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Oconto County WIGenWeb Project
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CHUTE LAKE
Oconto County
Wisconsin

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This is a picture of a muskie caught by my Dad (standing in back) at Chute Pond (that's me holding the rod). My folks managed the county park from 1954 until 1966. As part of our income, we sold bait and fishing tackle so we kept pictures of the big ones that were caught there. That helped sell tackle and rented boats. Sometimes when asked by a city slicker which tackle was used, we would look in the shop to see what hadn't sold. Also, the exact location where this fish was caught and by what means remains a family secret. contributed by:
Bill Fonferek

This structure was built from granite rock blasted from the adjacent hillside. We moved into the building in 1954. It didn't have ndoor bathroom facilities, so in the summer we spent a lot of time swimming in the lake. In the winter we had a wash tub for baths and the outhouse on the hill.
Later my Dad put a shower stall in the basement. But we still had to go outside to get there. The living quarters consisted of a kitchenette, living room which also doubled as a bedroom for my sister and I, and a bedroom for Mom and Dad. We had a bunkbed and my sister got the top bunk. We ran a concession stand, rented boats and sold bait. We also managed the cabin rental and the camping areas.

This was a great place to grow up. I fished an awful lot until I was old enough to work in the concession stand. When I was old enough to drive, I became the Sanitation Department. We had an old 1949 Ford Pickup. I used it to pickup the 50+ garbage cans and hall them to the landfill nearby.
I also was in charge of sanitizing 13 outhouses twice a week. After the tourists left in the fall we would go hunting and fishing as a family. It was a big deal when we turned 12, Dad would buy us our own rifle for deer hunting. After the ice would freeze on the lake we always went ice skating.
After the snow falls we would hire someone to plow a rink off for our own use as well as locals folks coming to enjoy the out doors. Mom always had a pot of hot chocolate for company. And when it was really cold a board game was alway there too. We used the concession stand area in the winter as our game room.

contributed by:
Bill Fonferek

Gene Wilcox - First Chute Lake Oconto County Park Manager He lived in a little cabin next to the dam. contributed by: Bill Fonferek	Lower Chute Dam - Nicolet Forest contributed by: Bill Fonferek	View From Chute Lake Resort contributed by: Bill Fonferek
Island In Chute Lake contributed by: Bill Fonferek	Chute River Scene near Mountain contributed by: Bill Fonferek	Beach at Chute Lake contributed by: Bill Fonferek
Ancient Volcanic Rock Hilltops Line Chute River near Mountain contributed by: Bill Fonferek	Upper Chute Dam - Nicolet Forest contributed by: Bill Fonferek	Chute River Scene near Mountain contributed by: Bill Fonferek

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