This Manitowoc County monument turned 100 this year. What to know about Jacques Vieau's trading post.
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June 11 marked the 100th anniversary of the monument dedication for Jacques Vieau’s trading post on Jambo Creek in the town of Gibson.
Vieau (called Jean Beau or Zhambo by Indigenous people) was an agent for the Northwest Fur Company. The Jambo Creek post was one of several outposts established by the French Canadian trader along the western shore of Lake Michigan in 1795. Others were located at Kewaunee, Manitowoc Rapids, Sheboygan and Milwaukee, which became his headquarters.
The idea of a marker came during a talk on the old trading post by Norman Wilson at a meeting of the Jambo Creek Community Club at Jambo Creek School. Wilson’s research led him to the conclusion that its site was near the schoolhouse and suggested it be properly and permanently marked. The Jambo Creek Community Club and local residents enthusiastically supported the idea.
A large granite boulder on the Fred Weihemuller farm was found, requiring a stone-boat and a team of horses to haul it to the school grounds. The boulder, about the height of a man, was shaped like Wisconsin, except for the Door Peninsula.
Nic Kettenhofen of Manitowoc did the stone carving and donated a bronze tablet for placement on the boulder. The tablet was inscribed: 1795, The First White Man’s House, A Trading Post in Manitowoc Co. Was Built 60 Rods South of This Marker by Jacques Vieau Known Among The Indians As Jambo, Dedicated June 25, 1922 (for some unknown reason the wrong date appears on the monument). Mr. Kettenhofen had donated the stone for Chief Mexico’s monument, erected at Manitowoc Rapids in 1909.
James Zahorik, of the Jambo Creek Community Club, was master of ceremonies at the Sunday afternoon program, which included music by the Manitowoc High School orchestra and the singing of “America” and “On, Wisconsin” by the audience.
Emil Baensch of the Manitowoc County Historical Society addressed the crowd. A recitation on the American Indian was given by 13-year-old Viola Wilson from one of the town’s pioneer families.
The marker was unveiled by Leona and Ethel Vieau, great-great-granddaughters of Jacques Vieau. The two young girls of De Pere handed an American flag to school district officials, who hoisted it on the pole, while those assembled sang "The Star-Spangled Banner."
A dedicatory address was delivered by Dr. Joseph Schafer, superintendent of the Wisconsin State Historical Society based in Madison. The program was followed by a luncheon served by ladies from the school district.
The evening before the marker dedication, Dr. Schafer gave a talk in the Manitowoc County Training School room on the second floor of the Manitowoc Public Library at 8 p.m. The talk was open to the public and free of charge.
The talk and monument dedication were widely advertised in local papers. News of the Jambo Creek marker dedication appeared in the December 1922 issue of The Wisconsin Magazine of History.
Despite flooded road conditions and washouts from torrential rains on Saturday that prevented many visitors from Manitowoc and Two Rivers from attending the Sunday dedication, a large gathering of rural residents from miles around attended the program.
Bob Fay is a historian and former executive director of the Manitowoc County Historical Society.
This article originally appeared on Manitowoc Herald Times Reporter: Jacques Vieau trading post marker in Manitowoc County is a century old
