Village of Gays Mills
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The Matti Hen House

Picture
Sketch by Shirley Northern
Samuel Matti came to this country from Switzerland when he was 18. He met Kathryn Adams from New Jersey when he was mining gold in Montana. They decided to settle southwest of Eastman on DuCharme Creek in 1880. Harrison Matti remembers when he, his brother, George, and Sam, their father, built this log corn crib in 1905. They built it out of butternut logs. In addition to storing corn, this building was used to break up setting hens. Hens that weren’t producing would be locked in here for 4 to 5 days without water and with very little feed. This got them laying again.

​Sam Matti’s specialty in farming was having a terribly big garden, but he also raised cows, pigs, bees and sorghum. It was not unusual in those days (1910) to have Indians camping on Matti land. Nettie Matti remembers when a cow got into the clover, became bloated and died. Just as they were about to bury it, some Indians came up and wanted to buy it. The Indians were glad because it meant that they would have meat for the winter.

​This hen house was donated by Charles Tresch who had purchased the land from Kathryn Matti.
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Contact the Village

Village of Gays Mills
16381 State Highway 131
Gays Mills, WI 54631

​Village Office Phone:   608-735-4341

Village Office Fax:  ​608-735-4328

Emergency Services

Police: ​  911
Fire Department:   911
Emergency Medical Services:   911

 Village Location 

© COPYRIGHT 2018. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
  • Home
  • Events
    • Apple Festival
    • Farmer's Market
    • Spring Festival
    • Stump Dodger Bash
  • Explore
    • Apple Orchards
    • Lodging
    • Festivals & Events
    • Kickapoo Bottoms
    • Kickapoo River
    • Kickapoo Wildlife Area
    • Log Cabin Heritage Park >
      • Altenburg-Zweifel Corn Crib
      • Barker Log Cabin
      • Matti Hen House
      • McCann House
      • Nederlo Granary
      • Tucker-O'Brien Log Cabin
      • Wauzeka Ridge School House
    • Outdoor Recreation
    • Robb Park
  • Community
    • Businesses
    • Churches
    • Education and Lifelong Learning
    • Library
    • Utilities
    • Service Organizations
    • Swimming Pool
  • Development
    • Agriculture
    • Commercial Lots
    • Housing
    • Kickapoo Culinary Center
    • Mercantile Center
  • Village Services
    • Village Office and Staff
    • Cemetery
    • Elected Officials
    • Events and Meetings Calendar
    • Permit, Licenses, & Event Procedures >
      • Burning Permits
      • Vendor Permits
      • Building Rentals
      • Alcohol Licensing
    • Village Ordinances & Plans
    • Village Minutes
  • History
  • Urban Foresty
  • Pay My Bill