WSQ - Melrose Cemetery Traditional Cache
-
Difficulty:
-
-
Terrain:
-
Size: 
(micro)
Please note Use of geocaching.com services is subject to the terms and conditions
in our disclaimer.
In the spring of 1837, a Dutch immigrant named Robert Douglas came from Dumfries, Scotland in search of adventure in this new world. In the spring of 1837 he left Prairie du Chien as the only passenger on a keel boat, and he was dropped off near what was then Prairie La Crosse and he traveled up the east side of the Black River until he reached the area south of where you presently stand.
After building a makeshift raft to cross the river, he climbed the bank to view the area for a place to establish as his own. The flat prairie between what is now Melrose and the Black River is where he staked his claim noting at the time, the fertile soils and bountiful wildlife. In doing so, he became the first Non-Native American to establish a homestead in this region north of Prairie du Chien.
Within the next few years Robert would begin to see a few keel boats coming up the Black River with other venturesome souls, at times stopping in to update Robert and his brother William, who had joined him in 1838, of news from the civilized world. Many of the travelers regarded the Douglas’s 12 x 18 foot log cabin as a welcome sight in their travels. Early on, the Douglas’s befriended the local Native Americans also, which by their own accounts state, they would never have survived those first years without.
Later, the Doulas brothers would see the river transform into a stream of logs harvested from the Pine Barrens to the north, along with the many logging mills that began to be placed along the feeder streams that were abundant along the Black River. Robert Douglas pasted away in 1896 and now rests here in the Melrose Cemetery. Old timers from the area still know of the “Douglas Prairie”, marked by where Douglas Creek confluences with the Black.
Currently Melrose Cemetery has 1639 grave sites. This geocache container is not located on or near any of them. You’re looking for a small bison tube next to the largest tree within the Cemetery.
If there is a service going on, or if other visitors are present when you arrive please be respectful and come back at a later time. Your understanding and compassion will be appreciated..
Additional Hints
(No hints available.)