Editor Madeline Johnson
Associate Editor Allison Vroman
Contributing Editors Felice Birmingham, Lauren Bremer, Paul Burton, Myles Dannhausen Jr., Sally Everhardus, Jess Farley, Stephen Grutzmacher, Gary Jones, Brittany Jordt, Roy Lukes, Jake Nyberg, Richard Purinton, Katie Lott Schnorr, Bonnie Spielman, Sally Slattery, Len Villano, Allison Vroman, Patty Williamson
Photography Director Len Villano
Advertising Sales Madeline Johnson, Jess Farlley, Steve Grutzmacher
Publisher David Eliot
Owners: Madeline Johnson & David Eliot
Door County Living magazine is published five times annually by:
Door County Living, Inc.
P.O. Box 695, Baileys Harbor, WI 54202
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In this issue
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Garlic scapes are a once-a-year late spring treat. Scapes are the flower/seed heads that grow out of hardneck garlic varieties, and harvesting them allows the plant to push its energy back to the underground garlic bulb rather than the flower head. They are whimsical and bold in flavor! Sometimes in mid-winter I get garlic scapes […]
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The Early Days: Door County Postal Service
While the Constitution gave Congress the authority to establish post offices and post roads, it would not be until 1854 that the first post office was established in Door County. Thirty-three years after a post office opened in Green Bay, one opened on Washington Island – the most remote locale along the rugged, unsettled wilderness […]
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The Roots of the Peninsula’s Postal Service
Today the U.S. Postal Service is an independent branch of the federal government, and its performance is under chronic scrutiny by Congress and users. Critics, however, often seem oblivious to the postal service’s contribution to the American way of life. In colonial times, people communicating in writing depended on friends, merchants, and even Native Americans […]
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Skaliwags: Delectable Dive Dining
When you walk through the entryway of Skaliwags, the scene before you might seem unimpressive at first. The restaurant is tiny, five tables and a bar, and the cooks occupy a kitchen in plain view that consists of a grill, a flat top, and little-to-no prep space. But linger long enough to taste the food […]
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When you hear that the name of a business is Cookie Lady, human nature undoubtedly leads you to picture a matron in an apron – possibly even your mother or grandmother. So it will probably come as a surprise to learn that Sister Bay’s “cookie lady” is actually Rachel Haas, a normally soft-spoken, petite, young […]
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A Look at the Life of Harold (Hal) Grutzmacher
An influential member of the Door County community, the late Harold (Hal) Grutzmacher was an avid reader, writer, poet, columnist, critic, editor, and owner of Passtimes Books in Sister Bay who influenced a number of writers and inspired the name for Peninsula Pulse’s annual literary contest: Hal Grutzmacher’s Writers’ Expose. Born in Chicago in 1930, […]
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Why is it that some of our best golf is played in the spring when the golf season has just begun? I’m always baffled when a fellow golfer tells me that they shot one of their lowest scores ever during one of their first few rounds of the season. It has happened to me when […]
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Ride for Nature to Benefit The Ridges Sanctuary
As cyclists cross the finish line of this year’s Ride for Nature, a few numbers might come to mind. The most likely pairing will be one and 100, as the June 16th ride is an early event in the cycling calendar and will probably be the first century ride of the season for many participants. […]
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Door County’s Naval Architects
Taking a stroll through the Sturgeon Bay shipyards can be a humbling experience. The immensity of the ships alone can leave one awestruck with veritable wonder at how such behemoths were constructed, let alone how they even float. For nearly 100 years, the assembly and maintenance of barges, freighters, ferries, and sailboats in Sturgeon Bay […]
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Revamping Eagle Bluff Lighthouse
It was a spectacular lighthouse when it was completed in 1868 at a cost of $12,000 – Milwaukee cream city brick construction, a unique design (a square tower, set at an angle) that distinguished it from others of its kind, and a prime Door County location on the water. Over the next 58 years, it […]
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A Life on the Farm: The Haberli Family
Joseph Haberli doesn’t recall a time when he wanted to do anything but farm. “I just always did,” he says. “I told my dad when I was a kid, ‘you either sell me your farm or I’m gonna go someplace else and buy one.’” There was no moment of inspiration, no time when he fell […]
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Kurt Thomas: The DCA’s Jack of all Trades
Since my earliest days at Gibraltar I remember Kurt Thomas in the sound booth, building sets, and lending a hand to anyone that needed it on and off the stage. I recently caught up with Kurt, now the Door Community Auditorium’s Technical Director, to talk to him about what it is that’s kept him loving […]
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Hans Christian: A Life Inside the Music
Hans Christian’s eyes project a combination of intelligence, patience, and kindness. He ushers me into his studio early on a Sunday morning, and it feels like a sacred space. He is leaving the next morning for an extensive tour, but no worries – everything is packed and ready to go. “I don’t like to feel […]
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The Photography of Dan Anderson
I would write – but I can’t – so I make photographs to express myself,” says Dan Anderson, well-known Door County photographer. A private man who bursts into animation when discussing photography, cameras, digital output and photo editing programs, Anderson’s love for the medium, from darkroom to digital, is apparent at the outset. Despite early […]
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A Father-Son Interview: Jake and Tim Nyberg
I grew up around drawers full of colored pencils, markers, drawing charcoal, typesetting tools and early Macintosh computers running Adobe Illustrator 1.0 – all tools of a wildly creative entrepreneur who doubled as my father. Tim Nyberg is a Door County artist with a cosmopolitan style that, while drawing obvious inspiration from the peninsula, transcends […]
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The porcupine, a mammal native to Wisconsin, is the second largest rodent in North America. It doesn’t hibernate and, with luck, may be seen in wooded areas throughout the year. In all likelihood it is dog owners who have become most familiar with this clumsy, slow-moving creature, frequently referred to as a genuine nuisance. What […]
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Hank Eckert: Sister Bay’s One-time Postmaster
Watching my grandfather Hank Eckert’s weathered hands sift through relics of mail, he smiles and says, “You have a big job ahead of you!” He has had a big job – as a soldier in World War II and the former postmaster of Sister Bay – and quite a happy life. Henry George Eckert, born […]