Taylor County

By Robert P. Rusch

When Wisconsin became a state in 1848, its densely forested north awaited railroad construction before settlement. Taylor County, the Garden Spot of Northern Wisconsin, was founded on March 4, 1875. Named for then-governor William R. Taylor, the area was primarily forested with eastern hemlock. The county s portion of the Wisconsin Central Railroad was built in 1873, and station sites were named for suburbs of Boston, including Medford, Charlestown, Chelsea, and Westboro. The county s early years were dominated by lumbering and leather tanning, the latter made possible by tannic acid leached from hemlock bark. By 1900, dairy farms dotted its glacial hills. Today, Taylor County s municipalities are home to diverse industries, ranging from snowshoe manufacturing to America s largest pizza plant.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Arcadia Publishing
• Release date: Aug 4, 2014
• ISBN: 9781439646601

Robert P. Rusch

Author Robert P. Rusch is a retired trial attorney, tree farmer, and ultrarunner who still runs a monthly marathon at age 71; on December 28, 2013, he finished number 216 on a snow-covered trail. The Taylor County Historical Society generously made this book possible by allowing publication of images from its treasure trove of sterling photographs.

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Society.

INTRODUCTION

The Wisconsin Central Railroad was built through what later became Taylor County in 1873. Its board of directors was dominated by financiers from Boston, which explains the names they gave to local stations: Medford, Charlestown, Chelsea, and Westboro. In 1909, it was bought by the Minneapolis, St. Paul & Sault Ste. Marie Railroad, commonly known as the Soo Line. With the Stanley, Merrill & Phillips and the St. Paul, Minneapolis & Omaha Railroads, it long served as the economic lifeline of the county. In addition, logging railroads flourished. They were operated by lumber companies, including the J.S. Owen, Westboro, Medford, and Rib Lake Lumber Companies. The Rib Lake Lumber Company had the distinction of operating the last logging railroad in Wisconsin when its steam engine hauled its final load of logs to the Rib Lake sawmill on May 21, 1948.

While Taylor County had some magnificent white pine, its virgin forest was dominated by a largely overlooked tree, hemlock. This hearty evergreen is shade-tolerant, allowing it to grow under the shade of other trees. This quality allowed it to thrive in the cool, dense, and dark original forest. The bark of hemlock is filled with natural tannic acid, the then-indispensable substance needed to tan leather. This led to the establishment of tanneries in Medford, Perkinstown, Westboro, and Rib Lake. These tanneries were huge operations, some producing up to 1,500 hides per day. Hides were brought in not only from the American West, but also from Argentina, Australia, and China. The tanning industry was a great boon for settlers. Nearly every settler had a stand of hemlock, which the farmer and his children could cut, sell for lumber, and then peel and sell the bark. In 1904, the Rib Lake Lumber Company declared itself the world’s largest producer of hemlock lumber.

The final chapter of this book features the Ice Age National Scenic Trail. In 1980, Congress recognized the national significance of the Ice Age Trail by designating it a National Scenic Trail. The trail has been featured in National Geographic and Backpacker magazines. When completed, the Ice Age National Scenic Trail will be a 1,000-mile-long footpath across Wisconsin, and more of it will be built in Taylor County than in any other county.

Taylor County has been covered by at least four continental glaciers. The last was the great continent-wide glacier called Wisconsin, so named because nowhere did it leave more distinctive landforms than in this state. The Ice Age Trail follows the terminal moraine of the Wisconsin glacier. In 1990, volunteers connected the Ice Age Trail to Wisconsin’s highest point by constructing the 10-mile-long Timms Hill National Trail. The National Park Service designated it as the very first side trail pursuant to the 1968 National Trails Act.

Other popular trails in Taylor County include Medford’s Riverwalk and the swinging bridge in Gilman. People not only walk in Taylor County; they also snowshoe. The trails at the Perkinstown Winter Sports Area are the annual site of America’s largest snowshoe event. On January 14, 2014, over 400 paid for the privilege to walk or run on snowshoes through the Nicolet-Chequamegon National Forest.

While trails are increasingly prized for their role in promoting good health, their existence in Taylor County has another equally important aspect. These labor-intensive projects exist because people care. They care enough to allow the public to use their land. They care enough to join clubs to maintain the trails. This involves hours of work cutting weeds and windfalls, digging postholes, and repairing bridges, all while swatting mosquitoes. Volunteers regularly bring their own trucks, tractors, chainsaws, and other power equipment to build and maintain community projects. And all of this is cheerfully done without pay.

The creation of the Pine Line rail trail illustrates the strength and scope of the community pride and initiative that flourishes in Taylor County. In 1988, the Wisconsin Central Railroad abandoned its line north of Medford. While the State of Wisconsin had built over 40 rail trails, it refused to build one in Taylor County. In addition, the Taylor County Board of Supervisors felt it could not afford the project. This meant that volunteers would have to do the job or the opportunity for a 26-mile-long public recreation trail would be forever lost.

Medford attorney Ray Scott, working pro bono, stepped to the forefront. He organized and inspired a small band of volunteers. Negotiations to acquire the right-of-way from the railroad began, and prospects for success were dim. The railroad wanted $165,000. Volunteer Brad Ruesch came up with a novel idea: trade 450 acres of tax-delinquent land for the right-of-way. While the railroad said yes to the trade idea, two seemingly insurmountable stumbling blocks arose. First, the county had to be paid $14,000 for the trade parcel; but, in a stunning act of generosity and leadership, the Ann Marie Foundation donated the entire amount! Secondly, state law had to be changed to allow a county to give away land it acquired by tax deed. Thanks to the leadership role of assemblyman Frank Nikolay, the law was changed in less than four weeks.

Since the railroad right-of-way lay in both Taylor and Price Counties, Scott, as an attorney, had to deal with that issue. He proposed a trail commission with four commissioners from each county. The commission was created. Ever since, the commissioners have faithfully served—without either pay or reimbursement for expenses.

In a snowstorm in December 1990, the trail commissioners cut the ribbon opening the Pine Line. While everyone was jubilant in acquiring the right-of-way, in a very real sense, the work had just begun. Now, a safe and appropriate trail had to be built. Runners ran a marathon on its rocky surface and donated entry fees. A major road construction firm in Medford, James Peterson & Sons, not only donated the crushed gravel to surface three miles of

Reviews for Taylor County

[mountainjackie · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

A very nice collection of old photographs of towns in Taylor County Wisconsin. Organization of material isn't chronological and the writing is sometimes scattered. However, this is a nice read for anyone who has grown up or is currently living in this area of Wisconsin.