chandising. His part in the early founding of this town has been previously discussed.

A new group of pioneers had by this time come into the community, coming from Grant County, Wisconsin. These were Fred and Joe Brechler, who came in 1884 and purchased the hardware stock of R. H. Maxwell who was by that time engaged in banking. The Brechler Brothers' Store was the building which later became the Battle Creek Valley Bank site. The building was destroyed by fire on January 14, 1930, during a severe blizzard. It took the combined efforts of the Battle Creek, Meadow Grove, Tilden and Norfolk fire departments to control the fire and keep it from spreading. Water supply ran low so the Norfolk Department brought a pumper to pump water from the Battle Creek near the bridge (across the street from what is now the Clarence Borgelt home) carrying water by hose to the nearest

Maxwell water tower, looking east from corner of now Stohler home.

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