Embedded Files
Town Discovery- The town was discovered when French priests got into a shipwreck on the shores of Lake Superior in the mid 1600s. The priests went down a river to find today’s Presque Isle. When J.J. Foster started the Vilas County Lumber Company on the edge of a pond, this marked the beginning of Fosterville. In 1910, William S. Winegar bought Foster’s lumber company, and continued the lumber industry. He renamed the town Winegar. When the lumber era came to an end in 1933, the mill closed. Today, the old walleye rearing ponds, now Pipke Park, is located in the spot that was once the mill.
1907- Fosterville’s first 8th grade class graduates
"ONWARD IS OUR AIM":
Fosterville's first 8th grade class at graduation
1905-J.J Foster started the logging/mill company started in Fosterville in 1905 to attempt to start a thriving business. Then, Foster gave up on the business due to being unable to manage, but William S. Winegar bought the company which inspired the name of the town to become Winegar. By 1955 the lumber mill and logging companies were well gone. That caused the town to be called Presque Isle (almost island).
1914- The first Presque Isle school building was a log cabin built along the Lakeland railroad. This was a school from 1883 to 1892. With an increase of population a new school was built in 1914. It was located in the northwest quarter. It was a one room building that 50 kids could be taught in. This one room school served as a school for about 53 years.
1933- Logging era ends and mill closes
Logging Town:
This picture was taken of these men before the mill closed. Loggers came from places like:
Norway
Sweden
Finland
Germany
Italy
Ireland
1950- The rearing ponds was founded. A walking trail goes along two ponds near town. These ponds used to be used to float logs in the logging era. More recently these ponds were used for walleye rearing facility. Now the ponds are called Pipke Park.
1955- The town was renamed to Presque Isle (almost an island) in honor of those early French missionary priests.
1960s - Irma Stein started a library in the school building. After the school closed, she moved the library into the old classroom. The library remained there until 1994 when a new library and community center were built and the old school was torn down.
1989 - the old mansion that J.J. Foster and W.S. Winegar lived in while running the mill was torn down.
FACTS
Presque Isle borders four towns and a state. It borders Manitowish Waters, Land O' Lakes, Winchester Boulder Junction, and Marenisco, Michigan.
Three highways pass through Presque Isle, which are Highways P, W, and B.
A couple of nicknames for Presque Isle are PI, which means "Almost and Island", and Wisconsin's Last Wilderness. It was also once known as the "Walleye Capital of the World" because of the walleye rearing ponds.
Some special events and traditions are the Country Fair, Presque Isle Days, and the Musky Classic.
Projects by the Class of 2023
Interview with Marge Thoma .pdfProjects by the Class of 2024
KarsynsKorner.pdfRetreatHistory.pdfProjects by the Class of 2025
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