Archivist Janet Berggren's page, ADVENTURES IN THE ARCHIVES,
became my favorite page in the Island Observer.

Washington Island -

I attended a meeting of the Washington Island Archives last Tuesday afternoon (which by coincidence also happened to be my birthday).

Everything went smoothly and routinely initially, my first meeting as committee chair since Eric Greenfeldt resigned as our long-term chairman in May, due to personal obligations that take him away from the Island. (Eric stayed on as a committee member, however.)

But, as Janet Berggren concluded her Archivist's report, she looked quietly first at the table top, then at the ceiling lights, and drew a deep breath before announcing that she would retire at year's end.  

This was quite a shocker to those around the table, let me say!  (I have to admit it was "right up there" with the time I was elected American Legion Post Commander when attending my second meeting in 1975 (the other four or five men in attendance already had their turn and were waiting for new blood)... or the time I consented to take the role of Church Council President, only to have the minister resign a few months later, followed by the church furnace giving up a few months after that.   Unforgettable times, all.)  

We'll miss Janet when she leaves in late December.  She said she's looking "to carve out some 'retirement' time.  One can never stop learning, and I've learned that when it comes to Island history, the road is a seemingly endless path leading from one treasure to another."  I can't help but agree with her inclinations, and wish her nothing but the best.

Janet has great skills, including the talent to put together an outstanding, polished Archives page in the Observer, drawing us in with her humor and light mystery.  She'll be with us a few more months, and during that time we hope to select her replacement, someone who can benefit by working alongside Janet before she goes skiing, or whatever she has in mind!

On another note, the Island Archives lost a friend and a great volunteer in David Raup this summer, a man with tremendous career accomplishments in paleontology, yet someone most of us hardly knew because he was quiet and unassuming.  He kept the Archives computers humming by updating software and looking for suitable machines that still ran on his favored XP software.   Janet's remarks, delivered at Dave's Memorial Gathering on Saturday, Sep. 19, titled "Remembering Dave Raup," will be published in the next Island Observer issue.

Never static

Organizations are dynamic, always changing, and the Island Archives is no different.  It would be a mistake to believe Island events and committees run on auto pilot, seldom deviating from course, with little effort expended to keep the ship moving forward.

Established routines, understood job descriptions, and a history built around successful events helps, but in the end it is the plain, hard work of many members and participants that makes a success of Island events.   These highlights make a significant contribution to our "tourism summer":   the Birding Festival; Paddlefest; the Lions Club Fly-In Fishboil, and the Fair;  the Women's Club International Food Festival; Art In The Park at the ANC;   Scandinavian Dance Festival;  the Music Festival;  the Rec Run and Walk;  the American Legion Memorial Day Program and Fish Boils;  Death's Door BBQ;  the Friends of Rock Island picnic;  and the recently held Literary Festival.  I know I've forgotten many others, for which I apologize.

These are but the tip of the iceberg.  Lots of work goes into putting on these events, and I believe each one of those named above is sponsored by a non-profit organization and staffed by volunteers.  The cumulative effect is an Island that bustles with energy, ideas, creativity and promise.  It's captivating and contagious, and not just for first time visitors.   Residents often make up the bulk of the patronage at these events, both pitching in to help and enjoying the activity.

There's good reason we choose living here, beyond the beauty and awe of this natural world.   The closeness of a working community is a strong part of that reason.  There's nothing better than to be invested in your community, knowing that your work, using your hands and head, contributes to the overall economic and social well-being of the Island.

-  Dick Purinton    

COLD WEATHER, THORDARSON and Annoyances

Steam rose from the lake with single-digit temperatures Friday. 

Detroit Harbor, Washington Island -

Temperatures dipped in to single digits and teens the past several days.  Steam rose from open water.  In the shallower harbor, ice crept outward farther each day, solid now except for a few holes from warm currents, here and there.  This Sunday morning skim ice formed out the channel, a first for this season.  Dredging moves forward, but the project's close-down gets closer as extra-cold temperatures
create more difficulties for dredging and trucking operations.

Channel dredging, Monday, Dec. 2.

Just last Monday, following the Thanksgiving weekend, we experienced a calm, relatively mild day.  Hardly a ripple was seen on the water, and low cloud cover created a green cast to the water as we headed out the channel.   Equipment on the crane barge reflected in the calm surface.  By Thursday, Dec. 5th, with sharply dropping temperatures and gale winds from the WNW, only the first ferry trip of the day was made.  The day's remaining trips were cancelled.

Interview with WPR

I traveled to Green Bay with Mary Jo last week for appointments and shopping, and while in a motel room Thursday afternoon, I phoned in for an interview with the hosts of "Central Time," Wisconsin Public Radio's weekday afternoon time slot.  (Find interview at WPR Archives - Dec. 5th, 3 p.m.)  The 15-minute discussion was to be on "Thordarson and Rock Island," but initial questions posed by the hosts began with a statement that Rock Island was an Icelandic village, and that the buildings there reflected Icelandic architecture.

So, before we got rolling, I interjected with clarifications.  I explained that the buildings incorporated unique design elements, including Mediterranean-style tiled roofs, but they were not "Icelandic" in any way.  It was not Thordarson's intentions to create an "Icelandic village."

True, details are found in the Rock Island boathouse today, most notably on the carved furniture, that give the visitor an impression this building was heavily influenced by its Icelandic owner, Thordarson.  Icelandic wood carver Halldor Einarsson furthered Thordarson's Icelandic interests by carrying out Norse mythological themes in his furniture carvings.  However, the furniture pieces displayed there now were built and carved for use in his Chicago office.  Only later, toward the end-years of his life in 1941, did Thordarson move those furniture pieces to Rock Island.

For anyone who reads my book, trying to straighten out such "myths" about Rock Island was a stated incentive behind my writing efforts.  The best that can be said is that Thordarson, with his Icelandic roots, influenced how he wished his estate to look, based on things seen and read, with perhaps a strong desire to use materials that were as practical and durable as possible.  (Stone walls, concrete sills, cypress window frames, and tile roofs were used in many of his 1920s era buildings.)

I'm more convinced than before, given the initial direction of this recent WPR interview, that the historical signage found on the Rock Island grounds (and on similar signs located on the State Park Dock in Jackson Harbor) may be at fault.  Information provided on those boards - despite all of the useful information they do provide - perpetuates certain errors through statements that incorrectly reflect Rock Island's development under Thordarson.

These may seem like finely-shaved points to talk show hosts, but at some point a corrected version needs to be emphasized.  The reality of what exists is quite interesting and captivating without such embellishment, whether intended or not.  

More musings from the Weed patch

Nikki Weed has gone underground for the time being, at least as far as Washington Island communications are concerned.   But before disappearing, she wrote a short piece for the "Sandlappers" newsletter, for a chapter of BMW car owners.

https://www.bmwcca.org/sites/default/files/newsletters_for_chapters/SANDLAPPERb327396443a0371eda9491e4339cfd07.pdf 

Weed's style can be characterized as lacking in both accuracy and substance.  But, imagination she does have, like when she describe the "long" ferry ride.  (I presume she meant it was too long for her attention span.  Not that the distance (4.5 miles) or time (less than 30 minutes) would be considered long by most standards.

Well, judge for yourself.  I suppose - even though she insinuates rather than identifies - that hers is the red car parked alongside the Island Observer office.  Was Weed double-parked?   Had she consumed too much alcohol before getting behind the wheel for her return trip by ferry?  Did alcohol intake, losing track of time, or combined disfunction cause her to miss that last scheduled ferry?

Armed with good intentions to fellow Beamers, Weed forewarns them about taking ferry boats to small "scenic" islands.  She boldly recycles her observations and opinions in the following piece (the image is a photo of my computer's screen with the offending page shown).

As fellow boatman Don Kilpela commented regarding my blog of last Sunday- and Kiilpela's family DOES operate a long passenger route, to Isle Royale on Lake Superior):
    "BMW magazine?  Haha.  Move along.  Move along."        -  Dick Purinton

A CALL TO FAIRNESS IN REPRESENTATION!

Washington Island, Wisconsin -

The image above is of a page from the BMW owner's magazine (Roundel - Nov. 2013), of  a column written by Nikki Weed titled, "The 1 Series travels to Devil's Island."

As poorly researched, written and disguised a journalism piece as that is, it is even more surprising that the reputable carmaker BMW's magazine editors would print her submission.

But, we'll let you read it for yourself, as many Islanders already have.  (You may want to go to the Roundel website and print your own copy for easier reading.)

In the interest of fairness, and at least the resemblance of balance, Weed and her editors ought to retract their words with an apology, and perhaps print a selection of some of the comments representing a more realistic (and positive) side of Washington Island, not just the thinly distorted slice presented by Weed.

A well-written, solid response to Ms. Weed was written by youngest son, Thor Purinton, visiting over Thanksgiving.  He "penned" his first draft using an iPhone, while waiting in line for the ferry at Northport.   His comments (Nov. 30, 2013) follow:

Dear Ms. Weed:

I write to you today regarding a column you wrote entitled, "The 1 Series travels to Devil's Island," published in Roundel magazine, November 2013.  What you said in that column about the people of Washington Island, and ferry captains in particular, was insulting and offensive.   I demand - and expect - an apology from you and your editor.  It's unfortunate that you seem to have had a bad experience there, and I do not presume to tell you how to feel.  You are certainly entitled to your opinion, whether or not I find it offensive, but your editor should certainly know better.  "Devils Island" is a pretty thin veil - enough to protect your publication from accusations of libel, perhaps, but transparent to any reader familiar with Door County geography.  There is, after all, only one island in Door County with regular car ferry service, and the list of ferry captains in Door County is a short one.  All of the people on that list I call friend, and two of them are members of my immediate family.  It may surprise you to learn that at least one of them is an accomplished author.   I'll let you use your sharp journalistic skill to figure out who that may be…

It's difficult, as I write this, to avoid attacking you personally, as I did just now.  I apologize for that, and for those quips that may slip through hereafter.  Such is the visceral nature of my reaction to your column.  But let me be clear:  I want to be your friend, Ms. Weed, and in the spirit of friendship I'd like to try to clear up some of the obvious misunderstandings in your piece.  First and foremost, the only ill will you will find on the island is that which you bring with you.  In your column, you adopt a tone of being in some sense better than the locals you encountered.  Now, looking down your nose at every one you meet is hardly the way to make friends, is it?  I think all of us, yourself included, tend to get defensive in perhaps an abrasive way when confronted by a stranger who considers himself - or herself - their better.  That's just human nature.

Since we're already on the subject, I'd like to talk a little more about your tone and your intended audience.  Your tone seems to be that of an urban, upper-middle-class automobile enthusiast who looks down on those in less "civilized" areas, in tougher economic circumstance, or who don't happen to bear a striking resemblance to Ann Coulter.  I'm worried that you, by writing from the perspective of a typically urbane BMW owner out for an adventure among the rustics, are doing a disservice to other BMW owners, many of whom are in actuality well-adjusted adults.  That your editor read and approved the piece before publishing speaks to the contrary, and is a condemnation of his or her diligence.

The other misunderstandings are relatively straightforward. Calling the Island uncivilized is perhaps obvious to someone from an urban area, and let's face it, what most others would call a small town seems big to an islander.  But what exactly were you expecting to find there?  Curbs?   Traffic signals? A Starbucks nestled at the foot of a twenty-story office building?  I would argue that the bedrock of civilization is a sense of community, a cooperative spirit.  These qualities are necessary for a community that relies mainly on tourism for its economic well being in a climate that permits at best a five-month tourist season, and I'm sure you can understand that a column such as yours, even in a reasonably obscure car club newsletter, raises our hackles a bit.

Also worth noting, Old Style is not the libation of choice on the island.  It's probably a close race between Anheuser Busch and Miller products, just like the rest of America, but you may be surprised to learn that Capital Brewery, of Madison, Wisconsin, brews a number of beers exclusively from grain grown on the island.  There is also a line of spirits, under the moniker of "Death's Door,"  distilled near Middleton, Wisconsin, from Island-grown ingredients.  Both beer and spirits are quite tasty, and I invite you to try them at your leisure.   If none can be had where you are, I'd be happy to mail you a sampler.

And now to your jab at ferry captains, your coup de grace as it were.  You begin by saying that you missed the last ferry.  If you like, I'd be happy to explain what a schedule is and how it works, and answer any questions you may have about what time the 5:00 boat actually leaves.  I suspect you may have been a little angry at yourself for missing it.  All of us who call ourselves islanders know how that feels.  It certainly was lucky that there was an extra trip that night, or some innkeeper or there would likely have had to square off against a crafty, fast, multisyllabic speaker armed with such vertiginous and obtuse bits of thrasymachian sophistry as to make Plato himself blush in frustration.

In summation, I am not happy that a self-described "random blonde" came to the place I call home, insulted it and the people with whom I share it, and then went out of her way to insult a captain who was certainly my friend, and may also have been my brother or father.  For that, I require an apology. As you may expect, an island full of American steel is pretty short on subscriptions to Roundel.  I suggest a heartfelt, concise apology be sent to the local paper, the (Washington Island) Observer, at:
   
    Washington Island Observer
    1253 Main Road
    Washington Island, WI  54246
    office@washingtonislandobserver.com

Going forward from there, I'd like to invite you to visit the Island again.   I would relish the opportunity to prove to you how wrong you were, to show you the places and introduce you to the people that make this island so special.  

Very Sincerely Yours, Thor Purinton   
thorpurinton@yahoo.com

PS:  I've taken the liberty of reading the portions of your blog that aren't password protected, in an effort to get a better sense of your background and writing style.  You'll find I am follower number twenty-two.  It occurred to me that your column was maybe a misguided attempt at humor, which to be perfectly honest, is a whole lot more troubling than a simple bad experience or misunderstanding.  Make no mistake, Ms. Weed, to make game of a community in that manner is mean-spirited, and belies a profound insecurity on the part of the author.  So, I wasn't all that surprised to learn that you have had trouble with eating disorders, it being the case that those disorders are often rooted in one's self-image.  Battling that sort of thing takes no small amount of courage, and you have my sympathy and support. But, I promise you, your road to happiness will be much smoother if you can find more positive ways to express yourself.

Cheers - Thor

PSS:
A few observations on the craft of English composition:   You will find that readers take what you have to say more seriously if you can refrain from describing things, and especially yourself, as random.  You will also find that relying less heavily on parenthetical interjections will force you to structure sentences in a way that is clearer and more direct.  It's a habit that's hard to break, I know.   I once went through a phase when I thought that frequent use of semicolons made me sound more intelligent. It certainly did not.  Good, sound, inexpensive advice on the nuts and bolts of writing can be had at many community colleges all across this great nation of ours, and I am confident that you would be pleasantly surprised at how rewarding mentorship in the areas of creative and expository writing and poetry can be.    

-   T

[A "well-done" to youngest son, Thor, who originally learned about the Roundel piece from Facebook connections with Island friends and was inspired to try to balance the record. - Pops]

   -   End  -

BOOK REVIEW

A BOOK REVIEW

Washington Island, Wisconsin -

[Note:  Thanks to Norman Gilliland, one of the Island Literary Festival presenters in early October, and a Wisconsin Public Radio producer and host, I'll have the opportunity to be interviewed on Wisconsin Public Radio's "Central Time."  (Sister Bay station is WHDI 91.9 FM) -     3:12 p.m.,  December 5th.   Hope you'll join me there…]

            ***                                     ***

The following review by Charlie Calkins appeared in the November 14 Island Observer:

Thordarson and Rock Island by Richard Purinton 

  

Washington Island, WI:   Island Bayou Press, 2013 (XXVIII and 436 pages).

Dick Purinton has done it again!  With the recent publication of his fourth major book, Thordarson and Rock Island, he has made another significant contribution to the Door County bookshelf.  And it should be noted that this work – consistent with his three previous books – is very much unlike the earlier ones in subject matter.

The title might suggest that Purinton is providing us with a traditional biography of Thordarson, a Chicago electrical industry innovator and Rock Island, Door County, recreational property owner.  Such is not the case.  The author is very careful to be explicit about his intentions:  “What appears in these pages…isn’t a biography…but rather excerpts from Thordarson’s life placed in an understandable sequence, depicted through correspondence, documents and photos.”  (p. IX)   Put another way, Purinton wants his readers to understand the relationship his subject had to this particular place (Rock Island) and the relationships Thordarson had with the many people who tried to help him transform his property into his envisioned dream. Make no mistake.  This is a formidable task.

Purinton relies very heavily on Thordarson’s own correspondence to tell his subject’s story.  The letters alone, however, would not tell much of Thordarson’s transformation of Rock Island.  It was incumbent on the writer to provide the backgrounds and transitions as he generally moves chronologically from one episode to another in Thordarson’s ownership of Rock Island.  Purinton does a masterful job in providing the reader with the background information needed to follow the meaning and understanding of Thordarson’s intent in writing his letters.  The reader comes away believing he / she does understand the flow of ideas, actions, and results.  This is paramount in following Purinton’s purpose.

A glance at the chapter headings suggests, for the most part, standard topics covered in a general chronological order.  “Rock Island Property Purchase,”  “Boathouse Construction,”  “Game Management Escalation,” and “Contemporaries in Door County” are examples.  But what about “A Magnificent Library, A Lifetime of Books”?  What does this have to do with a Rock island recreational property?  Purinton details Thordarson’s lifetime love of the printed word, especially science related books.  Over the years he amassed a spectacular collection of books, which were ultimately housed in his architecturally impressive boathouse.  This fine collection eventually formed the basis for the University of Wisconsin’s rare books collection.  The point here is that the author left little – if anything – out of the story of the man and his island.

This reviewer is impressed by authors who do the required homework (research) necessary to produce a fist-class work.  Clearly, Purinton has done this in all regards.  His bibliography is extensive and impressive.  The accompanying photographs and diagrams with informative captions are to the point and relevant, not fluff added as an afterthought or as a space filler.  In addition, pertinent documents provided help tell the story.

The reader should be forewarned:  This is not a quick nor easy read.   That observation is not intended in any way as a criticism of Purinton’s book.  Instead, it should be considered a compliment, for several reasons.  The book is very complete, and, as a result, very lengthy (436 pages of text).   The pieces of correspondence provided are numerous, many are lengthy, and some are quite detailed.  It takes time to read them and follow them.  Moreover, the author’s discussions necessary for an understanding of them are comprehensive, as are what he calls “notes”, which he uses as explanatory notes rather than formal footnotes.  And, finally, in this regard, there is a great deal of information provided about this very interesting and complex man that deserves pondering, rumination, and reflection.  This takes time for serious readers.  But, it is sure worth the time and effort.

    Charlie Calkins is a retired geography professor, a part-time Door County resident, and an inveterate collector of printed material related to the county.  In his spare time he operates the Badger Bibliophile, a business specializing in buying and selling gently used Wisconsin books and maps.  His wares are sold at several antique malls in the state, including the Old Orchard Antique Center in Egg Harbor.                                              E-mail him at wibooks@yahoo.com