The Antigo Public Library celebrated the completion of its “Enjoy History as It Happened” digitizing project with a program, music and refreshments on Wednesday, July 15.
An article about the program appeared in the July 13, 2026 issue of the Antigo Daily Journal.
The program featured guest speaker Kerry Bloedorn “The Northwoods Historian,” along with Antigo Mayor Tom Bauknecht and Langlade County Historical Society President Glenn Bugni at the library.
Unveiled in June 2025, the project focused on preserving Langlade County history by digitizing 120 years of The Antigo Daily Journal, the Weekly New Journal and the Antigo Republican dating back to the late 1800s. The project, which replaced the microfilm equipment previously housed at the library, created a searchable database available with one click on the library website or by scanning a QR code. Seed money for the $100,000 fund-raising effort was provided by the Antigo Public Library Foundation, which contributed $30,000 via a donation made in 2013 by Charlie and Betty Fogeltanz, devoted library supporters and longtime Antigo Daily Journal staffers who spent a combined 134 years at the newspaper.
A printer, Charlie Fogeltanz joined the Antigo Daily Journal in 1943 and remained active at the newspaper until his death at age 95 in 2013. Betty, a wordsmith and lover of verse, worked in the clerical department for 65 years, retiring shortly before her death in 2008 at the age of 85.
As the “Northwoods Historian,” guest speaker Bloedorn is a regular user of digital databases as well as old-time newspaper archives and microfilm. Bloedorn is a longtime Rhinelander area resident with deep family ties to Antigo. He is currently the director and curator of Rhinelander’s Pioneer Park Historical Complex and hosts the popular “Connecting the Dots” program on WJFW 12 and “A Northwoods Moment in History” on WXPR Public Radio.
Bloedorn was recently appointed by Gov. Tony Evers to the Wisconsin Historical Society’s Board of Curators, which oversees the operational aspect of the Wisconsin Historical Society.
