Heritage Park

Heritage Park is an historic village of eight buildings. It includes the Bancroft Depot, the former Pierce building, Hie Corner School, a post office, church, general store, blacksmith shop and the Franklin/Calkins House.

The Park started in the late 1970s when Maurice Perret and John Anderson purchased the Old Plover Methodist Church and two plots of land. These costs were later donated by the Village of Plover to the Portage County Historical Society. In 1983 six more lots were purchased by the Society and the Franklin/Calkins House was moved onto the site. The other buildings have been collected from other sites in Portage County with the intent of preserving them and depicting what life was like between 1870 and 1910.

Visitors will find that the west side of the Park portrays community life whereas the east end displays both rural and unique structures from the county. These historic buildings would have likely been lost had the Society not preserved them. They have endeavored to create a living monument to life in Portage County during its early settlement years.

The park is open from Memorial Day thru Labor Day each Saturday and Sunday from 1:00 PM to 4:00 PM. Visitors should contact the Portage County Historical Society for other viewing times.

Source: Portage County Historical Society