Volume 21 Issue 1 Jackson Historical Society February 2016 IMMIGRANTS AND THEIR MONEY

During the 1800’s when many immigrants arrived in the United States, they paid for their passage in their own currency. The Pom- eranians who arrived in Jackson in the mid 1800’s brought with them the money they had accumulated in their home country from earnings and the sale of their property prior to emigrating. As the value of world coinage was generally based on gold and content, the Pomeranians brought with them Prussian gold and silver and smaller coins called Groschen or Pfennigs. Many of the transactions these “new” Americans made were carried on using these familiar coins. However, foreign coins were also Jackson Historical Society Museum circulating in America due to the lack of a robust supply of American money. In 1792, the Congress of the United States passed legislation estab- MEMBERSHIP DUES lishing the U. S. in Philadelphia, and in 1794 began to produce a se- Your annual $15 dues cover ries of coins. The Half Cent and the One Cent were copper; while the half a calendar year starting in January. disme (dime) and the disme (dime), the quarter, the half and the dol- The current year for your member- lar were all silver. Other coins included the $2.50 Gold Quarter Eagle, the ship is shown on The Church $5.00 Gold Half Eagle, and the $10.00 Gold Eagle. As America estab- Mouse address label to the right of lished its currency, many silver and gold foreign coins continued circulat- the zip code. ing in the United States based on their value in gold or silver. Your dues include a sub- For years, the Spanish silver dollar was as common a currency scription to the Church Mouse and in the U.S. as our own and circulated help us preserve Jackson history. along side our own silver dollar. In our area, many pur- U.S. Dollar chases, including JHS MEETINGS TIMES Spanish Pillar Dollar land, were made based on The Jackson Historical the value of the Prussian Society meets the 2nd Monday of gold or silver Thalers German Silver the immigrants brought with every other month, Jan/Mar/May/ them. And so it continued for years. Jul/Sep/Nov, at 7:00pm. In 1843, a large contingent of Pomeranian immigrants arrived in JHS meetings are held at Jackson bringing with them their Pastor and Teacher. During the long 1860 Mill Road, Jackson, in our voyage, much of their money was carried in a wooden chest under the restored, Karl Groth log home. control of Johann Kressin. The chest is on display in our museum. The Visitors are welcome. group settled in Kirchhayn. With their Thalers, they purchased and cleared land for farming and established David’s Star Lutheran Church. Other JHS OFFICERS immigrants settling in Jackson included Irish, Yankees from the eastern Royal Natzke—President part of the United States, and a few other nationalities. When Jackson was Jerry Prochnow—Vice President incorporated as a Town in 1846, names such as Devereau, Kinney, and Lenore Kloehn—Treasurer McDonald, along with many families of German descent reflected the mix Jim Kliese—Secretary of immigrants settling in Jackson and the mix of currencies being used. BOARD MEMBERS And so it went for many years, with foreign gold and silver coins JHS Officers, Russ Hanson, circulating alongside American money until replaced by our own currency. Elmer Kloechn, and Rob Mielke (Immigrants continued on page 4) Page 2 The Church Mouse

APRIL “FREE” PROGRAM

Chad Lewis on Thursday, April 7th, at 7:00pm takes you back When Chicago bootleggers and into Wisconsin in the 1920’s and bank robbers were looking to lay low dur- 1930’s when Chicago gangsters ing Prohibition, they headed north to the “hid out” up north when things got seclusion of Wisconsin’s small towns and too hot down south. backcountry. Gangsters like Al “Scarface” Ca- pone, “Polack” Joe Saltis, and George LITTLE BOHEMIA “Bugs” Moran turned Wisconsin into their own personal criminal vacationland, en- tertaining associates in their up-north for- tresses while running illegal speakeasies, gambling halls, brothels and bootlegging operations. On any given night, law- abiding Wisconsinites could eat, drink, dance and mingle alongside some of the nation’s deadliest criminals.

What: In the 1930s, the bootleggers gave way to the bank robbers. Soon, crooks like George “Baby Face” Nelson, Alvin John Dillinger along with “Creepy” Karpis, and John Dillinger were frolicking Baby Face Nelson and various oth- around their Wisconsin playground. er gang members and girl friends Who: Join Chad Lewis, researcher, author, and lecturer, as he arrived at the Little Bohemia Resort tells the story of the gangster era in Wisconsin. on April 20th, 1934. All was peace- ful until Sunday evening, the 22nd. Where: Jackson Room—upper level Unbeknownst to the Dillinger gang, Town Hall—Town of Jackson word had been sent to the FBI that 3146 Division Road the gang was staying at the resort. When: Thursday, the 7th of April 2016, at 7:00pm FBI agents from Chicago and St. Paul arrived at Little Bohemia on Cost: Free Sunday evening just as the last of the regular dinner guests were leav- Sponsored by THE JACKSON HISTORICAL SOCIETY ing. *Jackson Town Hall is south of Highway 60 on Division Rd. (CTH. G) For the rest of the story, LAKE COMO HOTEL It was built in Denmark in and a look back at the bank rob- the 1880’s and transported to Chica- beries, murders, kidnappings, and go as the Danish Pavilion for the shootouts, that make up Wiscon- 1893 Columbian Exposition. After sin’s gangster past, put on your the fair the buildings were purchased zoot suit and follow in the foot- and transported by rail to its current steps of America’s most infamous location on shores of Lake Como. gangsters as they turned Wiscon- Christian Hermansen ac- sin into their own criminal vaca- quired the property in the 1920’s and turned it into the Lake Como Ho- tionland. tel. Although it remained a family-friendly lake resort, it was also a favor- Join Chad Lewis for this ite getaway for such well-known gangsters as George “Bugs” Moran and entertaining presentation of the Baby Face Nelson, as well as their molls, wives, and members of the John Jackson Historical Society, Thurs- Dillinger gang. The inn’s secluded location and the owner’s discreet hospi- day evening, April 7th, 7:00pm, in tality made it a perfect place to escape the summer “heat,” including feder- the Jackson Town Hall, upper level. al agents. Lake Como is just minutes from the city of Lake Geneva. Doors open at 6:30pm. The Church Mouse Page 3

BIRTH OF THE DOLLAR tween 1567 and 1571, King James VI issued a thirty-shilling piece that Although silver had been mined in the country for centuries, it was the Scots called the sword dollar. the discovery of a rich vein of silver in Jachymov, a Bohemian village at the head of a steep valley (thal) in the Ore Mountains in the western part of what is now the Czech Republic that begins our story. At the opening of the sixteenth century, Jachymov came under German administration when Bohemia became part of the Holy Roman Empire. Count Hieronymus Schlick and his family ruled the remote area. Rather than mining the silver and selling it to others, Count Schlick secret- ly began minting silver coins called groschen. He apparently made the very first coins in 1519 in his castle, although he did not receive official permis- The Scots used the name dollar to sion for such minting until 1520. distinguish their currency, and From the German name of the valley, Joachimsthal, the coins thereby the country and themselves, were called Joachimsthalergulden or Joachimsthalergroschen, names that were too more clearly from their domineer- long for daily use even by German speakers. The coins became more ing English neighbors to the south. widely known as thalergroschen and eventually as thalers, or talers. Because of Thus from the beginning, the name a good supply of silver in the mines dollar carried with it a certain anti- of western Bohemia, the heavy and English bias that many Scottish substantial thalers readily increased settlers took with them to their new in number, and with the economic homes in the Americas and other and political connections through- British colonies The emigration of out the Holy Roman Empire, thalers Scots accounts for much of the spread to all parts of it, including subsequent popularity of the word Spain. dollar in British colonies around the In the century between 1519 and 1617, when thalers were minted in world. Jachymov, production began with about 250,000 thalers the first year. At In 1695, Britain did not per- maximum production from 1529 to 1545, the mines supplied silver for 5 mit the exportation of gold or silver million thalers. It is estimated that by the end of the century, Jachymov coins to anywhere in the world, in- had put nearly 12 million thalers into circulation. cluding their own colonies They The coins of Jachymov spread around the world, influencing the wanted to increase the supply of names of many different coins. Initially, for example, the thaler was a large gold and silver money in Britain. silver coin worth three German marks, but it eventually gave its name to This forced the American colonies any large silver coin. The word passed into Italian as tallero, into Dutch as to use foreign silver coins rather daalder, into Danish and Swedish as daler, into Hawaiian as dala, into Sa- than British pounds, shillings, and moan as tala, into Ethiopian as talari, and into English as dollar. pence. The Americans found the The most famous and widely circulated of all thalers became greatest supply of coins in the known as the Maria Theresa thaler, struck in honor of the Austrian em- neighboring Spanish colony of press at the Gunzburg Mine in 1773. The coin bearing the portrait of Ma- Mexico, which operated one of the ria Theresa became so popular, especially in North Africa and the Middle world’s largest mints. East, that even after she died, the Because of the great wealth government continued to mint it produced in Mexico and Peru, with the date 1780, the year of her Spanish coins became the most death. The Maria Theresa thaler commonly accepted currency in the continued to be minted until 1937. world. Although called a Peso, the Numismatic historians estimate Americans preferred the already that a total of 800 million silver familiar word dollar. Maria Theresa thalers were struck Despite the widespread use between 1780 and 1975, all bearing the date 1780! of the thaler or dollar from the 16th The name dollar came to the English language via Scotland. Be- (Dollar continued on page 4) Page 4 The Church Mouse

“SHAVE AND A HAIRCUT which some folks believe became (Dollar continued from page 3) TWO-BITS” folklore for a dollar. The axe will century onward, no major country Toward the end of the cost you two “bucks.” adopted it as its official currency un- 1800’s, a seven note “riff” or “lick” While we’re on the subject til the formation of the United was added to the last song that of bucks, a $10 bill was often re- States. The currency act of 1793 closed a performance. Those seven ferred to as a passed by the congress, established notes passed into American folk- “sawbuck” be- the dollar as the official lore. In music, the call "Shave cause that’s what currency of the United and a Haircut" and the associated the Roman nu- States. Production of response "two bits" is the simple, meral X on an United States coins began in 1794. 1804 Silver Dollar 7-note musical riff often used to early version 1863 $10 Legal Tender note end a musical performance. How- looked like. In the 1800’s, ever, it took on a life of its own and It has been suggested that the continued use of Spanish, Mexi- has returned in many forms, from the American dollar sign, “$”, was can, and American spread car horns to door knocks to car- adopted from the north into Canada, where because toons. What may not be known is Spanish Pillar Dollar of popular usage, the dollar became that the “two-bits” part came from because the ribbon the official currency of the Domin- the history of American coinage. wrapped around the ion of Canada in 1858. After the passing of the pillars is shaped like In the Pacific Basin the coinage act in 1792, the American the letter S. Spanish and Mexican dollars became silver dollar The language of money in so closely associated with com- coin and American folklore is interesting merce that in the Nineteenth centu- Spanish sil- and worth a look back. History ry, other countries began minting ver dollar provides the opportunity. their own coins, which were known coin circulated side-by-side in the as “trade dollars.” By 1873, the U.S. United States. The American silver (Immigrants continued from page 1) issued special trade dollars for Ameri- dollar was divided into 10 parts, The Coinage Act of 1857 can commerce with China and oth- dimes, while the Spanish dollar was passed by Congress forbade the er Asian nations. The use of trade divided into eight parts called Reals, use of foreign coins as legal ten- dollars in the Pacific area solidified which were referred to as bits. der and repealed all acts authoriz- the word dollar throughout the re- Each bit was ing the currency of foreign gold gion, and aided the adoption of the worth 12 1/2 or silver coins. Certain foreign name dollar for the currency of cents when com- coins were accepted by the Treas- many Pacific nations. pared to the ury to be melted down and re- And so, from the minting American dollar. minted as U.S. coins. However, of the first Joachimsthalergroschen in So, two-bits be- some foreign coins continued to 1519, with its name shortened came folklore for be used in rural areas of the Unit- through popular usage to Thaler, it an American quarter dollar. Of ed States, although the 1857 spread throughout the Holy Roman course, we then added four-bits for Coinage Act effectively brought Empire and eventually around the a half dollar, six-bits for seventy to an end the use of foreign coins world with many nations including five cents, and eight-bits for a dol- in the United States. the United States basing their cur- rency on the name dollar. lar, often referred to as a “buck.,” ONE-ROOM SCHOOL VISIT and that leads to more American Much material for these articles on money was sourced from the internet, journals, and from an coinage folklore. Plan a class field trip to excellent book, The History of Money by Jack Weatherford. When trading with Indian the Jackson Historical Society’s This book should be on everyone’s reading list. tribes, the item often offered in restored one-room schoolhouse [email protected] or the society payment was a tanned deer hide. this spring. Teacher led class- at [email protected] The traders would offer their man- room experience. Reservations Jackson Historical Society ufactured goods for so many buck- being accepted now. 1860 Mill Rd. skins, later shortened to “bucks”, Please contact Royal Natzke at Town of Jackson, WI The Church Mouse Page 5

JACKSON HARDWARE HEATING & AIR CONDITIONING JHS DISPLAY AT WEST BEND LIBRARY In 1872, the railroad rolled into the small hamlet of Reisville and began the change of a wide spot on a gravel road into the Village of Jack- World War II has ended son. Although only one of a number of hamlets in the Town of Jackson, and life is normal again. More and it grew where the others faded. more items are reappearing on store It began with a large general store, saloon, and elevator, built by shelves. Franz Reis for whom Reisville was named. Later a second elevator was It’s Christmas time and the built and before long the community had two blacksmith shops, a carpen- Gierachs wanted to get their 10 ter shop, a number of stone homes, a year old son, Kenny, something hotel, and a hardware store. special for Christmas, something In the early 1880’s, George nice to put under the Christmas Jenner bought a piece of land from tree. Jacob Klumb and began the hard- They discovered just the ware store. George Jenner and his toy. It was a Keystone Service Sta- wife Mary eventually sold the busi- tion, made in Boston, MA, and sold ness to Philip and John Roll. by the Frankfurth Hardware Co., Reis General Store and Saloon Milwaukee. It was the deluxe mod- el and it cost $7.95. So, they or- Julius and Louis Kannenberg dered it and had it shipped to West acquired the business about 1913, and Bend in time for Christmas. in 1915 sold it to Gustav Schoessow This really was deluxe as it and Henry Liesener. Alfred and Her- came with working doors, lifts and bert Liesener and their father, Henry, elevators, a car wash with water incorporated Liesener Hardware in spray, gas pumps, and Packard cars 1916. In the 1940’s the Lieseners em- with hoods that open. ployed 22 men and had ten trucks do- Kannenberg Hardware Store Christmas 1948 was enjoyed by all, particularly Kenny.

Keystone Manufacturing Co. made everything from doll Liesener Hardware Crew Preparing to Leave for a Day’s Work in 1938 houses, to steel “RIDE ‘EM” toy ing plumbing, tinning and heating work in the community. cars and trucks, to wooden boats, In 1946, when brothers Chester and Alfred Rheingans began oper- to cameras and projectors, and of ating the business as Rheingans Hardware, they bought additional land course Masonite and teak model from the Lieseners to enlarge the store and add storage sheds. In addition service stations of the kind Kenny to the hardware and plumbing and heating services, Rheingans sold paint, got for Christmas in 1948. household products and small lawn and garden equipment. Among Come visit Kenny’s Key- Rheingans employees were Gene Weinand, Marv Race, and Clarence stone Service Station display at the Kurz. The store was located on Highway 60, Main St., in the Village of West Bend Community Memorial (Hardware continued on page 6) Library. He’d like that. Page 6 The Church Mouse AREA HISTORICAL SOCIETIES EVENTS RICHFIELD HISTORICAL SOCIETY February 21st, Antique Appraisal and Chili Lunch. March 26th, Maple Syrup Family Day. Mark your calendar. Please Contact www.richfieldhistoricalsociety.org for more information on events and meetings. GERMANTOWN HISTORICAL SOCIETY Please contact the Germantown Historical Society at germantownhistoricalsociety.org for more information. POMMERSCHER VEREIN FREISTADT For information and events, Contact—pommerscher.org WASHINGTON COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETY March 9th, and April 6th, Knit-In. March 1st, Show ’N Tell with Mike Paul, April 7th, The Road is Crooked: Bones, Names, & the Search for Chief Kewaskum. at www.historyisfun.com.Click EVENTS for more information and other events.

The Editor welcomes comments on the newsletter. Please mail all suggestions for articles, etc., to The Church Mouse, 1921 State Road 60, Jackson, WI 53037, or phone (262) 677-3888, or e-mail [email protected]. Russ Hanson, Editor

(Hardware continued from page 5) SPRING IS COMING Silent Auction at this Jackson, on land originally home- Really! September’s Raspberry steaded by William Reynolds. To- Festival. We’ll be happy day, the old hardware store is the Winter still has a pretty to accept it from you and store it Royal Oak Antiques store. good grip on us. It’s still snowing until then. All money raised at the In 1976, Rheingans Hard- and blowing and the thermometer silent auction goes to help maintain ware was sold to Eldred and Mary- seems to prefer and improve our society. So, if you lyn Gierach, and was renamed Jack- 20 degrees to 70. have items to donate to the Jackson son Hardware, Inc. They moved The sun only Historical Society this spring, please the operations to a new location on peeks out now give Lenore Kloehn a call at (262) Industrial Drive and continued to and then. But, 377-2142 and she will arrange to operate the hardware store and the accept your donations. Or, you can plumbing, heating and air condi- send an e-mail to the society at tioning business from that location. stay positive. [email protected]. Thanks In 1989, the Gierachs sold It won’t be for your support. the hardware part of Jackson Hard- long before OLD BECOMES NEW ware, Inc. to Gerald Boldt who op- winter’s icy Historic Home to Become erated it as Jackson “Do It Best” grip will loos- Coffeeville Coffee House Hardware on Industrial Drive. en, the temp will move upward,

Jackson Hardware Heating and the sun will revisit us and Valentine Koenig and his and Air Conditioning, Inc., was help melt winter’s excesses. It family arrived in Jackson in 1848, purchased by Gary Wedeward and won’t be too many more weeks bought 40 acres on what is now the moved to its current location on before the spring flowers begin to south side of East Main St., began Highway P, just south of the vil- peek out of the farming and built their home. The lage. Gary, with help from his fa- ground. Then, just farm was passed on to their son ther, operates the business. as we begin to sit back and relax, and George, then to his son, Valentine, enjoy the new life to Valentine’s daughter, Marie, and blossoming around eventually to a niece, Ruth Metzo. us, we realize it is SPRING Jack Kulwikowski pur- CLEANING time. Its time to chased the historic home and is in- spruce up the place and get rid of corporating it into an historic log all the stuff we don’t need. Now, coffee house and kitchen.. Grand instead of just disposing of all that opening is expected in April 2016. stuff, consider donating the good Thanks to Jack’s interest in preserving Jackson’s history, the old So, the business begun in the early stuff you no longer need to the Koenig/Metzo farm home is to 1880’s continues in Jackson today. Jackson Historical Society for our become new again. Thanks, Jack.