9-8-11 & 8-8-14
Valders is a village in Manitowoc county of about 1000, settled by immigrants from the Valdres Valley of Norway as far back as 1850. It is about 10 miles from Manitowoc. Valders was incorporated as a village in 1919. Descendants of the original settlers still give a village a Norwegian flavor, much like Stoughton. That is seen in the design of Faith Lutheran Church.
On our 2011 visit on the way to Washington Island, we stopped at this Cenex for gas and learned about Valders from the friendly staff there. They showed us an aerial photo of the village. They had a pumpkin cart outside too.
Behind the Cenex was the Willam F. Christel Memorial Woods and Wetland Preserve.
Cristel’s Piggly Wiggly takes care of the grocery needs of the Valders area.
As you can see, the Christel name is very prominent in this village. That is because William Franz Christel was one of the early settlers of Valders who moved there in 1916. He founded several businesses, including the grocery store. Downtown there is a historical marker and a restaurant/bar at the former Christel home, called The Shuh Factory Food and Spirits.
The tallest structure is this lone smokestack.
We also stopped at Valders Memorial Park, there is a historic marker there too. Very interesting!
We enjoyed our visits to Valders, they are proud of their community and welcome all visitors!
