By the time he sold Codgers, one of the twin hubs of Chaseburg, Joe Berra guessed he had handed out 30 to 40 keys to the tavern.

Employees, customers, family, friends — those titles overlapped — could get in any time, day or night. In a village like this, there wasn’t a need to worry about something being stolen or a law being violated. If there were people like that here in Chaseburg, they wouldn’t be around for long, Berra said.

In many ways, Berra, 66, and the slowly dwindling number of residents define themselves by the things they have lost. Flooding of the wild and unpredictable Coon Creek in 2007 and 2018 wiped out the lower half of the village. In the upper half, three of the five bars are gone. So is the bank, the filling station and the implement store. The K-8 elementary school closed more than 15 years ago. The few children left are bused to schools miles away.

But, more important, the people of Chaseburg define themselves by their stubborn sense of community. “There’s not a better place to live,” Berra said. “There is trust in this community. Trust in each other. Like we’re all in this thing together.”

The Badger Institute, at its core, believes in the power of civil society, that space between the individual and government where our friends and families, associations and communities — perhaps, especially, small-town communities — provide the support and succor we all need to navigate life’s challenges. Many of the small towns we’re visiting have had more than their fair share.

The Badger Institute, formerly known as the Wisconsin Policy Research Institute (WPRI), has long been at the forefront of the fight for school choice, right to work, welfare reform, tax restructuring, limited government, civil society and so much more. If you appreciate the Institute’s legacy and want to support free markets, opportunity and prosperity, please consider donating today. Your support will help the Institute continue to advocate for conservative principles now and in generations to come.

The Institute never has, and never will, accept government funding. We gratefully welcome your online donation or email Angela Smith, Executive Vice President.

The Badger Institute is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt nonprofit organization funded solely by the generosity of foundations, companies and individuals.

Badger Institute
700 W. Virginia St., Suite 301
Milwaukee, WI 53204