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Here is a brief history of Eagle River and of our store in Eagle River, Wisconsin.
Back in the early 1900's, Eagle River was covered by virgin forests of white pine, hemlock, and hardwoods. Three or four sawmills were active in the area sending down huge rafts of logs to Rhinelander, Merrill and Wausau. After the lull of lumber activities, settlers came and settled on the new cut lands and made them into prosperous farms. During this same period, people from distant points began to realize and appreciate that our lakes and rivers offered excellant locations for summer resorts and opportunities for recreation during the pleasant summer months.
In approximately 1886, John O'Connor built a building on the corner of Wall and Railroad Street, where our store The Moccasin Shop and Treasure Chest now stands. Records indicate that it housed a general store, a saloon, and in its earliest days served as a Catholic Church. Unfortunately, the building was destroyed by fire in 1910 and the corner street stood nearly bare for thirteen years.
In 1921, Mr. E.W. Ellis of Eagle River and A.H. Stange of Merrill purchased the State Bank of Eagle River. They reorganized the bank as The First National Bank of Eagle River. Their location of 2101 E Wall St. was not big enough to take care of their needs, so they decided to purchase the property on the corner of Wall and Railroad Street. There they built the First National Bank of Eagle River building.
After 57 Years in the banking business, they then again realized the building was not large enough to care for the future requirements and growth of Eagle River. They decided to build a new bank building a few blocks down the street and moved to their new location in 1980. The old bank building stayed vacant a few months and during that time Harry and Carolyn Schmidt of Eagle River { Our Parents } purchased the building and opened up The Moccasin Shop and Treasure Chest retail gift store. They had the largest selection of Moccasins in Eagle River. After many successful years in business, they sold their store to us in 1999. We moved here from Columbus, Ohio with our three children. We enjoy living in this beautiful area and look forward to serving you in a friendly and timely fashion.
Thank You For Visiting Our Website,
David and Connie Justice