Alexian Brothers' Novitiate facts for kids

The Alexian Brothers' Novitiate is a large old house in Gresham, Shawano County, Wisconsin. It was built in 1939 as a home. Later, in 1950, it became a training center for the Alexian Brothers, a religious group. They used it until 1968.

The building is famous for being taken over in 1975 by the Menominee Warrior Society. This group wanted the house to be given to the nearby Menominee Indian Reservation. They succeeded, but the building later went back to Gresham. It then fell apart and was mostly forgotten.

How the Novitiate Began

The Novitiate building was first built in 1939. It was a home for Jennie Peters and her child from New York. Mrs. Peters' husband, Frank M. Peters, was an inventor. He also used to work for the Nabisco company.

The house was a grand Georgian style mansion. It had a big stone porch, many large windows, and 35 rooms. There were also rooms for servants. A balcony on the second floor looked over Freeborn Falls on the Red River. Sadly, Mrs. Peters' daughter passed away before the house was finished. Mr. Peters had a strong connection to the Alexian Brothers from his youth in Chicago. He wanted the house to be given to them one day.

In 1948, Mrs. Peters moved back to New York. The building was given to the Alexian Brothers. They officially took it over in 1950. In 1951, they started welcoming new members, called novices, to train there. The property was very large, about 232 acres.

The Brothers added more buildings in 1954. These included new dorms, a quiet area called a cloister, and a chapel. They bought more land in 1955 to create a farm. This farm helped feed the novices. The property was updated to become self-sufficient, meaning it could provide for itself.

After some big changes in the church called the Second Vatican Council, the Brothers decided to move. They moved their training to Chicago. The novitiate building was put up for sale in 1969. The last Brothers left in 1972, with only a caretaker staying behind.

The property was hard to sell for several years. In 1974, it was offered to a group of Native Americans from Green Bay. They wanted to turn it into a rehabilitation center. But this plan ended when the building was taken over in 1975.

The Takeover of the Novitiate

On January 1, 1975, a group called the Menominee Warrior Society took control of the property. This group was part of the Menominee Tribe. The caretaker and his family were inside the building. The Warrior Society was inspired by similar actions by the American Indian Movement (AIM). These included events at Alcatraz and Wounded Knee.

The group demanded that the Novitiate and its land be given to the Menominee Reservation. They said that old laws allowed them to take the land back. This was because it was no longer used for religious reasons. The situation was very tense. There were some tense moments with occasional gunfire. Talks to solve the problem mostly stopped.

After three days, the warriors tried to arrange a ceasefire. They had secretly run out of ammunition. But no agreement was reached. Local police cut off power to the building. This caused the water pipes to freeze and burst, damaging the property a lot. The National Guard moved into the area. They set up checkpoints to block off the area.

Negotiations did not go well in January. The Brothers wanted a fair price for the land. But the Menominee Warrior Society demanded it for free. They felt it already belonged to them. The situation was also complicated because some people in Menominee, Gresham, and nearby Shawano supported the Society. Others did not want the National Guard there.

Some armed locals would go to the property on snowmobiles. They would fire at the novitiate. The woods and river around the building made it easy for both these locals and the warriors to get around the guard units. This made security very difficult.

Even though they didn't plan the takeover, some AIM leaders came to Gresham. They offered support and helped with the talks. The famous actor and Native American rights supporter, Marlon Brando, also came to support the Warrior Society. Many locals were upset by these outside supporters. They worried the takeover would start a bigger movement in the area.

On February 2, 1975, the standoff ended. The Brothers and the Society made a deal. The Brothers were worried the event might end like other tense situations. So, they chose to sell the property to the Menominee Reservation for just one dollar. The month-long standoff ended peacefully. The 39 members of the Menominee Warrior Society were arrested. No one was killed or seriously hurt.

What Happened Recently

Since the standoff, the Novitiate has struggled to find a new use. The Menominee Reservation could not keep up the building. They gave up their claim to the property within a few months. In October 1975, a fire badly damaged the building.

In November, the Brothers gave the area to Crossroads Academy from Milwaukee. The land was divided. About 56 acres were given to the Town of Richmond. This land was turned into a park.

The parts added by the Alexian Brothers were torn down in 2004. Only the original mansion was left. The old mansion is still a popular sight for people kayaking along the Red River. The rapids near the mansion are now known as Monastery Falls. This name refers to the novitiate. The property has been owned by many different people. But no major improvements have been made to it.

Documentary and Book

In 2001, J. Patrick Rick made a short film called The Novitiate. He used to be a novice with the Alexian Brothers. The film was about the property and the 1975 takeover. In 2011, he wrote a book called The Abbey & Me.