D. H. (Dudley Humphrey) Pierce was born February 21, 1871 in Appleton, Wisconsin to Humphrey and Emily Hauser Pierce. He attended Racine College and later worked in his father's law office. He married Laura Briggs on September 19, 1893 and they had five children: Josephine, Virginia, Dorothy, Dudley Jr., and Eugene. Laura Pierce died on April 23, 1947. D. H. Pierce managed the Citizens Electric Light Company in Appleton during the late 1890s and later sold real estate and insurance. He also founded the Pierce Auto Body Works in 1913, which later became Pierce Manufacturing, Inc., a leading manufacturer of fire fighting equipment. He was an active participant in the Appleton community as a member of the Elks Club, Eagles Club, Knights of Pythias, and First Methodist Church, and was an alderman from 1909 to 1910. Pierce was nationally known for his game fowl, particularly as the originator of the Wisconsin Red Shuffler, or Pierce Shuffler. He raised this breed and participated in mains around the upper Midwest, from the late 1890s through the 1940s. He also sold repaired heels, sharp blades placed on the legs of the fowl for use during mains. D. H. Pierce died on September 22, 1955 in Appleton.
