Town of West Point Area Historical Society

06/25/2026

If your wondering what all the noise is about I just saw 2 F35 A fighter jets circling Town of West Point . The 115th must be doing training flights out of Truax field.

06/10/2026

Gasless Sundays
During WWI a US Government Conservation program, the U.S Fuel Administration requested Sunday pleasure riding in vehicles to stop. With the exception of emergency vehicles and essential drivers for business's, American drivers were told to volunterrialy keep their vehicles parked on Sundays to conserve gasoline for the war effort. In the first several months of the ban, 500,000 gallons of gasoline where saved and redirected to the troops / allies overseas. Pearl Ryan was 103 years old when she was interviewed and mentioned this story to us. The WPAHS put this story in the West Point History Calendar. The photo of the.family in the wagon going the church is of Pearl's family from West Point.

06/04/2026

Sauk County News May 22, 1930.
Paul Errington was a caller at Albert Gastrows farm on Monday He is doing government nature survey work on bird life of this district.
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Paul Errington was born in South Dakota in 1902 . He received his PhD from UW Madison where he met and worked on field studies with Aldo Leopold . Aldo Leopold worked with West Point farmer Albert Gastrow. Albert was a part time employee of the Wisconsin Conservation Commission later to be known as the DNR. In May of 1930 , Paul Errington was involved in field studies in the Town of West Point. After graduation in 1932 Paul became the Research Professor at Iowa State College where he worked until his death.
Errington's early publications (1929-1935) resulted mostly from this thesis research emphasized practical aspects of bob white ecology and management. He published several papers on the techniques of appraisal of food habits of raptors and other predators. However, he devoted one paper to the examination of factors influencing vulnerability of bobwhites to predation and demonstrated the
relationship between predators, territorial behavior and carrying capacity
of the habitat. Photo of Albert Gastrow on the right and Paul Errington on the left. The two letters are from Paul to Albert regarding Albert's employment for the 1932, 1933 study.

05/27/2026

Former West Point resident Don Nolden shares the history of Lodi and Town of West Point on a tour of the area with residents from the Pines Senior Living.

05/26/2026

05/25/2026

Garden Bluff Memorial Day Program 2026. Was hosted by the Garden Bluff Cemetery Association this morning May 25,2026 at 9 am. About 115 Memorial Day observers were in attendance. The program opened with the Pledge of Allegiance followed by opening prayer , readings from General Logans Orders, the Gettysburg Address and the poem, In Flanders Fields. Bagpipe music echoed through the peaceful cemetery in memory of the military soldiers that rest at Garden Bluff. The Lodi and Dane American Legion presented a gun salute and Taps were played witnessed by respectful spectators. A Memorial Day speech was presented by Retired Col. Chad Mine before a bagpipe rendition of Amazing Grace and the closing benediction said by Rev. Hunter Newton from the Lake Wisconsin Evangelical Church. The Garden Bluff Cemetery thanked Sexton Scott Ness for all the work at this peaceful hilltop cemetery and for preparations and set up for the Memorial Day Program.

05/25/2026

Memorial Day programs have been held at Garden Bluff Cemetery for over 146 years. At the 1879 West Point Memorial Day Program A. F. Abbotts poem, The Day of the Dead was read by E. H. Burlingame. Orations by Hiram .E. Polly This years 2026 Memorial Day Program at Garden Bluff will start at 9am. All are welcome to attend.