Bio: Blanchard Family (History of Abbotsford) 

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Surnames: Wing, Blanchard, Dewey, Nelson, Hoffman, Gormlee, Colby, Kalepp, Arndt, Olson, Denny 
 

----Source: Abbotsford Tribune (Abbotsford, Clark County, Wis.) 10/07/1954 
 

History of Abbotsford - The Blanchard Family By F. B. Wing 
 

Emily A. Dewey was born in Adams county, N.Y. in 1838 and received her education in Mexico, N.Y. and taught school in Adams county, before her marriage to Orrin H. Blanchard, who was born in that county in 1837. They were married in 1858 in Adams county from where they moved to Waupaca, Wisconsin and bought land. They continued to live there until 1866 when they came to Marathon county and, with their brother-in-law, Zoeff Nelson, took up homesteads south of Cherokee. 
 

Two of the Nelson children died during the winter. They were kept frozen until they could get to Stevens Point which was as far as the railroad was built at that time. From there they took the bodies to Waupaca for burial. 
 

When the railroad was built from Stevens Point north, the Blanchards cooked for the railroad crew, and when it reached as far as Abbotsford, they decided to make this their home. 
 

They purchased the 80 acres just south of the Dill creek bridge, south of Colby, across the road, from Lamont’s mill. They owned the land until they moved to Abbotsford. 
 

They then purchased the property where George Hoffman now lives, from a man by the name of Gormlee and continued to make this place their home until 1900 when they built the house where William O. Colby, Sr., now lives. In 1891, Mr. Blanchard purchased the 40 acres which is located north of Highway 29 and east of Highway 13, had the land plotted and it is known as Blanchard’s addition to the Village of Abbotsford. 
 

The Blanchards also owned the building which is known as Kalepp’s tavern. The building burned in one of Abbotsford’s first fires, but was rebuilt and Denny and Olson had their first store in this building until their building south of the Abbotsford Bank was completed, when they moved their stock. 
 

The Blanchards also owned the building where Ray’s tavern is located, and a house on the west side of town across from the Gus Arndt home. 
 

The Blanchards had two children, Lottie, who was born in Waupaca, in *** Note: The rest of the article was cut off and was not available at the time of transcription.