Local historian William F. Wolf was born in the town of Black Creek, Outagamie County, on May 5, 1875. He held a number of posts in local government including elections to the county board and to the position of county clerk. As an active member of the Outagamie County Pioneer and Historical Society, in 1935 Wolf was appointed to head the committee responsible for restoration of the Charles A. Grignon House in Kaukauna. The Grignon House, one of the oldest buildings in Wisconsin, was constructed by Grignon between 1837 and 1839 for his Pennsylvania bride, Mary Meade Grignon. Also on the property were the foundations of several earlier structures including a log cabin built by Dominique Ducharme in 1790 that was acquired by the Grignon family in 1804. After the restoration in 1941, Outagamie County appointed Wolf curator of the Grignon House museum. During his tenure Wolf supervised several archeological excavations; transcribed historical documents housed at the museum; and drafted a historical manuscript, “Dawn of a New Day.” He retired in 1956. William Wolf died in Appleton on February 21, 1967.
