Mishicot Historical Museum

Two undated photos of the Terens Hardware Store building, later Stelzer & Schmidt Hardware Store, at 447 E Main Street, Mishicot, Wisconsin.

This history of the building’s later years was written by Michael Jindra:

In 1955, Roy Jindra bought out George W. Schmidt’s business, which became Jindra Plumbing and Heating. Roy had begun apprenticing with him after high school in the 1940s. George later died in a fire at his home in 1959 during a flood. Roy heard the explosion from work and was one of the first on the scene, which is where the village offices are now.

Through much of the 1960s, the business had several employees, including Larry Miller, Bill Zahorik, Donny Wellner, and others. They did some of the work (including air conditioning) when Fox Hills was first built. Mom did some of the bookkeeping, with records kept in old ledgers, and bills sent out using typewriters and carbon paper. As the boys got to age 16, they also helped on the job (e.g. digging ditches, laying pipe) or in the office, especially in summers if they were not in school. The business was kept small in the mid to late 1970s, with only 2 or 3 employees (son Bill and Larry Miller). It was easier to manage, and the economy was somewhat slow. Then the recession of 1980-83 hit the area hard, and there was not much business during this period. Around 1977, the office portion of the shot was moved to 447 E. Main (the old Steltzer hardware store) from 441 (which previously had been a jewelry store) to provide a larger showroom. In the early 1980s, the business added solar heating and ground water heating (heat pumps) to its offerings, due to the energy crisis and tax credits that stimulated this industry.

Son Bill took over the business in the late 1980s and moved the business to just south of Shoto (5929 County Road B), which the Lennox company had been urging him to do to market better in Manitowoc. Bill sold it to Manitowoc Heating in 2012 and then began to work as a Building/Plumbing inspector for the City of Manitowoc and the Village of Mishicot, where he also continued to volunteer for the Mishicot Ambulance service.