1909 Greenwood, Wisconsin History; Originally published by Max C. Baldwin in the Greenwood Gleaner, 1

----Source: 1909 Greenwood History, Originally published by Max C. Baldwin in the Greenwood Gleaner, Enhanced and edited and compiled with various photo collections by Janet & Stan Schwarze. Copyright 2008

In our last chapter of the history of Greenwood, we left off with the second store to be built in our city, and with this issue we present above a good picture of the third store to be built in our city, and which was built and operated by John Brown of Melvina, Monroe Co., Wis., who came there and built the store in the fall of 1873, and which was then only a small building 28 ft. deep with a 20 foot frontage and only one story high. He carried a line of groceries, crockery, etc. and in 1875 he took Henry William Hunt* into partnership with him, and this firm conducted the business, marking extensive improvements in 1876, when an addition of twenty feet was added to the store and the old front torn out and a new one put in by Abner Woodman Bailey. This made the store 28 feet long, and on account of the increase in business and new people locating here, the firm added boots and shoes to their stock, besides increasing their stock in other lines.

In 1885 Mr. Hunt bought out Mr. Brown and for awhile conducted the business alone, but soon took his son Clarence into partnership with him. In 1888 Mr. Hunt added thirty feet more to his store, building a second story for living apartments, and putting in a line of farming implements in addition to his other stock, and in 1905 he sold out his mercantile business to Arends & Steffen, but continued the handling of farming implements, wagons, etc., and is now conducting a successful business in the building pictured above.

Mr. Hunt was born Nov. 5, 1853, in Grant County, Wis., and besides being a successful merchant, has served the village and city in an official capacity in nearly every office.

*In Jefferson, Monroe Co., Wisconsin John Brown was also a grocer and a neighbor and friend to the family of Charles A. Hunt who manufactured flour. Henry William was the son of Charles A. and Amanda Melvina (Ray) Hunt.

Above we give another picture of one of our old settlers, Mr. Henry Johnson, who was born in Norway in 1853 and came to this country in 1866, but did not locate at this place until five years later. (In 1880, Henry Johnson was single and living in the home of Abner Woodman & Julia Bailey. Abner was an undertaker who had moved to Greenwood from Black River Falls, Jackson Co., Wis.)

Mr. Johnson was an ordinary day laborer up to the year 1884, when he learned the barber trade and purchased the barber and confectionery business of Louis O’Pfaff and had his shop and store on the site where the Carter Millinery store now stands. In 1866 he built a car, and for nine months operated a traveling tonsorial parlor. It used to be a frequent occurrence for “Hank” to lock up his shop in the north part of the town, and in the morning find that his shop had traveled in some mysterious manner through the night to some other part of town.

In 1888-89 he was editor of the Greenwood Headlight, a weekly paper that was published at Neillsville, and which was in existence only about two years (it quietly expired after the first of the year, 1889).

For about two and one-half years he occupied the building where the restaurant now stands, when he moved into the building which he now occupies. He gave up the confectionery business about eight years ago and has since given his time to the successful conducting of his barber business, and is one of our oldest and most successful men.

(Another correction – Some time ago we made a statement that the first store in Greenwood was built by Chandler & Brown. This is an error, as the first store to be opened and operated was built by Case Honeywell in 1869 and was sold by him to Chandler & Brown. The building stood where the Catholic Parsonage is now being built, and was demolished some time ago.)

Devoting this space again to industries in out city, we take pleasure in presenting this week the Greenwood Creamery, another one of our most prosperous and successful industries.

The above building was erected by N.C. Foster in the summer of 1901, for Carl Grashorn, who operated the creamery on a small scale until 1904, when he sold an interest in the business to A. F. Falk. In 1906 this partnership dissolved, Mr. Grashorn again taking full possession, or until Sept. 1, 1908, when the Eau Claire Creamery Co. leased the plant from Mr. Grashorn for a period of one year, and this season proved to be so prosperous and the outlook for more extensive business so promising, that on June 1, 1909, the company purchased the plant of Mr. Grashorn, and during the past summer have done an enormous business.

This company the past summer has spent several hundreds of dollars in extensive improvements to their plant, thus preparing for the growing business which increases every years in propensity. Among the noteworthy improvements they have made to the plant, is the building of a sewer system to the creek, putting in new cement floors throughout in the place of the old wooden ones; a cement driveway for the handling of milk from wagon to platform under shelter; new ice house; coal and fuel house; what was formerly the old ice house has been turned into a storage room and refrigerator; engine taken out of boiler room and put in churn room; new stack and chimney; hot and cold water all through the plant, and a new office and testing room built.

The Greenwood Creamery is an industry of which we can well be proud, as it is one of the cleanest and best institutions of its kind to be found in the state of Wisconsin.

During our illness we received a letter from Bert L. Bailey which we published, and in which he inferred that the old settlers would be pleased to hear old stories and reminiscences connected with the earlier days, and as one of these stories (and it is a good one) was unconsciously given to us, we take the liberty of giving it to our readers and likewise take our chances of the advent into our sanction of the proverbial “man with the horsewhip looking for the poor editor.”

A good many years ago, when there were many more boys than girls in the very small village of Greenwood, it was not an uncommon thing for a young lady to give a portion of her time, especially for pleasure, to others, and it so happened that the “best fellow” of a fair and charming damsel had been visited by the death of a distant relative and did not feel as though it would be proper to go to a dance that was coming off within a few days, but the young lady did not see why she should not go, so unbeknown to her “steady,” she promised another young man to go with him. At last the looked for night arrived, and with it the “steady,” who had made up his mind, seeing that he could not go to the dance, to spend the evening with his lady love.

This was very kind of him and was greatly appreciated(?) by Miss ---, who, as the hours gilded silently by, began to wish all kinds of good things would happen to him that would cause his departure to other scenes, etc.

Meanwhile, the young man who was going to take her to the dance, was parading up and down by the house, and the curtain being raised, could see that he was forestalled, and after first a dance and then an intermission to see if the coast was yet clear, he began to rack his brain for some kind of a strategy to overwhelm the enemy, and suddenly he had an idea which he proceeded to put to work.

Now the “steady” was a store-keeper or clerk, or something of that description, and if he could only get him to the store, the day, or rather nigh, would be saved. To do that he must have an accomplice, so he engaged the services of a friend, but it so happened that the friend or accomplice, was so well known to the “steady,” so honest, and knew the store so well, that when he asked him to go to the store with him and get him what he wanted, how the fair damsel’s heart sank with dismay and chagrin as she watched the “steady” coolly and calmly give him the key to the store with the remark, “Here is the key say, Jack, go help yourself, you know where it is a s well as I do.”

“oh! Consistency, thou art a jewel.” Did she go to the dance? Well not that evening.

Above we present to our readers a picture of the pioneer home of Mr. Harrison Mead, more familiarly known as “Harry.”

He was born in Dutchess Co., N.Y., Nov. 19, 1833, and came with his parents to Jefferson Co., Wis., in 1845. He was married in 1861 and in 1865 came to Clark County and erected a homestead in the town of Warner, six miles north of Greenwood.

Mr. Mead was one of the first settlers in Greenwood, there being only two others besides himself, Carpenter and Honeywell, who were settled where the city now stands.

The log cabin pictured above was built in the summer of 1863 by John Dwyer and for many years stood where the little grove of pine trees now stands on the Bushman place. It was built entirely of hewn logs and was a most substantial structure. In the fall of 1863 Mr. Dwyer sold the property to a Mr. Lambert, who, on Sept. 15, 1863, leased the property to Harry Mead, where he lived until April of the following year, when he moved back to his homestead, now known as the Schoenwetter farm, six miles north of Greenwood. Mr. Lambert sold this property to John Bigger, who in turn sold it to Wm. Armstrong, who sold it to James Bryden. Mr. Bryden tore down the log house and put up a fine frame building, and later sold it to Wm. Johnston. Mr. Johnston sold the place to C. H. Estebrooks, who sold it to Henry Lang, who disposed of the property to John Bushman, the present owner and mayor of Greenwood.

In those days there was no turnpike or road between Greenwood and Neillsville; nothing but forest and a narrow foot trail, and it was during this time that the endurance of many of our earlier settlers was taxed to the utmost limit, and it would be almost impossible for the present generation, or the larger portion of it, to withstand, or who could or would undertake the trials and duties performed by our forefathers.

The Greenwood Roller Mill is another one of our city’s most progressive industries, and has been the direct cause of bringing much more trade to our city than might otherwise have come here, had we not possessed an up-to-date and progressive roller mill.

The erection of the above building was started in the fall of 1899 and was finished in the spring of 1900, and was built by the N.C. Foster Lumber Company, who conducted the business, with F. W. Shrimpton as manager, until 1902, when it was incorporated under the title of the Greenwood Roller Mill Co., with N.C. foster as President; G.A. Foster, Secretary and Treasurer, and Franklin W. Shrimpton, Business Manager, and under which title the business is now successfully conducted.

This mill undoubtedly does a larger and more extensive business than any mill in the county, being extensive buyers and shippers of all kinds of grain, besides marking wheat, buckwheat, rye and graham flour, and also doing an enormous custom grinding business.

It is equipped with five double roll stands and three pair of feed rolls, all of which is operated by a sixty-five horsepower steam engine, and which is in continuous operation the year around.

The interior of the mill is usually cleanly, and as such, appeals to customers and visitors alike. The mill is widely known all over Clark County and its reputation is becoming more widely known with each passing year.

Another evidence of Greenwood’s prosperity lies in the fact that we have one of the finest banking institutions to be found in the state for a city of our size. It was founded in 1891 and its present officers are: President, E. W. Bowen; Vice-President, John Shanks; Cashier, E. F. Wollenberg; Asst. Cashier, F. L. Norris.

Mr. A.S. Armstrong immigrated to Greenwood in the year 1876 and worked at different occupations, including farming, until April 1905, when he purchased the livery business of Chris Brick, retaining those quarters that are now known as the Buker barn, until 1907, when he purchased the present commodious quarters (pictured above) from John Shanks.

Mr. Armstrong is one of our prosperous and up-to-date businessmen, and he believes in progressing wit the time. In addition to a first class livery, Mr. Armstrong installed a large new touring car last summer which is at the public’s service.

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