big portage lake history portage lake history booklet july 2… · summer 2015 – updated july...

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BIG PORTAGE LAKE HISTORY

SUMMER 2015 – updated July 2016

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

LISTING OF ENTRIES………………………………………………………………. 3

SUMMARY OF QUESTIONNAIRES…………………………………………. 5

PROGRESSION OF ARRIVAL AT BPL AND PERCEPTIONS…………. 6

BRIEF HISTORIES FROM QUESTIONNAIRES…………………………… 8

LONGER HISTORIES AND PICTURES………………………………………… 20

ADDENDUM: KRAUS HISTORY………………………………………………..53

This booklet was compiled June 2015, updated August 2016. Future additions or

corrections may be updated periodically by emailing Dave Leifheit at

[email protected]. The booklet is also available online at bigportagelake.org.

mailto:[email protected]

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Big Portage Lake History Contents

ALT (p.9)…………………………………………… 5809 Alts Point Lane

(P.O. Box 71, LOL)

BROMLEY/TURKESON/EDWARDS/JOHNSON 5535 E Big Portage Lake Road

(p.9, 21 -28(pics included))

CHAPMAN (p.9)……………………………… 6015 E Big Portage Lake Road

DEARMEY/RICHTER (p.10)………………… 5270 Berry Road

DUCHOW (p.10)…………….………………… 5941 E Big Portage Lake Road

EBERHARDT (p.10, 29-30)……………………… 5885 E Big Portage Lake Road

ECKSTEIN/LANG/SCHULDT/SCHUSSLER…. 5817 Livingood Lane

(p. 10, 31-33, 34-38pics)

FALK/FISHER (p.11)….………………………… 5023 Sandy Bay Lane

GILOMEN (p. 11)…………………………………… 5294 Maple Leaf Lane

GOLDMAN/GOTTSCHALK (p. 11)…………… 5339 E Big Portage Lake Road

GREMBAN (p. 12)………………………………… 5951 E Big Portage Lake Road

GRATZ (p. 12, 39 pics)………………………… 5295 Gees Road

HECK (p.12)……………………………………… 5022 Birch Road

HELMINIAK (p. 12)…………………………… 5911 E Big Portage Lake Road

IMSE (p. 13, 40-41)………………………… 5680 W Big Portage Lake Road

JOHNS/HART/MCGURGAN/RASMUSSEN.. 5754 W Big Portage Lake Road

(p.13, p.50 pics )

KRAUS (p.13, 53-83)……………… 5198 Berry Road

LABISKY/BOLICK (p.13)……………………….. 5880 Hron Lane

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LABISKY/RILEY (p.14 )……………………… 5880 Hron Lane

LEIFHEIT/KOSKI/ ESPE (p. 14, 42-43)… 5704 W Big Portage Lake Road

LEVENTHAL /NEMAN (p. 14, 44)………. 6031 E Big Portage Lake Road

MAYNE (p. 14, 45-46)…………………………… 5893 E Big Portage Lake Road

MYERS/MCCLENATHAN (p. 15, 35pic, 47-49) 5812 Livingood Lane

MUEHLETHALER/GEES (p. 15, 51-52pics) 5807 Livingood Lane

NAGLE/VOGT (p. 15)……………………… 5588 Oak Leaf Lane

NIELSEN (p.16)……………………………… 5131 Berry Road

NYMARK /VINEYARD (p. 16)………… 5965 E Big Portage Lake Road

OLSON (p.16)……………………………… 5253 Berry Road

PINNOW (p. 17)……………………………… 5358 Maple Leaf Lane

SAEWERT (p.17)……………………………… 5298 Maple Leaf Lane

SEXTON /MUELLER (p. 17)………………… 5163 Berry Road

STUMM (p. 17)………………………………… 5310 Maple Leaf Road

THOMPSON (p. 18)…………………………… . 5889 E Big Portage Lake Road

WAGNER (p. 18)………………………………… 5212 Berry Road

WANNEMAKER (p. 18, 51-52 pics)……… 5860 Hron Lane

WEDOW (p. 19)………………………………… Lot W of 5525 E Big Portage Lake Rd

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Summary of Responses from Big Portage Lake History Questionnaire

Who in your family was first to come to BPL?

a. First Owner – 6

b. Previous generations – 17

How has the property been used?

a. Vacation cabin - 18

b. Year round home – 5

c. Summer home – 6

d. Resort – 1

e. Swimming, hunting, boating, fishing, waterskiing, snowmobiling

When you became owners, did you buy land or was there already a home?

a. Bought land – 7

b. Already a home – 15

c. Many upgrades, rebuilt on same or new properties after initial purchase

How much time does your family spend on BPL each year in general?

a. Ranges from year round (5)

b. 4, 5, 6, 7 months

c. Summers, weeks during the summer

d. Weekends

How many generations of your family have enjoyed BPL?

a. 6 generations – 2

b. 5 generations – 1

c. 4 generations – 13

d. 3 generations – 7

e. 2 generations – 5

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Progression of Residents and Perceptions of Lake Then to Now

Year Name Comments

1915 Schussler/Schuldt/Lang/Eckstein No indoor plumbing, dirt roads, took 2 days from Chicago, lake water high

1918 Gee/Muehlethaler Pictures show swimming and not many cabins

1919 McClenathan/Myers Quiet and pristine, no lights on lake

1920’s Nagle/Vogt 13 homes

1924 Nymark Only 10 homes on North side plus Seng, very few cabins, few small mouth bass but abundant walleye

1924 Chapman Little development re:roads, no electricity

1933 Olson

1934 Goldman/Hollack/Gottschalk Always pristine, higher water, never really good fishing

1934-35/37

Mueller/Sexton Fewer people, better fishing

1938 Bromley/Turkeson/Edwards /Johnson

Still beautiful, but now it’s not as clear, rarely see tadpoles or

turtles, shoreline is altered, inlet closed off from lake, wild rice is gone, doesn’t have ribbons of

gelatinous fish eggs 1939 Imse Few places on lake, exceptionally

clean water, tested clean enough to drink

1941 Duchow More remote, only 8 homes 1946-47/48

Wedow Less populated, more and larger fish, less noise

1947 Alt Few cabins, more trees, fewer docks, about 20 cabins, more fish, higher water, not many big homes

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1947 Eberhardt No big changes, always clean, clear lake

1949/1950 Labisky More boat activity now

1950 Thompson/Duckow Rocks were covered with water, water high in general

1950 Neman/Leventhal Only year round cabin on lake, clean water

1956 Wagner Fewer homes, no electricity, no paved roads

1956 Gratz 1957 Kraus Vacant shoreline, NE section built-

up 1960 Nielsen Neman’s Grocery owner and

Nielson, only two year round cabins

1961 Gremban Quiet, fewer people using lake, fewer homes

1962 Richter/DeArmey Not changed much 1965 Leifheit Brought in power for cabin and

water was from hand pump 1971 Helminak Clean, clear water

1976 Saewert 1978 Mayne Lake higher, no growth on grass on

rocks, lake has not deteriorated in over 30 years

1978 Pinnow 1986 Glomen Similar, less traffic

1989 Heck

1996 Stumm Same

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BRIEF HISTORIES FROM QUESTIONNAIRE

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ALT -Submitted by: Mary Ellen Alt and John Alt

Their father, Clarence R. Alt, first came in 1947.

J - It was quiet with about 20 cabins on the later, with high water.

ME – Fewer cabins, more trees, fewer docks, cabins were cabins not the big homes that have been built.

More fish in the lake, lake was much deeper.

It was used as a summer cabin from mid-May through Mid-October.

He bought the land and then built a house in 1947 or 48.

J – Wendell Seng owned it but before that we don’t know.

ME – There used to be a girls’ camp where Falk’s home is and the girls would swim and camp on the

point.

4 generations have been coming.

Comments: I love Big Portage. Glad Dad bought the land in 1947!

BROMLEY/TURKESON/EDWARDS/JOHNSON – Submitted by: Jill Edwards*

*See longer histories

CHAPMAN – Submitted by: Keith Chapman

John and Eva Chapman first came in 1924.

At the time, there was very little development re: roads, no electricity.

It is used as a summer cabin.

When they purchased it, there was already a house.

The previous owners were names Lawrence.

4 generations of the Chapman family have been coming.

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DEARMEY/RICHTER – Submitted by: David and Mary Richter DeArmey

Richard and Mary Ann Richter first came in 1962.

The lake hasn’t changed all that much.

It is used as a summer cabin.

There was already a cottage on the property.

The Wells family owned the property before us. My wife and I coincidentally met one of the Wells

family in Antioch, IL, where we live year round.

Mr. Wllk sold the property to my father-in-law after the Wells boys drove a truck into the lake one

weekend.


Comments: We were told the author of Night of the Living Dead was inspired while staying in the

original cabin on the property.

DUCHOW – Submitted by: Gundula Duchow

George H. and Rella Duchow were the first family members to come to BPL in around 1941.

The property has been used for fishing, hunting, snowmobiling, summer visits.

George and Bella bought land and constructed the house.

We do not know any prior history.


EBERHARDT – Submitted by: Jules Eberhardt*


ECKSTEIN/LANG/SCHULDT/SCHUSSLER – Submitted by: Dawn Eckstein*


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FALK – Submitted by Kathleen Fisher

Sands and Charlotte Falk arrived in 1965. Their 7 children are Gordy, Kathleen, Mary, Barb, Bob, Mike,

and Liz.

The lake was much higher in 1965. We used it as a summer cabin.

The buildings were already there but we added more lake frontage in the mid 1980’s.

The previous owners were Dietrichs, Sangs, maybe a farm, and girl scout camp.

We generally spend 6-7 weeks through the summer and fall.


GILOMEN – Submitted by: Mike and Karen Gilomen

Mike Gilomen was the first to arrive in 1986.

The lake is similar, but with less boat traffic and fewer people than in 1986.

Used it as a vacation cabin and then a home.

There was a house when it was purchased.


GOLDMAN/GOTTSCHALK – Submitted by: Dave and Mark Goldman

Grandparents, Dr. Earl B. Koch and Mrs. Bertha Kock built the Hallock House in 1934and sold to the

Hallocks in the 1950’s. His daughter and her husband bought back 1/3 lake frontage and built in the

1970’s (Ruth and Howard Gottschalk).

They became owners when Gottschalk’s could no longer maintain the property.


Comments: I’ve been coming to BPL for 67 years. The laske has always been pristine, but never the best

for fishing. Lake was much higher in the 1950’s. The areas has not changed all that much since I can

remember. My family refer to the lake and woods as “God’s Country”. We just love to come to the

lake.

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GREMBAN – Submitted by: Phyllis Gremban

Harry and Phyllis Gremban came in 1961.

The lake was quiet, fewer homes and people using the lake.

Earlier it was used as a summer cabin, but now it’s a home.

There was already a home on the property when they bought it from Laurence Kirchner of Chicago, IL.


GRATZ – Submitted by: Tom Gratz

LeRoy Gratz and Loretta Morowski Gratz purchased from Sigfard and Florence Marowski in June 1956.

Previous owners: Genevieve Shepard Christemen sold to Murowski’s

Comments: An addition was added in 1970, garage in 2005, and wild life viewing stand added in 2009.

In 2014, 40 acres were logged.

HECK – Submitted by Paul and Karen Heck

Paul and Karen Heck first came in 1989.

The property has been used for year round recreation.

There was already a house on the property.

The previous owners were the Gee family.


HELMINIAK – Submitted by: Jon Helminiak

The entire family came in 1971. The bought the existing house in 1972.

The lake was clean and clear.

It was used as a summer cottage.

It was previously owned by the Sengs of Chicago.


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IMSE – Submitted by: John Imse*


JOHNS/HART/MCGURGAN/RASMUSSEN – Submitted by: Susan and Dan Johns and Sandra Hart

There are some photos of my grandfather’s place on BPL in the longer histories later in this booklet. My

grandparents were Terence and Mary McGurgan. I remember the cabins being rented out into the early

60’s as McGurgan’s resort.

Johns: I found some documents showing he purchased the property in 1944. I am thinking there may

be another purchase as well. Part of the property was sold to Eberhardt. Another part of the property

went to Manning. That is the part my sister – Sandy Hart – owns now. The main property was owned

by my grandfather until he died and is now owned by Rasmussen.

Hart: There was no public access to the lake. Fishing was good with lots of jumbo perch, walleye, etc.

The lake was cleaner before people stated using chemicals for lawns, etc. The resort was sold to

Rasmussens by grandfather’s girlfriend after he passed away. My grandfather walked off the land when

I bought it. It is still vacant.

We spend between 2 weeks and 2 months here. 5 generations have been coming to BPL.

KRAUS - Submitted by: Richard Kraus

*Full history in addendum at end of booklet

LABISKY – Submitted by: Kay Bolick - questionnaire

Their parents Edmund and Melva Labisky first came in 1950.

There is now more motor boat activity.

It has been used mostly as a summer cabin.

They inherited the land and cabin.Prior owners were Gene Knuth, but prior to that, they don’t know.

It had been logged in the 30’s or 40’s. Old tree stumps showed signs of possible forest fire.


Comments: The lake is still as clean as it was in the past. Not near as much noise, usually safer activity

and not as congested, reckless activity.

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LABISKY – Submitted by: Jane Labisky Reilley – short history

Labisky’s Big Portage Lake History

In 1949 Gene Knuth called friends, Bud and Melva Labisky who summered on Moccasare Lake. He suggested they come to Big Portage Lake and look at a piece of property that he owned. He said it had a beach that was sandy, shallow, slow sloping and perfect for two and soon to be three little girls.

So the deal was done and the Labisky family moved to Big Portage. A small bunkhouse was built to house men who built the main cabin. The main cabin consisted of kitchen/dinning/living room and a bath and two tiny bedrooms. It was very “cozy”. Memories of Melva, some nights broiling meat, the broiler was floor level on the two burner stove, and she would be on her hands and knees deciding if the meat was done. As years progressed the cabin grew with additions to living room, master bedroom and a larger and more functional kitchen. Finally, a little porch was added enabling the family to sit and watch the sun set.

A Fry House was built and on cold days the fireplace in the Fry House would be lit and hamburgers would be put on the grill. Nothing better! When the Fry House disappeared a great kettle was erected to steam corn. Corn became king at parties and family gatherings.

Bud developed a small dump on the property and some nights the bear would visit, something Melva frowned upon and eventually the dump disappeared.

Horseback riding, waterskiing, pontoon boating and swimming filled summer days.

During winter visits the family set up a Xmas Tree to be enjoyed. Out the door the Labiskys’ enjoyed snowshoeing, ice fishing, and skiing. The best skiing was when a skier was pulled behind the car. A mile long road into the cabin made a nice ride on feathery snow for the skier.

Sixty-six years later the cabin is still being enjoyed and loved by the family.

LEIFHEIT – Submitted by: Dave Leifheit*


LEVENTHAL/NEMAN – Submitted by: Margaret M. Neman Leventhal


MAYNE – Submitted by: Doug and Nancy Mayne*


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MYERS/MCCLENATHAN – Submitted by: Stanley McClenathan and Myers*

*Also see longer histories

Dr. Lucien J. McClenathan, their grandfather, came first in 1919.

The lake was quiet and pristine. The property is used as a summer home.

They bought the land but no house from the government.


MUEHLETHALER/GEE – Submitted by: Alice and Forrest Muehlethaler

Alice’s great grandfather, Walter Schussler came around 1918.

Pictures show swimming and fishing, but not many houses.

It has been used as a summer cabin.

Alice’s grandfather, Ed Gee Sr. purchased vacant land just down the shore from the family’s original

home. He and my dad, Ed Gee, Jr built the house.

Comments: Lots of water skiing when I (Alice) was in high school with other kids on the lake and from

Lando (Land o’ Lakes)– practice to put on the intermission show at the Boar Races and fish fry on Black

Oak Lake.

NAGLE/VOGT – Submitted by: Beverly Nagle

Grandparents Ulreh and Daisy Vogt came in the late 20’s (Jimmy Schlack house)

There were only 13 houses at the time.

In the early days, they all came up with their grandparents in the summer.

The house was there when her grandfather won the property in a card game.

Current house was built in 1993 by Jim VerKelein.

4 or 5 generations have been coming.

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NIELSEN – Submitted by: Neal Nielsen

We were the first to come with Neal’s parents in 1960.

We moved here permanently in 1962. We and Neman’s (Grocery Store owner) were the only two year-

round residents.

We bought the property next to our cabin and built our permanent home in 1962.

The original owners were Burffod from Chicago. His son owned it, but was stationed in Washington,

D.C., so he knew he would never use it and was happy to sell it to us.

Our sons went to grade school in LOL and graduated from Eagle River HS.


NYMARK/VINEYARD – Submitted by: Dennis V. Nymark

Philip P. Vineyard and Dora Vineyard, our grandparents, arrived in 1924.

Only a few homes on the north side plus Seng in corner across from John A lot, then Frank and Hat Berry

(Berry’s Point) was on edge of bay, then called O’Day’s Bay. I bought the home from my mother who

inherited it from my grandfather. Vineyard bought it from Al Winthrow who built the cabin to sell. He

also built Phyllis Gremban’s home.


Comments: When I was young (1940’s), everyone on the north shore knew everyone else and often got

together to play cards. I started coming in 1937 and came every summer except two years while in the

Army. When I was young, I slept in our boathouse. Every morning at exactly 8 AM and again at 5 PM,

Mrs. Seng (now Falks) would ring a bell at the end of the pier at the gazebo.

OLSON – Submitted by: Dale Olson

Bernard Conahan (father-in-law) arrived in 1933.

The cabin was built in 1942-43 and was used as a summer cabin.

The land was sold to Bernard Conahan by Frank Berry.


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PINNOW – Submitted by Peter and Jennie Pinnow

Kory Pinnow arrived in 1978.

He was the original owner and built the house/cabin.

It was his family home until the property was inherited by Peter and Jennie Pinnow on his passing in

2012.


SAEWERT – Submitted by: Steve and Pat Saewert

Steve and Pat Saewert first arrived in 1976.

They purchased a lot from several men who developed Big Portage Lake Estates.

The lake is used for fishing, boating and waterskiing.


Comments: Great lake!

SEXTON/MUELLER – Submitted by: David and Kristine Sexton

Russell C. Mueller arrived approximately 1934-35.

He bought the land without a cabin.

There were fewer people around and there was more and better fishing.

It has been a year-round vacation home.


Comments: Too many for this small space!

STUMM – Submitted by: Tim and Patty Stumm

They first arrived in 1996 and purchased the land.


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THOMPSON – Submitted by: Faith and Jim Thompson

Faith first came to visit grandparents (George Duchow) on 5941 E BPL R). The rocks were almost

covered with water. I remember fishing right next to them and sometimes in the 50’s, the water was so

high there was no beach.

Faith’s mother, Gloria Duchow, gave the home to Faith and Jim in 2007. Gloria had built the home.

George Duchow bought 3 lots, one for each of his children. The center lot was my parents’ (Armin and

Gloria Duchow). My mother built a home in 1988 after my father died on that lot.


Comments: The lot on the north was given to George Duchow’s daughter, Grace Masak. The lot on the

south side was given to his son Donald Duchow. George and Rella Duchow(Gourdie) owned another.

When Rella died, that property was left to Donald Duchow and Armin Duchow (my father). After he

died, my mother wanted her own place and planned on building on their lot (5889 E BPL R). My uncle

paid her out of the original George Duchow cottage and in the deal – gave her his lot that his father had

originally given him. My mother passed that lot on to her other daughter, Debra Preuhs, who eventually

built a beautiful log home on eit (5887 E BPL R). So now the two daughters of Armin and Gloria Duchow

have cottages next to each other.

WAGNER – Submitted by: John Wagner

John’s father arrived in 1956.

The house was there when he bought the land it was passed on to John.

At the time, there were far fewer houses, and no electricity and no paved roads.

The property has mainly been used for summer vacation, some hunting and some fishing.


Comments: I did find a letter in the wall dated April of 1918! I would like to find out about the family

who built our house.

WANNEMAKER

*See longer histories for photos

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WEDOW – Submitted by: William and Deborah Wedow

Deerwood Resort

Robert and Marie Wedow first came in 1948.

They bought the land a build a cabin for themselves.

This land has been used as a summer home and as a resort.

The lake was cleaner and less noisy, with fewer people back then.

The prior owners were the Johnson-Bromley property and started Deerwood Resort in 1949. Mr.

Bromley kept 100 feet for his family. They are still here. Before that it was a lumber business and resort

property for hunting and fishing.


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LONGER HISTORIES AND PICTURES

AS SUBMITTED

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The Bromley Family History on Big Portage Lake

Written by Jill Edwards in 2015 (Jill is Ed and Jordis Bromley’s second oldest granddaughter) with input from her mother, Elaine, the oldest of Ed and Jordis’s four children.) In 1938, Edward and Jordis (Johnson) Bromley, along with Jordis’s brother Ralph Johnson and his wife Ethel, purchased 1300 front feet on Big Portage Lake. Over the next 10 years, the Bromley Johnson Housekeeping Cabins expanded to four cabins with outhouses. A family friend, Pete, painted one of the outhouses one morning and then went to town. When he returned there were fresh bear prints in the wet paint. Elaine removed logs from the lake with ice tongs (from the days the area was logged off) in order to create a swimming area. Family and friends spent time fishing, hunting, swimming and having popcorn and Kool-Aid parties with an old Victrola for music. Guests included Jim (Warren) Hallock, Russ Mueller, and Bobby Mendlick. Ed and Jordis Bromley’s four children—Elaine, Beverly, Gordon, and Lois —along with various aunts and uncles and cousins spent time at the lake every summer. Russ Mueller helped my grandparents with work on the property and spent time flirting with some of the girls, my Aunt Bev included.

A view of the pier and lake from the Bromley Johnson Housekeeping cabins

Bathing beauties: Beverly and Elaine Bromley and Shirley Johnson in the 1940s

My mother recalls being able to see town from the top of “Aunt Hattie’s Mountain,” a hill along the road (E. Big Portage Lake Rd) to town. This was only a few years after the area had been clear cut. Another time, my mother remembers that a tornado was visible moving along the shore across the lake and my mother, her siblings and parents watched as trees were ripped from the ground. In 1948, 1200 of the front feet were sold because Ralph’s wife wanted their money out of the investment so that they could buy a place in Rhinelander. Ed and Jordis retained 100 front feet and had a new cabin built on the that lot in 1949. The new place was named Sunset Waters. That same cabin is in use today. My father (Elmer Francke) lost his wallet near Mendlick’s one summer. The next summer he found it in the water in front of Mendlick’s. Each time my grandparents arrived at the lake, Knight Hallock would be over for a visit before the car was even unpacked. He always had the latest news.

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Putting in the new well: Ed Bromley, Elmer Francke (Holly and Jill’s father), Gordon Bromley, Holly Francke, and Jordis Bromley. 1949

Ed and Holly and the red and white wooden boat in 1950.

A successful deer hunting season. Ed and Gordon Bromley with family friends.

In the early 1950s, a friend of Elaine’s (Chet Freed) landed his sea plane on the lake.

Elmer Francke and Shirley Johnson admiring Chet’s sea plane.

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Both Elmer and Elaine were private pilots, and Elaine had the opportunity to fly Chet’s plane and take off and land back on the lake. Every summer during the 1950s, 1960s, and early 1970s, , my sister and I and our cousins would spend time with our grandparents at the lake, swimming all day or playing games inside if it rained. My grandmother Jordis was a wonderful cook. We made trips to pick blueberries, and blueberry pancakes and pies followed. Evenings were spent playing cards—Rummy and Hearts. My grandmother usually won. The men often got up early to go fishing. I wasn’t big on fishing, but I did catch a walleye once in my early teens. Catching a walleye was a big deal in those days. The red and white wooden boat we used was built in my grandparent’s basement in the 1940s and we continued to use it into the 1960’s.

Jill, Chip Turkelson, and Holly around 1954. Chip and Jill in the red and white wooden boat.

Jill, Chip T., Holly, Ellen and Carole T., Darrel Kromm in the new aluminum boat around 1964.

Ellen T., Eddie B., Amy K., Chip T., Eric B., Carole T., Jordis and Ed around 1974.

My sister Holly, Bill Wedow, and I spent many summer days hunting mud turtles in “Turtle Bay” and in the tiny bay near Mendlick’s in that boat. The sandbar across the opening into Turtle Bay meant that Holly and Bill had to get out of the boat and walk alongside to get over the sandbar. I was the youngest, so I got to stay in the boat. There were always turtles sunning themselves on the many logs that were

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half on the shore and half in the water. Wild rice grew in Turtle Bay along with water lilies. At the time, both areas were still wild with no homes along the shore. In their teens, my cousins Chip (Mark) Turkelson and Darrell Kromm went for a walk in the woods—and got lost. They were gone for hours, long enough for the family to start worrying. Somehow, they ended up on Rummels Road and then walked north on Razorback Road before finally heading west to Big Portage. Quite an adventure. On one trip up north, we brought our two cats with us. They were too afraid to walk out on the pier, but had a great time catching and eating grasshoppers along the swamp road. As kids, we often walked the “swamp road” back into the woods and down to the swamp that still exists today, though that road was blocked off long ago. On one trip, we went very deep into the swampy area and found that the ground moved slightly beneath our feet as we walked. When we got back to the cabin, we told our grandfather about it. He turned somewhat pale and explained to us that we had been walking on top of a matted vegetation layer that was on top of water—possibly deep water—and that, had we broken through, we might have drowned. Good thing we were all skinny little things in those days. Still, we never went back there. We pumped our water with a hand pump and heated the water on the wood stove for washing. We went to town every other day or so because we had an icebox—a real icebox—and had to drive to town with a big metal tub in the trunk in order to pick up blocks of ice to keep our food cold. Trips to town always involved a stop at the Variety Store (where I bought my first pairs of jeans) and the Dairy Maid for ice cream cones. We always had pocket money to spend because my grandfather would hand us each a dollar bill when we got out of the car. And, we could earn extra money. My grandfather had a system where each of us got paid for the animals we saw. A penny for a crow, 2 cents for a raven, a dime for a deer, 25 cents for an eagle (a rare sight in those days) and 50 cents for a bear! But, if we saw a skunk, we had to give him back a nickel. We often went to see the bears at the dump in the evenings, but animals seen at the dump did not count in our animal tally. One time, Bill Wedow, Holly and I walked Big Portage Road west around the lake to the old boat landing road, walked down that winding, narrow boat landing road to the shore, and walked all the way back home along the shore—barefoot all the way! There was not a lot of beach that year, so some of the time we had to walk in the woods.

A deer came out of the woods and was very tame. The person in the (double exposure) picture petting the deer is Bill Wedow.

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Another time, we built sand towns on the beach and populated them with toy cars purchased in town. A big 5-foot wave (caused by some event that had my grandparents packed and ready to leave the cottage if necessary) washed away our town and the cars. The next day, we rowed the boat around in front of our shore until we spotted the cars on the bottom of the lake and Bill Wedow dove into the water to rescue them. While most of our trips were during the summer, one year we were up north with our grandparents and uncles during deer hunting season. They hunted and we shoveled the snow off a section of the lake and went ice skating. The ice a little ways away from shore was like black glass. Another spring we arrived early enough to see the suckers spawning on the rocks along Hallock’s shore. We netted a few and had fish dinner (they are tasty early in the season before the water warms up). And often we were able to witness the tadpoles coming ashore as they turned into toads and frogs, the bottom of the lake black with thousands of them waiting for their legs to grow. The old logging road was still visible in those days, an area of flat land with no big trees passing through our property and the neighboring properties. My grandmother decided it was the perfect spot to play croquet. Of course, if a lump of ground was in the way of her shot, she simply pounded it flat with her mallet. Another favorite activity was target shooting. My grandfather taught his grandchildren how to shoot both his deer rifle and his pistols. He first taught me how to safely handle a gun and how to properly hold the deer rifle when I was 7 or 8 years old (though I wasn’t allowed to learn how to run the boat motor until I was 13 or so!).

Ellen Turkelson shooting Ed’s deer rifle around 1974

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Over the years, my grandfather continued to finish the interior of the cottage, adding insulation, knotty pine paneling, windows, and kitchen cupboards and counters he had built. My grandmother was always there to help. He built stairs to the lake and a pier and a unique folding ladder for us to climb to the upstairs sleeping area. Ed was a ham radio operator—W9CSM--and that meant we needed to have electricity; but it was some years before the high line came in. So, he had a delco plant—a generator that produced electricity stored in batteries so he could operate his radio and we would have lights into the evening for our card games.

Dinnertime: Chip and Ellen T., Darrell K. with Jordis in the background. 1970

Change came when the town road past our place suddenly went from dirt to blacktop and the high line came in. Somewhere along the way, we also replaced the ice box with a propane refrigerator and my grandfather put in a point driven well with a pump and running water inside the cabin. Still only cold water. My cousin Eric added a hot water heater many years later. My sister and cousins and I, along with my aunts and uncles and grandparents spent many wonderful summers at the cabin. My grandfather died in 1975 at the age of 74, though my grandmother continued to spend time at the cabin into her 80’s. She died at 100, in 1999. A log book of visitors and events has been kept by family members since the 1940s. For some years, my uncle Gordon and his sons, Eddie, Eric, and Andy continued with the upkeep, maintenance, and improvements to the cabin and outbuildings. There was always work to be done, some of it not very much fun. But they also used the cabin to hunt and fish and relax and enjoy nature. The cottage gets less use by my relatives in recent years. I live near enough to visit frequently. My sister and nephew and some cousins and their children live far away and most of my aunts and uncles have passed away. But I cannot think of a better place to have spent time during the summers of my childhood, learning about nature and the environment and how to live lightly on the land.

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Ed and Jordis Bromely at the lake around 1974.

Gordon Bromley and Angus the dog.

Ed Bromley and his camera on the stairs down to the lake.

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I know many current residents see the lake as still pristine—but compared to how it was when I was a child, it is not the same. The water is not as clear. Excessive and unnecessary outdoor lighting ruins the night and unnecessary noise often spoils the daytime. I rarely see turtles or tadpoles; logs that should have been left in the water have been removed, shorelines have been altered, and one inlet was closed off from the lake. The wild rice is gone and the water doesn’t have the ribbons of gelatinous fish eggs—hundreds of thousands of eggs—any more. It is still beautiful, but it is not the same. Even so, I and my sister and my cousins all recognize what a wonderful gift my grandparents created and left for us. The eagles and wolves have returned, so perhaps our younger family members will also be willing to care for and reap the benefits of the gift left to them by Ed and Jordis Bromley.

The cottage in 2013

The view the lake in 2013

Sunset Waters

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EBERHARDT FAMILY HISTORY ON BIG PORTAGE LAKE

We first bought property on BPL in 1953. We had been coming to the Land O Lakes area since 1947 to escape the summer heat, bad air, and allergies of the Chicago area where we had our permanent home. My parents, Andrew and Alice, had been looking at various areas in Minnesota and Wisconsin (I remember a trip up the Gun Flint Trail in Minnesota, probably in 1946) and decided to try Land O Lakes because it seemed to provide what they were looking for closer to Chicago than other options. For several years we rented a cabin on Crystal Lake, east of town about two miles, usually for July and most of August. My father commuted to work in Chicago on the overnight C&NW train, usually coming up Thursday night and going back Sunday night, while we stayed with my mother and grandmother for the entire time. This worked pretty well with the clear air, cool temperatures, and plenty of swimming time. With my father coming up each week on the train, sometimes several hours late, my brother Jan and I ended up hanging around the railroad station in town quite a bit and getting to know some of the train crews and other railroad workers and learning some of the details of the operation. We prevailed on our mother to do her grocery shopping on late Monday, Wednesday and Friday afternoons when the freight train from Antigo came which sometimes spent an hour or more unloading merchandise and switching pulpwood cars to and from the two loading sites in town. The trains all had old steam locomotives (until 1956) so there was plenty of smoke, whistling and other noise (and an occasional mishap) to entertain us. The railroad still used Morse code telegraph to communicate which you could hear clicking inside the station office. Western Union telegrams were sent and received the same way. The mail came in on the morning northbound passenger train and went out on the evening southbound train – mailbags stuffed in the trunk of the postmaster’s car for the short trip to and from the post office (laundromat now) to the station. The station (where the library is now) was a hub of activity in those years. Then we started to look around for a place of our own. We heard Big Portage Lake was a good lake and in 1953 we heard that some land had just become available. The listing realtor was Wally Adams who lived on US45 just north of the present Lanny’s restaurant. He had property for sale on the east shore which was being sold by the Duchow family. It was subdivided into eight 200 ft. frontage lots, numbered #1 through #8, although lots #1-#3 were not for sale. We hiked in from the road, through an opening in a barbed wire fence, and saw a sand beach, clear water and a bright white rock bar in the distance all of which sold us on the spot. We decided one of the middle lots (#5) would be the best and went back to the realtor. As luck would have it, Adams had just received an offer on that lot from two families from the Neenah area, the Muellers and Michaels. So Plan B was to buy the next lot (#4) which we did. The beach was still good and the view the same. We also bought #6 as an investment, which years later we sold to the Michaels (now Beckmann) when they decided they wanted their own place.

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We built our cabin over the fall-winter-spring of 1953-54. The carpenter was Eldo Reed from Conover and his brother. They did a great job – my father, who made several trips to oversee their progress, said they never spoke to each other while they worked. It was a snug 800 sq.ft, 2 ½ bedrooms (yes, the third bedroom for my grandmother was very small). There was a small bathroom, kitchen and a dining/living room. We had electricity, but no phone. After a year or two we got a party-line phone – the first year outside communication took a trip into town to use a pay phone or send a telegram at the railroad station. We had electricity on our side of the lake – for quite a few years there was no power line on the west side of the lake and on a quiet evening we could hear the hum of a generator from one of the few homes on that side. In the following years the routine was the same, coming up after school was out in June and staying through August, my father commuting on the train for long weekends as well as for his summer vacation. We slowly added improvements that he, a civil engineer, designed including a boathouse, a diving platform (heavy planks and 55-gallon drums), a garage and a laundry addition There was a small pier, a small boat which led to a bigger pier and bigger boats. Daily swimming was a requirement regardless of the weather – which led to the oft-repeated phrase “the water is warmer than the air”. My father was always impressed by the clean lake water. He had a sample tested by the state soon after we built the cabin and received a one-line report of a bacteria count of 0-0-0-0 which he posted in the cabin for all to see. I wonder if we are quite that clean these days. After high school I stopped coming up except for cameo appearances, because of other interests, including a summer job (on the railroad) and engineering school. My brother, five years younger, continued to come up and worked on his water skiing and developed a lot of friends around the lake, Our father continued to commute until the passenger trains were discontinued in the mid-1960s. He then flew North Central airlines and occasionally drove until he retired in the 1970s. At some point, I believe in the 1970s, possibly in connection with the sale of lot #6 to the Michaels, we obtained undeveloped property on the west side of the lake, adjacent to the Rasmussens, which we continue to own. By the 1970s, I had my own family and we visited BPL periodically and occasionally left one or more of our kids with their grandparents for “summer camp” for a few weeks. They seemed to enjoy it greatly – especially when their uncle was around. Little changed through the 80s and 90s – except the once pristine white rock shoal on the lake started to sprout weeds (and now trees?) The small size of our cabin presented a scheduling problem but we somehow we were able to adjust. After my parents died in 1997 and 1999, we decided to undertake a major renovation/expansion which Dan Benson did for us in 2000 giving us a place we can use in any season and has enough room (barely, it turns out) for all our grandchildren and their parents who now come up for their version of “summer camp”. We still, and especially in the summer of 2009, use the phrase “the water is warmer than the air” to encourage water sports. Jules Eberhardt

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History of Schussler/Schuldt/Lang/Eckstein families on Big Portage Lake

Our Big Portage Lake story began about 1915 when Dr. Walter R. Schussler Sr. came north from Orland Park Illinois as an attending physician to the railroad laborers. He stayed at Maple Resort on Lac Vieux Desert as early as 1915. He was an avid hunter and fisherman and he found plenty of both in the north woods. During one of his trips he found Big Portage Lake with its clear water, clean air, and abundant fish. These were strong and compelling reasons to buy land and on August 2, 1921, he purchased nearly one lakefront acre on the north west shore in the middle bay of Big Portage. This land was listed as Government Lot 1 and the prior owner was Finn Lawler – a north woods surveyor and his wife Mae. Along with a friend, Roy Spencer (brother of his head nurse, Elma Spencer) and Dr. Lucien McClenathan, he built a cabin on the west point. “Doc” called it his “fishing shack.” Mr. Englebrecht brought his one cylinder rotary saw and cut the pine trees on the property into boards to build the 28X18 two room house and the three men supplied the labor. The cabin had no electricity, no insulation, no indoor plumbing and no foundation. Just large tree stumps to support the floor, tar-paper walls and a nearly flat roof. A large sleeping room separated by cloth curtains held 6+ beds and the cooking chores were managed on a kerosene stove. Water was drawn from a drilled well just steps off the back porch and the outhouse was a “proper distance” from the cabin. The original “fishing shack” still stands on the original site and is owned by the descendants of Roy Spencer and Dr. McClenathan. Why Doc decided to build a separate second house is not known but I suspect his children’s marriages (Helen Schussler to Ted Gee, and Walter Schussler Jr. to Luella Schrader) and the soon to be grandchildren would have overtaxed the single cabin’s ability to accommodate everyone. So, on July 8, 1925, Dr. Schussler sold his 1/3rd interest in the original house and built a nearly identical cabin just east on lot 2 of the original property. The second cabin added a screened porch facing the lake. Cooking was done on a kerosene stove. A large, homemade wooden table covered in oil cloth seated at least 10 people. Two long benches were made for seating. Oil or kerosene lamps provided light at night and the outhouse was dug north of the backdoor a “proper distance”. There was a shared ice house located on the shoreline between both cabins. It was 10x10 wooden structure filled with woodchips and sawdust. Lake ice was cut during the winter, pulled up a ramp and stored in the sawdust for summer use. There was also a long board shed with an under roof tool shed. The new cabin became the center for Dr. Schussler’s family – his wife Letty and three children Hazel, Helen, and Walter R Jr. Often Doc would leave his wife and the kids and eventually the grandchildren at the lake and commute back to Chicago to attend to his medical practice and hospital. My mother (June Schuldt) remembers her grandmother giving each child a coffee can and before breakfast they’d walk down the road to pick blueberries and couldn’t come back until the can was full. Letty would toss a handful into the pancake batter after the kids returned and then, during the day she made pies for dinner.

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In those early days, the drive north took two days as many of the roads were just dirt. Doc would drive up, fish every day and then pack his catch in the “trunk” of his car and drive home. He shared his catch with friends and neighbors back home. One family photo shows him with the daily catch of 22 walleye. The cabin was often shared with doctors and nurses from his hospital who would come to enjoy the beauty of the north woods. There was no indoor plumbing so peoPle bathed in the lake. His granddaughter (June Schuldt) remembers Doc, in his robe, going down to the pier at dusk and skinny dipping to take a bath. Even getting to the cabin in those early days was a challenge when lake water was high. What is now Gees Road used to go past Mrs. Shepard’s house (now Gratz) and down the hill and thru the little bay and right to the original cabin. If the lake was high, it wasn’t possible to drive through the bay so cars would be left on the road and family and visitors alike had to hike in with their baggage. One amazing lake story involves an eagle nest and a forest fire – just east of the Schussler cabin stood a huge Norway Pine. The nest was estimated to be about 8 feet deep. During the forest fire, as smoke was everywhere, the adult eagles could be seen swooping down and with their huge wings fanned fresh air over and into the nest for their young. The fire didn’t burn the house and those eaglets survived. After Doc dies in 1953, the cabin and land was divided between his two surviving children – Walter R. Schussler Jr and Helen Schussler Gee. Helen and her husband Ted took the vacant land to the east of the cabin and built a log house for their family (Ruth Gee Wannemaker, Edward Gee Jr (Caryl) and Gloria Gee Stober (Bill). Walter R. Jr and his nephew (Jack Schussler – son of his sister Hazel) kept the cabin. Walter Jr’s daughter and only child, June, loved coming to the lake and spent many summers here with her cousins, aunts, and uncles. In 1970, June Schussler Schuldt and husband Paul built a new home on the site and that house still stands. The 6 generations are listed below: 1st generation – Walter R Schussler Sr and Letty – founders 2nd generation –Walter R Jr (Luella), Hazel and Helen (Ted Gee) son and daughters 3rd generation – June R. Schussler Schuldt (Paul) – granddaughter 4th generation – Dawn P. Schuldt Lang Eckstein (Rick) – great-granddaughter 5th generation – David Lang, Brian Lang, Brian Eckstein – great-great grandsons 6th generation – Charles W Lang – great-great-great grandson and Emily M Eckstein – great-great-great granddaughter Big Portage Lake has been a huge part of our family life for 90+ years – Brian Lang holds the title of the youngest camper as he came to Big Portage at just one week old and slep in the shade by the pier. Not many of us still fish or hunt but rather the cabin is used as a vacation spot, - swimming, boating, skiing, jet skiing, and occasionally snowmobiling and skiing. In the fall of 1990, June and Paul bought a second home in the Estates on Maple Leaf.

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When I think of all the family history and of my great grandparents, I am convinced that they are proud that their love of this most special place has carried down through the generations and we hope and pray that it continues to be a blessing for our future generations. Submitted by Dawn Eckstein – August 2009

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IMSE – Back in the Day ……Imse Residence

1939, Summer: Gilbert Imse, (John’s father) was looking for lake front property to buy and was looking with real estate guy Wally Adams. Wally lived on Hwy 45 just north of Chain Skimmers Lake. He was then showing some property on Big Portage Lake and the only way to see it was to go down the grass track to the lake on the property which is now owned by Schell and by looking across the bay, you could see the waterfront property that Wally was talking about. This was when the lakefront property from Hempel’s(now) all the way around the shore to Wedow’s was owned by a guy named Blossom who lived in Minneapolis. Looking across the bay you could see the shoreline and the property Wally was talking about. We then walked through the woods to the shoreline and through the woods to check it all out. Gilbert bought the ½ section (600 ft, width, 2000 ft from the lake back out to the road, about 26 acres for $800.00! 1940, Summer: I believe Wally referred Gilbert to Eldo Reed, a young carpenter who worked with his brother and cousin as a building crew. Eldo lived in a house on Hwy 45 just south of Conover. Gilbert signed up Edlo and crew to build the cabin and they started to build in early summer 1940. Cabin had a screen porch across the south side, 2 br’s, bunk beds in one br, large living room w/ fireplace, kitchen behind 2 cabinets in corner of living room and indoor plumbing in bathroom with septic system!! Not too many places on the lake then – I think about 40 or so at most. The lake was exceptionally clean and clear- we sent samples to the state lab in Madison several times and the results always came back “OK” to drink the water right out of the lake! Sometimes during summer of 1940 a tornado sipped down Hwy B from east to west and down Carlson Rd ripping up a whole bunch of trees. The Black Oak tavern building was then a small store and bar owned and run by the Brezinski family. The tornado took the garage housing a school bus right next to the building, off of the school bus, and smashed it to pieces but didn’t touch the school bus! It took the Reed carpenter crew many hours to literally saw their way out from the cabin site to Hwy B because of all the downed trees. We liked it so much that we (Helen, John, and younger brother, Gerald) stayed up there all summer during school vacation – Gilbert drove up from Milwaukee every weekend. Mid 1940’s:

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Remodeled cabin a bit; eliminated the screened porch, extended part of south wall out so the dining room area was square; moved kitchen to west end of what was screened porch area and made it into legitimate kitchen (cabinets, counter top, sink, stove, and window)> We stayed up in the cabin all summers to 1952 when John graduated from UW and was drafted. We were very fortunate that both of our kids, Michael and Karen, liked it up there, and their spouses do also. Their kids, our grandkids, really like it and always look forward to going up and spending time there water skiing, swimming, fishing, etc. Cabin was and still is used as a summer vacation cabin from Memorial Day weekend to mid October. Have spent many days in early October birdie-birdie (Partridge) hunting – woods very colorful, air clean and crisp working woods with a hunting dog – nothing like it! Great!! Generations: Gilbert & Helen; John and wife Dorothy, Brother Gerald (deceased 1996), John & Dorothy’s kids: Mike and Karen; Michael’s kids: Dana and Brea, Karen’s kids: Nick and Sam. Note Gerald’s wife Jan and kids, Peter and Dean live up there all year round. Previous history: Property was owned by the state, we were the first and only buyers. Additional Note: In 1960 a second cabin was built over a 1 ½ car garage and carport for us by John and family, and Gerald and family. In 1982 after both Gilbert and Helen had deceased, John and Dorothy took this cabin and Geralk took the original cabin. Gerald’s wife Jan and son Peter live there all year round. The other son, Dean and wife have their own house on lot out on county road. Written by John Imse 1/5/2009

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LEIFHEIT - History of the Legals’ Nest on Big Portage Lake – Submitted by Dave Leifheit Attorney Jack Leifheit and his law partner Dan Cliffe both of DeKalb, IL came to Big Portage Lake in the fall of 1964. Dan Cliffe had previously rented the cottage for a summer vacation. They purchase the place in the spring of 1965 from Elizabeth Witt. Dave Leifheit’s first visit was in May, 1965, when he and his father, Jack, brought up toilet, bath sink, water heater and hide-a-bed. They put the pier in without waders. They used the outhouse over the hill behind cottage before a bathroom was added. Power was brought and full plumbing added by converting one bedroom to a bath with shower by the 4th of July weekend 1965. The place was named the “Legals’ Nest” to honor owners Jack Leifheit & Dan Cliffe of the law firm Leifheit and Cliffe. Our first entry in the daily log book of the cottage was by Dan Cliffe on July 15, 1965. We still make entries every day taking turn by whoever arrives first for their stay. In 1977 a new kitchen, bath and bedroom addition was added by contractor Larry Graff of Birch Hills Construction of Land O’ Lakes. The last log entry by the Dan Cliffe family was on September 16, 1979. The property was split into 2 10 acre parcels with 250 ft of Lake Frontage when Jack became a Circuit Judge and was no longer a partner in the law firm. Dan Cliffe then built a year-round house on his parcel next door. This property is now owned by Tom Gonsiorek and named “Gonzo’s Looney Bin”. The deck was enlarged in May 1982. During that visit Judge Leifheit had a heart attack and was cared for by Dr. Eickoff at Eagle River Hospital. Eickoff also resided on Big Portage Lake. The cabin has been used for summer vacations where fishing, skiing, tubing, sailing canoeing, Kayaking, scuba diving, wild life viewing and swimming have been the principal activities. Kevin Koski, Jack’s son-in-law and an engineer, has organized many cabin improvement work details including new deck, stairs, piers, etc. A spring opening weekend near the Walleye opener is a tradition where the piers are installed and fishing is the primary activity. The fall close up is usually in October when the piers are removed and fishing and hunting are other activities. Since 2006, the property has been used in the winter as well. Dave Leifheit has hunted deer, skied XC & downhill, and ice fished in visits during December through March. The original owners have passed away - Jack (March 2008) and his wife, Marty (October 2010).

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Family members: Dave & his wife, Nancy Leifheit Jane & her husband, Kevin Koski Beth & her husband, Randy Espe Became owners in the 1990’s4 generations of Leifheits have vacationed at the Legals’ Nest. 1st Jack & Marty Leifheit 2nd Dave Leifheit (Nancy), Charlie Leifheit, Jane Koski (Kevin) & Beth Espe (Randy) 3rd Glenn Leifheit (Alicia), Mandy Leifheit, Kelley Koski McNally (Ted), Andy Koski(Kristin),

April Espe Mapes (Max), Allie Espe Maxwell (Dolan) and Emma Espe. 4th Grant Leifheit, Nora Mc Nally & Jimmy McNally. By Dave Leifheit May 22, 2011

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LEVENTHAL/NEMAN – Submitted by Margaret Mary (Neman) Leventhal The Edward Neman family (Edward, Helen, Thomas, Paul, Margaret and Ed) moved to Big Portage Lake on Halloween in 1950. The house had been built by Jack Heckman of St. Louis and his nephews for use as a hunting and fishing site. Work on the house was started before WWII and interrupted when Jack became a steam fitter on a submarine during the war. They worked on it briefly afterwards and then sold it to Edward Neman before it was completed. Jack Heckman’s wife, Rose, was a sister to Emma Hercules. Emma and her husband (a retired shoemaker from Milwaukee) were summer residents on the north shore of Big Portage Lake. The Neman’s (of Nemans Grocery) were the first residents of the house and the first year round residents of Big Portage Lake. Edward had water tests done by the state of Wisconsin in 1950 and the results stated that the lake water was better for drinking than that which was drawn from the well! (amazing changes in water quality have taken place since then.) All the Neman children grew up on BPL and four generations of the extended family have enjoyed summers on Land O’ Lakes. Paul, his wife Colleen, and their children, Paul and Mary came each summer. Tome and his wife, Joann, frequently vacation in the early fall. Margaret (who currently owns the house) and her husband, Rich Leventhal and their children, Emily, Joseph, Kate and Tom have spent every summer on the lake. And now the great grandchildren of Edward and Helen are coming to share the summer fun. The most noticeable difference at Big Portage Lake is the continued low water levels. Before the outlet was blocked and closed off, water levels remained fairly contant throughout the years. Since its closure and with the huge amounts of water drawn off by pumps to water lawns, the springs which fee the lake cannot keep up. That, accompanied by several very dry years has significantly lowered the water level and compromised the quality of the shoreline with increased weed beds, leeches and marsh-like conditions.

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Nancy and Doug Mayne History

Who in your family was the first to come to BPL?

My husband Doug and I purchased our lake home in the Spring of 1978. Our children, Lisa and Chris, were in Senior/Junior High School and we were looking for a year-round vacation home.

What year ?

We first looked at our cottage in the very snowy, cold winter of 1977-78. We completed our purchase in the spring of 1978 while the lake was still frozen. Though we had not seen open water, we'd been assured by Jim Ashby, Doug’s uncle in Land O’ Lakes, that Big Portage was a premier lake and our shore had a lovely sand beach.

What was the lake like then compared to today?

I don't believe there has been any deterioration in lake quality over our 37 years. The lake level was likely higher in those early years, as I don't recall "the rocks" having the growth of grasses seen now.

How has the property been used?

Our lake home, "BP" as we call it, has been used solely as a single family vacation site. We use it year round, though less often in the winter than in previous years.

When you became owners, did you buy land or was there already a house?

We purchased the land and house together. I believe the house was built about 1970.

Do you know who the prior owners were? The original owners?

We purchased our home from M/M Adam Hinkel. The two Hinkel brothers owned adjacent properties, ours and the home presently owned by the Slezewski's. I believe Adam's brother owned Hinkel Marina on the Cisco Chain.

Do you know any prior history of your property?

I believe our property was included in a large parcel owned by the Seng family.

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How much time has your family spent on BPL each year (in general)?

The majority of our visits have been in summer/fall months. o In years past we made quite frequent trips in the winter for cross-country skiing

and other winter fun. o Before retirement our summer visits were usually long weekends, up to a week

at a time. Now I am able to extend those visits more easily. o One year, due to difficulty with travel, Doug and I spent the entire summer at the

lake, from May into November. It is a treasured memory.

How many generations of your family have enjoyed BPL?

4 generations

Anything additional to add? Stories? Information? Questions?

We have kept log books from our first visit through the present. We are now in our 5th book, 300 pages each. The entries may be factual, silly, poignant, goofy - anything that encompasses the activities of that particular visit, reflecting those who were writing. These books are full of family, friends, births, deaths and all of life.

Some of those very special times include the baptism of our two grandsons in Big Portage Lake, as well as the joy of couples choosing "BP" as their honeymoon destination.

Countless friends and exchange students from many countries have visited us at the lake. Doug chaired youth exchange programs for both American Field Service and Rotary International, so he and I had the privilege of hosting these young people, and sometimes their families, in our home and at the lake.

o Some of the countries represented at BPL: Germany, South Africa, Zimbabwe, Mexico, Brazil, British Isles, Finland, Chile, Turkey, Colombia, Spain, Argentina, Australia, Sweden, Finland, Venezuela.

Our lake home has been a favorite site for Doug's fraternity brothers and wives, returning for regular reunions.

Our extended family of relatives and friends claim our place as theirs as well. Such is the feeling of our family and friends that over the years we have had many associate members of BPLROA.

Two of our young friends, Dave and Cheryl Slezewski, have purchased the Paoli property next door to us, so the lure of Big Portage Lake continues to be strong.

One last item, I have been at the lake for every New Year's Eve since Dec. 1978, joined by family and friends.

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MYERS/MCCLENATHAN –Family History of Big Portage Lake, WI

Submitted by Stanley McClenathan (2008)

In 1919, my dad Dr. Lucian ford McClenathan of Chicago, bought two government lots on the

NW shore of Big Portage Lake. Just up from the shoreline was the “Witness Tree,” the place the

surveyors used to determine the perimeter and measurement of the government lots. (We still

have the survey markings on a piece of the trunk that has been rescued. ) Dr. McClenathan

contacted a man named Engelbrecht to cut a road through the Norway pines from the little

sand logging road about a smile from his place on BPL. Mr Engelbrecht had a one cylinder

rotary saw to cut the pine, which was then used by my father, my Uncle Roy Spencer, and Dr.

W.R. Schussler in the construction 28x18’ two-room cabin which still stands today (with some

modifications).

My dad (b. 1886) and Mom (Abbie Jane Spencer, b. 1880) and my siblings - Robert (b.1928),

Helen (b. 1920), Elma (b.1921), and I (b.1923) spent many happy days there in the summer and

sometimes in the winter. I feel like I grew up on the lake and loved every minute of it. Every

year we drove from Chicago to a little town called State Line, later renamed Land O’ Lakes, WI.

The name State Line was appropriate as half of the town is in Michigan. Between 1925 and

1934, Dr. McClenathan lived with his family in Harlingen, Texas. During that time, we either

drove up or took the train from Texas. After 1934, we moved back to Chicago, but we never

missed a summer at The Lake.

When I was about 11 or 12 years old, I took my .22 rifle and walked off along the shoreline with

the idea of walking around the lake. While I did make it all the way around, it took much longer

than planned. During that walk, I noticed a sandy spot on the shore revealing half-buried birch

bark. Of course, I had to pull the bark and found more birch bark underneath. I continued

pulling up more and more layers of bark separated by sand. I gave up before ever reaching the

final layer. As you may know, if you peel a birch, the bark tends to roll up just as it was on the

tree, but these found pieces had been crudely cut and flattened. I could just imagine that at

some time in the past, Indians had planned to make canoes.

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Dr. W. R. Schussler bought the government lot just east of our property. On that property

stood the largest Norway pine found on BPL. At the top of that pine was an eagle’s nest that

some old-timer estimated to be 8’ deep.

Between our property and the Schussler’s stood an ice house. It was a 10x10’ wooden

structure; approximately 6’ deep and full of wood chips and sawdust. During the winter, the

lake ice was hand sawn, hooked, dragged to shore, and cut again to a more readily moveable

size. The ice was then hauled up a type of slide/ramp and buried in the sawdust in the

icehouse. Throughout the summer, I made many trips to that icehouse for chunks to put in our

“icebox” in the cabin to keep food cold. It did the job.

During my childhood in the 20’s and 30’s, the lake could be so quiet and serene. At night, we

would go down to the pier, and look out across the lake and not see a light of any ind, with the

exception of the multitude of stars overhead. Those days are gone and I, for one, miss them.

So far, six generations of Dr. L.F. McClenathan’s family have spent time in and on the lake. At

the moment, our daughter and her family and my younger sister’s daughter and family

continue to enjoy and own a small piece of the wonders of Big Portage Lake.

PS: During my years on BPL, I have met many local characters. How many of you remember

the original Pitts, Sparks, Dickmans, Ernie and Jack Carlson, and Mr. LaChance?

Footnote by Jane-Ellen White Myers (2011- Texas): My Uncle Stanley has since passed away.

He probably wouldn’t mind if I added the names of some of the six generations of our BPL

enthusiasts:

1. Abbie Jane spencer McClenathan’s and brother Roy Spencer’s mother Helen

Louise DeGroat Spencer

2. Dr. Lucien Ford and Abbie Jane McClenathan

3. McClenathan children Robert and wife Fay, Helen and husband Bob Boehm,

Elma and husband Bill White, Stanley and wife Brita

4. Grandchildren Doug, Jim, Nancy, and Carol Ann McClenathan; Ron and Bog

Boehm; Jane-Ellen* and husband Eric Myers, Richard, and Susan White; Greg

and *Jill McClenathan and husband Al Fredericks -- * current owners

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5. Great-grandchildren Tiffany Myers and husband Brandon Clountz and Melodie

Myers and husband Jason Darrow; Jodi White and Jeff White; Greg Fredericks

and Ian Fredericks

6. Great-great-grandchildren Grayson and Kennedy Clountz; Emery and Kinsley

Darrow (so far)

7. Plus many cherished cousins, aunts, uncles too numerous to mention.

51

Bill and Ed Gee Sr

Ed and Helen Gee on BPL

52

Ruth Wannemaker – in the late 40’s

Ruth and Bill Wannemaker 1949

53

ADDENDUM

The Kraus Family

Ties to

Land O’Lakes

And

Big Portage Lake

big portage lake history portage lake history booklet july 2… · summer 2015 – updated july...

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