By Heather Schaefer
Regional Editor

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Model T Fords were parked outside the Oneida County Courthouse Saturday as the building celebrated its 100th birthday with an historic flourish. Little girls wore white gloves and ladies in vintage garb prepared picnic lunches on the courthouse lawn. Horses and wagons provided transportation between courthouse square and the Rhinelander Logging Museum and charter school students, dressed as some of the city’s most prominent 1908 residents, provided a history lesson.

Large crowds of appreciative visitors listened intently as the students told tales of old Rhinelander. They shared stories about the underground tunnels used by gangsters, a sheriff who ran a tearoom and helped residents get their spirits during prohibition, the men and women who founded the banks that still stand today and who worked in the sawmills that have passed into history. In top hats and silk dresses they pretended to be members of families whose surnames now grace local buildings and street signs and some whose descendants still call Rhinelander home— names like Hildebrand, Taylor, Boyce, Daniels and O’Melia.

Late in the day, a baseball game was played at Pioneer Park using 1908 rules.

Courthouse Centennial Celebration committee chairman Guy Hansen deemed the event a huge success.

“We’re very, very pleased, this is terrific,” he said, noting the enthusiasm of the big crowd milling around the courthouse lawn.

Hansen said he was particularly pleased to see people gathering for tours of the courthouse building and wagon rides up and down Oneida Avenue.

“People are waiting in line for the courthouse tours and the wagon rides are a huge hit, the wagons are always full,” he said.

Committee member Romelle Vandervest, who wore a vintage blue frock, said she was thrilled to see so many people attend the event in costume.

“I’m very impressed with the turnout and it’s nice to see the public rise to the occasion with the period dress,” she said.

Vandervest said the old-fashioned clothes helped set the retro vibe.

“It’s a lot of fun and this is the only time you can wear something like this,” she said.

Vandervest said the committee wanted the event to be free so anyone who wanted to participate would the chance.

“This is a way to give back to the community,” she said.

Residents who were unable to take part in Saturday’s celebration, and those who can’t wait for another taste of 1908, will have another chance to mark the courthouse’s 100th birthday in November when the laying of the building’s cornerstone will be re-enacted. A tour of 10 historic homes that line courthouse square is also scheduled for Oct. 4.

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