Contact: Dolores (Mohr) Kenyon
E-mail: dolores@wiclarkcountyhistory.org
Surnames: Wolf, Pawlak, Bogumill, Parks, Wasserberger, Burkhardt, Covell, Ballett, Klumpner, Morrison, Raven, Klancer, Kasken, Olson, Ingham, Baures, Luzovec, Malaszuk, Silc, Ehlert, Ketterhagen
----Source: Clark County Press (Neillsville, Clark Co., WI) 8/25/2021
Rock Dam Rod and Gun Club Celebrating (75 Years - 2021)
The Rock Dam Rod and Gun Club will have a 75th anniversary celebration this Saturday
at the clubhouse. The club was started by hunting and fishing enthusiasts in
Thorp, Willard and the surrounding areas in 1946. Submitted photo
A county organization all about enjoying the great outdoors is celebrating 75 years of existence.
The Rock Dam Rod and Gun Club will have a 75th anniversary party this Saturday, Aug. 28, from 2 to 6 p.m. at the clubhouse, N8561 Hay Creek Road, Willard. The Cynor Classics Polka Band will provide music. Refreshments will be available.
The Rock Dam Rod and Gun Club was started in October 1946 by Gordon Wolf, Edward Pawlak, John and Claybourne Bogumill, William Parks, Sr., Harry Wasserberger, Ben Burkhardt and Al Covell. Help in organizing the club was given by Dean Ballett, Eau Claire County Conservation League secretary and Al Klumpner, Clark County game warden.
Directors were Art Morrison, Leonard Raven, Frank Klancer, Myron Kasken, Art Olson, Rae Ingham, Art Baures, Claybourne Bogumill and Harry Wasserberger.
The first meeting was held Sept. 18, 1946, at the Rock Dam Resort.
The group met at several community bars, including Southside Lodge, Kina’s Resort, Shorty’s Tavern, The Luzovecs’, Stanley’s Country Club (owned by the Malaszuk’s). Lakeview Resort, Louis Silc’s in Willard August Ehlert’s in the Town of Worden and Ed Bogumill’s.
In 1957, Wolf donated 2.75 acres to the club. The lad was near where Hay Creek flows into Rock Dam Lake, where the beach is now. It has two buildings for the club to host its meetings. In 1962, Clark County changed land with the club, and the club moved its buildings across the road. A new Clubhouse was built in 1964. The club owns more than three acres across from Lakeshore tavern.
At one time there were as many as 300 members from Thorp, Greenwood, Willard, Stanley and several other cities.
The Jamboree, an event featuring a charcoal chicken dinner, was started sometime in the 1950s. The poultry shoot began in 1980 and the smelt feed in 1983. The original ice fishing contest was started in 1954. It was a popular event, with approximately 1,600 contest participants the second year. After a few years, it was discontinued until 1991 when the members decided to start it up again. All of those events continue to this day besides the charcoal chicken dinner.
Over the years, the club has done a variety of community service projects. In 1957, the club built a pier on the beach and then donated it to the Clark County Forestry and Parks Department. The club was also the site of 4-H Angling Day workshops, with members teaching children about fishing and bringing their boats for kids to get out on the lake and fish. The club also circulated a petition to introduce the three-inch antler as the size at which a buck becomes legal in Wisconsin. In recognition of their efforts and contributions over the years, the club was recognized by the Wisconsin Conservation Congress in 1990.
Today the club continues to work with the Rock Dam Lake Association, as it has for many years, and helps stock the fish in the lake. It also provides two scholarships to graduating high school seniors who plan to pursue a career with Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources. The scholarships are given out annually as long as there are applicants who meet the selection criteria. The club also helps the local all-terrain vehicle clubs and sportsmen’s clubs.
There are approximately 30 club members, all of whom like to hunt or fish, or both. The club conducts several contests among members. There are contest for fishing, the spring and fall turkey hunts, bow hunting and the gun deer hunt. Members submit information on what game they caught or shot, and the top three in each category receive cash prizes.
The club meets the first Tuesday of every month at the clubhouse at around 7:30 p.m. Anyone who is interested is invited to attend a meeting and see what the club is like.
“Anyone is welcome to join,” said the club secretary-treasurer Jean Ketterhagen. “We offer a lot of club-related things for members.”
Editor Valorie Brecht contributed to this report.
