Wisconsin’s oldest logging camp: Preserving the Holt & Balcom Logging Camp Museum

LAKEWOOD – The lives of the 19th century lumberjacks who built Wisconsin were characterized by strength and resilience — much like the Holt & Balcom Logging Camp in Lakewood, the former depot turned museum that defied the elements and stands as a testament to time.

The Holt & Balcom Logging Camp No. 1 was built in the 1880s during the height of the White Pine era of Wisconsin logging, which turned the state into a logging hub.

“This was the time of the building of cities in the Midwest. It was the time of stretching railroads across the continent. It was a time of need for great quantities of timber for the building of young America. Wisconsin had the resources that the young country needed and the young men from the cities and the farms of Wisconsin were the loggers of the era,” the Oconto County Historical Society shared.

The camp played an important role as an outpost depot that held supplies for the nearby satellite camps. Logs from the camps were transported by stream, river and railroad to the Oconto sawmill.

Another aspect that set the camp apart was the Holt family that ran the operation.

“The great thing about the Holt family was that they were very religious and they treated the lumberjacks very well compared to other [camps],” explained Kathleen Marsh, museum director.

The camp banned all drinking, gambling and swearing. It also closed on Sundays in religious observance — a practice Marsh said she has never heard about occurring at other logging camps.

“They made sure the lumberjacks had the best food and best accommodations that they could provide,” she added.

The main groups staffing the seasonal operation were homesteaders in need of money, sawmill workers that were laid off for the winter and itinerants that moved between camps in search of the best conditions.

Marsh said that it was not only the camp’s location that made it so successful, but also the unorthodox approach that the Holt family used in a career where employees were often easily discarded.

“There were two kinds of people in America then… you had the rich and you had the poor. The poor were cogs in a machine — no one cared if they lived or died. Guys died in logging camps all the time and they go thrown out into the woods, never [to be] heard from again,” she explained.

The logging era came to a close in Wisconsin in the 1900s as large white pines were depleted and loggers continued to move west.

The Holt & Balcom Logging Camp closed operations in 1929. Oftentimes these camps were dismantled to build new locations, but this site remained in place and sat vacant.

After 20 years, the Holt Lumber Company donated the building to the historical society before it changed hands again in 1976 when it was deeded to the McCaslin Lions Club of Lakewood with the caveat that the property had to be restored, preserved and made available to the public.

Marsh took on the role of director in 2007, noting that the building was falling apart but funds and grants were not available due to the 2008 recession.

Through creative fundraising efforts, support from the Holt family and helpful volunteers, the team behind the museum was able to complete the necessary restoration work.
“In order to keep your place on the [National Register of Historic Places], you basically have to keep the building as it was. That’s been difficult because Mother Nature wants back what’s hers,” she said.

During the restoration process, the Lions decided to deed the camp back to the Oconto County Historical Society. The building was hoisted on jacks and white pines were used to accurately replace decaying logs. A crawl space was added below to allow for airflow during periods of rain before the building was reset on its foundation.

“The logging camp was then furnished with tables, benches, tools and kitchen equipment, heating stoves, dishes, lanterns and other materials. All furnishings were from the period of the logging camp use, with a few pieces probably even used in this camp,” the historical society said.

This detailed process took six years to complete, but meant that what is widely believed to be the oldest logging camp in the United States still on its original foundation is able to remain for generations to come.

Today, Marsh and the volunteers share the dream of keeping history alive through interactive tours. As a former English teacher with a deep appreciation of history, one of her favorite ways to do this is through field trips. Visitors range from college students at St. Norbert College in De Pere to local fourth graders learning about state history.

The historical society shared, “The students enjoy a reenactor playing the camp cook and a volunteer in the bunkhouse telling them about the life of a logger and about the tools the loggers used. The students then go outside and mark the end of a log with a stamp hammer and cut off a piece of the log to take home as a souvenir.”

Marsh added, “I’m smiling just thinking about those kids. They have such a great time getting out of school out on the lawn and experiencing the lumberjack life. That’s part of the magic.”

Although school is out for the summer, she encouraged anyone looking for a unique day out or an interest in history to stop by for a tour.

“It looks unassuming from the outside, but when you go inside you can feel the passage of time back to 140 years ago when these men came charging through the woods and there was nothing here but a huge white pine forest.”

The Holt & Balcom Logging Camp Museum is located on the grounds of the McCauslin Brook Golf Club at 17067 Club House Ln., Lakewood. The museum is open during the summer on Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. and is available for tours on request.

Schools interested in setting up field trips may contact the museum to inquire about free busing.

For more information, call (715) 276-3505.