The author has presented over a thousand programs on the Christmas Tree Ship during the past decade at schools, libraries, museums, historical societies, and for civic organizations. Her power-point presentation includes many of the century-old photographs of Captain "Santa" Schuenemann, his family, and his ship. In addition, she brings several artifacts along with her to share with the audience including an actual Christmas tree from the cargo. Underwater photos of the ship with its trees still visible in the cargo area are included with the program as well.

In 1876, Band member, Fred Wild, general freight agent for the Racine & Southwestern Division of the Western Union Railroad (the Western Union Railroad was later known as the Chicago, Milwaukee, and St. Paul Railroad), learned that the island was still owned by the federal government. He sent an agent to a land sale at Neenah with instructions to acquire the island. The agent did so, paying the government $14 for the island, which was then named Island Wild.

Fred Wild then conveyed the island to Gideon's Band. The Band built a hotel in 1881. The hotel was one of the earliest buildings in the Burlington area to have a telephone when a wire was put up between C. W. Wood’s drug store on Pine Street and the island in June 1881.

One newspaper article that summer reported that the fishing and boating was excellent, and "game," such as seven-up, ten-cent-ante, and poker, was wonderfully abundant, and greatly enjoyed.

In 1882 a steamer owned by Gideon’s Band plied the lake, and a floating boat house was built. Hard times ensued, however, and the Band’s mortgage was foreclosed in 1883.

In 1885, the island was sold to the Iona Catholic Men’s Club of Chicago, which renamed it St. Mary’s Island. One of the Club members, David F. Bremner, president of Bremner Brothers Biscuit Co., and his wife, Katharine McGregor Bremner, bought the island from the Iona Club in 1894 for use as a summer home for the Bremner family. The island has since been known as Bremner’s Island.

Century-Old Diary Presents a Glimpse of a Pioneer Christmas
               By Vern Wolf

This article, which appeared in the Standard-Press of December 21, 1961, recounts a few activities of Alma Montgomery Aldrich (1837-1902). Mr. Aldrich came with his parents, Mr. and Mrs. William Aldrich, to Wisconsin in 1847 and settled on a farm about 3 miles west of Burlington, in Spring Prairie township. He remained there until he retired from the farm and came to Burlington in 1889. In Spring Prairie, he was a supervisor and chairman of the town board and was elected assemblyman in 1877. After coming to Burlington, he was twice elected chairman of the town of Burlington, twice elected president of the village, and was elected to the Racine County board of supervisors, where he served as chairman of the board for several terms.

Has the observance of Christmas always been one mad whirl of parties, gift giving preceded by an even more frenzied period of preparations and shopping that the season is typified by today?

We would answer in the negative at least when we think of the observance of Christmas in this area between 90 and 100 years ago. Of course, we may be drawing an unwarranted conclusion since all the evidence we have of Christmas observance merriment is based on a few excerpts from a single person’s diary of 1853, ‘54, ‘55, ‘56, and ‘72. The diary referred to is that of A. M. Aldrich, great grandfather of Mrs. Wallace Zabler (nee Donna Peck).

Mr. Aldrich, a Mormon, was named Alma after one of his books of the Mormon Bible. Excerpts from his diary for December 23, 1853, tell us that he went to school in the morning and then in the evening went to a Christmas ball at Vienna (near Honey Creek). He lived at that time in the same house presently occupied as a home by the Wallace Zablers at the top of the hill on highway 11.

The diary entry for December 24 of that same year is as follows: "Got back from Vienna about 5 a.m., helped with the chores and went to bed for about an hour and a half and then went to school." Christmas was on Sunday that year and according to the diary the young man went to visit a Mr. Bartholf with his mother and then went on to see a Mr. Gaylord. When he returned home he went on another visit to a Mr. Eastman. He reports that his father went to Waterford to get Henrietta and her sister, "the latter to work for uncle." No mention is made of any gift giving or religious service on Christmas day.

The day after Christmas he reported that he went to school and mentioned that there was a ball and oyster supper at Spring Prairie that evening.

The entry for Christmas day 1855, reports that father took Miranda home and paid her $15 for four weeks work. He wrote in the diary that he went to Burlington with the hired man and before he returned he went to the depot to see if a buggy which had been ordered had arrived. He noted that it had not. In the evening he reported that a Mr. Lincoln called that evening. Aldrich reported that the weather was cold and that the "Thermometer was below zero all day."

The entry for Christmas 1854 was missing from the diary. The next mention of the holiday season was that for January 1, 1856. He reports that he stayed home in the morning and that he went to Burlington in the afternoon to visit a Mr. M. S. Ayres (probably Maurice L. Ayers) and then to call on another person where he collected $5 on account for some work he had done. He then went on to Rochester to the ball and oyster supper. About this social event he reported, "I was well pleased with it, there being about enough to have it pass off pleasantly, 130 couples, all agreeable."

The only other mention of the holiday season and its observance was that from a diary from 1872, which also included the household account. (Mr. Aldrich had married Sarah Elizabeth Hewitt of Rochester in 1865 and had two sons, Charles born in 1866 and George born in 1868.) In the entry for December 24 of that year, we found, "bought nuts, candy and crackers." That was the only entry regarding any purchase for the holiday that we found in the rather limited diary account of those days of yesteryear.

It appears that the observance of Christmas in at least one home in the Burlington area between 90 and 110 years ago was much quieter than it is today. It appears that it was pretty much just another day in the lives of those pioneers.

Society Has New Storage Building

After being closed for three years for interior and exterior renovation and addition of a second floor, the Society’s Museum was re-opened to the public on October 9. A good-sized crowd visited the Museum that day and many more people have visited since then during the Museum’s regular hours on Sunday afternoons. In addition, some scout and other groups have visited the Museum at other times for conducted tours.