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HISTORY OF BRUCE MOUND DISCUSSED
Tuesday, March 11th, 2008 -- 11:50 am
Posted by Riley Hebert-News Director
"It's been a little while since I had my first trip down this hill here," reflected Pink Van Gordon, Neillsville, before launching into a brief history of the ski hill near Hatfield.
A large crowd was celebrating the present and looking toward the future of Bruce Mound Thursday night as the new chalet was dedicated.
"The ski club picked the name (Half Moon) off the terrain of the mound here," Van Gordon remembered, "Milt Roskrantz from Neillsville was the one that discovered this place. He told us about. We came down and checked it out. It looked pretty decent, so this is where we made our home."
That was back in 1948.
The land was originally leased, but the ski club wanted to make things permanent.
At first, Van Gordon says, the club considered running the hill as a private venture, but they considered it too risky.
Eventually, the 115 acres was sold to the county for about $4,000. The county began running the facility in 1960. Van Gordon, a former Republican state lawmaker, said he doubts the purchase would be made in today's political climate.
"With these conservative members of the county highway committee and forestry and parks… can you imagine them getting the sale of this land through? But, it's been a wonderful thing for a lot of kids and a lot of people."
"It sure is beautiful," Van Gordon continued, "I appreciate everything you've done to make this a marvelous place for kids."
By the way, the ski club's first tow rope was powered by the engine of a '28 Oldsmobile, Van Gordon said.
On the Web:
More on the history of Bruce Mound
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