By Ruth A. Ringelstetter
Along a Wisconsin highway with traffic whizzing past at 55 miles an hour, sits a lone concrete marker. Most people driving past probably don’t even notice it. Joann and I were looking for it, and we missed it the first time past.
The marker sits along the highway at the site of the former inn and tavern owned by George Salter and his second wife Emma. In the early days of the railroad, all freight and passengers bound for central Wisconsin came to New Lisbon.
From there, stagecoaches and wagons continued on. The Salter inn and tavern was a popular place for both locals and travelers.
In June of 1863, George Salter went off to help neighboring farmers with the hay harvest, and the older children went off to school. Emma and her 18-month-old baby were home alone. George always told her that when he was gone, she was not to serve whiskey to the Indians.
While she was alone, a neighbor stopped by and warned her of Indians in the area. She told him that several had already stopped by to ask for whiskey and she had refused them and chased them off. She told him she would be OK.
Shortly after the neighbor left, the Indians returned and demanded whiskey, which she again refused. She tried to chase them off with an ax handle. The Indians took the ax handle from her and used it to kill her. Then they drank the whiskey, and while one of them, Jo Dandy, remained behind, too drunk to travel, the others left.
When another neighbor stopped by, he found Mrs. Salter dead and rode off to find George Salter. Mr. Salter returned home immediately and killed Jo Dandy, who was still in a drunken stupor. The following day, Jo’s brother, Jim Dandy was captured. Mr. Salter said that he would spare Jim if he would say who killed his wife. When Jim Dandy tried to escape, Mr. Salter killed him with the same ax handle.
The Indians were buried in the road outside of the tavern. Gus Nooney, a pioneer neighbor of the Salter family, made the marker, and along with the words, made an impression in the concrete of the ax handle used to kill Mrs. Salter, and later, the Indians who had killed her.
Although the marker is hard to read, a photograph of the marker from around 1925 can be found on the Wisconsin Historic Society website. The words on the marker state "Mrs Salter killed here by the Indians, June 13 - 1863, 2 Indians Jo and Jim Dandy killed by Salter and burried here. This ax handle killed 2 Indians and Mrs. Salter. Puck-A-Gee."
In the 1930’s, there was a movement to replace the crude marker with something bigger and more permanent. Nothing became of that movement, and the original marker still stands. It is very faded, although someone has tried to paint the lettering to make portions of it readable. The ax handle that was pressed into the marker is all but faded away.
It is said that for a long while, the Indians avoided the site except to fire upon the tavern in the dark of night. These days, someone does come to place flowers at the marker, and on the day we visited, there were some faded plastic flowers next to it.
You never know what sort of history you’ll find along the roadsides, so pay attention in your travels. But especially pay attention to traffic and stay safe.
Happy Shunpiking!
Ruth
Shunpiking To Heaven Backroads Blog
Sunday, November 6, 2016
Wednesday, October 26, 2016
Adventures on Route 66 in Illinois
By Ruth A. Ringelstetter
The first place Joann and I ever visited on old Route 66 in Illinois was the former town of Funks Grove. I’m not even sure we knew it was on Route 66 on our first visit. Joann was visiting a friend in Bloomington, and it was a place we could go out of the city.
The old General Store looks a little worse for wear each time we visit, but it’s still there, just across the railroad tracks from the current old Route 66. The depot across from it has gotten some love since we first visited, but the old store sits abandoned.
The next time we visited Route 66 in Illinois was on a trip to the Ozarks in 2008. We always need places to get out of the car on long drives to other states, and I thought some of Route 66 would fit the bill.
Along the route, you can find signs for many of the restored and maintained sites. This sign was at the Soulsby Shell Station in Mt. Olive, Illinois. It offers a little bit of history to the traveler. If you don’t keep notes of your pictures like we do (and honestly, who does?), the sign will help you remember where on your trip you were.
Henry Soulsby had been a miner until an injury forced him to give up that occupation. When he heard that a new highway would be passing through Mount Olive, he took his life savings and bought two lots on the corner of 1st Street and what is now Old Route 66. With the remaining money, he built his gas station in 1926 from his own design.
When Henry retired, his children Russell and Ola took over the station and ran it together.
In the late 1950’s, I-55 began replacing the old highway, which left the station a mile away from most of the traffic. The station continued pumping gas until 1991 when the pumps were shut down. The station continued on, checking oil, selling soda pop, and greeting the new generations that were returning to Route 66.
They closed the station for good in 1993, and finally sold it to neighbor Mike Dragovich. When Russell Soulsby died in 1999, his funeral procession took him under the canopy of his gas station one last time.
Mr. Dragovich and the Soulsby Preservation Society began preservation efforts in 2003. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2004. The vinyl siding was removed, the original doors and windows were restored, and the building was repainted. Today it looks as it did during its best days after World War II.
Another stop on that trip to the Ozarks was at Henry’s Rabbit Ranch in Staunton, Illinois. This one wasn’t an original gas station, but was built as a replica of a vintage canopy style gas station to serve as a visitor center. It is filled with Route 66 and trucking memorabilia. When we stopped in, what caught our eye was the Route 66 Beer (Root Beer). We bought a 6 pack to enjoy on our trip.
The canopy of the station features an old truck and rusty old gas pumps. Around the building you can find old Volkswagon Rabbits and even pens of live rabbits. Old signs hang on the building and dot the grounds, including old motel signs, like the one below.
After this stop, we checked the time and knew we had to get going. We had a long ways to go to get to the Ozarks, so we got on the Interstate for the rest of our trip through Illinois.
The next time we made a stop on Route 66 in Illinois was in 2013 on our way to Ohio. I sort of over-planned the “to” route for that trip, but one of the stops was the town of Dwight, Illinois.
It sits on Old Route 66 and the best stop is Ambler’s Texaco Gas Station. Basil “Tubby” Ambler operated the station from 1938 to 1966. The original building was built in 1933 by Jack Shore with an office and a canopy extending out over the gas pumps.
Mr. Ambler added the service bays, and ran the station until 1966. The station continued on selling gas until 1999; a total of 66 years. Then it was an auto repair shop until 2002 when it was closed and donated by owner Phillip Becker to the Village of Dwight.
The Village restored the station to its former glory and today it serves as their visitor center.
Dwight also has a replica Shell Service Station with a red Ferrari painted on the front. It was formerly a Buick car dealership as well as several other businesses.
After this stop, we did manage to follow my plan and make it far enough into Indiana to be close to our first light stop the next morning. And needless to say, Joann asked me to not be quite so ambitious for first days on future trips.
We so appreciate the people who enjoy the nostalgic gas station memorabilia and restore them for display for others enjoyment.
We’ll have more Illinois Route 66 as well as Missouri Route 66 in future blogs. If you get the chance, get out there and have your own experiences on the Mother Road. In just the last week, two businesses along the route have been damaged by fire, and you never know which will be rebuilt and which will be gone forever.
Happy Shunpiking!
Ruth
The first place Joann and I ever visited on old Route 66 in Illinois was the former town of Funks Grove. I’m not even sure we knew it was on Route 66 on our first visit. Joann was visiting a friend in Bloomington, and it was a place we could go out of the city.
The old General Store looks a little worse for wear each time we visit, but it’s still there, just across the railroad tracks from the current old Route 66. The depot across from it has gotten some love since we first visited, but the old store sits abandoned.
The next time we visited Route 66 in Illinois was on a trip to the Ozarks in 2008. We always need places to get out of the car on long drives to other states, and I thought some of Route 66 would fit the bill.
Along the route, you can find signs for many of the restored and maintained sites. This sign was at the Soulsby Shell Station in Mt. Olive, Illinois. It offers a little bit of history to the traveler. If you don’t keep notes of your pictures like we do (and honestly, who does?), the sign will help you remember where on your trip you were.
Henry Soulsby had been a miner until an injury forced him to give up that occupation. When he heard that a new highway would be passing through Mount Olive, he took his life savings and bought two lots on the corner of 1st Street and what is now Old Route 66. With the remaining money, he built his gas station in 1926 from his own design.
When Henry retired, his children Russell and Ola took over the station and ran it together.
In the late 1950’s, I-55 began replacing the old highway, which left the station a mile away from most of the traffic. The station continued pumping gas until 1991 when the pumps were shut down. The station continued on, checking oil, selling soda pop, and greeting the new generations that were returning to Route 66.
They closed the station for good in 1993, and finally sold it to neighbor Mike Dragovich. When Russell Soulsby died in 1999, his funeral procession took him under the canopy of his gas station one last time.
Mr. Dragovich and the Soulsby Preservation Society began preservation efforts in 2003. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2004. The vinyl siding was removed, the original doors and windows were restored, and the building was repainted. Today it looks as it did during its best days after World War II.
Another stop on that trip to the Ozarks was at Henry’s Rabbit Ranch in Staunton, Illinois. This one wasn’t an original gas station, but was built as a replica of a vintage canopy style gas station to serve as a visitor center. It is filled with Route 66 and trucking memorabilia. When we stopped in, what caught our eye was the Route 66 Beer (Root Beer). We bought a 6 pack to enjoy on our trip.
The canopy of the station features an old truck and rusty old gas pumps. Around the building you can find old Volkswagon Rabbits and even pens of live rabbits. Old signs hang on the building and dot the grounds, including old motel signs, like the one below.
After this stop, we checked the time and knew we had to get going. We had a long ways to go to get to the Ozarks, so we got on the Interstate for the rest of our trip through Illinois.
The next time we made a stop on Route 66 in Illinois was in 2013 on our way to Ohio. I sort of over-planned the “to” route for that trip, but one of the stops was the town of Dwight, Illinois.
It sits on Old Route 66 and the best stop is Ambler’s Texaco Gas Station. Basil “Tubby” Ambler operated the station from 1938 to 1966. The original building was built in 1933 by Jack Shore with an office and a canopy extending out over the gas pumps.
Mr. Ambler added the service bays, and ran the station until 1966. The station continued on selling gas until 1999; a total of 66 years. Then it was an auto repair shop until 2002 when it was closed and donated by owner Phillip Becker to the Village of Dwight.
The Village restored the station to its former glory and today it serves as their visitor center.
Dwight also has a replica Shell Service Station with a red Ferrari painted on the front. It was formerly a Buick car dealership as well as several other businesses.
After this stop, we did manage to follow my plan and make it far enough into Indiana to be close to our first light stop the next morning. And needless to say, Joann asked me to not be quite so ambitious for first days on future trips.
We so appreciate the people who enjoy the nostalgic gas station memorabilia and restore them for display for others enjoyment.
We’ll have more Illinois Route 66 as well as Missouri Route 66 in future blogs. If you get the chance, get out there and have your own experiences on the Mother Road. In just the last week, two businesses along the route have been damaged by fire, and you never know which will be rebuilt and which will be gone forever.
Happy Shunpiking!
Ruth
Monday, October 17, 2016
Early MornIng Surprise
By Joann M. Ringelstetter
On Sunday, a little before 5:00 a.m., Ruth arrived at my house so we could head out for a day of fall photography in Juneau and Monroe Counties. Ruth pulled her car into the garage, opened the kitchen door, and said, “Just so you know, it’s froggy out this morning,” which is what we jokingly say when it’s foggy out. Then she asked me if I could fill her water bottle. I filled the bottle and took it out to the car.
When I came back in, I noticed a small brown leaf in the middle of the kitchen floor, so I reached down to pick it up. To my surprise, the “leaf” jumped across the kitchen floor.
Needless to say, it startled me when the “leaf” came alive unexpectedly. Now all I had to figure out was how to catch the tiny frog so I could take him back outside. This proved to be a bit of a challenge.
Every time I approached the frog and started to reach for him, he “boinged” halfway across the kitchen floor. And I had to keep chasing him back towards the sink so he wouldn’t go under the refrigerator or stove.
Meanwhile, the clock was ticking and it was already past the time we had planned to leave. So I grabbed a paper towel and lunged at him, successfully trapping him in the paper towel.
I took the little brown frog outside and let him go. I wish I could have gotten a picture of the frog, but he was too jumpy for me to do that. And I wish I knew what kind of frog it was. I was pretty sure it wasn’t a tree frog, which I often see and hear around my house. And I knew for sure it wasn’t a bullfrog! (Grin)
When we had finished loading the car, I went outside to make sure my little guest wasn’t sitting in the driveway behind my car. And then I heard something I’ve never heard outside my house in the thirteen years I’ve been here….a Spring Peeper. I didn’t know Spring Peepers sang in the fall, but I heard several again today. And then I read that they sometimes sing in the fall, especially when it’s warmer than normal, which it certainly was yesterday and today.
As we drove out into the country, I commented that it was indeed "froggy" that day, inside and out! I hope everyone is enjoying autumn. Just watch out for leaves that go “boing!”
Happy Shunpiking!
Joann
On Sunday, a little before 5:00 a.m., Ruth arrived at my house so we could head out for a day of fall photography in Juneau and Monroe Counties. Ruth pulled her car into the garage, opened the kitchen door, and said, “Just so you know, it’s froggy out this morning,” which is what we jokingly say when it’s foggy out. Then she asked me if I could fill her water bottle. I filled the bottle and took it out to the car.
When I came back in, I noticed a small brown leaf in the middle of the kitchen floor, so I reached down to pick it up. To my surprise, the “leaf” jumped across the kitchen floor.
Needless to say, it startled me when the “leaf” came alive unexpectedly. Now all I had to figure out was how to catch the tiny frog so I could take him back outside. This proved to be a bit of a challenge.
Every time I approached the frog and started to reach for him, he “boinged” halfway across the kitchen floor. And I had to keep chasing him back towards the sink so he wouldn’t go under the refrigerator or stove.
Meanwhile, the clock was ticking and it was already past the time we had planned to leave. So I grabbed a paper towel and lunged at him, successfully trapping him in the paper towel.
I took the little brown frog outside and let him go. I wish I could have gotten a picture of the frog, but he was too jumpy for me to do that. And I wish I knew what kind of frog it was. I was pretty sure it wasn’t a tree frog, which I often see and hear around my house. And I knew for sure it wasn’t a bullfrog! (Grin)
When we had finished loading the car, I went outside to make sure my little guest wasn’t sitting in the driveway behind my car. And then I heard something I’ve never heard outside my house in the thirteen years I’ve been here….a Spring Peeper. I didn’t know Spring Peepers sang in the fall, but I heard several again today. And then I read that they sometimes sing in the fall, especially when it’s warmer than normal, which it certainly was yesterday and today.
As we drove out into the country, I commented that it was indeed "froggy" that day, inside and out! I hope everyone is enjoying autumn. Just watch out for leaves that go “boing!”
Happy Shunpiking!
Joann
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