HISTORY OF WOOD COUNTY



Sigel Township, both being now living. Mr. and Mrs. Tomsyck have three
children, John, Dorothy and Donald, the two latter being twins.
    Elmer 0. Trickey, postmaster of Vesper and publisher and editor of the
" State
Center," a weekly newspaper, is a man well and favorably known, both
in these
and other capacities, throughout the county. He was born in Armenia Township,
Juneau County, Wis., March 4, 1881, son of S. F. and Emma D. Trickey, who
were natives respectively of Maine and Wisconsin. The mother died July 12,
1905, and the father is now a resident of Waupun, Wis. Elmer 0. Trickey acquired
his elementary education in the public schools of Juneau County and subsequently
attended the high school in Wisconsin Rapids. The greater part of his supple-
mentary education has been self acquired, largely from reading and practical
experience. He first took up the printer's trade in the Leader office at
Waupun,
which was conducted by his uncles, J. W. and R. H. Oliver in 1898, and during
the Spanish-American War period. For a few years subsequently he followed
the trade of journeyman printer. Then in 1907 he launched out into journalism
on his own account, purchasing the Boyd Times Herald, at Boyd, Wis., which,
after conducting it for two years he sold. In the spring of 1909 he established
the Dunn County Journal at Menomonie, Wis., of which he was proprietor for
a year and a half. He then sold it and in the fall of 1910 took the state
civil service
examination for legislative proof reader and served in the senate during
the 1911
session as revision and enrolling clerk. At the end of the session he came
to Vesper
and established the State Center, thus named as Vesper is but 12 miles from
the
geographical center of the state, and he has since continued as proprietor
and
editor of this paper. In the legislative session of 1913, he again served
as enrolling
clerk and following that returned to Vesper and bought the hotel Monogram
building, which he sold in 1916. Then on account of the general conservation
of material during the war period, and a shortage of print paper, as a safeguard
to himself he again took the state civil service examination for his old
position
in legislative work, and was again appointed senate enrolling clerk, serving
during
the sessions of 1919 and 1921. At the same time, however, he continued to
issue
his paper. When the post office at Vesper passed from the fourth to the third
class, he was commissioned postmaster, Feb. 16, 1922, by President Harding.
Mr. Trickey is a man of broad outlook and always ready for useful service.
His
work in helping to establish pure-bred cattle in the county has been of marked
value to the dairy interests, and as a believer in higher education he does
all he
can to promote the interests of the schools. He is a good parliamentarian,
and
is often called upon to preside at public functions, frequently acting as
toast-
master. Perhaps it may be due to the fact that his grandmother was a Webster,
being a cousin of Daniel Webster, the great lawyer, orator and statesman,
that
he not only has a strong natural inclination for the law, but has for years
in his
leisure time been an earnest student of it, which has caused his advice on
legel
matters to be frequently sought. While a resident of Boyd he served as justice
of the peace, thereby gaining a certain amount of practical experience. In
his
public duties at Maedison he showed efficiency and made an excellent record,
and
whatever he has attempted to do has been done to the best of his ability
and has
borne practical fruit. Mr. Trickey was married April 4, 1904, at Chicago,
to
Maude Elizabeth Gibbs, of Amboy, Ill. She was born Feb. 14, 1881. Mr. and
Mrs. Trickey are the parents of a fine boy, Earl Webster, who was born Jan.
1, 1921.
   Gerrit Te Kampe, proprietor of a fully equipped blacksmith shop in Vesper,
was born in Holland, July 4, 1886, son of Gerrit and Mina (Te Linde) Te Kampe.
The mother has passed away but the father is still living in Holland. The
subject
of this sketch was educated in his native land, where he subsequently learned
the
blacksmith's trade, and also that of wagon-making. In 1913 he came to the
United States and located at Vesper, where he resided for a year. He then
moved
to Grand Rapids, but after staying nine months in that city he returned to
Vesper
-and established himself in business here. A first class workman and a good
cit-
izen, he has achieved both business success and personal popularity. He owns
his two-story shop building on Cameron avenue, also his home residence and
five



705