Steward of the Land

This property, now known as South Fork, was the long time home of the late Lawrence and Marian Gibson who passed away in their early nineties in 2001 and 2002 respectively.

Lawrence graduated from the Iowa State College (now Iowa State University) School of Forestry in 1933 and spent 9 years working for the U. S. Forest Service. During that period he and Marian, and later their two sons, moved from one Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) camp to another throughout the Midwest. His last camp assignment was Riley Creek CCC Camp, west of Fifield on highway 70. He then began a long career at the Flambeau Paper Mill in Park Falls, WI, although that career was interrupted for three years service as an officer in the Army Air Corps during World War II. That service took him to the South Pacific theater for two years before returning with his family to Park Falls at the end of the war.

Son of an Iowa farmer, and a professional forester, Lawrence had a firm grasp of what it meant to be a "steward of the land". He also was somewhat of an entrepreneur as evidenced by several ventures in addition to working his way up the management ladder at the paper mill.

In the middle Fifties he purchased what was then known as the Hines Lumber Company farm on the northeast side of Park Falls, adjacent to the Park Falls Country Club. The Hines farm, originally used to raise beef for hungry lumberjacks in Hines lumber camps, had long stood idle. The only building left standing was a very large barn. Lawrence then set about building large, concrete block "charcoal kilns" to make pure lump charcoal for outdoor grilling. Long a fan of grilling steaks over an open fire and then later charcoal briquette fires, he had decided pure lump charcoal was preferable to the briquettes. He produced "Charlie Charcoal" (named for his father, Charles) for several years using the Hines barn as his bagging facility. It never really caught on, however, so he eventually abandoned that and began laying out the Hines farm as a subdivision. Today it is a neighborhood of many attractive homes, some on streets named "Gibson", "Lawrence" and "Marian".

When the planning and layout of the Hines subdivision was completed around 1960 Lawrence was left without an active "project". About that time he read in a magazine about a new mode of winter travel, a thing called a snowmobile. The article featured the originator of the concept, Bombardier of Quebec, Canada, and its product called a SkiDoo. Lawrence fired off a letter to Bombardier asking how he could buy one. Bombardier referred him to the Halverson Company in Duluth, their United States distributor at the time. He wrote a similar letter to Halverson and the response was they'd sell him one - and - if he'd buy two they'd make him a dealer! So two SkiDoos arrived on the Gibson doorstep at their house in Park Falls, packed unassembled in crates. Lawrence managed to assemble and get them running - and that was the beginning of a love affair with SkiDoo until his death over 30 years later.

He and Marian were true snowmobiling pioneers. There were no trails in those days in the early Sixties; one merely followed the path of least resistance cross country. No maps, no special snowmobile clothing. They, and soon some of their close friends who bought machines from Lawrence, began to turn heads in the Park Falls area. And Lawrence hauled his personal machine around northern Wisconsin, not just selling machines but also promoting the concept. He also bought a van, had it painted bright yellow with a big black band around its middle, which became his signature vehicle. Most people thought it was crazy to be chasing around in all kinds of winter weather, at times in sub zero temperatures! But gradually folks began to catch on.

The SkiDoo business in time became more than Lawrence could handle on a part time basis so he reached an agreement with a close friend, Fran Kranig, who ran the Vincent Ford dealership in Park Falls. Fran took over the SkiDoo franchise with the understanding Lawrence and Marian would continue to get new machines at cost, and Lawrence would continue to drive a yellow van promoting the business.

During this same period, probably fostered by a desire to have somewhere to ride his SkiDoos besides in circles around his house in town, Lawrence began looking for country property. That search led him to an old farm south of Fifield which, to Marian's dismay, he purchased by putting a mortgage on their house in Park Falls which they had just paid off! The farm property of over two hundred fifty acres fronted on highway 13 to the east and the South Fork of the Flambeau River to the west. There was a small, old house without any plumbing, an old barn (where the present main house now stands) and several dilapidated out buildings. Over a period of time the barn and outbuildings were razed but the little old house became the "clubhouse", scene of many outings, parties, and much snowmobiling. Even after Lawrence and Marian built their house on the barn site a few years later their many friends convinced them to keep the old farm house and it was a favorite meeting place for a number of years.

Over the next 25 years, until Lawrence and Marian were well into their eighties, Lawrence demonstrated his dedication to being a "steward of the land". While he dubbed the farm "Oleo Acres, the Cheaper Spread" it became anything but that. He planted trees, and harvested trees when they needed to be thinned. He built miles of roads and trails we now enjoy, most of them with his old 8N Ford tractor, a fixture on the farm until his estate was settled. Many of the streets in the South Fork development follow his original trails and carry the same names he gave them. Some are even still labeled with the original signs Lawrence hand lettered. He envisioned, planned and developed the three ponds which grace the property, two of which he stocked with trout. He personally built the screen house on the bank of the river, including the stone fireplace.

All this gave enjoyment to literally hundreds of people over the years. And a few years ago Lawrence and Marian were chosen "Tree Farmers of the Year" for Price County in recognition of their efforts.

So what we all enjoy today, a truly unique environment set in the north woods of Wisconsin, is a fitting legacy for Lawrence Gibson, a true Steward of the Land.

Larry G. Gibson

Eldest son of Lawrence and Marian

October 13, 2003

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