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Category: History

Door County is rich in history, from its most prominent founding citizens to the business leaders who embraced tourism to make it the destination it is today. It’s a history of orchards, farming, and fishermen, but also of potters, artists, and writers. But more than anything, it’s a history told in the lives of the remarkable people who’ve called it home for a spell or a lifetime. Door County Pulse tells them all.

  • Once Upon Our Peninsula: April 3 – 10

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    News from this week’s past All items are from the Door County Library’s newspaper archives, and they appear in the same form as they were first published, including misspellings and grammatical errors. Door County News April 7, 1915 J. L. Miner, historian of Washington Island, while on his way to Sturgeon Bay had a thrilling […]

  • Once Upon Our Peninsula: Mar. 27-Apr. 3

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    News from this week’s past All items are from the Door County Library’s newspaper archives, and they appear in the same form as they were first published, including misspellings and grammatical errors. The Democrat March 29, 1894 THE WORLD’S FAIR A Splendid History of that Great Exposition Within the Reach of All. It gives us […]

  • This Old Store: Juddville’s Lundberg and Klingbile Stores

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    Before moving his business to Fish Creek, Alex (C.A.) Lundberg owned a store attached to his two-story home in Juddville, where Juddville Road (really just a dirt path then) met the shore of Green Bay. The Aug. 12, 1880, edition of a local newspaper reported that “Lundberg and another party from Menekaune intend establishing a […]

  • This Old Store: The ‘BS Store’ on County F

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    William and Wilhelmina Reinhard built Reinhard’s Store in 1916 on the southeast corner of Highway F and Maple Grove Road. They lived on the farm across the road, where Camp David – the home of today’s Fishstock concerts – is now located. Their grandchildren, Delores Prust Spittlemeister, Helen Prust Mueller and her twin brother, Herbert, were […]

  • Once Upon Our Peninsula: Mar. 13-20

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    News from this week’s past All items are from the Door County Library’s newspaper archives, and they appear in the same form as they were first published, including misspellings and grammatical errors. The Sturgeon Bay Advocate  March 13, 1913 DON’TS FOR THE BOYS ON THE FARM. Don’t go behind a horse or cow without speaking. […]

  • The Door County Library and the Heritage Alliance of Door County to Host History Summit

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    The Door County Library and the Heritage Alliance of Door County will host a free Door County History Summit on May 9 at the Kress Pavilion in Egg Harbor. This local-history mini-conference will bring together the county’s history enthusiasts and the public for a morning of learning, inspiration and collaboration.  The Door County History Summit […]

  • Egg Harbor Historical Society to Screen Hometown Stories

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    The Egg Harbor Historical Society will continue its history programs with a screening of Hometown Stories from Door County on March 9, 2:30 pm, at the Kress Pavilion. The Wisconsin Historical Society produced the video, which takes viewers from the Belgium community in Southern Door County to the Scandinavian settlements in the north and beyond […]

  • This Old Store: Krist’s Red Owl

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    In 1960, when Keith Krist’s parents, Fred and Dorothy, bought a 30-year-old grocery store in Sister Bay that had previously been owned by the Manns and Wilkes, the Krists were carrying on a family tradition of at least five generations, stretching back to Austria and southern Germany.  Keith’s grandfather, Tony Krist, had grocery stores in […]

  • Once Upon Our Peninsula: Mar. 6-13

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    News from this week’s past All items are from the Door County Library’s newspaper archives, and they appear in the same form as they were first published, including misspellings and grammatical errors. Door County Democrat March 10, 1916 ENLARGE HIGH SCHOOL School Board Considers Extending East Wall to Relieve Congested Conditions An addition will probably […]

  • Tickets on Sale Soon for Lighthouse Festivals

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    Tickets for the 2020 Door County Spring and Fall Lighthouse Festivals will go on sale March 23. They include land-based, boat and adventure tours that together reach all 11 of the county’s treasured lighthouses. Many of the excursions are unique to the Lighthouse Festivals and provide exclusive access to several lighthouses that are not typically […]

  • This Old Store: Sohn’s in Ephraim

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    Arnold and Ida Sohns had been married for seven years in 1917 when they arrived in Ephraim from Maple Grove and bought a very small, dark shed that had been the Keys blacksmith shop. Arnold established his butcher shop in a space so small that there was room inside for only three or four people […]

  • Once Upon Our Peninsula: Feb. 28-Mar. 6

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    News from this week’s past All items are from the Door County Library’s newspaper archives, and they appear in the same form as they were first published, including misspellings and grammatical errors. The Sturgeon Bay Advocate  March 2, 1916 Brussels News Our cheesemaker, Fabain Reince, had considerable trouble last Friday on account of a leak […]

  • Rhys Kuzdas to Present on Sturgeon Bay Ships in WWII

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    Door County Maritime Museum curator Rhys Kuzdas will present “Built For Battle: Sturgeon Bay Ships in WWII” on March 5, 7 pm, as the latest installment in Door County Medical Center’s Maritime Speaker Series. This year marks the 75th anniversary of the end of WWII. As a center of shipbuilding during this tumultuous time, Sturgeon […]

  • Kress Pavilion to Hold Presentation on the Long-Lost Horseshoe Bay Settlement

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    Mention Horseshoe Bay, and immediately people associate it with the historical farms and sprawling beach, but there was much more to the area before the farms and sunbathing.  Discover the long-lost Horseshoe Bay Settlement during an Egg Harbor Historical Society presentation by Giz Herbst on March 2, 2:30 pm, at the Kress Pavilion in Egg […]

  • ‘Built for Battle’ Presentation at DCMM March 7

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    The Door County Maritime Museum (DCMM) and the Southern Door School District are collaborating to share songs, images and stories from the 1940s in a multimedia presentation related to the museum’s new exhibit, Built for Battle: Sturgeon Bay Ships in World War II. The presentation will take place March 7, 7 pm, at the Southern […]

  • Once Upon Our Peninsula: Feb. 21-28

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    News from this week’s past All items are from the Door County Library’s newspaper archives, and they appear in the same form as they were first published, including misspellings and grammatical errors. The Independent February 21, 1890 A Cold Day for the Perch. Summer tourists who visit us to enjoy the superb fishing which this […]

  • Differentiating Between Egg Harbor’s Town and Village

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    The second program in the Egg Harbor Historical Society’s free winter series will be “Stories from the Town of Egg Harbor’s Village” on Feb. 24, 2:30 pm, in the Kress Pavilion’s Great Hall.  Determining whether you mean the Town or Village of Egg Harbor has been a bit confusing over the years. The town was […]

  • Once Upon Our Peninsula: Feb. 7-14

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    News from this week’s past All items are from the Door County Library’s newspaper archives, and they appear in the same form as they were first published, including misspellings and grammatical errors. Door County Democrat February 16, 1917 Even Needles High. Local tailors say that even the needle situation is serious. Hundreds of machines in […]

  • Egg Harbor Historical Society to Host Stories From Carlsville, Carmody Prairie Areas

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    The Egg Harbor Historical Society will host the first of its weekly winter public programs – stories from Egg Harbor’s Carlsville and Carmody Prairie areas – at the Kress Pavilion on Feb. 17, 2:30 pm. The history series will continue through February and March at 2:30 pm on Mondays.  Thomas and William Carmody made their way from […]

  • Once Upon Our Peninsula: Feb. 7-14

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    News from this week’s past All items are from the Door County Library’s newspaper archives, and they appear in the same form as they were first published, including misspellings and grammatical errors. Door County Democrat February 8, 1918 Two of the Plum Island Coast Guard crew (Ole Swenson and Herman Erickson), that were transferred for […]