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Person

William P. "Bill" Welke

Also Bill Welke · William Welke · William P. Welke

Draft — sources verified, prose evolving

TypePerson
Born1922
Died2002-12-07
WithinBeaver Island
ErasModern era
On this page
Person
Born
1922
Died
2002-12-07
Work
Detroit police officer · Contractor, excavator, well driller, saw-mill operator · Flying instructor · Pilot · Chief pilot, Welke Aviation, Inc. · Charlevoix County deputy sheriff, Beaver Island (seasonal, then year-round from 1973) · President, Beaver Island Civic Association · Member, Peaine Township Board of Review · Trustee, Beaver Island Historical Society · Peaine Township trustee (committee service) · Member, Peaine Township Zoning Board of Appeals
Spouse
Betty Welke
Children
Paul Welke · Mark Welke · Carl Welke
Member of
Beaver Island Flying Club · Beaver Island Civic Association · Welke Aviation, Inc. · Beaver Island Historical Society
Eras
Modern era
Concepts
communityheritagetransportationgovernanceaviationmilitarypublic-service
Within
Beaver Island

Summary

William P. “Bill” Welke (28 June 1922 – 7 December 2002) was a flying instructor, Charlevoix County deputy sheriff, and township officer on Beaver Island from 1969, when he and his wife Betty moved the family from the Detroit area. He first visited the island as a child in the 1930s, began flying in 1943, and by 1969 had built a private airstrip that became Welke Airport. He led the island’s first flying club from 1971, served as its first year-round deputy sheriff from 1973, and in 1975 became chief pilot of the family’s Welke Aviation, Inc., the charter service that became Island Airways. He held elected and appointed civic office on the island for three decades.

Early life and arrival on Beaver Island, 1922–1969

Welke was born 28 June 1922 in Detroit, the son of Elizabeth (Oberle) and William Welke. He graduated from Walled Lake High School and the Detroit Police Academy, attended the Wilbur Wright trade school as a machinist, and served two years in the United States Army Air Force. He began flying in 1943, at 21, cutting his first landing strip from his father’s wheat field.1

The family’s connection to Beaver Island began in childhood. A 1997 Beaver Beacon retrospective, written by his daughter-in-law Ellen Welke, dates his first visit to the summer of 1934, at age 12, arriving on the ferry Merold II and staying with Detroit-area family friends Hubert and Kitty McCauley.2 A separate 1970 Beacon news item instead states he had “been coming to the Island since 1936”; the two accounts disagree by two years and neither is resolved here.3 The family returned the following summer and stayed at Loew’s Lodge on Lake Geneserath, leaving early because the lodge was overrun with snakes, and finishing that vacation at what is now the Archie LaFreniere home in town. In 1943 Welke and his brothers began deer hunting on the island.2 He met Betty Culter in 1944, courted her in 1945, and married her in 1946 — a marriage that lasted the 56 years to his death.21 Before the family settled on the island, Welke worked as a Detroit police officer and ran contracting, excavating, well-drilling and saw-mill businesses.1

In 1965 the Welkes bought a farm from family friend Mel Gallagher and began building an airstrip on it.2 The family moved to the island permanently in 1969, by which time the strip was a fully licensed airport — the property later known as Welke Airport.4 That fall, Welke was already teaching a flying class to island youths under the auspices of the Civil Air Patrol, as part of a 4-H program that also ran sewing, cooking and knitting groups;5 a “Beaver Island 4-H flying club” of named members was reported operating by April 1970, before the club took its later, better-documented form.6

Deputy sheriff and civic office, 1970–1979

In spring 1970 the Peaine and St. James township supervisors voted, without dissent, to fund the island’s first full-time uniformed deputy sheriff for the summer season, and hired Welke for the post. Charlevoix County Sheriff Philo Sumner swore him in before a public gathering in the all-purpose room of the Beaver Island Community School; special deputies Phil Gregg and John “Bing” McCafferty worked alongside him.3 Welke was elected president of the Beaver Island Civic Association in January 1971, and again in 1973 and 1974.789 In January 1973 his position was made a year-round one, replacing the previous arrangement of three paid summer months and unpaid part-time service the rest of the year.8 As deputy he taught a county snowmobile-safety course that certified thirteen students in February 197310 and, with Harold Thomure, a high-school first-aid course that May.11 One August night in 1971 he was checking freight at the Beaver Islander dock after dark when he saw Jim and Ron Wogan pull an eight-year-old boy, Timmy Turner, from the harbor after he fell between the ferry and the dock — an incident the Beacon reported as a “tragedy averted.”12

By the mid-1970s Welke also sat on the board of the Beaver Island Historical Society, whose trustees were expanded to seven members in 1977; he served on that board at least through 1979.1314 In August 1977, when the society built an addition to the Print Shop Museum to house the post office, Welke was hired to excavate the site; a Beacon item notes he saved the excavated dirt, at archaeologist James Fitting’s suggestion, for later examination.15

Aviation: the flying club to Island Airways, 1969–1993

The Beaver Island Flying Club that Welke led from its formal January 1971 founding grew out of the 4-H flying instruction he had already been giving.165 He used his own Cessna for the club’s work and for community tasks: in February 1973 he flew Phil Gregg as bombardier to drop mineral salt blocks for deer on Garden and Beaver Islands,17 and in March 1974 lent the plane to Sheldon Parker and Bill Wagner for a similar drop on Garden and Hog Islands.18 He also flew search missions — in June 1973 for an overdue party of mushroom hunters,19 and on New Year’s Day 1974 to locate two Lansing Shoal Light Station crewmen trapped in drift ice off Garden Island, after which the Coast Guard sent a helicopter to bring them in.20

In 1975 the family started Welke Aviation, Inc., the first air-charter service based on Beaver Island and, per the 1997 family account, the first to fly multi-engine aircraft there;2 a May–June 1975 Beacon profile identifies Welke, then 53, as chief pilot with 32 years of commercial flight-instructor experience — consistent with a start in 1943 — and multi-engine and instrument ratings.4 Welke Aviation merged with the Charlevoix-based McPhillips Flying Service in 1983 to form Island Airways; by 1989 the Welke family had bought out their partners and owned the service outright.2 Welke continued to fly in the service’s support of the island community: in July 1989 his son Paul, piloting an Island Airways flight, spotted smoke near French Bay, and Welke circled the fire for over an hour directing volunteer firefighters to it by relayed telephone and radio.21 In August 1993 a resident’s letter thanked him for having his plane ready at Welke Airport within minutes to fly her to a waiting ambulance in Charlevoix after a medical emergency.22

Later township service and death, 1980–2002

Through the 1980s Welke served as a Peaine Township trustee, sitting on committees that ranged from a proposed township hall building committee (1984)23 and a road fact-finding committee (1984)24 to a committee formed to study deputy wages (1984)25; in 1986 he described to the board a dust-suppression product, CFR, already in use on the Welke Airport runway, and undertook to contact its representative.26 He was later appointed, and repeatedly reappointed, to the Zoning Board of Appeals, serving through the 1990s until Arnold Rich replaced him in September 2000.27 In September 1989 Welke underwent double knee-replacement surgery at the Mayo Clinic;28 by 2001 he also held the honorary post of provost marshal in the island’s AMVETS post, a veterans’ organization reflecting his own Army Air Force service.29 He was hospitalized for several months in 2001 and the Beacon welcomed him home that October, crediting Betty’s care during his recovery.30

Welke died 7 December 2002, at 80. His obituary in the January 2003 Beacon records him as a longtime member of Holy Cross Catholic Church, survived by Betty and their five children — Jean Kinsley, Paul Welke, Mark Welke, Carl Welke and Anne McPhilips — and his brothers Robert, Donus and Charles. He had asked to be cremated; a memorial service was held at Holy Cross Catholic Church in early 2003, with memorial contributions directed to Beaver Island Emergency Services or the Beaver Island Rural Center.1

Significance

Welke’s career links three threads of the island’s recent history that are otherwise documented separately: the arrival of year-round law enforcement, the founding of the island’s first air-charter service, and three decades of township governance carried out largely through unpaid committee work. The Beacon’s coverage of him is almost entirely local reporting rather than retrospective history, which is why the record is dense in specific, dated incidents — a rescue flight, a dock accident witnessed on duty, a runway dust complaint — rather than in summary statements about his importance.

Evidence and limits

This article is built from Beaver Beacon issues from 1969 through 2003, held as OCR markdown and paired scan PDFs, plus a Beaver Island Historical Society cemetery index and the modern Island Airways company website. The obituary and the 1997 family retrospective are the two most substantial sources and corroborate each other on his marriage date (1946) and years of flight experience (32 by 1975); the obituary independently confirms the death date the Island Airways company history had previously supplied. His wife’s maiden name appears as both “Culter” (1997 retrospective, cemetery index) and “Cutler” (2003 obituary) in the held sources; this article follows the more frequent spelling without resolving it. No source held here gives an aircraft registration, a sheriff’s-department personnel record, or Zoning Board of Appeals or township trustee term dates beyond the individual meetings in which he is named present.

Open questions

  • What aircraft did Welke own or operate for the club and for the 1973–1974 flights?
  • Are pilot, sheriff’s-department personnel, or Zoning Board of Appeals appointment records available?
  • Does his 1934 or 1936 first visit to the island reconcile against a primary family record?
  • When did his service as Charlevoix County deputy sheriff end?

See also

Sources

See the sources: block above for full provenance detail on each.

Footnotes

  1. “Bill Welke 1922-2002” (obituary), Beaver Beacon, January 2003. ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4

  2. Beaver Beacon, February 1997, “A 50th Anniversary Means … More than 50 Years of History,” by Ellen Welke. ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6

  3. Beaver Beacon, May 1970, “New Deputy Appointed” and “Sheriff Swears.” ↩ ↩2

  4. Beaver Beacon, May–June 1975, “New Air Service Links Beaver Island, Mainland.” ↩ ↩2

  5. Beaver Beacon, October 1969, community column. ↩ ↩2

  6. Beaver Beacon, April 1970, “4-H Achievement Day” and community column. ↩

  7. Beaver Beacon, January 1971, “Beaver Island Civic Association Election.” ↩

  8. Beaver Beacon, January 1973, “Full Time Law Officer.” ↩ ↩2

  9. Beaver Beacon, February 1974, “New Officers.” ↩

  10. Beaver Beacon, February 1973, “Future Snowmobilers.” ↩

  11. Beaver Beacon, May 1973, “First Aid Course.” ↩

  12. Beaver Beacon, August 1971, “Tragedy Averted.” ↩

  13. Beaver Beacon, October 1977, Historical Society annual meeting report. ↩

  14. Beaver Beacon, May 1979, Historical Society board listing. ↩

  15. Beaver Beacon, August 1977, “News of the Beaver Island Historical Society.” ↩

  16. Beaver Beacon, January 1971, “Beaver Island Kids Start Flying Club.” ↩

  17. Beaver Beacon, February 1973, “Game News.” ↩

  18. Beaver Beacon, March 1974, “Game News.” ↩

  19. Beaver Beacon, June 1973, first-person mushroom-hunting account. ↩

  20. Beaver Beacon, January 1974, “Men Against The Sea.” ↩

  21. Beaver Beacon, July 1989, fire report. ↩

  22. Beaver Beacon, August 1993, reader letter. ↩

  23. Beaver Beacon, February 1984, Peaine Township board minutes. ↩

  24. Beaver Beacon, May 1984, Peaine Township board minutes. ↩

  25. Beaver Beacon, September 1984, Peaine Township board minutes. ↩

  26. Beaver Beacon, August 1986, Peaine Township board minutes. ↩

  27. Beaver Beacon, September 2000, Zoning Board of Appeals report. ↩

  28. Beaver Beacon, October 1989, “Weather by Welke” column note. ↩

  29. Beaver Beacon, September 2001, AMVETS Emmet Burke Post officer listing. ↩

  30. Beaver Beacon, October 2001, community column. ↩

Kin

Don Welke1929 – 2010This articleWilliam P."Bill" Welke1922 – 2002Betty Welke1928 – 2008Carl Welkeb. c. 1957Karl WelkeMark WelkePaul Welkeb. 1975
Only relations stated in the sources are drawn; absence means unrecorded, not childless or unmarried.

The dated record

12 dated events · 1922–2002These years on the timeline →

Sources

  1. Identifies Bill Welke as a licensed flying instructor leading the club and refers to members flying in Welke’s plane; names Mark and Carl Welke among the club’s members. It provides no full biography, aircraft identity, or pilot record.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1971-01_Beaver-Beacon
  2. The held ten-page issue scan is paired with the OCR source and confirms the published notice or report; it does not expand the source-specific identity, event, or outcome claims.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · scans · beaver_beacon · issues · 1971-01_Beaver-Beacon
  3. Lists Bill Welke as elected president of the Beaver Island Civic Association on January 8, 1971, with Lillian Gregg as secretary.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1971-01_Beaver-Beacon
  4. Reports Welke’s appointment as a year-round Charlevoix County deputy sheriff on Beaver Island, formerly a three-month summer and part-time position, and separately lists him as re-elected Civic Association president; it does not establish personnel, salary, oath, or jurisdictional records.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1973-01_Beaver-Beacon
  5. The held seven-page issue scan is paired with the OCR source and confirms the published notice or report; it does not expand the source-specific identity, event, or outcome claims.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · scans · beaver_beacon · issues · 1973-01_Beaver-Beacon
  6. Names Bill Welke as the pilot, using his 180 Cessna, in a reported flight with Phil Gregg as bombardier that dropped mineral salt blocks on Garden and Beaver Islands; it does not identify the aircraft registration or exact date.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1973-02_Beaver-Beacon
  7. The held seven-page issue scan is paired with the OCR source and confirms the published notice or report; it does not expand the source-specific identity, event, or outcome claims.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · scans · beaver_beacon · issues · 1973-02_Beaver-Beacon
  8. Reports Welke teaching a Charlevoix County Sheriff’s Department snowmobile safety course in which thirteen fifth-grade-and-up students were certified.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1973-02_Beaver-Beacon
  9. The held seven-page issue scan is paired with the OCR source and confirms the published notice or report; it does not expand the source-specific identity, event, or outcome claims.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · scans · beaver_beacon · issues · 1973-02_Beaver-Beacon
  10. Reports Welke’s temporary appointment to the Peaine Township Zoning Board in place of his son Paul Welke, "until he finishes his service hitch," and separately lists Welke on the Peaine Township Board of Review; it does not establish formal appointment records or term dates.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1973-02_Beaver-Beacon
  11. The held seven-page issue scan is paired with the OCR source and confirms the published notice or report; it does not expand the source-specific identity, event, or outcome claims.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · scans · beaver_beacon · issues · 1973-02_Beaver-Beacon
  12. Reports Deputies Harold Thomure and Bill Welke instructing a Charlevoix County Sheriff’s Department first-aid course for high school students.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1973-05_Beaver-Beacon
  13. Reports Deputy Bill Welke flying his plane the morning after New Year’s Eve to locate two Lansing Shoal Light Station crew members trapped in drift ice near Garden Island, after which Coast Guard helicopter assistance was dispatched; it does not identify the plane or rescue crew.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1974-01_Beaver-Beacon
  14. The held six-page issue scan is paired with the OCR source and confirms the published notice or report; it does not expand the source-specific identity, event, or outcome claims.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · scans · beaver_beacon · issues · 1974-01_Beaver-Beacon
  15. Reports Sheldon Parker and Bill Wagner using Bill Welke’s airplane to drop four salt blocks on Garden Island and one on Hog Island; it does not identify the aircraft or provide a flight log.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1974-03_Beaver-Beacon
  16. The held nine-page issue scan is paired with the OCR source and confirms the published notice or report; it does not expand the source-specific identity, event, or outcome claims.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · scans · beaver_beacon · issues · 1974-03_Beaver-Beacon
  17. Lists William P. Welke (1922–2002), spouse of Betty J. Culter. The January 1971 Flying Club article is by Betty Welke and the 1972 Beacon identifies the Medical Auxiliary president as Mrs. William Welke, providing the spouse/name bridge; the cemetery gives only years.
  18. Identifies William Welke, 53, as chief pilot of Welke Aviation, Inc. with 32 years’ commercial-instructor experience and multi-engine and instrument ratings, and states the family moved to Beaver Island in 1969 from Walled Lake, where Welke had run a construction business and spent 10 years with the Civil Air Patrol. It does not provide a pilot log or complete aviation biography. The holding institution's portal restricts automated access; the archive holds a copy of this issue and can provide it on request.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1975-05_Beaver-Beacon
  19. The held combined issue confirms the chief-pilot role.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · scans · beaver_beacon · issues · 1975-05_Beaver-Beacon
  20. Company history dates "Bill Welke passes away" to December 7, 2002, matching the cemetery index year, and states the family "started several businesses including Welke Excavating" after moving to the island in 1969. Used only to add the month and day of death; it is a company self-history, not an independent vital record.
  21. States a flying class was being taught by Bill Welke under the auspices of the Civil Air Patrol, as part of a new island 4-H program, predating the January 1971 formal club.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1969-10_Beaver-Beacon
  22. Names Bill Welke as the Beaver Island 4-H flying club leader and lists early club members; separately reports Welke and Walt Wojan burying over 140 junk cars at the township dump.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1970-04_Beaver-Beacon
  23. Reports the township supervisors' vote to fund a full-time seasonal deputy sheriff, William Welke's hiring, his public swearing-in by Sheriff Philo Sumner at the Beaver Island Community School, and special deputies Phil Gregg and John "Bing" McCafferty working with him; states Welke had been coming to the Island "since 1936," a date this article notes conflicts with a 1997 family account.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1970-05_Beaver-Beacon
  24. Reports Welke speaking to the Petoskey Kiwanis and a fundraising hayride for the Flying Club; does not add biographical detail beyond his club leadership.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1971-02_Beaver-Beacon
  25. Reports Deputy Bill Welke was checking freight at the Beaver Islander dock after dark when he saw Jim and Ron Wogan pull eight-year-old Timmy Turner from the harbor after he fell between the ferry and the dock.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1971-08_Beaver-Beacon
  26. Lists Bill Welke as president of the Beaver Island Civic Association, with Betty Welke separately listed as Holy Cross Altar Society treasurer and Medical Auxiliary president.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1972-01_Beaver-Beacon
  27. Lists Bill Welke as president of the Beaver Island Civic Association for 1974.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1974-02_Beaver-Beacon
  28. A resident's account states Bill Welke was called to search by air for an overdue party of mushroom hunters. The holding institution's portal restricts automated access; the archive holds a copy of this issue and can provide it on request.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1973-06_Beaver-Beacon
  29. Reports Bill Welke was hired to excavate for the Post Office addition to the Print Shop Museum and saved the excavated dirt at archaeologist James Fitting's suggestion. The holding institution's portal restricts automated access; the archive holds a copy of this issue and can provide it on request.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1977-08_Beaver-Beacon
  30. Reports the Historical Society's Board of Trustees was expanded to seven members and Bill Welke was elected to it. The holding institution's portal restricts automated access; the archive holds a copy of this issue and can provide it on request.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1977-10_Beaver-Beacon
  31. Lists Bill Welke on the Board of the Beaver Island Historical Society. The holding institution's portal restricts automated access; the archive holds a copy of this issue and can provide it on request.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1979-05_Beaver-Beacon
  32. Family retrospective giving Welke's first visit to the island (1934, age 12, on the ferry Merold II), his courtship and 1946 marriage to Betty Culter, the family's purchase of Mel Gallagher's farm in 1965 and construction of an airstrip, the 1969 move to the island, the 1975 founding of Welke Aviation as the island's first charter service and first to fly multi-engine aircraft, the 1983 merger with McPhillips Flying Service to form Island Airways, and the 1989 buyout that left the Welkes sole owners. The holding institution's portal restricts automated access; the archive holds a copy of this issue and can provide it on request.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1997-02_Beaver-Beacon
  33. States Betty and Bill Welke were away for ten days in September 1989 so Bill could undergo double knee-replacement surgery at the Mayo Clinic. The holding institution's portal restricts automated access; the archive holds a copy of this issue and can provide it on request.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1989-10_Beaver-Beacon
  34. Reports Paul Welke, piloting an Island Airways flight, spotted smoke near French Bay, and Bill Welke circled the fire for over an hour directing volunteer firefighters to it. The holding institution's portal restricts automated access; the archive holds a copy of this issue and can provide it on request.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1989-07_Beaver-Beacon
  35. A resident thanks Bill Welke for having his plane ready at Welke's Airport within minutes to fly her to a waiting ambulance in Charlevoix after a medical emergency. The holding institution's portal restricts automated access; the archive holds a copy of this issue and can provide it on request.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 1993-08_Beaver-Beacon
  36. Reports Arnold Rich appointed to the Zoning Board of Appeals to replace Bill Welke, and that a letter of resignation was requested from Welke. The holding institution's portal restricts automated access; the archive holds a copy of this issue and can provide it on request.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 2000-09_Beaver-Beacon
  37. Lists Bill Welke as Provost Marshal of the island's AMVETS Emmet Burke Post. The holding institution's portal restricts automated access; the archive holds a copy of this issue and can provide it on request.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 2001-09_Beaver-Beacon
  38. Welcomes Bill Welke home after a long hospital stay and credits Betty Welke's care during his recovery. The holding institution's portal restricts automated access; the archive holds a copy of this issue and can provide it on request.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 2001-10_Beaver-Beacon
  39. Beaver Beacon, January 2003, "Bill Welke 1922-2002" (obituary).
    Full obituary: born 28 June 1922 in Detroit to Elizabeth (Oberle) and William Welke; Walled Lake High School, Detroit Police Academy and Wilbur Wright trade school; two years U.S. Army Air Force; began flying in 1943; Detroit police officer; contracting, excavating, well-drilling and saw-mill businesses; died 7 December 2002; survived by wife of 56 years Betty (Cutler) Welke and five children (Jean Kinsley, Paul Welke, Mark Welke, Carl Welke, Anne McPhilips) and brothers Robert, Donus and Charles; longtime member of Holy Cross Catholic Church; cremated; memorial contributions to Beaver Island Emergency Services or the Beaver Island Rural Center. No public copy of this file is known; the archive holds one and can provide it on request.
    data1 · beaver-island-archive · beaver_beacon · 2003-01_Beaver-Beacon
  40. Beaver Beacon, February 1984, Peaine Township board minutes.
    Township minutes as printed: "Motion Martin, to appoint Harold Vreeland, Al Dudzik, Darryl Butler, Bill Welke, and Karl Heller to the Twp Hall Building Committee." Establishes Welke on the township hall building committee in 1984.
    beaver_beacon · 1984-02_Beaver-Beacon
  41. Beaver Beacon, May 1984, Peaine Township board minutes.
    Township minutes as printed: "Connaghan made a motion to appoint Paul Rolain, Bill Welke, and Gerals Keidel to a roas (fact finding) committee" — the OCR carries "roas" for "road" and "Gerals" for "Gerald". Establishes Welke on the road fact-finding committee in 1984.
    beaver_beacon · 1984-05_Beaver-Beacon
  42. Beaver Beacon, September 1984, Peaine Township board minutes.
    Township minutes as printed: a motion to form a "committee to get factual information on deputies wages, and to appoint Bill Wagner Bill Welke, Gerry Keidel, and Henry Hill to this committee." Establishes Welke on the deputy-wages committee in 1984.
    beaver_beacon · 1984-09_Beaver-Beacon
  43. Beaver Beacon, August 1986, Peaine Township board minutes.
    Township minutes as printed: "Welke explained about a new product called CFR that they put on thier runway that works really good for the dust. Bill Welke will contact the representative" — records him as the board's contact on the dust-suppression product.
    beaver_beacon · 1986-08_Beaver-Beacon

Added 1 August 2026 · revised 5 August 2026. Recent changes

Cite this article

Beaver Island Archive, “William P. "Bill" Welke”, https://beaverislandarchive.org/people/william-p-bill-welke/, accessed [date], citing Beaver Beacon, January 1971, “Beaver Island Kids Start Flying Club.” (and 40 further sources listed on the page).

Last revised 2026-08-05. Fill in [date] with the date you read it — this page is static and cannot know that.

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