TheReporter Volume76 lssue3 The Newsletterof the WaupocaHistorical Society Summer2072 WHSBoard of Directors:Dennis Lear, PresidenU Mike Kirk, Vice President; Betty Stewart, Secretary; BobKessler, Treasurer, Dick Bidwell, Tracy Behrendt, Gerald Chappell, Glenda Rhodes, Deb Fenske, DavidTrombla, Joyce Woldt, Don Writt, and MargeWritt WHSDirector: Julie Hintz HutchinsonHouse Museum Curator:Barbara Fay Wiese WaupocaYellowstone Troil Sociabilifi Tour !, Firct, ComeAll YeeWHS Memberc for o doy of sociolizingwith the WoupocaOld TimeAuto Clubmembers. Join us in celebratingthe 7W yeoronniversory of thefounding of the first highwayocross northern U. S.A. Theplan is thot ot noonon SundoySeptember 9th you can join/park in o clossiccor showot the WoupocoCity Square. Bring o picnicor pick up lunchot o localrestouront. At approximalely1:00 p. m. the carswill departfrom CitySquare olong the famous YellowstoneTrail to trovel to the HeritogeVillage of the PortogeCounty Historical Societyin Plover,Wisconsin. Maps of the tour route will be givenout neor the bondstondat the City Squorebetween noon ond 7 p. m. on Sept.th, ond oheodof time ot our Anntgl MembershipMeeting on Sept.6h. Thehistoric buitdings of the HeritageVittoge ii Ploverwitt be openfor visitotionon theofternoon of the gth.See the enclosedqrticle to review the historyof the trail ond Waupoca'sexciting involvement in makingit o reolity. AnnualWaupaca Historical Society Membership Meeting to be Held on September6th Second,Come AllYee WHS Members to attendthe annualmembership meeting on Thursday September6th, at 6:00p. m. at the HollyHistory Center. The meeting will beginon the main floorwith a specialskit entitled "l Havea Question".The skit will focus on the manyresources that WHShas available to our membersand to the generalpublic. A shortbusiness meeting will follow,with a reportfrom our treasurer,and announcements of upcomingevents. The highlight of the annualmeeting will be a special"Pie and Cheese Social" that will be heldin the lower levelof the HollyHistory Center after the businessmeeting. Pies, cheese, and beverages will be furnished.Our members need only to bringthemselves. Guests are always welcome, so invite a friend.See you there! WHSis SponsoringHistorian Wendell Nelson in the WaupacaArea 2At2 Book Festival Third,Come All YeeWHS Members on SaturdayOctober L3, (time of day yet to bedetermined-watch for moreinformation on our website)to the Holly HistoryCenter. Historian Wendell Nelson will show images of centralWisconsin buildingsthat were inspired by ancient house architectural styles from 1-850- L950.Then he will showphotos of remodeledhouses whose styles are hard to figureout becausethe originalfeatureshave been partially destroyed or covered up.His presentation will revealthat, if oneknows American architectural history, onecan engage in detectivework and date any building's construction to within years. 20 Peoplewillfind this interesting and fun. ). Overrecent years, Wendell Nelson has researchedand written many articles on old houses andhomesteads in theCentral Wisconsin area, mostlyfor the PortageCounty Gazette newspaper. Healready has five published for thisyear that involvestriking events or mysteryfactors: "Park Ridge storybookhouse remains favorite of county residents"(January 27,20L21, "New Hope farmhouse isanything but plain", (March 9,2OL2), "Jerome Nefson,his farm and his flour mills", (June 29,2AL2.1, "Nelson'shouse remains bit of a mystery"(July6, 20t2l,and "Doomed Buena Vista house is filled with mysteries",(July27, 2Ot2). Wendellwill bringalong copies of mostof theten bookshe haswritten aboutcentral Wisconsin which will includehis experiences in Clothes Make the Mdn,Clerking in a SmollTownMen's Store, his charming recall of aspectsof Christmasin ChristmasPossages: Ten Memories, and hisDream of Years:A Historyof the WisconsinCentral/Soo Line/Canodian National Depots in Stevens Point,Wisconsin lf youare a memberof theWisconsin Historical Society and/or a member of the Communityand have an old houseof yourown or areinterested in one nearyou, your attendance is certainly encouraged. A Reviewof the WaupacaArea History of the YellowstoneTrail CompiledDyJtJohnson The YellowstoneTrail was the secondtrans-continental highway in Americaand the first to go throughthe northerntier of states. lt went througheighteen counties in Wisconsin.In this areathe roadwould eventually become known as Highway18 andstill laterbecome designated as Highway10. Why the YellowstoneTrail? The route was selectedbecause it went throughthe Yellowstone NationalPark. Establishedby Congressand signedinto law by PresidentUlysses S. Grant on March1, 1872,Yellowstone was our country'sfirst nationalpark. lt encompassedparts of Wyoming,ldaho and Montana. b- ',,,"'.i'-'- Bythe 191G, Waupacamotorists were readyto developa sectionof the YellowstoneTrail. of the WaupacaHistorical Society. -Photocourtesy ln 1912a groupof businessmengathered in lspwich,South Dakota to exploreways to improve the economicstatus of the communitiesin the area.They hit uponthe ideaof combiningthe public's growinginterest in the YellowstoneNational Park and its growinglove affair with automobilesby creatinga trail that wouldaid travelers in reachingthe parkand bring tourists into townsalong the way. Fromthis meetlngemerged the YellowstoneTrail Association. Their ideawas to combinenumerous county roads into one long highwaythat would span the United Statesfrom Plymouth Rock, Massachusettsto PugetSound, Washington. The trail would follow closelyalong the established railroads- not only in considerationof farmersalong the way but to increasethe chancesfor help shouldthe drive/s carbreak down. lts advantagewould be that travelerswould not needto carryextra fuel, water or food as there were towns and villagesthat were seldommore than 25 milesapart and duringthe summervacationing season the weatherwould be coolerfor travelersthan the existing LincolnHighway. TheAssociation did not buildor improvethe roads- theircontribution was in advertisingand promotion.Realizing the economicadvantages progressive businessmen strove fiercely to convincethe Associationto routethe trail throughtheir county. Citiesalong the route were requiredto contribute S25.00to the Associationtowards its advertisingefforts, put the road in good travelingcondition and arrangethe appropriatesignage half-way between it and the city/villageto either side. With no highwaynumbering system, the Associationchose to havethe trail markedwith metalsigns bearing a yellowcircle and blackarrow pointing the directionto be takenby the motorist. Betweenthe signsthe tails cameto be additionallymarked with hoodoos- yellowbands painted on telephonepoles, rocks, trees,fence posts, etc. Citiesthat did not continueto contributeto the Associationand seekways to helpdraw people through their communitieswere removed and the trail re-routed. In mid-Mayof 1915one of the travelingrepresentatives for the YellowstoneTrail Association cameto Waupacato secureinterest from advocatesof goodroads in Wisconsin.The route to the West coast had been completedand the Associationplanned to proceedfrom Minneapolisthrough Marshfield,Stevens Point, Amherst, Waupaca, Weyauwega, Fremont, Oshkosh, and Milwaukeethen downto Chicago.The first TrailDay, when everyone along the routewas asked to work to improvethe roads,was set for June7 anda relayplanned for June15. ErleWhipple of Waupacawas chosen to serve asthe countyrepresentative, or "TrailBoss", and as such attended the May25 meetingat Marshfield. The economicvalue to communitiesalong the route was well recogni2edand at the meetingGrand Rapids,Wausau and Shawanoattempted to havethe route changedto their regionsarguing that the roadsfrom StevensPoint through Weyauwega had been shunnedby driversfor sometime as being someof the worseroads in centralWisconsin. Somefinancial help could be expectedfrom the stateand there werehopes for future aidfrom the federalgovernment in improrringthe roads.Waupaca's E.E. Browne served in Congressfrom 1913 to 1931 and was very consciousof the need for good roadsfor both citiesand rural areas. As a Representativein WisconsinBrowne was chairman of the highwaycommittee for sixyears and drafted the first goodroads law for Wisconsin.He also drew up a resolutionamending the StateConstitution to allowstate aid to ruraldistricts for buildingand maintainingroads. Later,in hisfirst term in Congresg Brownebecame a memberof the newlyorganized highway committee. Wisconsin had one of the first StateAid Lawfor Highwaysand it servedas the prototypefor the federalcommittee's draft of the first lawto providefederal aid for highways. ln the meantimeeach community formed its own localassociation. In Waupacathere was a membershipfee of one dollar to belongto the association.lt was hopedthat in time Waupaca, Weyauwegaand Fremontwould join to createa county associationto better coordinatework on WaupacaCounty's section of the YellowstoneTrail and bring large numbersof touristsinto the communities. The YellowstoneTrail appears to haveentered Waupaca from the west pastChady's Corners (StateHighway 54 andCounty Highway QQ) to HillcrestStreet (known at that time as NorthFulton) and then mergedinto GraniteStreet. (Some believe that shortlyafter the initialroute was established it was divertedfrom GraniteStreet to West FultonStreet.) lt turned onto Main and proceededto Badger whereit turned south and mergedinto SchoolStreet until turningsouth onto ChurchillStreet. From Churchillthe Trail followedAppletree Lane through the originalBarnes Apple Orchard