Up and ready for day four. Off to the family cemetery sites and small Wisconsin towns of Mike's childhood.
Having lunch in Leland, Wisconsin nestled among the sandstone bluffs of northern edge of the Driftless Area. Micki (Mike's sister - Charlie's aunt) meet up with us. Also grabed a cell tower signal to finish up some work stuff that needed to get done.
After lunch we walked around the Leland millpond. Mike would spend hours exploring this pond and fishing for bass from grandpa's row boat. These experiences with nature turned Mike into the environmental biologist that he is today.
Sprechers Tavern has been in Leland for generations. It is still run by the same family. Mike and the bartendar swapped old stories. What fond memories.
Inside Sprechers Bar.
Next we ran over to Tower Rock School near Denzer, Wisconsin. Mike's grandpa was the janitor here after retiring from his dairy farm. The school is being expanded. Tower Rock is in the background. Looks like a person's face to us.
We spent a good chunk of the afternoon in the Village of Blackhawk, Wisconsin. The church cemetery contains many ancestors. Above is the wooden tombstone of Robert and Clara Hoppe. Robert and Clara are Charlie's great great great great grandparents. Robert's parents are buried here too, but their tombstone is quiet worn and difficult to read. Robert's parents emigrated from Prussia.
The Fingerhuts are another family tree branch. Fingerhut is the maiden name of Mike's grandmother. There are a few generations of Fingerhuts buried at the Blackhawk church cemetery too. They emigrated from Germany.
Mike's mother and Charlie's grandmother is also buried in Blackhawk. It felt good to visit her grave again. Looks like Uncle Dick (Mom's brother) and Aunt Gloria continue to keep flowers in the tombstone vase.
See the following for a YouTube video of our ancestors story narrated by Mike.
We ended our day with a chai latte and Americano at a coffee cafe in Baraboo, Wisconsin and then back to the campsite for the night. Good night everyone...
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