Lannon and its quarries
By Ruth Schmidt
A man, in his retirement years, stood on thefront porch of his home in the little village of Lannon and looked down LannonRoad. “Five of the stone houses on this street originally stood in StoneCity at the Hadfield quarry,” he mused. “There are ten more on VineStreet, and at least four on Lake Street, all moved from the quarry, into thevillage and remodeled.” The quarry of which he spoke, with almost 30 othersaround Lannon, are the foundation of Lannon’s history and industries. The nameLannon and ornamental building stone quarried here have become synonymous, thehistory of Lannon deeply imbedded in its limestone.
An escarpment stretches across the Great Lakesregion from Niagara Falls through northern Michigan, and down eastern Wisconsinto Racine. Out-croppings of Niagara limestone surfaces along this drift, in Fonddu Lac, in Milwaukee, and westward from Waukesha – especially in the Lannon area,and this reef remained undisturbed for thousands of years, until the early1800s.
William Lannon and his young bride came in 1834 to the area now known asLannon. Legend has it, they saw flat white rocks lying on top of the groundinviting them to build a wall. They erected a one-room house with solid stonewalls two to three feet thick. (Stone houses today are thin veneer rock surfacesover a frame structure.) Lannon crushed some of the limestone and made aplaster, held together with horsehair, to seal the inside of his substantialhome. Later, William Lannon opened a stone quarry on his farm which was alongthe present State Highway 74.
The Lannon farm has special interest in Lannonhistory. There were two excellent artesian springs here, one on each side of theroad. Eventually the farm was divided between Lannon’s two children, William N.and Mary Lannon Linder. A frame house was built on the south side of the roadwhen Mary inherited these 118 acres. A milk-house was built over the springwhich made a natural cooling tank. The spring on the 93 acres on the north side,belonging to William N., had such cold water that it was used for cold storage.Old William Lannon had two brothers, Thomas and James who came to Waukeshacounty in 1837 and settled in Muskego. Thomas’ grandchildren (atty. FrancisRadsch of West Allis and Mrs. George Kempken of Hartland) remember the storytheir mother told of visiting the Lannon farm one August, and eating freshstrawberries which had been kept in the cold spring. These stories are told toex- plain why a post office there was called Lannon Springs. William Lannon gavesome of his land to the St. James Catholic church and cemetery at WillowSprings. The frame house built on the south side of Hwy. 74 became the firsthome of “The Ranch,” a well known organization the provides farm-homeexperiences for retarded boys. In 1847, Mr. Lannon made a plat of the landaround the quarries, west of Lannon village, and called it Lannon Springs.
Asother settlers came, they found plenty of stone for everyone willing to pick itup and build walls for a home. As one old settler said, “If they wanted aflagstone patio they just kicked the dirt aside and there it was.” At firstthe stone was free to anyone who wanted to use it, but as more settlers arrived,some of the most enterprising landowners began to 8ell the stone. The 1880History of Waukesha County records lists Lyman Goodman as the first person inWaukesha county, in 1840, to open a stone quarry, in the village ofPrairieville, but Isaac Howard was selling stone from his quarry in Lannon in1838.
Isaac Howard came from Vermont in 1835, at age 18to survey the area of Waukesha that was to become the Town of Menomonee. He andhis 15 year old wife located on a site near Lannon, where he opened his quarryin 1838. The 1859 atlas shows a Howard quarry and kiln on the southwest quarterof Sec. 17 in the Town of Menomonee. There was still a Howard quarry at the site100 years later.
Among immigrants who arrived in the earliest settlement wasAugust Schultz, who came to work in the quarries at age 14. He operated acrusher, and later acquired land on Lannon Road to open his own quarry. WhenHadfield took over this quarry, and Lakeshore Quarry bought up many of theoriginal operation, Schultz became manager. Some of the best-known, and oldestquarries in the Lannon area include: Kieffer, Davidson, Hamon, Wallen, Flanagan,Sheridan, Lund, Walsh, Davis Brothers and Schultz. Many quarries operated underthese names for 50 to 100 years.
In 1855, at least a dozen quarries wereshipping stone to Milwaukee by team and wagon. Most was paving stone.
Curbingand flagstones were cut by hand. Then the steam drills, that looked likethree-legged spaceships on the moon, cracked off paving blocks 16 to 20 incheswide. The stone was scored, and with hammers and chisels broken into paving andcurb-sized blocks, 16 inches by four feet or curb-sizes. Handling stone was slowhard work; today’s air hammers can do more in a day than hand-drillers did in amonth.
Stone cutting is a skilled art and the quarry industry soon attractedimmigrants. from Italy, who were artisans of the trade. More immigrantscame-Pole8 and Germans-until a small settlement, called Stone City, grew uparound the quarries. Twelve four-room stone houses were built along the road inHadfield Quarry. (These were the houses that were later moved into the Villageof Lannon.) Each house held two families. The tenants (quarry workers) wereallowed a garden plot, a small barn and one or two pigs. John Walter, who stilllives in Lannon, remembers butchering the pigs for the stone cutters anddelivering the pork to the quarry homes. Delivery service was not customary inthose days, so he got to these homes about once or twice a year. The settlementwas mostly Polish immigrants. The Italians and Poles did not get along well, soanother settlement (frame houses) was built at the edge of the quarry, called”The Other Village.”
Hadfield had opened quarries in Waukesha duringthe 1840’s. His lime kilns and stone became the most popular in the industry inthis area. When he recognized a superior quality of stone in the Lannon area, hebought several quarries along the Lannon Road. This area is now better knownas Menomonee Park. Hadfield platted it in 1890 and called it Hadfield.
Arailroad spur was built into the Hadfield quarries in 1889-90, to connect withoperations in Waukesha. (Lannon had a “dinky” line, built in 1885,that made rail connections in Butler.) When empty cars were pushed back ontothis spur, the women from both settlements made a wild dash for crating wood onthe cars, to use for firewood. (Both settlements had outdoor, stone ovens.) Ifan Italian woman claimed the right to one car, no Polish women had better try totake wood from that car or a battle was sure to follow, with one or the othergetting a board over the head. Each had their territory; they did not mix. Theywere called the Dagos and the Polacks, in those days. The Polish men playedcards and drank beer on Sunday, their children “fetching” pails ofbeer from the neighborhood saloon. The Italians, in the Other Villageentertained themselves by dancing and singing. Then they would all work togetherin the quarry 10 hours a day, six days in the week. In the days of hand- labor,the wages were 10 to 15 cents an hour, with unskilled men working for a nickelan hour. Craftsmen were paid well if they got 82 a day. Most of them could Bay”Another day, another dollar.” Machine operators were paid a monthly wage
Every quarry had its own kiln until the turn of the century, and, becausethe lime made from stone in this area was the whitest and strongest on themarket, it was in demand regardless ofcost, most of which was shipping cost. Due to the slow and poor transportation,the industry did not expand rapidly the first 40 years, but with the coming ofsteam shovels, derricks, steam drills and railroads, the quarries flourished.The heyday of the industry reached its peak between 1880 and 1900.
Some of thelargest work done in the Lannon area was quarrying the huge three by four footblocks of solid rock used in the Milwaukee breakwater. Stone for this breakwatercame from the Belgium and the Lannon quarries- 20 to 30 carloads of stone a dayleaving Lannon for the job. The break- water was built as three projects: thefirst 5600 feet was built between 1881 and 1902, ,~other section was added in1922; and in 1930 the break- water was completed.
With the increasing number ofpeople who came to this area to work, it is only nature. l there must be otherbusinesses to tend the needs of these settlers. Probably the busiest was theblacksmith, for sharp drills were needed every morning and every boss wanted hisready before the day’s work began.
A Mr. Saunders opened a store in 1843, in thevicinity of Lannon Springs. Legends tell us he traded salt and flour for woodashes, which he used to make soap, which in turn he used as barter for hissupplies. Another store, at the intersection of Lannon Road and Hwy. 74, suppliedgloves. Rows and rows of gloves hung from wires across the ceiling. Eachmorning, every worker made a trip to the store, and pulled down a pair of newgloves. Handling stone was rough work; by night, the gloves were ready todiscard for a new pair the next day. The storekeeper had no worries about badcredits for he kept the books and before the payroll was made out each quarrymanager came to the store, paid the monthly bills, and deducted, this from thewages due .
Early in history, the settlement had a hotel, a butcher shop,saloons, a harness shop and whatever was necessary to supply the needs of thesettlers.
At first, the mail was brought to Stone City from Waukesha. When acarrier did not recognize an immigrant’s name, he was advised to ask BillLannon, because, “Lannon knows everyone in the quarry.” It became apassword. ‘Take the mail over to Lannon,” until Bill Lannon applied for apostal station at his farmhouse, June 11, 1864, under the name of LannonSprings. old records seem to indicate this station was really a private serviceto the community, as the application was granted with the provision, “ifthe area was served by any other delivery at the time, the station would have tooperate at no expense to the United States Postal Department.” This officewas on Hwy. 74, about three quarters of a mile west of the present post office.”
Picture to right–> Top row (left to right) Mick Kiefer, Reinhardt Zahnow, William Golner, Unknown, Adam Rossman, Ted Golner, Walter Hardiman, Anton Grabowski, Pat Marx, Joe Roebuck, Bill Roberts. Bottom row (left to right) John Thiery, William Weyer, unknown, Fred Gastrau, Philip Hartman, Otto Schmoller, Billy Jones.
At first, the mail was brought to Stone City from Waukesha. When acarrier did not recognize an immigrant’s name, he was advised to ask BillLannon, because, “Lannon knows everyone in the quarry.” It became apassword. ‘Take the mail over to Lannon,” until Bill Lannon applied for apostal station at his farmhouse, June 11, 1864, under the name of LannonSprings. old records seem to indicate this station was really a private serviceto the community, as the application was granted with the provision, “ifthe area was served by any other delivery at the time, the station would have tooperate at no expense to the United States Postal Department.” This officewas on Hwy. 74, about three quarters of a mile west of the present post office.”
In the records in the Lannon Post Office, in 1978, Keith Gissal found anapplication ~or a post office for this area, dated January 16, 1879, but therewas no record of any office opened. Old settlers tell how residents of StoneCity, Hadfield and Lannon Springs worked together to get a central post office.This may be the reason another application was made June 18, 1890, by O1aviusO1sen, and signed by the Templeton Postmaster. The name suggested on theoriginal application was “Hadfield” this was crossed out and”Stone City” was written in; this was also cross- ed out and the name”Lannon” was written over the other names. The application wasapproved and a post office established August 2, 1890, in Lannon. This off1cehas been open since, with the following men serving: Olavius O1sen was the firstpostmaster, followed by Abram Hadfield, June 1891. John Flanagan Sr. served1893-1897, followed by Augustus Hinner 1897-1905; George Loos 1905-1912,followed by Jack Flanagan (son of John Sr.) also served from 1912-1949, whenJohn Walsh was appointed. He served until 1957 when Keith Gissal came. Lannonwas incorporated as a village in 1930.
Lannon had become thecenter of the building stone industry by 1915, ; yet, according to research doneby Jean Penn Loerke, in her thesis “Waukesha Limestone, the Quarries, theKilns, and the Buildings” notes that in 1915, nowhere on record had thename lannon stone appeared – rather referred to as “limestone from the Lannon area.”This trade-name seems to have become associated with limestone building stonebetween World War I and World War II. Since 1950, this high quality stone andthe village name of Lannon have become synonymous. Lannon stone of such superiorquality that other quarries like to use the name lannon stone in referring toall limestone building stone, as it implies a higher quality than some bedsreally produce.
After World War II, the stone industry changed primarily frompaving stone, lime kilns and solid-wall building stone, to by-products such asdisinfectants, ornamental landscaping rock, and thin veneer-facing stone forbuilding. Portland cement had replaced mortar and macadam, power machinery hadreplaced pick and crowbar, and modern markets replaced the demand for stonebuilding blocks to more ornamental stone. The low cost of old stone buildings(of which Waukesha county was so proud) was due to the abundance and excellenceof local stone. That has faded into history as modern markets demand such avariety of stone that the few remaining stone companies import 40 percent ofwhat they sell.
In 1959, more than thirty stone companies were listed in thelocal telephone yellow pages, now there are four. The Halquist Go. controls mostof the building stone, having bought up the independent operations around Sussexand Lannon. Vulcan Materials specialized in limestone by products. The sto:1eindustry is not declining, it is just changing. Lannon stone houses are stillpopular, whether remodeled or modern.
The future of the quarries here may notdepend on the quality or amount of stone available. It will more likely berestricted by social and governmental controls. The Lannon stone quarries arebeing circled by subdivisions, and population brings regulations and controlswhich may, in time, strangle this famous industry. Until the days of World WarII, stone provided a livelihood, in one way or another for almost everyone inthe village of Lannon. Now less than 20 percent of the population depend onstone for a job.
Old settlers can tell many stories of early Lannon, all tas3don its quarries-like the wise man who built his house on a rock, the village ofLannon built their village on stone. Old timers will tell you the community was settled by the Irish, but the colorful stories in Lannon’s historyindicate the Italians, the Poles, the Germans, and other nationalities havecontributed their share to the growth and glory of Lannon and Lannon stone.
This article was reprinted here withpermission of the late Ruth Schmidt’s step-grandson, Michael R. Reilly, from “LannonHistory: Village of Lannon – Golden Jubilee 1930-1980” edited by FredKeller.
Retrospect, Jan. 28, 2015: Hadfield had big impact on early Lannon
Posted Living Sussex Sun, Jan. 22, 2015
Prior to 1873, there was no Lannon village. It was just a crossroads of section lines and what is today Highway 74. The few businesses were at the Lannon Springs area, the intersection of Town Line Road, Highway 74 and what became Whiskey Corners. It was dominated by St. James Catholic Church and cemetery, the mail drop residence of William Lannon (Lannon Springs Farm) and the Willow Spring School.
But soon after 1873, the present-day triangle of Main Street, the future Lannon Road and also the future Good Hope Road became a business center and housing development. The big addition was the opening of multiple quarries in the vicinity, and the 1891 acquisition of a Lannon Post Office propelled the development.
Meanwhile, there was the mega-quarry at the Lake Shore-Joe Hadfield Quarry, immediately north of downtown Lannon. Today, this mega-quarry is the Menomonee Park, with its central water-filled quarry, now owned and developed by the Waukesha County Parks Department. In 1891, it really became a big-time quarry as the Bug Line, installed in 1890, had a direct spur line into the quarry. Today, that spur line is a trail from the Bug Line Trail to Menomonee Park.
Hadfield was something of a utopia-minded individual as he funded support for various U.S. utopias. In this line, he put in a big series of wood homes adjacent to his quarry.
And then came the crash, as the utopia settlements he fostered, ” To each according to his need, from each according to his ability,” ended up with everyone in need, as the inhabitants thought, “Why should I work, as my need will be taken care of by others?”
The precipitated a closing of the Hadfield Quarry and high, wide and far-reaching bankruptcy. Just prior to the financial crash, there was even a thought by the emerging community of present-day Lannon to have the name of their village be Hadfield after their principal employer and nearby land holder. However, no one likes a loser.
Joseph Hadfield, born in England on Oct. 16, 1816, came to Waukesha in 1843. Initially, he was a shoe cobbler, a trade he followed until 1868. At that time, he opened a small Waukesha quarry and it was a big success. The Great Chicago Fire of 1871 was a business expander for Hadfield and his sons, George and Abraham.
So big was his Lannon-area quarry that was a big promoter of the Bug Line construction. He had a hard time getting enough workers for this quarry and, as a reward for working at his quarry and also getting his men to report promptly, he had a housing development put in adjacent to the “glory hole.”
Most of the foreign-born workers were Italian and Polish and they did not get along with each other, aside from working well for Hadfield. His housing development was called “Stone City.”
With the financial crash, there were court cases and then enterprising solutions were to jack up these homes adjacent to the quarry and move them south to what is today Lannon and on to the back streets of Lannon proper. One by one, they came down south to Lannon to Depot, Vine, Lake and State streets.
The photo with this feature has an image of “Second Street,” but there was never an actual Second Street. It was just the second street west of Lannon Road, which was called Menomonee Avenue back then.
Meanwhile, Good Hope Road was originally Grand Avenue, then Vail Avenue and finally Good Hope Road, connecting to Milwaukee County.
Joe Hadfield lived until March 9, 1900, and even at his death, the lawsuits were still pending against him and the Hadfield Corporation.
Descendants of the house movers prior to 1900 are in many cases still living in Lannon today.