Again, thanks for the various inputs. I put on my cheapo safety glasses and got to work. I had to spread the dropouts to about 170mm with the threaded rod before they relaxed to something more than 121mm. I stopped at 124mm. The difference between the two sides measured at the seat tube is about 1-2mm. Close enough for government work. When the weather gets a bit nicer (in the spring?) I will finish things off outside with some gentle nudges using a 2x4. My shop is too small, my vice is not conveniently placed to do this indoors, and I didn't want to disassemble the crank/bb for this exercise (see: shipwright's disease). I will also refer back to some of the online instructions for creating a DIY dropout alignment tool. That I can tackle during the winter.

After that exercise I was able to easily mount the wheel. Alas, the (Nokian W240) tire was a touch too wide. No problem, just shave off the big knobs with a razor blade. Took off at most a mm per side. The tire just squeezes into the space with the dropout screws removed and the wheel all the way back in the dropouts. This exercise was easy to justify as the tires were freebies. I had initially thought I would just spring for some 45NRTH Xerxes which I knew would fit. This gets me on the road (and ice) without further cost or delay.