Tigerton Lumberjack Days has been an annual event in the village of Tigerton since 1965. The only year the event was not held was 2020 because of COVID. This year’s event is scheduled for Aug. 28-30 at Tigerton Community Park.
The Tigerton Advancement Association hosts Lumberjack Days each year the weekend prior to Labor Day weekend at Tigerton Community Park. The Tigerton Advancement Association was formed in 1963 by a group of business owners and two years later the organization launched Lumberjack Days.
“They decided they wanted to give a thank you to the people from the community for their support for the businesses throughout the year,” said Wally Breitenfeldt, president of the Tigerton Advancement Association.
The initial Lumberjack Days was a one-day event that included a corn roast, bingo, music, and food. Back then it was held on Main Street in Tigerton. Eventually the event moved to its current location. For years Lumberjack Days included a carnival, but it eventually became too difficult to secure a carnival that would provide three or four rides the weekend before Labor Day, Breitenfeldt said.
“That’s why we’ve gone to some of the small things we’ve done like the Strongman Contest, the bike giveaway, the beanbag tournament, and all that stuff,” Breitenfeldt said. “We have kids Hot Wheels races now on Friday night.”
Two of the biggest draws to Lumberjack Days is the parade through Tigerton on the Sunday of the event, which is followed by a Lumberjack Contest. Breitenfeldt said at first, local individuals competed in the Lumberjack Contest, but eventually the event saw semi-professionals competing.
“I remember one year it was absolutely pouring rain, and we moved bingo somewhere and we ended up underneath the shelter, and it was so flipping loud. It was unbelievable,” Breitenfeldt said.
Due to financial reasons, the Lumberjack Contest moved away from semi-professionals to what it is today. The contest draws out-of-town participants, as Breitenfeldt said there is a group from Marinette who travel to Tigerton each year to compete.
“The guy that has won the top Lumberjack prize award for the last how many years comes from Manitowoc every year, he’s like 75 years old,” Breitenfeldt said. “He just loves doing it.”
He added, “They get a little bit of prize money, but it’s more for bragging rights to see what they can do against everybody else.”
Another draw for Lumberjack Days is the bike giveaway for kids.
“I think the first year we had 15 or 20 bikes,” Breitenfeldt said. “Now we’re typically between 50 and 60. That’s all donated.”
Many other activities have been tried at Lumberjack Days for an amount of time before being discontinued.
“We try to do some different things to get people to participate and get people down there to spend a little time, hopefully spend a dollar or two, so that we can make some money so we can give it all back,” Breitenfeldt said.
All the money raised from Lumberjack Days goes back into the community in some way, such as supporting the ambulance service and fire department, scholarships for high school seniors, and youth sports, Breitenfeldt said.
At 2 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 29, longtime sponsor of the event Charlie’s County Market will be recognized, as will more than 40 individuals and families who have been involved with the event for a long time.
“We can’t do this without our sponsors and lots and lots of volunteers,” Breitenfeldt said. “Some are helping for a couple hours and some are helping all weekend. A lot of it is behind the scenes. We really appreciate the fact that they take the time to help us out because it’s a community event. It’s a community event and it’s all about giving back to the community.”