Eau Claire High School - Kodak Yearbook (Eau Claire, WI)

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A wistful, far-away look in the eyes of his grandson made the old man stop. To Charlie the story of his mother's heroism and her love for him, never failed to fan his burning desire to make himself worthy of her, to do some great deed to measure his manhood as she had mea- sured his value. The grandfather seeing the wistful look in the boyfs eyes, passed- to a safer subject. Because of the great wealth of the vast tim- ber lands, the Chippewa Valley gained a large population Lumbering was the chief industry and there was little farming done. By the time you were born in 1850 these operations were well under way, and the large Bgprgpg BARK CANQES QF WILD RICE CATH- forests were disappearing to be replaced by stump ING OJ IBWA dotted fields stretching for many miles, just as they do now farther down in the valley. I never out the trees hereg I love them, they shall stay at least as long as l. How many times had little Charles heard this declaration! And how earnestly it was said. The old man had no desire to better himself. He would not hear of clearing off the land, starting a farm, or building a more comfortable home. Silently theysat straining their eyes and ears to catch sight and sound of the canoes of the Indians in the nearby river. In their ntinds both could see the picture though nothing was visible now. A common scene it was then, the Ojib- way Indians gliding through the many streams. What a picture it was-the almost silent Hgure of the Indian paddling the graceful canoe through the blue rippling waters which were bordered by stately pine trees. The canoe was the Ojibway's chief means of transportation, for they seldom used horses or ponies as did many ofthe tribes. Skillfully were these canoes made of the best birch-bark, and light enough to be easily carried across the port- ages. By the score they were seen going up the 'river laden with supplies before winter set in. Fearing that his grandfather would soon sug- gest that they retire, Charles broke the silence A Duc-our, THE CANOE OF ras with, l'd like to hear again about the fur trad- Sioux INDIANS ers that lived around here. You didn't tell me how they looked. With an elfort, the other put aside the engrossing thoughts of his youth in which he had been indulging, and, after knocking the ashes from his ancient pipe he took up the narrative again. From many miles north they came, these grizzled fur traders, with their dog sledges. They were picturesquely dressed in baggy trousers, tucked in large awkward boots, heavy, brightly col- ored plaid shirts, and fur caps, made of the skins of small animals. The tails were sewed on in the back and were allowed to toss in the breeze. Often these fur traders managed the smaller I- . , , l I ,- 7 , BATEAUX, Aaour 1855 l

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A STORY OF TRANSPORTATION S The last rays of the setting sun slowly sank behind the tree dotted hills of the Chip- pewa Valley one day late in September, an old man, Charles john Gilroy, appeared in the doorway of his crude hut. His weather beaten countenance betokened the fact that it had been exposed to countless winds. From beneath shaggy brows, watery blue eyes stared mildly at the universe. Homespun, ill fitting clothes adorned his person, and he looked just what he was-an old fur trader. He came from Canada to this little settlement called jim Falls in order to live with his small grandson Clikewise bearing the appelation Charles john Gil- royj whose parents were dead, Playing about nearby was this little boy, a freckled-faced, red headed youngster of seven summers. On seeing his grandsire he called out, i'Won't you tell me some stories now ? Perhaps there is time for a few before we go to bed, came the reply. What do you want ? Tell me about how you First came here, the boy answered quickly, about you and father- oh, everything. After settling himself comfortably, the old man gave a long satisfied look at his surroundings, hills, trees, trees, and more trees, with only a few cottages visible in the distance. He then be- gan his oft repeated tale. I was an adventurous youth and couldn't be satisfied at my home in Toronto, Canada, until I tried my luck at fur trading in the Lake Superior region. Here I met and married your grand- mother-she of part Ojibway blood. A few years later I established a fur trading station of my own, and did very good businessg but five years in this wilderness, bargaining with Indians, proved to be enough. ln 1830 we returned to Canada. Later your father came back to get work in a lumber camp, leaving his young wife in a sawmill settlement while he was away. ':Yes, but tell me about my mother. You can imagine how a young bride, a young girl brought up among best society, felt mak- ing her home in this poor lumbering vicinity, inhabited by crude, uneducated lumbermenf' Do I look like my mother? queried the boy. You, child, the answer came back slowly, are the picture of your father, but you have your mother's eyes. The speaker gazed into the small upturned face before him, and could see again the wistful look of the lad's mother the first time she came to that uninhabited country. She was tall and slender, he went on, very graceful, and had abundant smooth black hair and clear gray eyes that seemed to read every thought in your mind. Strong, alive and full of the joy of life. Ah! she was an unusual woman. At first she mistrusted those lumbermen-they were repulsive to her, but she adapted herself to the surroundings and came to be a general fav- orite among them. With her cheerful winning ways she made this old wilderness a magic garden, but ah! that treacherous Indian . . . mumbled the old man furiously. A long understanding silence ensued. Charles knew that next would come the story of his mother's tragic death. Betty one day was standing nearthe edge of a stream near the house with you in her arms. You were about ten months old. Softly she sang, slowl swaying her Iithe body to and fro with the breeze that playfully tossed your baby curls about. Irlow she cherished your ringlets of gold, for her hair was as black as night. After you were asleep she sat down and gazed contentedly about her and finally went to sleep to be rudely awakened by a rough hand placed on her shoulder in no gentle manner. To her astonishment a strange Indian stood before her in all the glaring fierceness of war paint. By gruff sounds and by motions of his hands he made known that he demanded you, Charlie, to be given to him. She refused, and the Indian made signs that in another moon, he would come back and scalp them all. She did not tell anyone about it at first, thinking that he wouldn't return, as the other Indians seemed friendly. Ah, sonny, I can't bear to go into the details of her heroic death. He returned, but your mother was the only victim.

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A XMANIGAN SHOOTING THE RAPIDS OF THE FLAMBEAU RIVER ABOUT 1895 sledges or toboggans themselves, but dogs pulled .the larger ones which were about ten feet long and fifteen inches wide. But how, questioned the lad, did they get supplies during the winter before the roads were opened? For this, Charlie my boy, they had the bateau. lt was a large boat with high pointed ends and used in all logging operations. The keel boat, too, was used. It was per- haps sixty feet long, ten feet wide, and propelled by poles which re- quired the undivided strength of twelve to twenty men to keep it in motion. Often they were poled up the river, loaded, and then floated down again. On the keel boat one man acted as pilot and the others were equally divided on either side of the boat. Placing their poles, which were steel tipped, on the bottom of the river they could walk ripidly in a stooping position to',the stern, and then quickly run back to their former places on the side of the boat and repeat the action. The Sioux Indians and lumbermen used the wooden ol' the canoe because it was more practical and substan- tial. It was made of a large hollowed-out log and pro- pelled by poles which were wielded by four men. 'AAs it was necessary to have a means of carrying supplies from one place to another down the river dur- ing the log drives, a Hat boat with a house on it was made and called the wanigan. ln this all the camp sup- plies were carried. Of various sizes and shapes were the logging sleds used in the camps. Some were pulled by oxen, some by horses and some by both. On the top of the high load ol' logs was 'perched the driver. dug-out to carry their supplies in place : 'T , ' A f g 'l..5FV I b fr .. - ., I if ' ' ' A Doc SLED What is the name of that thing they hauled logs to the river on? That's the 'go-devilf Everyone wanted to settle as near as possilbe to the lands bordering A COVERED WAGON ON BARSTOW STREET ABOUT 1865 river banks because of the great haul- ing expense done away with. These were known as 'go-devil' chances. Like a wish bone 'the 'go-devil' was shaped, and the log was fastened by a chain un- derneathf' Aw, I've heard enough about logging. Tell me about how people come here now, and about that stage coach you said that a man who came to visit us last week rode on. ln Charles' voice was a hint of restlessness, which made old Charlie wonder if the boy yearn- ed to move farther down the valley where he would not be so completely isolated from the rest of the world. Well, he said, the stage was very uncomfortable and slow, and it took a long time to get here, but it is far more comfortable than the covered wagon in which the old pioneers came. At night our friend stopped at an inn to change horses. 'He also described a journey he took on a steamboat,which