN THE GAIL BLANCHARD MURDER TRIAL. THE JURYMEN AGREED ON THIS VERDICT AFTER BEING OUT ABOUT FOUR AND ONE-HALF HOURS. The trail was ably conducted on both sides and Judge Parish’s rulings were conceded to have been fair and impartial at all times.
The Star & News gave massive coverage to the trial of Gail Blanchard charged with intentional homicide of his wife in Rib Lake. The defendant was found not guilty.
J.J. Kennedy testified that the defendant was employed by him as a teamster and had a good reputation.
Angus Kennedy testified: “[I] live diagonally across the street from defendant’s house. Got up that day at … [4:45 am]. Went for my cow about quarter past five, met Blanchard, we spoke to each other. I was around home all the while. I heard no shooting.
(Cross examination) “My shop was at the mill. I went to work about six o’clock. Met Gail (the defendant); he had his working clothes on, we passed a few words. I did not hear any shots night or morning. He always treated her about right. Have heard them having merry times together. He seemed pleasant that morning as usual.”
Consult the Photo & Document Collection at www.riblakehistory.comto view the newspaper accounts.
4/21/1900
TC STAR &NEWS
WESTBORO—HEIDRICK & MATSON BUILD NEW SAW MILL -- The mill is nearing completion and is the finest institution of its kinds ever built on the Wisconsin Central line between Stevens Point and Ashland.
The Heidrick & Matson company is preparing to build a large boarding house. They will also build a large general store. Both buildings will be erected east of the railroad.
The south wing of the Duncan dam went out recently. It was built in 1884 after the great September flood. The wing will not be repaired but a smaller dam will be put in just east of the tannery to supply that institution with water.
The Heidrick & Matson Lumber Co. had just bought the former S. D. Cone/C. C. Palmer saw mill on the “high banks” of Silver Creek north of current CTH D. The new owners tore down the old mill and constructed a much larger, new saw mill; in 1902 this new mill would become the Westboro Lumber Co.
The same edition reported: “The STAR & NEWS man met C. F. Heidrick of Westboro, yesterday morning. Mr. Heidrick is identified with the firm of Heidrick & Matson which is erecting at Westboro one of the largest saw mills on the Wisconsin Central line. It is to have a capacity of 100,000 feet [of lumber] per day and to be thoroughly up-to-date in all its machinery and appointments. It will be ready for sawing within a few weeks.”
Charles Frederick Heidrick was born 9/29/1879 in Queenstown, PA. His uncle was Levi Heidrick. They were long functionaries in the Heidrick & Matson Lumber Co. in Pennsylvania, Westboro, Wisconsin, and other states.
4/21/1900
TC STAR & NEWS
KENNEDYS ACTIVE IN REPUBLICAN PARTY -- The Taylor County Republican convention meets at the Court House in Medford April 18. J.J. Kennedy, Elias L. Urquhart and Peter Liberty were chosen as delegates to the Congressional District Convention at Hurley April 20. Donald A. Kennedy, Albert J. Perkins, Arthur Latton, Joseph Grittner, Peter Danielson and J. B. Ramsay were chosen delegates to the State Republican Convention at Milwaukee.
4/28/1900
TC STAR & NEWS
WESTBORO--LUMBER COMPANY WILL BUILD RAILROAD -- The Heidrick & Matson Lumber Co. of Westboro is going to peel about 10,000 cords of tan bark this season. It is also going to build several miles of railroad as well as operate its double mill.
The company is going to build a store building, tenement houses, a boarding house, etc. It wants [to hire] several hundred men. There will be work of all kinds and the highest ruling (sic) wages will be paid.
Heidrick & Matson thus started its own logging railroad which would eventually reach beyond the Mondeaux River. Since its mill was east of the Wisconsin Central mainline, they built on the south bank of Silver Creek and beneath the existing Wisconsin Central bridge over Silver Creek to avoid an at-grade crossing.
The “double mill” means the saw mill had two band saws to do the initial processing of a log. This arrangement dramatically increased the output of the mill.
4/28/1900
TC STAR & NEWS
RAILROAD EXPANSION EAST FROM KENNEDY’S MILL -- The Chippewa Independent reports that J.J. Kennedy associated with A. B. McDonnell, president of the Lumberman’s National Bank, has bought 60,000 acres of land which will cut 1,000.000,000 feet of lumber. The land lies north and northeast of Rib Lake.
The Wisconsin Central spur [railroad] will be extended ten miles to reach the tract as a logging [rail] road. The price of the land is not stated.
In 1902 a railroad was built eastward from Rib Lake for three miles where it turned to the northeast and joined the Marinette, Tomahawk & Western 2 miles southwest of Spirit Falls. This line opened up a rich timberland in Taylor, Price and Lincoln counties.
The edition of May 5, 1900 reported: “The Marinette, Tomahawk & Western Railway Company contemplates extending its line fifteen miles [from Tomahawk] into territory where settlers have made homes, to give them an outlet for their products and rail communication with the outside world.” Note that John J. Kennedy’s land purchase of 4/28/1900 had an estimated one billion board feet of lumber. The memorial log erected in the Village c. 1950 claimed the Rib Lake Lumber Company cut 1,450,000,000 board feet of lumber in its existence. [The Rib Lake Lumber Company was legally created in May, 1902, when the W.A. Osburn Lumber Co. (to which John J. Kennedy had sold out) changed its name to Rib Lake Lumber Company.]
THE COMPOSITE OUTPUT OF THE Rib Lake Lumber Company AND ITS PREDECESSORS, INCLUDING John J. Kennedy WAS, THEREFORE, FAR IN EXCESS OF 1,450,000,000 BOARD FEET. -- rpr 12-1-2012
4/28/1900
TC STAR & NEWS
LOGS DRIVES ON EAST FORK OF BLACK RIVER END -- [Special] The log drive on the Black River is being rushed since the high water of last week has receded. The east fork finished its drive last week, which ends lumbering operations on that stream. Over 10,000,000 feet have reached the booms [at Black River Falls] and the indications point to a clean drive on the main river during the spring’s water.
The Black River originates just three miles west of Rib Lake and drains southward through Chelsea, Whittlesey and Medford.
A mile south of Medford, it is joined by the East Fork of the Black River, which drains much of eastern Taylor County, including much of the Town of Greenwood. Both waterways saw much of its pine and hemlock floated down them to saw mills outside Taylor County.
The edition of May 5, 1900, reported: “La Crosse, Wis., [Special]What is probably the last big drive of logs on the Black River by the Black River Improvement Co. is well down on its way from Medford. There is over 12.000.000 feet in the drive. It is expected that the vanguard of the drive will be in the Onalaska boom, just above [La Crosse], the last of this week.”
5/5/1900
TC STAR & NEWS
WILLIAM J. KENNEDY SELLS OUT -- Charley Rief has taken possession of the Medford House, he having purchased the same from William Kennedy. We understand the consideration [purchase price] was $4,000.
William was a brother of J.J. Kennedy.
5/5/1900
TC STAR & NEWS
LOG DRIVE ON SPIRIT RIVER --Tomahawk, Wis., [Special] The north branch drive on the Spirit River is hung up on account of low water. The drive contains 2,000,000 feet of logs belonging to the Gilkey & Anson Lumber Company of Merrill.
These Price County logs would be first driven via the Spirit River to Tomahawk; from there they would go down the Wisconsin River to Merrill.
The Spirit River would see the last log drive in Price County, when Ole Peterson logged off Spirit Point, a finger of land protruding into Big Spirit Lake, and drove the logs eastward from the Little Spirit Lake dam. See spectacular photos of this drive at www.riblakehistory.com in the Photo & Document collection.
5/26/1900
TC STAR &NEWS
FIRE AT RIB LAKE TANNERY -- At about four o’clock Sunday a faint toot of a whistle was heard and people rushed in the streets expecting a fire. They were not disappointed as a cloud of smoke burst from the boiler house of the Shaw tannery and a few moments later the boiler house and bark house were enveloped in flames.
The [fire] hydrants were soon rendered useless and every inhabitant looked to the J.J. Kennedy company’s equipment for protection. The wind was blowing from the north and west and the fire fiend took this advantage and leaped into the corner of the slab yard and traveled rapidly over the sawdust; before it reached the slab ricks, sufficient steam was raised to allow the hose to pour water enough to prevent havoc in the yard.
But other signs of danger were visible. Burning pieces of shingles fell everywhere. But, the men were ready for the emergency by stamping these fiery missiles out or pouring water from pails on them, which if allowed to burn, would in two minutes start a large fire.
The Lutheran Church stood in danger as volumes of smoke and sparks passed over its roof. It might have succumbed but a few men climbed up the tower and onto the roof with buckets of water which aided in keeping the [cedar] shingles damp and the church pulled through.
The group of houses on the south side of the tannery [along Fayette Avenue] underwent a hair breath’s escape from ignition and the roofs of buildings everywhere through the village caught several times but it was discovered in time, thus preventing total destruction.
It is stated by those who are acquainted with the location, that had the fire occurred two hours earlier, it would have been useless to make an effort to save the village, as the wind was blowing more forcibly in the early part of the day. The Shaw tannery company, we learn, intends to rebuild immediately.
A major fire broke out at the tannery destroying the boiler house and the steam engines and water pumps there, causing all the fire hydrants at the tannery to loose water pressure.
There was no municipal water system in Rib Lake at this time. With the fire hydrants at the tannery useless, the only other hydrants were two blocks away around the Kennedy saw mill.
A fifteen acre area southeast of the Lutheran Church and along tannery creek was filled with immense quantities of wood scrap and saw dust. This caught fire. The wind rapidly pushed this fire south toward the Kennedy saw mill. Just in time, workers at the Kennedy mil were able to build up enough steam pressure to put full water pressure into the mill fire hydrants.
The village of Rib Lake came very close to destruction by fire that day. Earlier in the same week, the village of Fischer in the Upper Peninsula was destroyed by fire.
The need for a municipal water system was a major reason for the incorporation of the Village of
Rib Lake in 1902.
65/16/1900
TC STAR & NEWS
HEMLOCK--MELLEN TANNERY BURNS -- The Fayette Shaw & Co. tannery at Mellen is a heap of ashes. Just how the fire originated is not known, though it is reported that it was caused by a lightning stroke. The entire plant was consumed…..
The Shaw tannery plant at Mellen consisted of five buildings, viz: Main yard and loft, 650x60 feet; sweat vaults, 200 x 200 feet; leach house and bark mill, 150 x 50 feet; boiler house, 40 x 50 feet; engine house, 230 x 30 feet; four large liquor tanks, one of them, 240 x 40 feet.
There were 60,000 sides of leather in the liquor and 50,000 sides in process of finishing and drying, all of which were spoiled besides a great number of dry hides which were burned.
THIS WAS SAID TO BE THE LARGEST SOLE LEATHER FACTORY IN THE WORLD. It turned out 1,500 sides of leather every day and USED 15,000 CORDS OF HEMLOCK BARK EACH YEAR. (emphasis added)
The Mellen operation had 400 men peeling bark in the woods and 900 men employed at the tannery. “The financial loss to the company is put at $150,000 though that is largely covered by insurance.”
The Shaw tannery at Phillips was destroyed in the blaze that leveled the City in 1884 but was rebuilt. After fire destroyed the Prentice tannery for the second time, it was not rebuilt. The Shaw tannery at Rib Lake came close to total fire destruction once; see edition of 5/26/1900.
6/16/1900
TC STAR & NEWS
HEMLOCK PRICE HITS HIGH AT MEDFORD --Bark, if well cured [dried], will be received at the [Medford] tannery during June and July at $4.00 per cord. Checks payable September 15th. T., F. M., & F. D. Shaw Co.
7/14/1900
TC STAR & NEWS
GREENWOOD---BREHM POST OFFICE ESTABLISHED -- A new post office to be known as Brehm has been established at the residence of Thomas Brehm in section 8-32-2E, Town of Greenwood and Mr. [Thomas] Brehm is the post master.
The original site of the Brehm post office was in the Thomas Brehm farm home on what is in 2012 Trout Avenue; the post office was later moved a mile north to the “village of Brehm” centered in the store building on the northeast corner of Brehm Ave. and Wellington Lake Road, i.e., the SW SW Sec. 4-32-2E.
All told, the Brehm post office operated 1900-1915.
9/15/1900
TC STAR & NEWS
TANNERIES SOLD. All the Shaw Tanneries in Wisconsin Are Purchased by the American Leather Company (sic) --The Shaw tanneries have been among the most important industries in north Wisconsin and have been built up through the tireless energy and skill of Fayette, Thaxter, Delos and Fred Shaw, all of whom have shown remarkable ability in the business in their several departments. The business has become so large that it is said that the output of the Medford, Perkinstown, Rib Lake, Phillips and Mellon tanneries is at least $3,000,000 annually. All of these interests passed into the hands of the United States Leather Company which will take formal possession about October 1st.
Messrs. Thaxter and Fred Shaw have been induced by the new company to remain as managers for a term of years, this arrangement insuring the return of Mr. Fred Shaw and family to Medford. The plans of Mr. Delos Shaw for the future we do not know, tho’ it is said that he proposes returning to the East.
The correct purchaser was the United States Leather Company, which was a huge holding company headquartered in New York, New York. In 1906 it purchased the Rib Lake Lumber Co. and operated it until 1936.
The Star & News also reported that the fire destroyed tannery at Mellen was being rebuilt to its former dimensions.
9/15/1900
TC STAR & NEWS
KENNEDY SELLING OUT -- We learn from an interested party who has full knowledge of the facts that the sale of J.J. Kennedy’s interests in Taylor County would probably be accomplished this week, though up to Friday noon it had not been completed. We shall be able to give more particulars next week.
The edition of Sept. 22, 1900, is only partially legible: “The deal between J.J. Kennedy and some eastern parties has at least been consummated; he is disposing of all his Taylor County property. The title of the new firm has not yet been made known…
ON SEPT. 14, 1900, J.J. KENNEDY, IN HIS CAPACITY OF PRESIDENT OF THE J.J. KENNEDY LUMBER CO., CONTRACTED TO SELL OUT TO W. A. OSBURN, and others; the contract is image #13,888 of the Photo & Document Collection at www.riblakehistory.com.
The W. A. Osburn Lumber Co. changed its name to the Rib Lake Lumber Company, a Wisconsin corporation, on May 6, 1902.
9/22/1900
TC STAR &NEWS
KENNEDY -- William [G.] Kennedy, of Rib Lake, was in town last week. He has gone to Lake Forest, Illinois, to attend college.
William G. Kennedy. 6/15/1880-11/1/1955 was the son of J. J. and Flora M. Kennedy, nee McLennan. He is not to be confused with his uncle, William J. Kennedy, then living in Medford.
10/27/1900
TC STAR & NEWS
SHAW SOLD THEIR TANNERIES. Purchased by United States Leather Co. FORMER EMPLOYEES Retain Their Position -- The “Shaw Tanneries” are now but reminiscences. For eleven years the Shaws have been the most prominent factors in the business affairs of this region, and it is regretted among our people that the business has passed from their hands to proprietors. The deal by which the United States Leather Company comes into ownership has been finally closed, last Saturday [October 20, 1900], that corporation took formal possession.
L. Drake, former superintendent at Mellen, is now general superintendent for all the tanneries. Thaxter Shaw remains superintendent at Medford. It was reported that F. [Fayette] M. Shaw would come to Medford, but the new owners have retained him in charge of the sales department in Chicago. Fred Peterson retains his position as bookkeeper here.
All the old employees at Medford are to be continued as of present, for sometime at least. THE PERKINSTOWN BRANCH [tannery] IS TO BE CLOSED INDEFINITELY.
F. [Fayette] Delos Shaw informs us that he and his family will remain [in Medford], but he will not be involved in the tannery in any way. It gives universal satisfaction to know that the Messrs. Shaw and their families will continue to be residents of our city.
We understand that E. C. Getchel will continue in charge at Rib Lake.
The Rib Lake Historical Society was just generously gifted by Kathy Laher the 1900 “Bark Ledger-U.S.L.Co.” It details some of the purchases of tanbark for the United States Leather Company’s Wisconsin tanneries for 1900 – 1902; it usually lists the name of the teamster hauling the tanbark, the number of the railroad car on which it was shipped, the quantity in pounds, the rate paid per cord, the amount and date of payment and the village at which the tanbark was acquired.
Representative pages will be scanned into the Photo & Document Collection at wwwriblakehistory.com as image 15985.
11/3/1900
TC STAR & NEWS
RIB LAKE REPUBLICAN RALLY -- For the Republican rally at Rib Lake this evening, chairman Adams has secure a large tent which will hold a thousand people. As announced elsewhere, A. W. Sanborn of Ashland will be the principal speaker of the evening. It will be worth going from Medford to hear him.
A.W. Sanborn was an attorney residing in Ashland, Wisconsin. He frequently advised J.J. Kennedy.
