Historic Beyer Home Museum in Oconto opens for season The Beyer Home is open for the summer. By Bill Borneman For The News-Chronicle Since 1940, the Beyer Home Museum on Park Avenue in Oconto has been a highlight for visitors to Northeast Wisconsin, providing them with with a vivid look into life in the late l9th century. It opens for the season again Saturday under the auspices and ownership of the Oconto County Historical Society. Tours are provided daily from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. through Labor Day, and group tours by appointment from May 1 through Oct. 15. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, it was constructed in l868 by its original owners, Cyrus Hart and his wife, Kitty. It was the first brick home built in the county. Cyrus Hart, along with his brothers and parents, moved from Fort Howard near Green Bay to the bustling lumber settlement of Oconto, where Cyrus ferried pioneers across the Oconto River. He later developed the business into the Hart Steamship Company which operated on the waters of Green Bay. The family also was involved in Oconto's first bank, its early government and Cyrus also became owner/editor of the Oconto County Reporter newspaper, which this year is observing its 131st year in business. After a succession of owners, the house was sold to George and Fannie Page Beyer in 1878 for $568. They remodeled the Italianate-style house into the present Queen Anne-style mansion in the 1890s. George Beyer, meanwhile, amassed a fortune in real estate, timber, plus the Citizens Light and Fuel Co., the Oconto Land Company and Oconto Water Supply Co. He also was an investor into two railroad companies and served as county treasurer. In 1940, the historical society was formed in the county and the Beyer Home was acquired for a museum. In 1957, the George E. Hall Annex was built because additional exhibit and storage space was needed. The annex contains "Old Main Street Oconto" exhibits. A gazebo was moved onto the property three years ago and a 1870 log home has been restored at the rear of the museum. Tours can be arranged by phoning 920-834-6206. The cost for tours is $3 adults, $1 students and $7 for a family. The mailing address is Oconto County Historical Society, 917 Park, Oconto, WI., 54l53. Although Park Avenue is closed to traffic this summer because of a major street improvement project, there's easy access to the Beyer Home on any of the side streets, with ample parking.