The Frontier

More from our visit to Wade House...

The day we toured the Wade House the family sheep were getting a haircut.

A year's worth of wool came off a little at a time under the hands of an expert shearer.

Some fresh trimmed wool was on display.  The lanolin oil in the wool protects the sheep by repelling water.

Humans use it in cosmetics, lubricants, and even in rust-preventative coatings!

Once shaved, the much lighter and cooler animal returns to the pen. I know how much better it feels after a haircut, but I can't quite imagine what it would feel like to lose that much weight all at once.

The sheep pen is a short walk from the Wade House.

Rebuilt on the park grounds near the mill stream is a blacksmith shop, while next to the dam is the sawmill which gets its power from the dam.

The Herring Sawmill is a recreation of the original in the same location.

It was an important trade and potentially lucrative as the mill could make ten dollars a day turning logs into lumber.

Apparently Mr. Herring turned down the opportunity to electrify his mill, choosing instead to use natural water power.

Volunteers continue to run the mill, creating boards while enlightening visitors to the hard work that went into creating homes, barns, and communities out of the forest.

Blacksmith shops interest me because of their magical qualities.  Of course, it's not magic, but physics and science as heat bends iron to the will of the craftsman.

Embers smoke softly until the blacksmith cranks the bellows to life and a flame bursts as the warmth allows for bends, circles, and curves in the tools which work wood, the land, and improve lives.

The horse - drawn livery ride from the Welcome Center back to the Wade House is part of the experience.  You could walk, but it is a lengthy walk, I recommend enjoying the ride.


Most of the historic sites aren't screaming headlines of major characters; rather the sites illustrate captured moments in time.

Just a glimpse of the Wade's life 150 years ago informs and enlightens us today.

Trips to Old World Wisconsin and the other spots around the state provide an opportunity to reflect on the lives of those who settled here creating communities that live today.

The intermingling of then and now may influence future generations in living history.