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By HOWARD WIEDENHOEFT<\/p>\n
I started looking at the histories of\u00a0Watertown Mutual Insurance Company<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Ixonia Mutual Insurance Company<\/a>\u00a0last year when Forward Mutual moved the location of its annual meeting.<\/p>\n Since 1875, Ixonia Mutual (now Forward Mutual) has held its annual meetings in four different locations. Initially, the meetings were held at Erickson Hall on Marietta Avenue (which changed names several times). In 1925, the meetings were relocated to the newly built Ixonia Town Hall. In 1949, they were relocated to the newly built Ixonia Fireman\u2019s Hall, where they were held for 69 years. Last year, Forward Mutual once again held its annual meeting in the Ixonia Town Hall, now located at W1195 Marietta Avenue (formerly Ixonia Bank).<\/p>\n Watertown Mutual\u2019s annual meeting history is much more interesting. For many years the mutual held its annual meetings in the schoolhouse at Ebenezer Church, but board of directors held their meetings in the city of Watertown. According to the mutual’s minutes, almost every year from 1907 to 1931 a motion was made to move their annual meeting into the city of Watertown. Interestingly, this motion was always defeated. Finally, the board of directors decided to hold its 1932 annual meeting in the Hall of the Farmers Cooperative, Water Street, Watertown. Previously, an average of 80 members would attend the meeting when held in its rural location. That year, in its new location, 234 members attended the meeting and an average of over 200 attendees continued for many years. Watertown Mutual continued to hold its annual meeting at various locations in Watertown until 2010, when it merged together with Ixonia Mutual, forming Forward Mutual Insurance Company.<\/p>\n Watertown Mutual’s meetings were originally held in the first two weeks in January as the year-end accounting could easily be closed by then. When Wisconsin began requiring more detailed financial reports and an annual audit by an outside auditor, more time was needed to prepare the mutual’s report and it moved its annual meeting to March. Initially, only 30 to 50 members attended this new meeting date. Later, during the 1980-90s, the attendance averaged more than 100. (By comparison, last year 54 members attended Forward Mutual’s annual meeting).<\/p>\n The annual meetings for Ixonia Mutual and Watertown Mutual were not only business meetings regarding affairs of the mutual. They also were social events. People would arrive an hour before the 1:30 meeting to start a card game of skat<\/a>. After the meeting adjourned the game changed to sheepshead<\/a>, accompanied by free beer and lunch. Commonly, the last member didn’t leave the meeting until well after 5, when the beer was finally gone. These social meetings continued well into the 1990s.<\/p>\n These days our annual meetings for Forward Mutual continue to be a welcomed gathering of policyholders, board members, and employees. We hold an informative business meeting, with our long-time accountant CliftonLarsonAllen LLP<\/a> presenting our financial status and representatives from Grinnell Mutual<\/a> updating us on the industry’s news. Our policyholders enjoy fun door prizes, lunch, and lots of socializing. But times have changed\u2014in 2017 we only served four cans of beer!<\/p>\n Forward Mutual’s annual policyholder meeting is held in March. Watch for information upcoming in the New Year!<\/em><\/p>\n By the Minutes: Introduction<\/a><\/p>\n 1872 Watertown Mutual Founded<\/a><\/p>\n 1875 Ixonia Mutual Founded<\/a><\/p>\n Comparing the Capitalizing of Two Early Mutuals<\/a><\/p>\n A Mutual\u2019s First Claim<\/a><\/p>\n Supporting Dairy in the Late 1800s<\/a><\/p>\n 1879 Early Challenges for a Young Mutual<\/a><\/p>\n Ixonia Mutual\u2019s First $1000 Loss<\/a><\/p>\n 1885 A Year of Neighbor Helping Neighbor<\/a><\/p>\n Changes of Bylaws<\/a><\/p>\n Our Dairy Heritage<\/a><\/p>\n Insuring Automobiles<\/a><\/p>\n Taxes, War and the English Language<\/a><\/p>\n Supporting the Community\u2019s Fire Protection<\/a><\/p>\n Board Directors and Their Meetings<\/a><\/p>\n Standardization of Wisconsin Mutuals<\/a><\/p>\n Of Electricity, Radio and Foxes<\/a><\/p>\n Our Annual Meetings Over the Years<\/a><\/p>\n Tumultuous 1930-1940s<\/a><\/p>\n How a Major Disaster Affected Extended Coverage and Reinsurance<\/a><\/p>\n Surviving the Big Dogs in the 1960s<\/a><\/p>\n Introducing Agents to the Mutuals<\/a><\/p>\n Accounting Over the Years<\/a><\/p>\n Centennial Anniversaries<\/a><\/p>\n Mutual Offices<\/a><\/p>\n Mutual Managers and Staff<\/a><\/p>\n Establishing Confidence in Financial Strength<\/a><\/p>\n Entering the Era of Computers<\/a><\/p>\n The 1990s, Advancement and Angst<\/a><\/p>\n The Start of the 21st Century<\/a><\/p>\n Concord and Watertown Merge<\/a><\/p>\n Ixonia Mutual and Watertown Mutual Merge and a New Company is Formed<\/a><\/p>\n Setting the Stage, Moving Forward with a New 2020 Vision<\/a><\/p>\n
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