One of the significant stages in the evolution of our region's tourist accommodations came into being with the establishment of the family fishing clubs during the late 1890's.

In some cases, groups of families would tent together on a barren plot of land on the shores of a favorite area lake; but the majority of the family fishing clubs were, in essence, like private resorts which were closed to the public -- with acceptance only being gained by the unanimous approval of the other members. The land was jointly owned by each member of the club (often under a corporate structure with officers, managers, and regular meetings) and each owner, or member, would share in the expenses and time spent in either a central lodge or cottage.

Because only a handful of summer resorts had been built in the region up until this time and the "resort hotels" which were scattered through out the area offered only limited space and amenities, these family fishing club filled a specific need--guaranteeing larger groups and their families good accommodations on the lake of their choosing. By the 1920's, a variety of summer resorts had sprung up on many of Hayward's lakes and the need for the establishment of any new fishing club had dropped off.

One of the first fishing clubs, the Round Lake Club, was built in 1895 by the Abe Fox family on Chaqua Lake or, as it is today known, Big Round Lake. A written description of the lake during that era tells that its shores were sandy with a pebbly beach, lined with a beautiful border of mixed timber. Its waters were said to be cold and clear as crystal, being fed by numerous springs, and stocked with panfish and the finest lot of black bass to be found anywhere.

Abe Fox's fishing Club, located in the northwest part of the lake in what is today know as Leder Bay, was a very popular place during the "bicycle days" of the 1890's, where Hayward folks would come for weekend picnics or fishing outings. Anyone who could make the bicycle trip from Hayward to the club without stopping was looked on with high regard. D. S. Peck, Ira Phillips, Lute Roger, Charley Hubbard, and Harry Tompkins were but a few of the early "elite" cyclists of the day. Fox's club later "evolved" into Harry Leder's resort.

Osmundson's Club, another of Round Lake's early fishing clubs and located on the lake's northwest bay, was built early in 1901 by O. H. Osmundson, after he purchased the land north and west of the bay (including Schoolhouse Bay) for $790. In 1905, he sold our to Celia Heffelfinger who, in 1909, then sold to a retired school teacher -- a man named Henry E. Rohlf, whom the bay may have been named for.

In 1911, Jens Jorgenson bought the place and renamed it the Round Lake Club -- running it until 1922. During the summer-time at his place, dances were often held in an outdoor bowery pavilion which was on the little point just west of the island. Another "fishing club", known as Wildwood Lodge, was later built on the point beside Schoolhouse Bay, sometime after a Mr. W. C. Kaiser purchased th east 48 acres in 1923.

On Grindstone Lake, around 1909, Sam Williams built a stately lodge overlooking the lake which became known as the long-established Williams Resort. Also identified as William's Grindstone Club on an old photograph, this lodge was built on a grand scale and still stands today. A 1909 map of Sawyer County listed another club, the C. T. Smith Club, as being on Grindstone's north shore, and the same map indicated that a place called the Grafton Club was located just off the west shore of Bass Lake, now known as Windigo Lake. And, located along the north shore of Tyner Lake (which is now part of the Chippewa Flowage) from 1904 to 1912 was a place owned by John Berger, which their family referred to as more of a resort, but which the same 1909 county map labeled as the "Berger Club". Another club, the Great Outdoor Club, was built on a small lake (North Lake) just to the north of Spider Lake.

But the Hayward area lake where the majority of our area's historic, well known fishing clubs were built was Lac Court Oreilles. Known as perhaps the best-known fishing lake in northern Wisconsin at the time, Lac Court Oreilles was described by a local newspaper of the day (dated June 9, 1893) as being surrounded by primeval forest of dense pine and tamarack stands. Its waters said to be deep and clear with no mud or mire, but gravel bottom at all points. In addition to an abundance of lake fish found here were said to be plenty of game fish, the muskellunge.

Referred to as one of the lake's "fishing clubs" on the 1909 Sawyer County map, the Hayden Resort -- formally located on the Victory Heights peninsula -- is likely to have been the first development on Lac Court Oreilles. In 1889, a group of Eau Claire businessmen bought 50 acres of lakeshore property possibly on the lake's west shore -- for only $60.00, forming one of the lake's earlier known clubs -- the Court O'Reilles Club. This club may have also been known as the Eau Claire Club to some. Another of the oldest fishing clubs to be established on Lac Court Oreilles was the Ashland Club, located on the lake's north shore (on what is today known as Ashland Point) and formed by a group of Ashland, Wisconsin fishermen who came to fish primarily for Musky.

A club which was said to have been established in 1899, the Kentucky Fishing Club, was made up of a group of expert smallmouth bass fishemen from Kentucky. In fact, Kentucky Bar, on of their favorite bass spots, was named after them. Jerome Bartlett, a young club member of that era from on of the lake's other clubs (the Wismo Fishing Club), wrote that he didn't think it was until around 1912 or 1913 that the Kentucky Club first built their camp on the shores of Lac Court Oreilles, putting up tents with wooden floors and having a "colored" cook to maintain the kitchen tent. He remembered the club as having about a half a dozen members at the time, one of whom was a Mr. Payne. During later years, the Kentucky Club had a number of nice cotteges, complete with large screened-in porches, on their property.

Bartlett also recalled the formation of the Chicago Club as being around 1904 by a group of Jewish gentlemen. Still standing today, with its rooms presently being rented out to large groups, the Chicago Club's two-story, seventeen room lodge, built around 1910, stands as on of the lake's reminders of a bygone era. The Chicago Fishing Club was located in the back of the large bay along the lake's north shore, near Lepman's Bar.

Several other fishing clubs which were said to be on Lac Court Oreilles were the H. M. Huss Club and the Signor Club (both identified on the 1909 Sawyer County map as being located on the lake's south shore, just to the west of the Point of Pines) and the Omaha R.R. Co. Club and the Lakeshore Fishing Club (both mapped out as being located on the lake's west shore, just south of Elto Bar). Being that the Omaha and Lakeshore Clubs were marked as being in almost the same location on two different maps, it is possible that they were the same club with the Lakeshore Club evolving from the Omaha Club. Then again, they may have been two different clubs.

But probably the most well known fishing club to be established on Lac Court Oreilles was the Wismo fishing club founded in 1906 by a St. Joseph, Missiour, dentist named Dr. F. O. Cronkite -- the famous newsman's (Walter Cronkite's) grandfather. Sometime prior to 1906, Cronkite had been on a fishing trip to the Stone Lake area and had taken such a liking to the area around what is today known as Wismo Point on Lac Court Oreilles, that he returned home and approached some fellow St. Joseph businessmen and fishermen to see if they were interested in forming a fishing club. The did and in 1906, the Wismo Fishing Club was formed.

The club purchased about 10 acres of land from Mr. Hayden, who operated a nearby resort. The building which the club used as their main clubhouse (said to have been formerly the main lodge of Hayden's resort) was a one-story log building with a living room, dining room, kitchen, and five bedrooms. When the club was incorporated in 1909 there were fourteen member families and one of the club's first orders of business was to enlarge the clubhouse.

A second floor was added containing three suites of three rooms and one two-room suite, bringing the building's total number of bedrooms up to thirteen.

Other improvements done to the clubhouse at that time were: new rock piers were put underneath the building, a new porch all around the clubhouse was added, a new roof was installed, the dining room was enlarged, and the washhouse and upstairs rooms over the kitchen were "winterized". Contract price for the improvements was $2,235.

The Wismo Fishing Club also maintained two or three other frame structures which could be used as sleeping quarters and had a boathouse on the west side of the point. A bunkhouse was eventually added to the south end of the boathouse to give several Indian guides who were regularly employed at the club a sleeping quarters. The guides were fed three meals a day on the back porch of the clubhouse, located just behind the kitchen. Some of the club's fondly remembered guides were: Billy Dingley, Charley White, John Stone, Jimmy Ford, Willis Isham, and Louis Quaderer (also known as Louis Quarters).

During the course of a typical fishing day, the guides would take members out trolling for muskies -- going several miles on their way to a good beach and then going ashore for a lunch or picnic. In the hour before going ashore, they would generally catch enough smallmouth bass for lunch. One of the boats would carry all the needed equipment. It was a common occurrence to get a musky either going to lunch or heading back in to the club. Any muskies caught would be cleaned and baked in the kitchen and then served with the evening meal at the clubhouse. Big muskies were often noted as being caught just before a summer thunderstorm. With the club also maintaining boats on both Durphy and Schoolhouse Lakes, members would often make trips to those waters to try for largemouth bass.

The club maintained an icehouse just to the east of the clubhouse's kitchen and back porch. When the ice on the lake was at its thickest, in January and February, three-foot thick blocks would be cut from the lake, hauled up the hill to be stored in the icehouse, and then covered with sawdust so they would keep through the summer season. It was either the caretaker's or choreboy's duty to fill the club buildings Ice boxes on a daily basis.

The Wismo Fishing Club's first caretakers with the Terrills, followed by the Gruenhagens, Frank Glaze, Mr. And Mrs. Harry Glaze, the Levakes, the Skills, and (as of 1977) the Ruppels. The name of the Wismo's current caretakers is not known to me at this time, but I am told that the club is still operating as one of the lake's last surviving fishing clubs.

At times the Wismo club's dining room would serve as many as 50 or 60 people, with all the members being notified when breakfast, lunch and dinner was ready by the ringing of a dinner bell. In 1973, Mrs. Helen Loch, on of the club members, sent Walter Cronkite -- as a special memento for his family -- the bell which used to hang at the Wismo club. Cronkite's father was ill and the bell brought him great joy during his final days as he reminisced with his son about the many years of good times their family spent at their Lac Court Oreilles Club…Wismo.

Reprinted with permission of John Detloff. Originally published in the Trailblazer Magazine, April 28, 1997.

John Dettloff
Sawyer County and Lake Chippewa Flowage Historian