Our History
Kickapoo Orchard was set in 1913 by the Schubert family of Madison, Wisconsin. First Joe Schubert, then his son Harold managed the orchard. Bill and Marlene Meyer purchased the orchard from the estate of Harold Schubert in 1964, and moved to the orchard with their two sons Andy and Mike, and proceeded to build new buildings and make changes in orchard plantings.
Original salesroom building constructed in 1964. Change was made from harvesting apples in bushel baskets to bulk bins and fork lift management.
Salesroom: Over the intervening years the Meyers' have built three additions, added a modern cider mill, bakery, a seating area over looking the orchard, drive-in freezer room, and a separate retail cold storage building.
Packing House: The packing house is across the highway. Apples from our orchard come into the packing house in bulk bins, are washed and sorted, some receive a light wax coating. Other equipment includes a computer monitored apple weight sizer, equipment for bagged, tray pack and tote packs of apples. There is loading dock, an attached cold storage, and a separate dry storage building.
Shop Buildings: Two separate shop buildings and a separate chemical storage shed have been constructed.
Andy is Orchard Manager and Wholesale Manager; his wife Julie is Retail Manager. Bill is the Cider Mill Manager and has a separate business, All About Apples, for consulting, orchard appraisals, and custom grafting. Marlene is the Admin. for the website, and does advertising for the orchard and the Orchard Ridge Business Group.