SPRING VALLEY, WI – Ore, flux, and heat. These three ingredients required for smelting iron marked Spring Valley’s era as a boom town. While the earliest settlers began arriving in the 1860s and businesses such as sawmills started to appear, it was the promise of iron that marked the true beginning of Spring Valley’s industrial era.

Local geologist Prof. W.W. Newell began prospecting the area in the late 1870s. His efforts led to the discovery of the Cady Creek Mines. After a brief venture westward in search of gold, Newell returned and made a more significant find: the Gilman Mine, just a mile and a half west of the village.

This discovery catalyzed the decision to build a full-scale smelting operation in Spring Valley. A furnace was transported from Youngstown, Ohio, where it had outlived its original purpose. The timing coincided with the closure of a major smelter in Black River Falls, sending experienced iron workers searching for new opportunities—many of them settling in Spring Valley.

To read this and other premium articles in their entirety, pickup the July 31, 2025 issue of the Sun-Argus newspaper. Click to subscribe for convenient delivery by mail, or call (715) 778-4990. Single issues are also available at area newsstands and our office in Spring Valley, WI.

Submitted by Cindy Brown Bauer, Roberts Sesquicentennial Committee

ROBERTS, WI – The community of Roberts Wisconsin is celebrating a milestone year- 150 years! The village will be commemorating their Sesquicentennial with a three-day event this October.

George Longworth and family are said to be the first settlers in the Roberts/Warren area, arriving about 1855.  By 1860, the population was great enough to petition the county to be set off from Hudson to become a separate township, the Town of Warren.  The population center was located at the current day western-most intersection of US Hwy 12 and WIS 65.  Warren Center, as it was called, was in the middle of the township and consisted of a store, meeting hall, blacksmith shed, a school and several houses.

In October of 1871, the West Wisconsin Railway laid their tracks through Warren just a half mile south of the settlement.  The Railway ran from Tomah to Hudson.  The next year in 1872 a depot was added and called “Roberts Station”.  It was named after a chief engineer of the Railroad, John Bannister Gibson Roberts.   By 1874 several buildings had been erected in Roberts:  Graham and Bowne’s General Store, Hill’s Elevator, Comstock Hall and a grain storage building.  In 1875, the village of Roberts was platted.  The post office was moved into the village in 1874, and officially changed from Warren to Roberts in 1884.

The Community of Good Neighbors will be hosting a Sesquicentennial Celebration October 3, 4 and 5 with live music, food stands, historical events and wagon rides.

Follow the Roberts Sesquicentennial page for more information.

Submitted by Kim Dupre, CURES

ST. CROIX COUNTY, WI – After several years of personal stories shared with local officials seeking action to rectify the degrading water quality in St. Croix County, citizens reached out to Dr. Chris Jones, Retired Faculty, University of Iowa, to conceptualize the challenges the St. Croix River Watershed is facing. Dr. Jones is also the author of the book Swine Republic, a history of Iowa’s water quality issues due to thousands of concentrated hog facilities.

In response, Dr. Jones created a map for the St. Croix River Watershed — which encompasses data from both Minnesota and Wisconsin counties along the St. Croix River – that quantifies the amount of waste excreted by farmed animals in terms of nitrogen, phosphorus and solids. Using population Census of Agriculture county profiles, created every five years by USDA, Dr. Jones determines the equivalent human population needed to excrete that same amount of waste.

The map for the St. Croix River Watershed is similar to ones Dr. Jones developed for Iowa and the Great Lakes Basin to visualize how concentrated our livestock production has become over the past few decades and its impact on our waters.

The St. Croix River was designated as one of the original Wild and Scenic Rivers in 1968 and became part of the National Park System. It is treasured by citizens on both sides of the river and an economic driver for tourism and recreation. But persistent and extended beach closings along the river have gotten the attention of everyday citizens. Hudson resident, Cally Fuchs shares, “I remember when we could swim in the St. Croix River all summer long! Now beaches are being closed well before the 4th of July for the rest of the summer! What has changed? Geese and ducks have always lived along the river and their waste is nothing new.”

According to Dr. Jones map, the human population represented by the number of livestock is equal to having an extra 3.25 million people in the St. Croix River Watershed! The waste generated by these “extra people” (livestock) is largely untreated and applied to fields in the spring and fall greatly increasing the risk of runoff into our streams, rivers, lakes and groundwater especially when crops are absent on the landscape. Human and non-agricultural waste is typically treated through local municipal wastewater treatment plants that MUST comply with the Clean Water and Safe Drinking Water Act standards before being released back into the environment.

Increased concentration of livestock over the past 50 years has changed how industrial manure wastewater is handled, allowing more cows in one location and fewer acres to spread their waste. Local soil tests on fields spread upon with industrial manure waste reveal oversaturation of nutrients in the ground. Rain events and snow melt cause these nutrients to end up in our ground and surface waters – closing beaches, causing fish kills, and turning our lakes green. While voluntary participation in conservation programs by producers is encouraged, commended and compensated with cost sharing, the bottom line is water quality in the St. Croix River still has not improved since 2012 when the St. Croix River was first listed on the EPA’s “Impaired Waters” list.

Elsewhere in the watershed, green lakes, fish kills and contaminated drinking water have gotten the attention of everyday citizens. Over 12% of rural residents in St. Croix County’s study group had excessive nitrates in their drinking water of over the 10 ppm health standard, while 77% of wells reported nitrate concentrations above 2 mg/L – a clear indication of impact of land-use practices on groundwater quality per the most recent Citizen Groundwater Monitoring Program – Year 6 Report. Most rural residents with contaminated drinking water in Wisconsin are not being assisted by any governmental agency at either the local, state, or federal level.

However, eight counties in southeastern Minnesota with similar geology and land use have nearly 9,200 rural residents with drinking water of over 10 ppm health standard (2.4% of their population) and EPA is working with Minnesota Pollution Control Agency to develop a work plan to identify, contact, test and offer alternative water to all impacted persons. In January 2025, a coalition of groups filed a lawsuit against the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency and the Minnesota Department of Agriculture, to compel state agencies to enact stricter rules on manure and commercial fertilizers.

Thus, concerned citizens formed St. Croix CURES (Citizens Uniting for Responsible Environmental Stewardship) who will be hosting the St. Croix River Watershed Clean Food & Water Forum on October 4, 2025, at the RCU Discovery Center at Camp St. Croix in Hudson, WI. Dr. Chris Jones will be speaking and presenting this map along with sharing his personal story and insights into our concentrated agricultural system as a retired research engineer from the University of Iowa. This event will be free and open to the public.

ELMWOOD, WI – Despite the fall-like weather in July, local organization Staying Put held their second annual fish fry at Butternut Park on Wednesday, July 16, 2025.

Tim and Teresa Foslin, all-star volunteers with a penchant for catching walleye, provided the fresh caught fish, along with fries, coleslaw, dinner rolls and cookies.

This is the second year the duo has offered up their catch for Staying Put to host a fish fry for seniors, adults with disabilities, and community members. With over forty people in attendance from Spring Valley and Elmwood, the event was a big success.

To read this and other premium articles in their entirety, pickup the July 24, 2025 issue of the Sun-Argus newspaper. Click to subscribe for convenient delivery by mail, or call (715) 778-4990. Single issues are also available at area newsstands and our office in Spring Valley, WI.

Submitted by DNR Office of Communications

MADISON, WI – The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is seeking volunteers to teach and certify basic hunter education students and teach hunters of all experience levels practical outdoor skills. Volunteer opportunities are available in all parts of the state.

Hunter education has a strong history in Wisconsin. Since the program’s creation in 1967, more than 20,000 volunteers have educated hunters in the state, certifying more than 1 million hunters. The program has also contributed to a significant decrease in hunting safety incidents.

The strength and success of the Hunter Education Program are due to the dedication and commitment of the volunteer instructors. The instructors deepen their connection to the state’s hunting heritage while shaping the next generation of Wisconsin hunters.

Basic Hunter Education – Basic hunter education is a firearm safety class that is required by law for anyone who intends to hunt independently. We rely on a statewide corps of about 4,000 volunteer hunter safety instructors to teach the standardized, internationally approved curriculum and administer the written and practical exams required for certification.

Volunteers must be certified to teach basic hunter education by apprenticing with an existing group of Hunter education instructors or attending a staff-led mini academy that takes volunteers through each lesson that instructors are expected to teach at a basic hunter safety class. Instructors must also pass an exam based on the DNR’s Hunter Education Policy & Procedure Manual.

Once certified, volunteer hunter education instructors should teach at least one class and attend an instructor recertification workshop every three years.

Advanced Hunter Education – Outdoor Skills And Learn to Hunt
Beyond basic hunter education, the DNR and our contracted partners (Becoming an Outdoors Woman, National Deer Association, Pass It On – Outdoor Mentors, Pheasants Forever and Raised at Full Draw) offer additional instruction and continuing education to hunters of all experience levels. We are seeking volunteers to coordinate and instruct advanced programs as the next step from basic hunter education. Training is currently optional and provided upon request.

• Outdoor Skills – Outdoor Skills programs teach specific skills related to hunting and the outdoors, such as processing deer, shooting basics and cooking wild game. We have some lesson plans available for you to use as a guide, but if you have a hunting or shooting sports skill you can teach, reach out to our program staff to talk more.
• Learn To Hunt – Beyond Outdoor Skills programs, the Learn to Hunt program is a unique opportunity in Wisconsin that allows volunteers to host educational mentored hunts outside of the normal hunting season. The program is a valuable and rewarding educational opportunity offered by the DNR for both participants and volunteers looking to find greater connection in the outdoors.
  • The Learn to Hunt program requires at least four hours of pre-hunt instruction to participants, and program volunteers must have at least five years of experience hunting the target species.

All hunter education volunteers must pass a DNR background check.

For more information about becoming a volunteer instructor or applying, visit the DNR website.