Douglas County Past: Superior team shares railroad car with Clark Gable; Maple pioneers celebrated
Oct. 2—Sept. 29, 1938
Yes, fishing's good right in Superior
And South Range comes into town to prove it
Superior's so-called experts at fishing, who must retreat to the most remote spot in Douglas county each week-end ought to take a lesson from the group shown in the above picture. They get 20 pounds of pike in 10 minutes and they actually come into Superior to do it. Walter Helling, fishing from the east side of the Superior entry pier, is shown with a prize catch in the upper left picture, while his mother, Mrs. Emily Helling, who claims to be Douglas county's oldest fisherwoman, is shown in a happy mood in the picture at top right. Mrs. Helling has been fishing for more than 75 years.
"It's funny that people from town always drive out in the country to get fish when we have been getting 'honey's' right under their noses at the Superior entry," says William F. Erdman, 71, another old timer shown in the lower picture.
Sept. 30, 1938
Bare facts: Solon Springs farmer finds four bears in his pig sty, kills two
The bare facts of the story are these: Oscar Peterson, farmer east of Solon Springs, expected to find one bear in his pig sty. Instead he found four.
That was the most humorous incident in a campaign rural residents of Douglas county have begun against sheep and pig killing bears, Game Warden James McNaughton revealed Friday. The bears have killed at least 60 valuable sheep, and done considerable damage to corn fields.
But, to get back to the Peterson story: Peterson had been bothered for some time, McNaughton reports, by a bear who had attempted to raid his pig sty. He set traps for the bear, but the bear apparently had moved on elsewhere. So Peterson loans a neighbor his rifle one day and went to bed that night little expecting a bear raid.
But suddenly Peterson's dogs and pigs began barking and squealing, and Peterson jumped out of bed, grabbed a flashlight, and ran to his pig sty.
Instead of one bear, there were four bears. The dogs quickly ran three bears, one female and two cubs, up a tree and Peterson grabbed his shotgun. He took careful aim, shot and dropped Baby Bear No. 1. He aimed again, and shot Mama Bear. Then he heard a noise behind him, turned around and there was Papa Bear, coming at Peterson on a dead gallop.
Peterson dropped his shotgun and fled to the house. Papa Bear and Baby Bear No. 2 made their escape.
Warden McNaughton revealed that the two bears shot by Peterson brought the death toll in the farmers' campaign against destruction up to five.
On the farm owned by Mrs. Ida Kofal, east of Gordon, a bear was caught by State Trapper George Radisson, after that bear had killed 12 sheep. The bear was a male and weighed 350 pounds.
On the farm of Clyde Haskins, east of Bennett, a sheep killing male bear weighing 313 pounds was shot and kill. A cub bear was caught in the act of marauding and shot on the Carl Dutz farm, east of Solon Springs.
At the farm operated by Eli Savich on Bardon avenue, 10 sheep have been killed by bears. Efforts are being made to trap the marauders.
Sept. 30, 1938
Pioneers plan celebration
BRULE — Pioneers who came to the Maple locality 50 years ago and who cleared land and built the first homesteads in this section of Douglas county will have a prominent part on the program for the two-day celebration at the Brule park Saturday and Sunday. The celebration will honor pioneers of Douglas and Bayfield counties.
Among the prominent figures will be Mrs. Sanna Kirgas, 64, shown at her spinning wheel, who will be among those giving spinning demonstrations on wheels brought to the United States from their homelands. Mrs. Kirgas still occupies the home built 50 years ago from pine logs.
Abraham Harju, 85, is still working on the farm he settled in 1888 at Maple. The Harjus were among the first three couples to settle in Maple. The first was Mr. and Mrs. John Carvala and the second, Mr. and Mrs. Eric Luostara. The Carvalas are both still living and will take part in the celebration. Mr. Harju came across Lake Superior in a rowboat and brought all his groceries that way for eight years, not knowing a railroad was only four and a half miles away. Harju also owned the first horse in the settlement.
Typical of the first homesteads is that wrought out of wilderness by John Pellman, now dead, father of John N. Pellman, former chairman of the town of Maple. Mr. Pellman came to the locality 48 years ago. This picture was taken in 1912.
Robberies in county probed
Solution of three Douglas county crimes was reported Friday by Sheriff Arthur Sedin, who announced the arrest of four persons by himself and Deputy Alton Ekroth.
Robbery of the Poplar pea cannery on June 20, when between $75 and $100 was stolen from a safe, and again a month ago when three shotguns were taken, was said by the sheriff to be solved with the arrest of a minor south of Poplar.
The robbery of two coats and a hat from a car parked at Mrs. Bertha Haack's tavern, on highway 13, Sept. 11, was declared solved with the arrest of Roy Demoure, 24, Superior and Joe Goneau, 22, south of Poplar.
DeMoure was also held, with Wilfred Goneau, 27, in connection with the robbery of a store at Bennett Sept. 7 when candy, cigars, cigarettes, oil, bacon and cheese, with a small amount of cash, were stolen.
Oct. 1, 1938
Coach Whereatt rivals Gable, Superior players report after train ride with noted film star
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Traveling companions on a railroad train never fail to relieve the monotony of a long ride, but when you have a wold-famed celebrity like Clark Gable to ride 500 miles with, you never have a dull moment.
That was the case of Superior State Teachers college's football team, which furnished 27 traveling companions for the famed screen idol, who is en route to Hollywood after a hunting trip in the Canadian woods.
When the Yellowjackets, en route to Pittsburg, Kan. for a football game there Saturday night, boarded the Rock Island Rocket at Minneapolis, they weren't long in finding the car they wanted.
One look and the boys knew they were in the same coach as the movie hero whose name is known in almost every corner of the earth. And they weren't long in getting acquainted.
The handsome film star, they soon discovered, is a "regl'ar guy," an interested listener.
Where the fun came in, however, was in the station stops, where hundreds of girls waited for a glimpse at the cinema star. Coach Ted Whereatt furnished the problem, the boys explain, for many a flirtatious glance was cast at the Yellowjacket coach who was mistaken numerous times for the movie idol. This is easy to believe, for Whereatt is somewhat of a "looker" himself.
Oct. 2, 1933 Telegram
Up and down the street
The birth of twins does not make news. But the birth of triplets — ah, thereby hangs a tale, and, in this case, a tail, for the triplets are calves born on the farm of W.H. Aker, two miles south of Wentworth, Sunday morning. Mr. Aker, a former resident of superior said: "Triplets are something that even the old-timers can't boast about, so I feel mighty proud. And I dare say that these calves are doing mighty fine.
Articles and pictures courtesy of retired librarian Judy Aunet with Superior Public Library.
