Kelderhouse Farm & Cemetery

History

This parcel of land was owned by descendants of Thomas Kelderhouse, the wood merchant, from 1863 until the time it was acquired by the National Park Service in 1970. A log cabin, the first known structure on the land, was built around 1890 by the Kelderhouse’s son William. Centrally located at the intersection of M-22 and Port Oneida Road, near the Kelderhouse (Port Oneida) Cemetery and former location of the Evangelical Lutheran church, the Kelderhouse’s 65-acre farm was a gathering space for Port Oneida residents. The present house, which William built around 1910, was once used as a grocery store, telephone headquarters, and post office, all operated by William’s wife, Charlotte. Remains of once extensive orchards, planted by William and Charlotte’s son Rolland in the 1920s, are visible in fields to the east and south of the farm. The barn was removed in the late 1940s or early 1950s. The house, in a kitchen-ell plan, is representative of a common vernacular architectural style found throughout the district. Purely functional in form, every bit of space in the home had its practical purpose. The kitchen, traditionally the woman’s domestic workspace, was a busy place, where all processing and preparing of the harvests occurred. The outbuildings, including a pig barn, chicken coop, brooder house, and privy further reflect the domestic activities of the farm.

The Kelderhouse cemetery contains forty-six grave markers, marking at least fifty-nine graves. The cemetery remains an active and well-maintained site, reflecting communities of the past and present.

Photo Gallery/Preservation Projects

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