The History Of Brekke’s Fireside Resort
1936-1943 Arthur & Wanda Hutchinson
This resort was established in 1936 by Arthur and Wanda Hutchinson. Originally from Green Bay, they purchased the property for $3,000 and built what today are cottages 1-6 and the office. In 1940 they bought more property, but the motives behind that are unfortunately lost to history. Arthur passed away in 1943.
1944-1951 Cecil & Irma Sheldon
In 1944 Wanda sold the resort to Cecil and Irma Sheldon. The Sheldon’s expanded the resort by adding 5 log cabins and a square dance hall. The square dance hall has since been turned into the bar. The thanks for the 4 oldest photos on this page go to Shirley Sheldon, the daughter of Cecil and Irma.
1952-1970 Ed & Barbara Stackler
In 1952 the resort was sold to Ed and Barbara Stackler of Chicago. The Stackler’s did not live on site, but instead employed a series of managers to run the resort up until 1971.
1971-Present Ron & Carol Brekke
In 1971 Ron and Carol Brekke purchased the resort. Big changes from the early 70’s were adding what is today cottage 8 and turning the bar into a bar. Unfortunately, Ron was unable to see all his plans for the resort through, as he passed away in 1977. Faced with a choice between moving back to Milwaukee and keeping the resort going, Carol decided to stay, and became the driving force behind the resort for over 40 years. Thanks to a lot of helpful people (especially in the early days), and a lot of great guests all through the years, Brekke’s Resort is still going strong. Today the resort is run by Ron and Carol’s children, Dan Brekke and Nancy Brekke-Jones.
The appearance of the resort has certainly changed over 90 years, but our hope is that the feeling people leave with when coming here remains the same.
