Gottlieb and Friedericke Lutze with their children Edward, August and Clara arrived in America in 1849. Learning of other German Lutherans from the Province of Saxony that had settled in rural Manitowoc County, they purchased 80 acres for $105 in Section 19, T17N, R23E, Town of Centerville. They began clearing the land and during the next two years built a housebarn for both people and livestock under one roof.

Now called the Hika Bay Tavern, the building was bought by Hugo Schurrer in 1899. Schurrer immigrated to America in 1885 from Germany at the age of 18. He was involved in the banking profession in his homeland but upon settling in the Cleveland area, Schurrer began to work for the Lake Shore Railway, earning eighty cents a day. He then decided to go into a different occupation and went to work in a tavern in the nearby community of St. Wendel.