Historical Society

Taylor County Historical Society Board Meeting Minutes Thursday, November 17, 2022 The meeting was called to order at 9:35 a.m. by President Sara Nuernberger. Present: Donna Doriot, Shirley Pleus, Marvel Lemke, Julie Janke, Louise Paul, Sara Nuernberger, and Mary Schultz. The agenda was approved with a motion by Marvel Lemke, seconded by Julie Janke. Motion carried. The minutes of the July board meeting were approved as distributed with a motion by Marvel Lemke, seconded by Louise Paul. Motion carried. The treasurer’s report was read and approved with a motion by Marvel Lemke, seconded by Shirley Pleus. Motion carried. President’s Report: The Krueger program was a success. Thanks to Dave Fleegel for the use of his theater. More programs open to the public will be planned in the future, possibly the POW camps in Wisconsin during WWII. Curator’s Report: The leadership class from the Medford Chamber of Commerce toured the museum on November 3rd. Recent donations: Hand drill used to drill holes in barn beams, 2 Stanley planes, wooden toolbox, photos of 1953 tornado damage in Hannibal, Navy uniform, fair and campaign pins, old advertising items. Old Business: Repairs need to be made to the log cabin. There are rotten logs that need to be replaced and it needs to be chinked. This will need to be addressed in 2023. New Business: Museum Hours. A motion was made by Donna Doriot, seconded by Louise Paul, to close the museum for the Thanksgiving holiday Nov ember 24th and 25th, and to close the museum for the winter December 22nd to March 16th. Motion carried. A motion was made Julie Janke, seconded by Marvel Lemke, to approve Sara working approximately 20 hours per month on photo projects, etc. 2023 board member elections will be in January. Sara will ask for two more board members. A motion to adjourn was made by Marvel Lemke, seconded by Shirley Pleus. Motion carried. Meeting adjourned at 10:30 a.m. Respectfully Submitted by Mary Schultz, Secretary General Membership Meeting Thursday, September 15, 2022 Meeting called to order by Sara Nuernberger at 5:35 p.m. Present: Jorie Nelson, Donna Doriot, Chuck Doriot, Jim Zuleger, Diane Kellner, Pat Pleus, Shirley Pleus, Marvel Lemke, Diane Albrecht, Bruce Albrecht, Arlene Strama, Chris Finkler, Mary Schultz, and Sara Nuernberger. A motion was made to approve the agenda by Arlene Strama, seconded by Marvel Lemke. Motion carried. The minutes of the June membership meeting were approved with a motion by Diane Albrecht, seconded by Donna Doriot. Motion carried. The treasurer’s report was read and approved with a motion by Marvel Lemke, seconded by Jorie Nelson. Motion carried. President’s Report: The broken windowpane in one of the schoolhouse windows has been replaced and the seal on the bottom of the print shop door has been repaired. Curator’s Report: Recent donations: World War II medals of Ed Pawlowicz , Statement of Election Expenses 1898 - 1908, three antique dolls, milking machine and logging/farming tools , Goodrich School District record books, and a honey extractor. Old Business: The Krueger presentation will be held on October 4th at the Broadway Theatre. There will not be any admission charged, but we will have a free will offering . Donations will be split with the Colby Rural Arts Museum. There is no charge for the use of the theater. New Business: Repairs need to be done on the log cabin. Several logs and chinking need to be replaced. This will be done next year. Sara will get an estimate of cost. The county will be holding the 2023 budget meeting next week. Sara will attend. A motion was made to adjourn by Pat Pleus, seconded by Shirley Pleus. Motion carried. Meeting adjourned at 6:00 p.m. Respectfully Submitted, Mary Schultz, Secretary Taylor County Historical Society Board Meeting Minutes July 21, 2022 The meeting was called to order at 9:35 a.m. by President Sara Nuernberger. Present: Rita Way, Arlene Strama, Julie Janke, Terry Schultz, Shirley Pleus , Donna Doriot, Diane Albrecht, Louise Paul, Sara Nuernberger, and Mary Schultz. The agenda was approved with a motion by Donna Doriot, seconded by Arlene Strama. Motion carried. The minutes of the May board meeting were approved as distributed with a motion by Rita Way, seconded by Terry Schultz. Motion carried. The treasurer’s report was read and approved with a motion by Julie Janke, seconded by Arlene Strama. Motion carried. Correspondence: Prevail Bank concerning a policy change. No action taken. President’s Report: Sara has been working with the high school students on their veterans project, showing them how to find information. Youth Day was discussed. Due to the large number of kids, we will need four volunteers for the museum next year. Curator’s Report: We’ve had a number of visitors to the museum from faraway places such as California, Idaho, South Dakota, and Florida. Cindy Stiles and Mary met with Leroy Spiels to talk about the Indian Farms. Leroy’s grandfather lived quite close to the Indian Farms, knew the Indians well and passed down information concerning them. Old Business: Sara has contacted the Colby Rural Arts Museum to do a presentation on the Krueger shooting. This program will be open to the public. Sara is working with the owners of the theater to have the program there. A gentleman from Menomonie does a program on German POW camps in Wisconsin during World War II. We will probably schedule it for next year and have it open to the public. Taylor County Fair. We do not have enough volunteers, so the jail and print shop will be unattended. We will be handing out pinwheels and whirligigs again for the kids. A motion to adjourn was made by Diane Albrecht, seconded by Louise Paul. Motion carried. The meeting adjourned at 10:30 a.m. Respectfully Submitted by Mary Schultz, Secretary General Membership Meeting Thursday, June 23, 2022 Meeting called to order by Sara Nuernberger at 5:37 p.m. Present: Julie Janke, Jackie Robinson, Jorie Nelson, Donna Doriot, Chuck Doriot, Shirley Pleus, Pat Pleus, Bruce Albrecht, Diane Albrecht, Louise Paul, Patti Smith, Jim Zuleger, Diane Kellner, Sara Nuernberger, and Mary Schultz. A motion was made to approve the agenda by Diane Albrecht, seconded by Donna Doriot. Motion carried. The minutes of the A pril membership meeting were approved with a motion by Julie Janke, seconded by Jackie Robinson. Motion carried. The treasurer’s report was read and approved with a motion by Bruce Albrecht, seconded by Pat Pleus. Motion carried. President’s Report: Sara met with Cor ey Nazer , the advisor of the MASH History Club , and his students on their project to research the killed in action military personnel from Taylor County. Any information or photos would be appreciated. Their goal is to create a book of biographies and use it as a fundraising project for the history club. The county will be updating their phone system. The museum will be getting a new phone which will be integrated with the county phone system. Sara will be meeting with the maintenance supervisor to explain what will be needed for the lean-to on the Co-op Building. Curator’s Report: Some of the donations which we received were a wooden bobsled, a box of courtship letters written between William Brecke and Bertha Richwalski, two photos of the 1934 Medford High School band and a class picture, and a book written by Nadine Block; “Remembering Rosie; Memories of a Wisconsin Farm Girl”. Nadine grew up in the township of Little Black. The buildings in the Pioneer Village have been cleaned and are ready for the fair . Thank you to Shirley Pleus, Donna Doriot and Marvel Lemke for helping get them cleaned. If anyone knows the location of past cheese factories, please let us know as we are planning an exhibit for the Co-op Building. Old Business: Sara talked about using the Wisconsin Historical Society’s Speakers Bureau for upcoming programs. The board members will discuss this at the next board meeting. Sara has contacted the Colby Rural Arts Museum about the program on the Krueger Shoot-out. This will be open to the public and may be held at the Medford theater. Sara and Mary did the audit of the treasurer’s 2021 books. Maplefest and the Youth Expo went well. The buildings were not open during the Youth Expo because of the rain. There will be no hands-on crafts this year at the fair, but Jackie Robinson will be in the log cabin on Saturday with needlework samples, showing how to make vinegar and the steps in breadmaking. Discussion: The storm windows on the schoolhouse need to be taken down and the windows washed in between. Repairs need to be done on one of the schoolhouse windows and the door of the print shop. A motion was made to adjourn by Shirley Pleus, seconded by Pat Pleus. Motion carried. The meeting adjourned at 6:10 p.m. Respectfully Submitted, Mary Schultz, Secretary Taylor County Historical Society Board Meeting Minutes May 19, 2022 The meeting was called to order at 9:30 a.m. by President Sara Nuernberger. Present: Julie Janke, Arlene Strama, Louise Paul, Terry Schultz, Shirley Pleus, Donna Doriot, Sara Nuernberger, and Mary Schultz. The agenda was approved with a motion by Arlene Strama, seconded by Julie Janke. Motion carried. The minutes of the October board meeting were read and approved with a motion by Shirley Pleus, seconded by Louise Paul. Motion carried. The treasurer’s report was read and approved with a motion by Arlene Strama, seconded by Julie Janke. Motion carried. President’s Report: Sara was contacted by Corey Nazer, a MASH social studies teacher, who is working with students of the MASH History Club to research the killed in action military personnel from Taylor County. Sara will meet with the students in June to show them how they can do research to help create a biography for each of the veterans. A list of the names of the KIA military personnel will also be included in the June newsletter, asking those with any information or photos to contact Corey. Sara and Mary did a quick clean-up of the buildings for the Youth Day. It was suggested to hire an exterminator in fall to keep the mice out of the buildings. There are several small jobs such as painting , window repair and fixing the trim on the print shop door. It was suggested to hire Kurt Staab or Eldon Bowser to do this work. Curator’s Report: The museum has received a dona tion of courtship letters of William Brecke and Bertha Richwalski which date from 1918 to 1920. At that time Bertha was working in Milwaukee and William was on the home farm in Deer Creek. A transcription of the letters was also donated. New Business: Sara presented a list of speakers of the Wisconsin Historical Society Press authors and experts. They do presentations on various subjects which we could use for programs to which the public would be invited. The board was asked to look the list over to give suggestions as to which speakers might be of interest. Jessica Michna is a historical character impressionist who does impersonations of a variety of historical women figures. This would also be a possibility for programs Cindy Stiles, the archeologist working with the U. S. F orestry Service on Indian Farm research, will also do another program with an update on her Indian Farms project. Sara will contact the Colby Rural Arts Museum on the program about the 1918 Krueger sh oot- out. Sara and Mary will audit the treasurer’s books for 2021. The Youth Expo will be held tomorrow, May 20th. The buildings will be open from 9:30 to 11:30. Maplefest was well attended with many people touring the museum. The Taylor County Fair wa s discussed. The museum and buildings will be open on Friday and Saturday with the same hours as last year. The June membership meeting will be June 16th. A history trivia game will be the program. A motion to adjourn was made by Terry Schultz, seconded by Louise Paul. Motion carried. Meeting adjourned at 10:00 a.m. Respectfully Submitted by Mary Schultz, Secretary General Membership Meeting Saturday, April 23, 2022 Meeting called to order by Sara Nuernberger at 11:05 a.m. Present: Rita Way, Louise Paul, Arlene Strama, Marvel Lemke, Diane Albrecht, Bruce Albrecht, Jorie Nelson, Donna Doriot, Chuck Doriot, Shirley Pleus, Chris Finkler, Jim Peterson, Sara Nuernberger, and Mary Schultz. A motion was made to approve the agenda by Marvel Lemke, seconded by Shirley Pleus. Motion carried. The minutes of the January 22 nd general membership meeting were approved as distributed with a motion by Diane Albrecht, seconded by Donna Doriot. Motion carried. The treasurer’s report was read by Donna Doriot and approved with a motion by Louise Paul, seconded by Marvel Lemke. Motion carried. President’s Report: Sara has filed the annual report with the Wisconsin Historical Society and has also filed form 990-N Postcard with the IRS to keep the museum’s non-profit status. The Taylor County history book has been reordered as there have been several purchase requests for it. The Kasparek family has offered the museum the donation of a grandfather clock. Future programs which would be open to the public were discussed. The program on the Krueger family by the Colby Rural Arts Museum that was previously postponed because of Covid will be considered again. Sara will contact them. Sara also mentioned the speaker’s bureau from the Wisconsin Historical Society in Madison which presents programs on various subjects. She will work with th e historical society board on this. Other suggestions were programs on neighborhood grocery stores, local taverns and possibly a trivia night. Curator’s Report: The museum has reopened after being closed for the winter months. We’ve received several donations including the 1881 edition of the History of Northern Wisconsin which has a section on Taylor County. Sara will check into getting this rebound. Old Business: Sara and Mary will do the 2021 audit. New Business: Maplefest will be held April 30 th and Youth Day on May 30 th. Volunteers are needed for each day. A motion was made to adjourn by Diane Albrecht, seconded by Marvel Lemke. Motion carried. The meeting adjourned at 11:25 a.m. followed by a potluck lunch and a short program on the Taylor County Normal School. Respectfully Submitted by Mary Schultz, Secretary General Membership Meeting Saturday, January 22, 2022 The meeting was called to order by Sara Nuernberger at 11:00 a.m. Present: Diane Albrecht, Bruce Albrecht, Marvel Lemke, Donna Doriot, Pat Pleus, Shirley Pleus, Rita Way, Kathy Czerniak, Dick Czerniak, Louise Paul, Shirley Werner, Sara Nuernberger, and Mary Schultz. A motion was made to approve the agenda by Diane Albre cht, seconded by Marvel Lemke. Motion carried. The minutes of the previous general membership meeting were approved as distributed on a motion by Diane Albrecht, seconded by Donna Doriot. Motion carried. The treasurer’s reports were read and approved wi th a motion by Marvel Lemke, seconded by Pat Pleus. Motion carried. President’s Report: Maplefest will be held the last weekend of April. The museum will plan to be open. The One-Room Schoolhouse Program will not be held in spring but possibly it can be held in the fall. A new board member will need to be appointed as Irene Fallon passed away last week. Old Business: Programs for 2022: Sara will contact the Colby Historical Society about the program on the Krueger Family. This program was initially going to be a part of our programs for 2020 but was put on hold because of Covid. Cindy Stiles, archeologist with the U.S. Forest Service, will have another program on her research of the Taylor County Indian Farms when it is completed. The Wisconsin Historical Societies has a speaker’s bureau that gives presentations on various historical subjects. Sara will check into this. Audit of the Treasurer’s Books . Sara Nuernberger and Mary Schultz will do the audit of treasurer’s books. The 2021 payroll report was reviewed. The museum will continue to be manned in 2022 with one person with Sara filling in when needed. Budget: The revenues and disbursements rep orts were reviewed and approved with a motion by Pat Pleus, seconded by Louise Paul. Motion carried. The museum has sold all its copies of our book Images of America Taylor County authored by Robert Rusch. Sara will check into having more printed. Painting and staining needs to be done on the jail steps and the windows of the schoolhouse. It was suggested to contact Kurt Staab for an estimate. Discussion on the machinery outside by the garage. The lean -to proposed for the Co -op building is on hold. A three -sided structure where the machinery is presently located was suggested. New Business: Elections: Nominations submitted were as follows, with terms to expire January of 2024. Sara Nuernberger, President Shirley Werner, Payroll Administrator Louise Paul, Director Shirley Pleus, Director Diane Albrecht, Director Julie Janke, Director Sara made a call three times for any additional nominations. Hearing none, Diane Albrecht made a motion to cast a unanimous ballot for nominations as presented, seconded by Shirley Pleus. Motion carried. A motion to adjourn was made by Diane Albrecht, seconded by Shirley Pleus. Motion carried. Meeting adjourned at 11:36 a.m. Respectfully Submitted by Mary Schultz, Secretary