LIBERTY GROVE, Wis. – The Wisconsin Historical Society announces the listing of the Hedeen Orchard in Liberty Grove (Door County) on the State Register of Historic Places. The Hedeen Orchard is located immediately northeast of the Village of Sister Bay and is representative of the Door County Cherry Boom. In the early twentieth century, the Hedeen family transformed a small-scale dairy farm into a mid-sized commercial cherry orchard. They planted cherry trees after acquiring the property, and the land became productive in the late 1920s when the family advertised for pickers and flourished until the 1960s.
In response to labor shortages during and after World War II, the Hedeen Orchard utilized Mexican workers and families of Tejano migrant workers to pick cherries each summer. The orchard’s reliance on Tejano migrant workers continued through the early 1960s as Door County’s cherry industry became heavily dependent on the labor provided by these families. Character-defining features of the property include its collection of wood-frame vernacular and utilitarian buildings that convey its function as a working orchard dependent upon migrant labor. Graffiti created by Tejano migrant workers in the mid-twentieth century remains on the interior walls of three buildings, along with bunk beds, ladders, signs, and pails.
This is a private residence; please respect the privacy of the property owners. The State Register is Wisconsin’s official list of state properties determined to be significant to Wisconsin’s heritage. The State Historic Preservation Office at the Wisconsin Historical Society administers both the State Register and National Register in Wisconsin.
Additional information for the Hedeen Orchard is available at: https://wisconsinhistory.org/Records/NationalRegister/NR2837
To learn more about the State and National Register programs in Wisconsin, visit: www.wisconsinhistory.org.
About the Wisconsin Historical Society
The Wisconsin Historical Society, founded in 1846, ranks as one of the largest, most active and most diversified state historical societies in the nation. As both a state agency and a private membership organization, its mission is to help people connect to the past by collecting, preserving and sharing stories. The Wisconsin Historical Society serves millions of people every year through a wide range of sites, programs and services. For more information, visit wisconsinhistory.org.
