Jackson 'Jack' Logan

JACKSON "JACK" LEE LOGAN

Fort Atkinson, Wis.

Jackson "Jack" Lee Logan, 85, of Fort Atkinson, Wis., died Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2020, at his longtime home and business, Black Hawk Senior Residence. Cause of death was complications related to strokes.

Jack Logan was born Dec. 10, 1934, in Washington, Iowa, the youngest of eight children of Allen and DeIna (Buhrman) Logan. Jack graduated from Washington High School, Class of 1953. He attended Iowa State Teachers College in Cedar Falls graduating with a Bachelor of Arts degree and Master of Arts in industrial arts in 1957.

He married the love of his life, Iowa farmgirl Sharon Kay Griggs, on April 10, 1955, at the West Chester United Methodist Church. They were high school sweethearts and spent the next 64 years of wedded bliss together. Jack and Sharon had two children, Timothy "Tim" Logan and Paul "Andrew" Logan. After graduating from college, Jack and Sharon both were teachers. Jack taught industrial arts at McKinstry Junior High School in Waterloo for one year. He always said it was not his calling, so he joined the Army. Jack enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1958 and served at the Pentagon from 1958 to 1960. He remained in the Reserves until 1967 and rose to the rank of first lieutenant.

After his honorable discharge, Jack worked for the U.S. government in Washington, D.C., first for the Food and Drug Administration, then for the U.S. Postal Service, until 1973. While in Washington, they remodeled three homes on Capitol Hill.

Greatly disturbed by the social unrest following the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jack became (in his own words) an "executive dropout" and moved Sharon and the boys to a farm in the cornfields outside of Marshall, Wis., in February 1973. Jack, who loved wood and woodworking, began renovating farmhouses with the late Richard "Dick" Stockwell. This became his career for the next 10 years and represented some of the happiest days of his life. Over the course of the next decade, he and Sharon saved or built a dozen homes.

In 1983, while traveling to a jobsite in Whitewater, Wis., Jack noticed the historic, albeit dilapidated, historic Black Hawk Hotel, one of the anchors of Fort's Main Street Historic District. Partnering with his brother, Jay Logan, and Jay's wife Mavis, Jack and Sharon purchased and managed the Black Hawk Restaurant and Lounge. In 1991, with the help of the SBA and the wisdom of John McKenzie of the Bank of Fort Atkinson (now Johnson Bank), they converted the Black Hawk Hotel to a Community Based Residential Facility, now Black Hawk Senior Residence, which also served as their home. Jack served on the Fort Atkinson Historic Preservation Commission.

For many in the local community, Jack was recognized walking his adopted rescue greyhounds, Fannie, Julie and Roy, for whom he provided a safe and caring home following their unsuccessful racing days. Jack was a ham radio enthusiast most of his life. Later, he developed an avid interest in genealogy and was instrumental in researching his family tree along with his nephew, Michael Jones. Jack was an early adopter of DNA analysis to further research into the Logan line.

He is survived by his wife, Sharon; and son, Andrew Logan, both of Fort Atkinson; son, SFC Tim Logan, stationed on active duty with the U.S. Army Reserve in Sumner, Wash.; four namesakes; his closest friends, Doug Moreland of Elkhorn and Dee Spolum of Madison; favorite near-daughters-in-law, Carol Ochsner of Monroe and Debbie Thurber of Ashland; and many nieces and nephews.

Jackson L. Logan was preceded in death by his parents, Al and DeIna Logan; seven brothers and sisters, Theo, Kathryn, Maxine, Margery, John, James and Jay; and six brothers- and sisters-in-law, Clarence Shew, R. Paul Clark, Rhea (Buck) Logan, Carlin Jones, Mavis (Williamson) Logan and Ada (Schwenke) Logan.

Services will be held at 11 a.m. Friday, Jan. 31, at the West Chester United Methodist Church. Interment with military honors will be held at 10 a.m. Friday at West Chester Cemetery. Jones & Eden Funeral Home is assisting with local arrangements.

Jack was very proud of his military service. He always said he was fortunate enough not to see combat and held those who did in the highest esteem. In lieu of flowers or a memorial, the family requests that you buy a meal for a veteran, anonymously or otherwise. This honor was bestowed on Jack many times (thanks to his "Old War Veteran" cap) and it always brought a tear to his eye.

The family would like to give special thanks to the carestaff of Black Hawk Senior Residence, and also to Jeta Useni and all the caring waitstaff at Citrus Cafe (Janesville), the staff at Milton Family Restaurant (Milton) and the staff at the Fort Atkinson Family Restaurant (Fort Atkinson).