You can't leave us hanging, what's the history and why does it need to be restored?
I can post the story that I wrote (included with our wedding programs so the ppl attending had a better understanding of what the location was all about)
I did extensive research and this is just a "short version" of the property.
(I included a few pics to go along with the story as well)
How It All Began
In the mid 1970's – my parents, drove
my older brother and I to this estate. Various stories
circulated about what went on within the walls of this magnificent
structure.
What exactly was it that happened here? Why was this
vacant building in the middle of the wilderness? These were some of
the questions that my brother and I searched for answers to. What
we found out was shocking, sad, and amazing all at once. How was I
to know, some 30 years later I would be here today exchanging my
wedding vows with Jessica…
"Peters Hall"
The mansion that stands here today was designed by Jane Peters from New York. Jane was born in 1901 to her mother Jennie and her father Frank, a wealthy lawyer and business man. Jane developed an illness when she was 15 years old. It was around this time that her governess, Anna Fetzer left to marry Frank Schulte, a man she met on a ship bound for New York from Germany in 1910.
Soon after Frank Schulte purchased a farm on the Red River near Gresham, Wisconsin.
In the late 1930's, Jane Peters and her mother were visiting Anna and Frank at their farm in Gresham. While walking along the banks of the Red River across from the Schulte farm, Jane expressed interest in living there. Wanting to grant her wish, Jane's mother purchased 200 acres of the land and began plans to build a house that would sit perched on a hill overlooking Freeborn Falls. It would be a spectacular 3-story Georgian-style mansion in which Jane would spend her final days. Unfortunately Jane's illness took her life before completion in 1941. The $500,000 palace quickly became the talk of Gresham and was dubbed "The Mansion in the Wilderness".
The Alexian Brothers
After living in the mansion for almost eight years, Jennie Peters decided to move back to her estate in New York. In 1950 she donated the mansion and all the land to the Alexian Brothers, to whom her husband's father had a great admiration for. The Alexian Brothers are a Catholic order devoted to caring for the sick and operating hospitals throughout the United States. The Alexians named the building Peters Hall. They utilized it for their novitiate program, training Brothers called novices.
In 1954, the Alexian Brothers built a $1.5 million addition onto the existing mansion. It was a massive 3-story building which included a church and every facility required for the Brothers to be self-sufficient. A nearby farm was also purchased to supply the Brothers with food.
Changes made at the Vatican in the 1960's resulted in the decision to move the novitiate program to Chicago. In 1969, the monastery was put up for sale and left in the hands of a caretaker.
In 1974, a group of Indians from Green Bay planned to purchase the facility and use it as an alcoholic and rehabilitation center, but a federal grant approval was needed to complete the transaction. What was to happen next would change the future of the Novitiate forever.
During this time the Menominee tribe, who owned land bordering the Novitiate grounds, were suffering political hardships. The Federal government had terminated their tribal status to assimilate them into modern America. The termination was a disaster which resulted in poverty, internal strife, and loss of their native identity. Campaigning for the restoration of tribal status was slow, and there was strong disagreement on how to proceed. They were divided. An opposition to the restoration committee was the Warrior Society, comprised mainly of returning vets and other young men left out of the political process. The Warrior Society decided they needed to do something to focus national attention on their plight. Armed with an old treaty, the group saw an opportunity.
The Takeover
Just after midnight on New Years Day 1975, the Menominee Warrior Society as well as members of the American Indian Movement prepared to take action. At gunpoint they took the caretaker of the Novitiate hostage along with his wife, children and two guests. The hostages were eventually freed, but the Indians began a 34 day
occupation of the Novitiate. They demanded the property and all
the buildings returned to the Indians who owned the land at one
time. Their battle cry became "Deed or Death". The Wisconsin
National Guard was called in and gunfire was exchanged daily.
There was also mounting tensions from local residents.
Talks dragged on for weeks but went nowhere. The
warriors had succeeded in gaining attention with the International
press and celebrities flocked to support their cause. At one point
actor Marlon Brando was brought in as a negotiator.
During the takeover, power to the monastery was
deliberately cut off to try and drive the group out. This was during
one of the coldest winters in Wisconsin history. As a result, the
occupants burned furniture from the residence for heat and water
pipes burst in the frigid temperatures.
Forced removal was looming, and elders on the reservation
began ceremonies and dances that traditionally preceded death. At the eleventh hour the Alexians responded.
Hoping to avoid another Kent State disaster, the Alexians offered life and peace. On February 2, the occupation ended with the Alexian Brothers promising to deed the Novitiate to the Menominee Indian tribe for $1. The property was never officially turned over due to tribal politics, as well as a lack of funds to operate the facility.
"The Decline Of The Novitiate"
The Novitiate suffered extensive damage from the takeover. On October 12, 1975, the building was set on fire by arsonists. The entire interior of the original mansion was gutted by the blaze. Sadly, the building was never to be occupied again.
In November of that year, the Alexians found a buyer. They sold the property to Crossroads Academy of Milwaukee. They also donated 56 acres of the land to the Town of Richmond to be used as a public park.
Over the years, the property continually changed owners. Sometimes it was used as collateral to secure multi-million dollar loans. The property required constant attention from police trying to keep trespassers out. Seventeen years of extensive vandalism ravished the buildings to uninhabitable conditions.
In the early 90's, a Shawano County judge ordered the building to be razed. A man named Frank Matuszny then purchased the property for around $40,000. He spent a year cleaning up the buildings and the grounds. In 1993 he opened part of the monastery for public tours. Matuszny's vision was to eventually restore the buildings to their original beauty.
In 1994, the gift shop that Matuszny had built as the starting
point for the tours, burned to the ground. Matuszny later developed an illness that prevented him from continuing his restoration plans.
A company named Whitewater Gresham Estates
bought the Novitiate property in 2002 for $500,000. The
new owners had a plan to develop the property into
high-end homes. First they would tear down all the
buildings except the original mansion. In 2003 the
demolition started, but legal issues slowed the project and
the buildings sat in a semi-demolished state for several
years.
In the fall of 2005, the property was put up for
auction, but bids fell short of the $2 million asking price.
"The History Continues"
Today the story continues in a new light. This ceremony is to be included in a book being written about the former Novitiate. This is the first time in the history of the property that a wedding has been held here. Thank you all for being part of it with us.