6 
 
 
A History of 
 
 
Achievement 
 
 
              Of the 
              PORTAGE 
 
              COUNTY 
              CHAPTER 
 
 
Pheasant shelter pens constructed in Iverson Park, Stevens Point. 
 
 
",PylO REACH back into the past and try to bring to you 
       some salient points of interest of the Portage county 
  "Tchapter of the Izaak Walton League is a difficult task, 
and at best can be only a fragmentary report of the many 
fine things done by our chapter. The many influential men 
who have appeared on our programs and the large number 
of high ranking citizens of our country bespeaks the good 
and effective work done by this organization." 
  With this prelude to its history of activity since its incep- 
tion in October, 1922, the Portage county chapter at Stevens 
Point, Wisconsin, presents its report for 1936, a thirty-two 
page booklet lavishly illustrated with photographs, show- 
ing projects throughout the county that in themselves tell 
an eloquent story of an organization of which all can be 
proud. 
  In May, 1923, at a meeting attended by National President 
Will Dilg, and all the state officers and directors, the Portage 
County Fish and Game Association was merged with the 
local chapter and a program adopted to take the Conserva- 
tion Department out of politics. For six years this objective 
held the spotlight for all Wisconsin Waltonians and came to 
successful fruition in 1929 when the legislature passed a 
law calling for establishment of a six-man conservation 
commission. 
  Following the years 1923 and 1924 the chapter settled 
down to real business, increased its membership yearly and 
plugged away at its rebuilding program that reached an all 
time record in its 1936 activities. 
              Bird Rearing and Feeding 
  "Perhaps the most outstanding accomplishments of tfh, 
League in 1936 were in this phase of our work. Through 
 
 
the cooperation of the WPA and the city officials we were 
able to set up in Iverson Park a pheasant rearing project 
capable of raising one thousand pheasants from day old 
chicks to seven weeks of age, at which time they are old 
enough to liberate throughout the county. This project has 
created much interest among the sportsmen of the state be- 
cause it is the largest project of its kind, outside of the state 
farm itself. It consists of four units, each including a 
brooder house, covered pen, and one running pen." 
   While cost figures for the whole project are not available, 
the chapter spent approximately $700 for the construction 
of the pens only, and the fourth unit of the rearing pens was 
made possible by a donation of $100 from Oscar Weber, a 
staunch Waltonian and national director, which upped the 
production possibilities from 750 chicks to a thousand. 
  Three thousand people came to Iverson park to see the 
pheasant operations. They came from thirty-six states, from 
Canada, Norway, Ireland and South America. Came also 
two or three successive visits from a mink that accounted for 
the loss of some twenty seven-week old birds but even this 
unwelcome visitation didn't detract from a signally successful 
production. 
  With an eye to the future welfare of the reared birds, the 
  officers, directors and committees knew that unless ample 
feed were provided during severe winter months, "it would 
be fool hardy to raise pheasants to distribute throughout the 
county" so the chapter sponsored another WPA project, this 
time for the construction of 75 feeding hoppers. To aug- 
ment the hopper feeding, great quantities of grain seed se- 
cured from the Conservation Commission were distributed 
among the farmers for planting along the edge of fields 
adjacent to marsh and wooded areas. 
 
 
         Mviore ana Better rxsnng 
  "Fish rearing and planting", continues the 
report, "has without question received more 
attention in years past than any other activity 
of the Izaak Walton League.    Stevens Point 
being the home of the largest fish fly tying in- 
dustry in the world it is only natural that its 
citizens would become interested primarily in 
fishing. In 1936 we did not let up on this 
activity, but rather enlarged upon it. Probably 
the most important item in our fish stocking 
program was the first introduction into this 
county of the muskie in any quantity. Two 
thousand of these were placed in the sloughs 
of the Wisconsin river. It is felt that this 
river is one of the greatest potential assets that 
 
 
Portion of lake dammed off for 
trout rearing pond. 
 
 
August, 1937 
OUTDOOR AMERICA