Bright realized his message,“ the state wants to buy your land,” to landowners had to be perceived as sincere. Supplemented with federal monies, the state would purchase the land initially as a game refuge. Price was set at $ 4 an acre, though Bright was told he could negotiate.
Lawrence Strahl told me his dad had heard of the purchase plan for Brown County land. He recalled his dad saying if the state wanted their land that badly, they could have it, whatever the offer.“ That was our daddy’ s ticket out of here.”
The Strahl brothers recalled Bright’ s visit to their farm. They received a better price of $ 10 / acre on their 189 acres.
Some neighbors wanted to hold out for top dollar. Eminent domain was never exercised by the state in any of Bright’ s transactions. All private lands acquired for the game farm were secured willingly. Once pending farm sales were announced, many were anxious, but few objected. Those that did object got more for their land. One farmer, Harry Smith, got top dollar, $ 40 / acre.
The abandoned hilly farm fields slowly reverted to natural cover. Land accumulated during the mid- 1920s, for the game farm totaled nearly 15,500 acres. By 1929, and with Bright’ s dogged persistence, the county commissioners secured a portion for the state park.
Eventually the small valley where the Strahls lived was flooded for the lake, one of the game farm’ s first water sources for woodland animals.
The Strahl family’ s farming struggles were mentioned at nearly all interpretive programs scheduled at the lake. Louis Strahl told me they took turns helping neighbors, so I never failed to mention this communal effort.
The winter landscape of Strahl valley is a favorite in the park. With no leaf cover you see the lake from almost all overlooks above. The pine plantations are hidden from view during the long, green summer, but appear again from the vistas dark, almost black-green, every late fall.
The Strahl brothers ecalled plowing one particular hillside every year. It was fairly flat and showed signs of erosion and wear, but it always produced some kind of crop. It was one of the hills where the Civilian Conservation Corps( CCC) planted pine trees in the 1930s.
Like a forest that endures many changes over time, so has this small valley. Change is inevitable. People came, made their mark, and left. Now more people come, but for a different purpose.
There’ s a story to be told to the Brown County park visitor, one that is rich with personal, family, and community history, luck, twists and turns, and a loving connection to the land. •
Sept./ Oct. 2017 • Our Brown County 55