Hickory Grove Spring

More commonly known as Hickory Grove, a water analysis attributed to John G. Gredler for water from Hickory Grove Spring in the Waukesha Freeman in August of 1884 is the only mention of the spring found to date. Using an 1872 plat map showing the location of the Hickory Grove Brewery, the general location of the springs is thought to be on Main Street to the east of Hartwell. Residents have speculated on the purpose of a mysterious cave or tunnel found near Fuzzy's bar, reported in the Waukesha Freeman in 2015, and one idea is that it was beer storage for the Hickory Grove Brewery.

The land that Hickory Grove Brewery was located on was on Main Street, east of Hartwell. This land was initially owned by Morris D. Cutler, a Waukesha pioneer, and was sold to Leonard Uhl and Christopher Kriener in October of 1867. Uhl sold his portion of the brewery to John Leonard Pappenheimer in 1871. Poppenheimer & Kreiner, Brewers is a listing in the 1873 Wisconsin Business Directory. Kriener sold to John J. Plate in April of 1873, but not long after the property was sold by the sheriff to John Gredler in 1875.

Gredler improved the property for summer nights festivals, which included a dance floor and a restaurant. The only mention of Hickory Grove Springs was in a newspaper clipping in the Waukesha Freeman where Gredler published a water analysis and summarized that the combination of minerals contained in the water in Hickory Grove Spring "was the same as the best springs in Waukesha".

The name Hickory Grove continued when James K. Anderson, a well known name in Waukesha Springs, purchased a portion of the property including the residence in 1887. He remodeled it and added 6 acres of gardens and called his project "Hickory Grove Villa".

Schoenknecht, John Martin. Great Waukesha Springs Era 1868-1914. Edition 3. Waukesha, WI. John M. Schoenknecht, 2022.

Waukesha Freeman, 1884.

Wisconsin Business Directory excerpts for Waukesha County, 1873 and 1879. Waukesha County Historical Society.