By Rick Cohler
Contributing Writer
DE PERE — Wisconsin produces more paper than any state in the nation, and the Fox River Valley has been the center of production since the mid-1800s.
The construction of the locks system beginning in 1849 made it possible to ship goods along the river, and a number of flour mills were constructed.
The process of making paper out of wood pulp was first developed in England and soon made its way to the U.S.
With the massive forests of Wisconsin, making paper soon became the mainstay of Fox River milling.
The most famous business narrative in the history of the Fox River is that of the Kimberly Clark Corporation, according to a doctoral thesis by Katie L. Weichelt for the University of Kansas.
“Formed in Neenah in February 1872, the business was a partnership among five local men, none of whom had any previous experience in paper production. They were John R. Kimberly, a son of a local flour miller; Charles B. Clark; Havilah Babcock; Franck C. Shattuck; and George A. Whiting,” it read.
By 1890, there were 22 paper mills in Fox River communities.
Babcock and Shattuck came to De Pere, where they purchased land and water rights capitalized at $92,550 to build the Shattuck & Babcock Paper Mill, which was constructed in 1892 by D.H. and A.B. Tower with additions in 1949, 2959, 1963 and 1969.
The mill produced high-grade writing paper and later consolidated with 28 other mills to make book paper under the corporate name of the American Writing Paper Company.
Initially, the mill drew its power from the Fox River, which has decreased to about 10 percent of its power needs.
After American Writing Paper Company purchased the mill in 1899, the next 120 years were filled with change: 1927, WI Industrialists Group purchases mill to make high-density Kraft paper; 1956, Phillip Morris purchases mill; 1959, third paper machine installed; 1962, fourth paper machine installed; 1985, Hammermill Paper Company acquires mill; 1986, International Paper acquires Hammermill; 1987, high performance work system developed; 2005, Kohlberg acquires mill from International Paper and forms Thilmany; 2006, Thilmany joins Packaging Dynamics; 2013, KPS forms Expera by combining Thilmany and Wausau Papers; 2018, Expera joins Ahlstrom-Munksjo, a world-wide firm based in Helsinki, Finland.
The mill, which is the most prominent building on De Pere’s west shore, just east of the city’s main bridge, is now known as the Ahlstrom Nicolet Mill.
The most traumatic event in Nicolet’s history occurred in the summer of 1987, when more than 370 workers walked out on strike after refusing to agree to a wide range of concessions demanded by the International Paper Company (IP), Nicolet’s parent company, according to an account by Timothy J. Minchin in The Oral History Review.
Within a few weeks, however, IP had permanently replaced the strikers, a tactic that became increasingly common in the 1980s, according to the account.
The hiring of replacement workers divided the small community and left workers with psychological scars.
Nicolet Paper Manager Scott Dercks said those wounds have largely healed, though he added there are a number of employees who can remember the turmoil the strike produced.
The recent decades have brought a number of ownership changes.
“We were public with IP, private with Kohlberg, then we went back to being public with Ahlstrom-Munksjo, and Ahlstrom were making a lot of acquisitions.” Dercks said. “In 2020, Bain Capital bought majority ownership, so now we’re back to private again. The Ahlstrom family is still very close, owning more than 30% of the firm.”
In 2022, a portion of the business divested and is now operating under the Munksjo name, and the paper mill operation is now known as the Ahlstrom Nicolet Plant.
Despite the name changes over the years, Dercks said Nicolet Mill is the name everyone knows. “That has never left,” Dercks said. “That’s what our team is proud of.”
Nicolet Mill has long been a mainstay for De Pere residents.
“We have 225 team members here with family supporting, high-paying positions here with a strong culture,” Nicolet Human Resources Manager Nancy Ledvina said. “We’re right in the middle of town on Main Street, and we’re doing a lot to support the businesses in the area.”
Dercks added that Nicolet has developed a strong relationship with St. Norbert College by hosting tours and presenting in-class information.
“In the community one thing we do is getting ready to kick off,” he explained. “We work with the DNR during the spring sturgeon spawning.
“We actually decrease our water flow for power during sturgeon spawning.
“Nicolet also donated land near the De Pere lock for a walking path.”
Ledvina said the company works with area schools, offering presentations on what it is like to work in the industry and types of available careers.
Dercks added that the mill’s parking lot is open to provide a popular spot for area residents to come and watch the city fireworks. The firm also regularly donates funds to local service groups.
The plant is most famously known for making the wrappers for Reese’s Peanut Butter cups. Still, a wide range of products are currently manufactured by the Ahlstrom Nicolet Plant, including food products — Delicitera Packaging Glassines, FluoroFree Packaging, Prepera Steak Papers, Cristal Transparent Packaging & Heat Seal; release liner products — Bleached & Natural Roll Label, Bleached & Natural Specialty SCK & Glassines; protective materials and tape products — Glass-Gard Prime Display Glass Interleaving, Palettera Colored MF Grades, Paint Masking, Cristal Transparent Packaging & PurposeSeal Heat Seal and Water Activated Tape Base.