MARATHON CITY SESQUACENTENIAL

Last Saturday I was a reenactor in the cemetary tour which was a part of the Marathon City Sesquacentenial Celebration. Eight of us impersonated individuals buried in the town cemetary who had been instrumental in the establishment of the community.

I portrayed August Ritger who lived from 1857 to 1927. Mr. Ritger built the first brick building in town as a place to house his general store. He was elected the first mayor of Marathon, was president of the bank which he helped establish, started the first creamery in the community, and in his spare time he fathered 13 children.

The lady in the lower picture is an actual great-grandaughter of August Ritger. She was born in 1920 and was 7 when he died. She remembers him. What a wonderful lady. I was proud to be in the picture with her.

It was a great weekend in Marathon. They organized the event well. The Marathon County Historical Society also did a fine job in arranging for "living history" portions of the celebration.

It should be noted that folks in Marathon are considering arranging funding to find a new location for their very busy branch library. They are part of the Marathon County Public Library organization.