News From This Week’s Past: FDR, Chambers Island, Dog Tax

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 Expositor

July 24, 1874

Four years ago there were but seven families in the whole of the East half of Forestville; now there are upwards of one hundred families settled in the same district, all making farms and preparing for the comforts of life.

Weekly Expositor Independent

July 25, 1884

Halver Olson, of the town of Sturgeon Bay, had eight head of cattle and five head of sheep killed by lightning during Tuesday night’s storm. When discovered by Mr. Olson he at first thought the two large work oxen had escaped injury, but on going up to them he found that they, too, were dead, although from their positions he was at first lead to believe that they were only lying down resting. The lost sustained by Mr. O. will foot up about $350.

The Republican

July 28, 1892

While at Manitowoc recently John Leathem sold Chambers Island to the Manitowoc Seating company for $10,000. The island is located in Green Bay about forty miles north of this bay and contains 2,200 acres of land, the greater part of which is covered with timber, the whole of the island, with the exception of a lighthouse site, belonging to Leathem & Smith. The latter firm also invested $13,000 in the stock of the company which purchased the island.

Door County Democrat

July 24, 1906

City Treasurer John Ollinger is making his rounds collecting dog and poll tax. Due to the scarcity of money he finds the job more difficult than last year, but everybody must pay up or suffer the consequences. People paying dog tax should see that the tag is placed on the animal, otherwise it is likely to be taken up and shot by the Chief of Police.

Door County Democrat

July 26, 1918

Democrat and Advocate Consolidate.

During the present week a deal has been closed whereby the newspapers Sturgeon Bay Advocate, owned by D. S. Long, and the Door County Democrat, owned by H. J. Sanderson and Arthur T. Harris, under the firm name of the Door County Publishing Company, have been consolidated. The name of the two papers will be merged into one, the “Door County” being retained from the Democrat, and the name “Advocate” substituted in place of “Democrat,” making the “Door County Advocate.”

For several years past, and especially during the present war period, the business men of Sturgeon Bay and door County have felt that three papers in the county were a burden in place of a benefit to them.

Door County News

July 22, 1926

Martin Co. Gets 3.000 Crates Of Sweet Cherries

Mayor Jim Martin is all smiles this year. For ten years he has tried to raise the sweet cherry in quantities, and this year he will harvest 3,000 crates of Schmidts and Governor Woods, both varieties of sweet cherries, beautiful; to look at and delicious to taste. The cherries are larger than the Montmorencies, a deep red in color and firm and meaty.

This is the first time that any orchard has harvested a sweet variety in such quantity, orchardists finding these cherries difficult to raise and doubting whether they were profitable as a commercial product.

Door County News

July 28, 1938

DEMOCRATS TRY TO GET F.D.R. TO VISIT COUNTY

Door county Democrats have hopes that they may secure the presence of President Franklin D. Roosevelt and U.S. senator F. Ryan Duffy at the county fair on August 28. In a letter to Postmaster Harry R. Jones, Senator Duffy stated that he would be pleased to accept the invitation to come to Door county for a talk during the fair, but pointed out that the possibility of President Roosevelt fulfilling a promised visit to the state at about that time might interfere with his plans. This information was sufficient to get action on the part of local Democrats, with the result that on Sunday the following telegram was forwarded to Senator Duffy at Fond du Lac.

“The committee from Door County invite you and request your presence at the county fair August 28. All fair grounds built by WPA project; town of Union voted 1000 per cent for Roosevelt in 1932. Convey invitation to president, signed John Miles, Sec. Fair Assn., Frank N. Grasse, Pres. Chamber of Commerce, D.W. Reynolds, mayor of Sturgeon Bay.”