Centerville, Wisconsin
Centerville is an unincorporated village at the crossroads of Highways 93 and 54. This area is home to several small businesses but is known for its Curling Club.
The Centerville Curling Club was started in 1949. However, Curling has been around the area since the 1850's. The first clubs in this area were at Decorah Prairie (Town of Gale), McGilvary Bottoms (Town of Caledonia) and North Bend, WI. The sport quickly spread to Pickwick, MN, Galesville, WI, and Winona, MN. For years, the big curling event was on Christmas Day.
In 1897, the Robert Burns Celebration from the area of Decorah Prairie and Glasgow came to Galesville to the new Town Hall. It combined with a curling competition.
Curlers, led by the municipal band, paraded from downtown to the rinks on Lake Marinuka in mid-January for the great competition. Fifteen ends was the standard length of game. The number of teams that participated were not as numerous as today; however, the participants at the evening's celebration and dance numbered in the 100's. People would be arriving days ahead by train from as far away as Ohio just for this grand event as children slept in the corners and adults danced and sang until midnight. Then the curlers took the stage to entertain with song and poem and old curling stories until the break of dawn when the gathering broke up and the children were taken home.
Today, the Centerville Club has over 250 members, with Junior Leagues, Women's League, Winona Men's Leagues, Senior Men's Leagues, Mixed League and the Centerville Men's League.
In 2003, Mixed Bonspiel fielded 24 teams, the Women's Bonspiel fielded 12 teams, the Men's Bonspiel fielded 36 teams and the Junior Club Spiel was held on March 1st.
In February 2004, the Club hosted the USCA Junior National Championships. The Centerville Curling Club is a recognized icon in the community and a leader in the sport of curling.
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