This file portion of www.watertownhistory.org website
Concordia Island
Tivoli Island
Nestled
in an elbow of the winding path of the Rock River rests Tivoli Island, known earlier
as Concordia Island, and before that was one of many nameless islands in North
America's wilderness.
Long
before the Europeans first settled in the Watertown area, the island flourished
with lush vegetation and a wide variety of wildlife. Indians of the Potawatomi
and Winnebago tribes frequently visited this area hunting for game. By the time
the French fur traders canoed up the river, many of the Indians found living
here had come from eastern lands, having been forced to migrate due to western expansion
of the pioneers.
French
fur traders were some of the first white men to come upon these forests of
maple and basswood, and prairies scattered with oaks. Setting their traps along
the river, the island may have served as a place to camp for the night.
Timothy Johnson
In the
1830's pioneers used the Rock River for a means of travel in their pursuit of a
new place to settle. Watertown's first settler, Timothy
Johnson, described the area surrounding the island as containing "a
combination of woodlands, prairie openings, and natural meadows. The banks of
the river were fanged with red cedars, the background being thickly wooded on
the west side with stately oaks and the east with a forest of maples, elms, and
ashes.”
Two
other early pioneers, John and Luther Cole,
arrived at the settlement and referred to the west side of the river as being
occupied by Winnebago and the east side by Potawatomi. They described the area
surrounding the island as having "several acres of cleared land scattered
here and there cultivated of corn by the Indians."
In
1835 the town lines were run by the government surveyor, John Mullet, on whose
map this island is clearly drawn. Soon after, Wisconsin became a territory and
in 1839, Jefferson County was formed. On the land to the west of the island, a
little settlement began to grow and by 1837 seventy strong-willed people had
made this beautiful area their home. Land could not be purchased until February
of 1839, after which the population began to increase, and by 1840 rose to 218
persons. From this time on the little island that we today call Tivoli Island
has played its part in the story of the city of Watertown.
First Owner
The
first owner of the island was Jesse Decoy. He later presented the island as a
gift to the first son of John Cole, one of Watertown's founding fathers. Many years later, Mrs.
John Cole gave a speech on the island telling of its beauty and how her son
had acquired it. She said, “Before my
baby was 24 hours old I had a deed for the boy of this little island, the
beauties and loveliness of which we so much admire and enjoy today.”
In the
1840's an earthen and timber dam was constructed directly above the island by Joseph and Calvin Boughton. The power was used to run a saw mill on the
east side of the river and a grain mill on the west side. A wall was built from the dam to the island
to create a mill race around the island.
In decades following construction of the dam, city maps show the island
enlarged and developed a peninsula extending to the dam. These changes were
caused by silt from the river building up along the wall and along the island's
shorelines.
It was recorded in 1908 that a Benkerdorf
family once owed the island.
Concordia Island
1874
In
1874 a German singing group, the Concordia
Music Society, purchased the island, and named it Concordia Island. The society had been formed in 1862 under
direction of Mr. Gaebler. Concordia Island served as
a host to many saengerfests, music festivals in which
most of the singing organizations of the state would take part. Local citizens
held picnics and heard frequent band concerts on Concordia Island. Unions, clubs, and trade guilds from
throughout the state rented the island for annual gatherings.
Concordia
members landscaped the island, planting many trees and shrubs of various
varieties, some of which are mature trees today. Members constructed numerous buildings
including a beautiful central pavilion.
The island was graced with one of the first fountains in this area. Located in front of the pavilion, it sent
sprays of water splashing into a circular basin in the center of which stood an
ornamental statue. A secluded water tank
kept the fountain at play, while a windmill pumped water into the giant
container. It also had a circular bandstand with beer, candy and ice cream
sales on ground level and quarters for musicians on the second floor.
Bowling Alley
A
long, narrow building housed a two-lane bowling alley where the old game of
ninepins was played. A wooden, narrow foot bridge spanned the Rock River on the island's north
side, quite near the present-day bridge. Concordia Island was known far and
wide, and as some of Watertown's old timers once recalled, the island was at
one time so popular that even Riverside Park cannot compare with the fame that
Concordia Island once knew.
1875
Wttn Dem or Rep. June 3, 1875
The
Concordia Society now has a boat which will be
used to convey frequenters across the stream to that pleasant resort on their
island instead of allowing all to pass over the foot bridge as they
have done heretofore. They expect the
bridge to be insufficient during the coming Saengerfest.
1876
08 23 Excursion
train of Milwaukee Turners picnic on Concordia Island. WR
1886 Fountain
and Pavilion, Concordia Island Park, [Tivoli Island],
looking south,
1886 
looking north, ____
This
building was removed in 1961
1890s Image of boys fishing along river bank
1904
09 09 Labor
Day celebrated on larger scale than ever before.
1905
Third Annual Homecoming
The
afternoon was spent in perhaps the most natural picnic grounds in all America -
Tivoli Island. Situated in the middle of Rock River, containing several acres
of fine wooded land, and within walking distance of the city, it is an ideal
spot. The beauty of the scene is
enhanced by the renowned Rough and Ready waterfall, which stretches the whole
breadth of the river just at the end of the island and within full view of it .
. . full
article
1906
Bridge
c1906
The
current bridge, originally built around 1877, was part of a
four-span structure over the Crawfish River in the village of Milford. Two spans of the bridge were moved to the
present site in 1906. It is the last
remaining example in the state of a tubular iron arch design which was patented
in 1866 by Zenas King of Ohio.
Watertown
Park and Recreation Department re-decked the historic structure in December
2006.
1907
Beer Garden
As the
Victorian age ended and the first Model T rolled into Watertown, the Concordia
Society disbanded and the island was sold. Around 1907 the Ohm brothers, local
saloon operators, purchased Concordia, and changed its name to Tivoli,
and for a short time opened a beer garden (a news item using the name
"Tivoli Island" instead of "Concordia Island" appeared in
the June 29, 1906 issue of the Watertown
Weekly Leader.
Tivoli Name
The
name Tivoli is said to have come either from an ancient summer pleasure resort
near Rome, Italy or from the Tivoli Gardens which had opened in Copenhagen in
1843.
The
Ohm brothers enclosed the pavilion and added on nine rooms. In 1907 a new
concrete electrical dam was constructed just down stream
from the old earthen and timber dam. The older still remains but is submerged
in the pond of the new dam. The "Rough and
Ready Dam," as the structure came to be called, produced power for the
electric railway that ran from Watertown to Milwaukee.
1908 Sixth Annual Homecoming WG
1909
08 06 Site of
Homecoming celebration gathering
08 27 Labor
Day / Union Labor Annual Picnic WG
1910
07 22 Homecoming
Day reception WG
08 26 Labor
Day celebration WG
08 26 Band
concert and dance WG
1911
06 01 Tivoli Island Changes Proprietors - Gustave Teteschlag of Waterloo
has sold Tivoli Island to Henry M. Billinger of the
same place. The latter was formerly one
of the managers of Wonderland, Milwaukee, and he intends making Tivoli Island a
popular and high-class resort this summer.
WG
08 05 Site of
1911 Homecoming celebration gathering
Bridge to island, south
from Smith Bridge, 1911
c1911
1925
Tourist Camp
After
prohibition was put into effect the beer garden closed and the Ohm brothers
sold the island to Carl and Mary Wolf. For some years the city rented the
island for a tourist camp. At that time sanitary facilities were also built, of
which the cement foundation still remains.
1926
In 1926
Col. W. F. Reichardt, a civil engineer, later city
engineer, mayor, and a WPA director, purchased the island. Reichardt improved
the bridge by building concrete middle piers, upon which iron beams supported a
wooden floor. Reichardt also published a booklet with
photos and a detailed description of the island to promote its sale.
1941
In
1941 the city of Watertown considered buying Tivoli from Reichadt,
but the idea was voted down by the citizens. There was much debate for and
against, and many "Voice of the People” articles appeared in the Daily Times. The main argument against
its purchase was shortage of money at the time and no desire for an increase in
taxes.
Late
that year the island was lost to the county for taxes, and purchased from the county
by Flora Gerbitz. For many years Tivoli had been left
alone and buildings remained vacant. In 1946 Henry Scholl purchased the island
from Gerbitz.
1961
Purchase of Island by City
In
1961 the city of Watertown purchased the island at which time the old run down buildings that remained were torn down and dead
trees removed. The bridge was given a
new floor and opened for foot travel. Other than this initial clean up, little was done to change the
island.
02 15 Tivoli Island, widely known picnic and
gathering place for this area in the Gay 90s and before that and also some time
after, is being integrated into the city's park system. The island, which was acquired by the city
council last year, has already undergone extensive clearing and restoration. Other changes will be made in the months
ahead. On the city council agenda for
this week's meeting, Acting City Manager Glenn R. Ferry has included a
“progress report” to keep council members informed on what has been done so
far. Today the full text of the report
was released for publication. The island
is being set aside as an arboretum. It
has long been the center of small wild life and a gathering place for birds as
well as ducks and other water fowl. WDT
02 21 Tivoli Island, once
a popular recreation area for residents of Watertown, may soon again become a
place for relation for city people. The
island sank into disrepair in recent years and was ignored for some time. The area was obtained recently by the city
and placed under the jurisdiction of the park department. Improvement of the island under the guidance
of Ewald Brumm, park
superintendent, has been continuous.
The old building
that was located near the center of the isle has been removed and brush and
dead trees have been cleared away. Dense
brush along the stream banks has been trimmed out to open vistas of the stream
and surrounding areas to visitors on the island. A fence has been erected on the south end of
the island to prevent youngsters from reaching any danger areas near the power station or the dam. WDT
1969
In
1969 a resolution was put before the city council to develop Tivoli Island into
an outdoor recreational facility. It was voted down because of the high cost of
initial and future development.
1975
In
1975 the Jaycees asked the city to consider restoration of Tivoli Island to the
condition it was while Concordia Society owned, it. Plans were discussed for reconstruction
of the pavilion and fountain that existed there at the turn of the century.
This proposal was turned down for several reasons. Limited parking,
availability of other parks of that type, and Tivoli's location near the flood
plain ruled out the possibility of such development.
For
many years Tivoli Island has been left to itself. Its inhabitants have been the squirrels and
many species of birds. Ordinarily a piece of property located so close to a
residential area would have been developed or misused. But because it is an
island with only one bridge as an access point, the Rock River offers the best
natural protection available. Because of this protected isolation, and the wide
variety of existing natural landscaping, an idea was thought of to create
Tivoli Island into a natural park.
An
article requesting support of such a project was published in the Daily Times and the Izaak
Walton League responded by volunteering financial and physical support. This
plan includes the planting of native species and removal of foreign
plants. It extends over a five-year
period, and will restore the island with its native vegetation.
In
April of this year the Izaak Walton League and the
Octagon Garden Club worked on the development of this plan.
The
Octagon Garden Club has planted nearly 100 native wildflower plants. Of the
flowers planted some of the species were Virginia Bluebells, Wild Columbine, Jack in the Pulpit, Wild Ginger, Wild Blue Phlox, Mayapple, Bloodroot, Trillium and Jacobs Ladder. These flowers
were purchased through funds provided by the club.
Hiking Trail
The Izaak Walton League has begun laying out a hiking trail
which will cover the island. In order to make a good walking surface, a layer
of wood chips was used to cover the path. These wood chips were made from
fallen or dead trees and provided by the Park and Recreation Department. The Izaaks also cut and piled fallen tree limbs to provide
habitat for small wildlife.
Derived in part from Watertown
Daily Times, 06 12 1976
1977
05 11 Wilderness park, development of island
as WDT
1999
08 31 Erosion study of Riverside Park and Tivoli
Island; portions of Tivoli have disappeared from sight WDT
Cross-References:
How
to Build an Island: An
Environmental History of Tivoli Island, Jesse Koehler contribution (Word
doc), 2010
Homecoming
Day celebrations, Tivoli Island site of
