Roadtrip your way through History: Rock Falls Raceway Edition

 

Many of you may watch the Daytona 500 or the Indy 500, but does anyone watch the NHRA Lucas Oil Nationals? Discover the fun of Drag Racing, where two competitors drive down a straight 1/8th or 1/4 mile track and balance speed, force, and reaction times to see who will be the winner. The National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) has drag strips all over the U.S. that people can race at, and some are close to home in Brainerd, MN; Cedar Falls, Iowa; and Rock Falls, WI. Rock Falls Raceway, a short 30 minute drive from Menomonie, has operated as a race track since 1969, when it was originally called Amber Green Dragways and owned by Dr. Frank. In 1979, the track was sold to drag racer Al Corda and renamed Rock Falls Raceway. In 2015, Corda sold the track to Jim Greenheck, owner of CTech Manufacturing.

Amber Green Tower and Starting line, ca. 1970s

      

       

Amber Green staging lanes, ca. 1970s

Rock Falls Raceway is a Division 5 track in NHRA’s West Central Division. The track is also part of the Midwest Drag Racing Association (MDRA), and individual racers can sign up to be MDRA members. Racing at the track usually occurs on the weekends from the end of April to the end of October, with a variety of races for everyone: Test Days for anyone to see what their vehicle can do, racing to win money or trophies, Muscle Cars, trucks, Sport Compact, Motorcycles, High School Racing, Jr. Dragsters, Bracket Racing, etc. Discover a schedule and racing info. Here: https://www.rockfallsraceway.com/ 

Rock Falls Raceway Flyer, 1987

There are a few ways to reach the racetrack from Menomonie: Drive South out of town on UW-12 E towards HWY 29, turn Right onto HWY E, turn right onto Hwy H, cross the Chippewa River and turn right onto State Hwy 85 at Caryville. In Caryville turn left onto 190^th Ave, drive about a mile and turn right onto 1000^th St. and the track is at the top of the hill. You can also get to the racetrack via Cty Rd J, to Cty Rd C, and turn right onto Cty Rd H to Caryville. Or take Hwy WI-25 S towards Downsville, to Cty Rd C, to Cty Rd H to Caryville.

My dad, John Hatfield, has been spectating and racing at the racetrack since the 1970s. Growing up, I spent many summer weekends spectating and being pit crew for my dad, and I have worked at Rock Falls Raceway since 2005. My dad, along with many other racers who race at the track, have a great knowledge and passion for racing, working on cars, and perfecting their craft. The racetrack has gone through many physical and operational changes over the past 50 years, as technology and racing standards have changed. Below are racing time cards, ca. 1970s-1980s. Currently, they are computer print outs that print out at the end of the racetrack.

                    

Staging lanes, only one black top lane, ca. 1970s-1980s

Front of staging lanes, all blacktop surface, 2015

Starting line, with new concrete barriers, photo taken from previous spectator side, 2019

John Hatfield sitting in burnout box, next in line to stage at the Christmas tree

There are also car enthusiasts and car clubs at UW-Stout that love to work on and drive cars, and that have raced at Rock Falls Raceway in the past. From 1969-1979, the Northern Pine Corvettes was a club for people interested in corvettes and cars in general. Around 1977, it was renamed Stout Street Machines and in September 1979 it merged with the Stout Antique Auto Club. The archives has a small collection for the Northern Pine Corvettes, Stout Series 38, with Articles of Incorporation, membership lists, their newsletter “Around the Corner,” event information, and newsletters received from other area corvette clubs.

The UW-Stout Auto Club, previously the Stout Antique Auto Club, founded in 1966-1967, is a current club on campus. They sponsor a car show every school year, attend car shows and swap meets, work on their cars, and raise money for charity.

                           

Stoutonia, Oct. 22, 1987, p. 15

                                                                                   

Stoutonia, Sept. 22, 2005, p. 6

Check out UW-Stout Auto Club’s Annual car show on October 3^rd, 9am-2:30pm: https://www.facebook.com/events/513573972639153/?acontext=%7B%22event_action_history%22%3A[%7B%22mechanism%22%3A%22search_results%22%2C%22surface%22%3A%22search%22%7D]%7D

Drag racing + Area History. What could be better? Check out Rock Falls Raceway. 

A little slice of racing action: John Hatfield making a pass down the track, Oct. 2019

Photographs and fliers courtesy of John Hatfield, long-time spectator and drag racer at Amber Green Dragways/Rock Falls Raceway

By: Julie Hatfield, Archives Assistant, UW-Stout Archives

Additional Sources:

NHRA: https://www.nhra.com/nhra ;  https://www.nhra.com/about-nhra 

NHRA’s Racing 101 article: https://www.nhra.com/nhra-101

Al Corda April 22, 2020, podcast interview (previous Rock Falls track owner and long time drag racer) by The Class Racing Podcast with Aaron and Chuck: https://www.podomatic.com/podcasts/classracing/episodes/2020-04-22T11_37_21-07_00

Rock Falls Raceway Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/RockFallsRaceway  

Amber Green Dragways – Eau Claire, WI Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/651525141556117

UW-Stout Auto Club Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/12924095789

Stoutonia articles via the Internet Archive:

Sept. 22, 2005, p. 6: https://archive.org/details/StoutoniaVolume96/page/n25/mode/2up?q=auto+club

Oct. 20, 2005, p. 6: https://archive.org/details/StoutoniaVolume96/page/n85/mode/2up?q=auto+club

April 5, 1984, p. 5: https://archive.org/details/StoutoniaVolume74/page/n571/mode/2up?q=auto+club

Oct. 22, 1987, p. 15 (Stout Auto Club racing at Rock Falls Raceway): https://archive.org/details/StoutoniaVolume78/page/n169/mode/2up?q=auto+club

Aril 21, 1988, p. 4: https://archive.org/details/StoutoniaVolume78/page/n591/mode/2up?q=auto+club

 

Dunn County News Articles (via the Menomonie Public Library):

April 13, 1988, p. 4, UW-Stout Antique Auto Club auto show and swap meet at Dunn County Rec Park, featuring Al Corda’s NHRA Winston Stock world champion drag car (owner of Rock Falls Raceway): https://menomoniepubliclibrary.newspapers.com/image/542953960/?terms=rock%2Bfalls%2Braceway

Oct. 25, 1995, front page, “New Program lets kids ‘beat the heat’: https://menomoniepubliclibrary.newspapers.com/image/542411791/?terms=rock%2Bfalls%2Braceway

Roadtrip your way through History: Caddie Woodlawn Edition

Do you want a fun way to learn about history? Take a road trip! About a 15-minute drive south of Menomonie, WI, along Highway 25, is the Caddie Woodlawn Historical Park. The park includes the original home of Caroline Augusta Woodhouse, for whom the Caddie Woodlawn book series is based on. The park was dedicated in 1970. Caroline Woodhouse’s home was moved in 1970 from the original site about 300 yards to the east. The park is operated by the Dunn County Historical Society (located in Wakanda Park in Menomonie, WI), and includes a covered picnic area and restrooms, and admission is free. I first visited the park in August of 2010, which is about the same time I visited the Laura Ingalls Wilder (who wrote the Little House on the Prairie series) site in Pepin, WI, for the first time. I read these books when I was younger and like learning about pioneering and Wisconsin history, and I realized I could explore these places I had read about, and they were just a short drive from Menomonie. I visited the Caddie Woodlawn Historical Park again a few weeks ago, and it was a farther drive to the park than I remembered. The place still looked the same, except there is a new yellow “Woodlawn House” sign by the front door of the house. The surrounding area by the park is very peaceful, and it is a good way to explore history close to home while social distancing during the COVID-19 Pandemic. After visiting the park, you could keep driving south towards Durand and enjoy Wisconsin’s beautiful scenic landscape.

Park sign next to HWY 25

Caddie Woodlawn Historical Park Marker, 1970

The original Woodhouse family home

Peaceful farmland scenery surrounding the park

Other side of the park, including the block of Dunnville Sandstone

Looking out towards HWY 25 from the historical marker

Caddie Woodlawn was published in 1935, and its sequel Magical Melons was published in 1939, during the same time frame the Little House on the Prairie series by Laura Ingalls Wilder was published. The author Carol Ryrie Brink wrote about her grandmother’s adventures growing up as a tomboy in 1860s Dunnville, Wisconsin, about a 20-minute drive south of Menomonie on HWY 25. Brink’s grandmother’s name was Caroline Augusta Woodhouse, which was changed to Caddie Woodlawn for the books. The UW-Stout Library houses a 1973 edition of Caddie Woodlawn in the Education Materials Center on the 2^nd floor, Young Adult Fiction, call number: BRINK Caddie 1973.

1973 book cover

In the archives, we have area history books and documents related to Dunn County’s history as well as archival collections related to Caddie Woodlawn and the historical park site. Some collections are:  Manuscript 82, Dunn County Historical Society Records, 1950-1982; Stout Mss O, Downsville Cut Stone Company, 1928-1968 (a block of Dunnville Sandstone is located at the historical park); Stout Small Collection 52, a 1981 term paper by Martha Stratton about Caddie Woodlawn and creation of the Caddie Woodlawn Memorial Park by the Dunn County Historical Society; Stout Small Collection 40, a copy of a talk given by Carol Ryrie Brink, author of Caddie Woodlawn, ca. 1960; and Vertical File 18, Caddie Woodlawn: A Pioneer Girl on Wisconsin’s Frontier, compiled by the Dunn County Historical Society and edited by John M. Russell. There is also a Caddie Woodlawn Country Map prepared by John M. Russell available on the Wisconsin Historical Society website, and articles in the Dunn County News and Stoutonia student newspaper about the Caddie Woodlawn Historical Park dedication and site available online (links available below). When the archives reopens to the public, you could always set up an appointment with us to investigate all the treasures we have relating to Caddie Woodlawn.

Vertical File 18 book cover

Caddie Woodlawn Country map located in Vertical File 18 book

By: Julie Hatfield, Archives Assistant, UW-Stout Archives

Sources:

• ·         Caddie Woodlawn. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caddie_Woodlawn  (accessed 4/21/2020)
• ·         Caddie Woodlawn Historical Marker. https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=31194&Result=1
• ·         Caddie Woodlawn Historical Park. Dunn County Historical Society. http://www.dunnhistory.org/sitecw.html
• ·         UW-Stout University Archives and Area Research Center Historical Driving Tour. http://archives.lib.uwstout.edu/ics-wpd/DrivingTour/index.html,

http://archives.lib.uwstout.edu/ics-wpd/DrivingTour/caddie_main.html

• ·       Caddie Woodlawn. 1973. UW-Stout Library. https://uwi-primoalma-prod.hosted.exlibrisgroup.com/primo-explore/fulldisplay?docid=UWI71301783620002121&context=L&vid=STOUT&lang=en_US&search_scope=Search_Stout&adaptor=Local%20Search%20Engine&isFrbr=true&tab=default_tab&query=any,contains,%20caddie%20woodlawn&sortby=rank&facet=frbrgroupid,include,553543901&offset=0

• ·         Dunn County News. July 8, 1970. “Mrs. Brink Receive Key to City During Ceremonies Saturday.” Menomonie Public Library Dunn County News Archive, 1862-2020.   https://menomoniepubliclibrary.newspapers.com/image/542311775/?terms=caddie%2Bwoodlawn  (accessed 4/21/2020)
• ·         History of Dunn County, Wisconsin. Minneapolis, Minnesota: H.C. Cooper, Jr. & Co., 1925. http://digital.library.wisc.edu/1711.dl/WI.IHDunnCounty
• ·         Stoutonia. Internet Archive. Caddie Woodlawn searches: https://archive.org/search.php?query=caddie+woodlawn&and[]=collection:%22stoutonia%22&sin=TXT
• ·         Wisconsin Historical Society. Caddie Woodlawn Country Map, 1974. Dunn County Historical Society, prepared by John M. Russell. http://cdm15932.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/ref/collection/maps/id/1686

Roadtrip your way through history: Laura Ingalls Wilder edition

Do you want a fun way to learn about history? Take a road trip! About a 50 minute drive from Menomonie, WI, along Highway 25, is the small town of Pepin – the birthplace of Laura Ingalls Wilder. Laura would be 153 years old today, born on February 7, 1867. Along Lake Pepin you can tour the Laura Ingalls Wilder Museum and a replica of the cabin the family lived in (7 miles north of Pepin on County Road CC). I have been to the museum twice and it is a great way to learn about Laura’s early days as a small girl and what Pepin was like during the late 1800s. Discover more information here: https://www.lauraingallspepin.com/ Pepin sits along HWY 35, or the Great River Road, and is a beautiful drive for a fun day trip.

Historical Marker at replica cabin in Pepin

Replica Cabin in Pepin

In the archives, we have area history books and documents related to Pepin County’s history as well as an exciting collection of letters written to Charles and Martha Carpenter of Stockholm, WI (north of Pepin), 1861-1919 and 1975-1977, Stout SC 142. They are letters from relatives, many serving in the Civil War. Martha Carpenter's maiden name was Quiner, sister to Caroline Quiner Ingalls, mother of Laura Ingalls Wilder. Also in the library’s 4^th floor main stacks, we have Pioneer Girl: an annotated bibliography, edited by Pamela Smith Hill, call #: PS3545.I342 Z46 2014. It follows the same timeline as the Little House on the Prairie book series written by Laura Ingalls Wilder; it is like the unedited version of her books. Hill gives context to the events in Laura's life, through research and footnotes written throughout the book.

Letters written to Charles and Martha Carpenter, sister to Caroline Ingalls, Laura's mother (Stout SC 142 located in the UW-Stout Archives)

If you are Laura Ingalls Wilder fans like we are, don’t just stop at Pepin. Laura lived in many places throughout her life, ending up in Mansfield, Missouri. Check out Julie’s fun 2011 road trip photos to the Laura homesites of Pepin, WI, Walnut Grove, MN, https://walnutgrove.org/museum.html and De Smet, SD, https://discoverlaura.org/:  

Map of Laura's Travels, located on outside of Laura Ingalls Wilder Museum, Pepin, WI

Depression where Laura's dugout home was along the Banks of Plum Creek, Walnut Grove, MN

Description of Ingalls's homes and schools in De Smet, SD

The Surveyors' House where the Ingalls lived their first winter in De Smet, SD

Charles Ingalls homestead site, with the Cottonwood trees still standing that Charles planted

Julie very excited to be standing next to one of the cottonwood trees Charles planted. I was touching a part of history!

Photo Collection Includes Fascinating Images of Student Projects

The Iconographic Collection in the UW-Stout Archives holds photographs of Stout student classroom projects. 

 

In the 1930s, the Stout carpentry class created a scale model of Bowman Hall. The picture on the left below shows the building leaving its assembly floor in the Trades Building (later Ray Hall). Below right, the model is fully assembled. (Stout Archives Photographs IS4B6)

Click on any image for a larger view

Students make calculations using slide rules in a Stout mathematics class, 1940. (Stout Archives Photo Collections IS4B3)

Stout millinery students at work on their projects, circa 1945. (Stout Archives Photo Collections IS4B4)

A Stout needlework class, circa (Stout Archives Photo Collections IS5B3)

 The collection includes a variety of other photos depicting Stout classrooms and projects. Plus, the Stout Archives holds many photographs featuring campus views, student activities, and individuals.

Members of the UW-Stout community and the general public may request reprints of images from the collection of the UW-Stout Archives. Contact the Archives for more information!

Diaries Offer Reactions to World Events

Peter Krogstad in 1920

 The UW-Stout Archives collections include a variety of personal collections from Stout Alumni and faculty, and also from area residents. Some of our most interesting collections include diaries, which provide fantastic snapshots of their writers' lives. Before he graduated from Stout in 1920, Peter Krogstad served as an Army censor during World War I. His typewritten daily accounts of his life in wartime France include descriptions of frequent bombing scares, notes about soldiers' letters that he read as part of his job, and details about his social life. Krogstad reported on the arrival of Company H from his home town of Menomonie, Wisconsin in March of 1918, and he sadly noted severe injuries that the group received during an action on the front in August. (Click on each image to enlarge)

Freda Dusel Owen was a similarly avid writer. She was born in Barron County, Wisconsin in 1885 and lived on a farm near Menomonie as an adult. The diaries in her collection at the UW-Stout Archives date from 1942 to 1974 and include consistent daily entries about her life on the farm, area activities, and national events. These entries from November, 1963 are her reactions to the assassination of president John F. Kennedy.

McGovern Advocated a "Humane, Just, Peaceful Future."

The Stoutonia student newspaper summarized McGovern's visit.

On March 23, 1972, progressive senator George McGovern visited the UW-Stout Campus.

Wisconsin's presidential primary was quickly approaching, and McGovern was the front-runner in a highly competitive field for the Democratic nomination.

Although McGovern was initially slated to speak in the auditorium at Harvey Hall, the campus received a bomb threat and relocated the crowd to the student union.

McGovern's speech addressed issues of special interest to students including the Vietnam War, tax reform, abortion, and drug legalization. The candidate stressed his commitment to a peaceful American future.

Stout students responded to McGovern's visit with a strong voter turnout at the April 4th primary. Wards with high student populations reported over 60 percent turnout and a voter total over three times that of the 1968 primary.

Senator McGovern greets supporters in front of Harvey Hall on the Stout campus. Stout Photograph Collection 72-130, UW-Stout Archives

Curious about other political events in Stout history? The Stout Archives webpage includes highlights from a variety of political visitors to campus.