cock, Georgia and was mustered out March 27,
1919. He never married.
Herman met and married Carolina Sonczalla.
They had three children, Bernice, Arthur, and
Harold, all born at Ladysmith.
They lived for 14 years in Lake Villa, Illinois,
where Herman worked on the railroad. Later they
moved back to Ladysmith.

Herman Ducummon

On March 24, 1966, Herman died of a heart at-
tack and is buried at Riverside Cemetery,
Ladysmith, Wisconsin.
Herman's children are, Bernice, who lives in
Palm Springs, California; Arthur, who lives at
Lake Villa, Illinois; and Harold, who lives at Cot-
ter, Arkansas. All are married and have children.
Marie Cadotte
REYNOLD LOUIS DUCOMMUN
Reynold  was born at Ponts de Martel,
Switzerland, December 10, 1864, to    Louis
Reynold and Eugenie Duvanel Ducommun. He
grew to young manhood as a farm boy. At age 18
he was to do his military duty for 6 months. During
that time he met a lovely girl, Marie Von Gunten.
She was born at Chaux du Milieu, Canton of Bern,
Switzerland, to Jean Von Gunten and Madeline
Dreyer. They were married June 15, 1883.
Their first baby, Mary Rose, only lived 6 weeks.
It was sad, but time and Mother Nature had their
way and December 21, 1884, Henry Reynold was
born.
Reynold had an older brother, Numa, and a
cousin, Fritz Ducommun, already living   in
America. They told Reynold and Marie of the jobs
and homesteads that could be had. So they made
up their minds to make the big change. After the
long boat ride across the ocean, they landed in
New York. They were impressed with the sadness
of the city, as they were holding General Ulysses S.
Grant's funeral; he died July 23, 1885.
They had a long, tiresome, trip to Chippewa
Falls, Wisconsin. The young mother, pregnant
again, and father, with the 6 month old boy, Henry
had many problems en route, so they were happy
to get settled. Reynold's brother had rented a
house on "Catholic Hill." Reynold worked at
anything he could find: carpentry, butchering, cut-
ting pulp, or even sharpening knives, scissors, or
saws.
Another boy, Charley, was born January 28,
1886; a daughter, Louise Eugenie (Virginia),
March 30, 1888. Work was scarce, but finally, he
got work in the Leinenkugel Brewery. Another
baby girl, Rose Mary, named for the baby that
died, was born January 28, 1890 and Albert Louis
April 25, 1891, all at Chippewa Falls.
Reynold had a cousin, Fritz Ducommun, at
Thornapple Dam. He wanted to try his hand at
logging, so he moved his family there in 1892. The
mother and children went by train to Bruce, where

they were met by relatives and taken to the log
house belonging to Achille Girard. Reynold had
gone by horse and wagon with their belongings. He
worked as a logger, cutting bolts, and sold them
after floating them down river to Holcombe.
Twins, Georse Emil and Herman, were born
February 16, 1893, with Mrs. Fritz Gerard as mid-
wife. February 14, 1895, Laura Anne was born
with the same midwife.
Reynold and Marie Ducommun
That spring Reynold signed for a homestead and
moved to Port Arthur. They moved early enough
to plant a patch of potatoes and rutabagas. The
hard and grueling times of making a living began.
Ground Hog's Day, February 2, 1897, a boy,
10th child in the family, was born. September 15,
1898, Alice Lena was born, Bessie Marie, July 9,
1900, and Robert John, April 17, 1902, the 13th
and last of the Ducommun children.
Reynold and Marie lived on the farm until
February  1920, then retired and moved to
Ladysmith, north across the tracks on Hwy. 27.
Reynold died of a stroke October 12, 1931, age
67; Marie, December 2, 1940, at 82. Both are
buried in Riverside Cemetery, Ladysmith. Marie
Cadotte
DUKERSCHEIN FAMILY

Dukerschein Family - 1930

Lawrence W. Dukerschein first visited Rusk
County in 1911. In the following year, he and his
wife, Delia, and daughter, Lucille, along with his
father, Henry Charles Dukerschein and wife, Rica,
returned and settled in the Town of True near Glen
Flora. Lawrence and Henry purchased 80 acres
from August Swanson and built two homes. Trees
had to be cleared before Lawrence could build his

temporary home, 12'x 14'. He often stated that he
arrived with one wife, one child, one cow, and $40.
His second house was built in 1914 which, with an
addition, is now the home of Harold and Hilda
Dukerschein.
Lawrence and Delia had five children: Lucille,
Edith, Louise, Harold, and Orlo. Lawrence and
Henry cleared land, milked cows and hired out as
carpenters, constructing many houses and barns in
the Glen Flora and Kennan area, many of which
are still in use today. A larger barn was built in
1922 and another 80 acres of land was purchased
from Earl Nelson. Game was plentiful and it
should be noted that Lawrence loved to hunt and
fish, activities in those days that were a necessary
part of survival. He was an expert marksman on
deer and ducks, due, in part at least, to his fre-
quent indulgence in those areas. His love of the
outdoors is passed on to his children, grand-
children, and great-grandchildren.
Harold and Orlo grew up clearing land, milking
cows and learning carpentry. They both stayed on
the farm and worked through the 30's and 40's to
improve the quality and increase the size of the
farm by purchasing an additional 80 acres. During
this period Orlo served in the United States Army
in Australia and New Guinea in World War 11
earning the rank of Warrant Officer First Class. In
1950 Harold and Orlo changed their Grade A milk
operation to pasteurizing and bottling their milk
and selling "Duke's Guernsey Dairy" products
throughout most of Rusk County. They were
pioneers -in soil conservation and terracing, and
among the first to use forage in the form of grass
silage. Harold and Orlo were active in church and
community affairs, including school board and 4-
H service. In 1963 they sold the dairy cattle.
Harold and his wife, Hilda, started Northland
Evergreens, manufacturing Christmas wreaths
and garlands in Hayward and shipping them to the
Chicago and Iowa areas. They increased their
business to where they manufactured over 45,000
wreaths and 100 miles of garland annually. They
sold their business and retired in 1978 and live in
the original Dukerschein home.
In 1964 Orlo and his wife, Bernice, started Ar-
tisans Screen Printing. They printed a variety of
products and  then specialized in imprinted
garments which were sold mainly in Wisconsin and
Minnesota. Orlo was killed in a car accident in
1976 but Bernice continued to manage Artisans
through periods of growth before retiring at the
end of 1982. Artisans is currently managed by son
Gordon and his wife Beverly, and son Larry, who
also manages a beef operation with his wife
Shirley, on the original family farm.
THE CHARLES DUSTIN
FAMILY
Charles Dustin came from the state of Vermont
to Vernon County, Wis., date unknown. There he
married Mary Winchell. They had eight children.
In about 1914 they and most of the children moved
to Rusk County. They bought a farm in the town
of Big Bend. The children from the oldest to the
youngest were Minnie, Herbert, Howard, Ross,
Winfred, Ruby, Willie, and Cloie.
Minnie married Perry Nelson in Vernon Coun-
ty, Wisconsin, in the year 1900. Herbert and
Howard died when only in their late thirties. Ross
went to Oregon to go to school and later became a
Seventh Day Adventist minister. Winfred married
lona Calkins, Ruby married Thelo Kern, Willie
died at age 18, and Cloie married Herman
Kramer.
Minnie, Winfred, Ruby, and Cloie lived out
their lives in Rusk County. Charles Dustin
9/11/1855-8/10/1929, Mary Dustin 5/22/1866-
8/10/1926. Eula Tubbs
JAMES AND ANNIE DVORAK
My father was born in Czechoslovakia in 1876
and came to the United States with his family
when he was three years old. They lived in
Nebraska until 1897 when he came with his family
to Rusk County and settled on a farm south of