Nashotah House Theological Seminary

In 1840, the first death occurred in the town, that of Martin Moulster, who died in January of that year. About this time, or not long after, two young men were drowned in Lake Keesus, while making maple sugar. The first birth was that of Emma Skinner, daughter of George W. and Lucinda Skinner, November 18, 1839. The first one who preached in the town is said to have been Elder Griffin. Elder Wheelock came here as early as 1842, and held meetings ; also Rev. Baker, who held his first meeting in 1842 in the house of Henry Cheney. The first schoolhouse is said to have been erected in 1843 on Section 26, and either Mr. Taylor or Mrs. Stephen Warren (nee Nicholson) was the first teacher. A schoolhouse was built at Stone Bank in 1843, also, perhaps as soon as the other. George W. Skinner was Territorial Justice of the Peace in 1839 or 1840. The first marriage was that of Stephen Warren to Miss Mary Nicholson. The ceremony was performed by George W. Skinner, Justice of the Peace, May 7, 1840. The first store, if it could be called a store, was opened by Michael Shell, at Monches, about 1844. This embraced shoe-shop, saloon and general merchandise. The Swedish settlers also had a little shop, kept by the wife of Capt. Von Schneideau, in a very early day. The first cemetery was surveyed in 1841. The first town meeting in Warren, now Merton, was held April 4, 1843, at the house of William Le Roy, on Section 26. The voters of the town went to Delafield in the morning, in sleighs, to vote. After the meeting had been called to order, it was moved by Sylvanus Warren, that they divide the town, and that those who belonged in Merton (then Warren) should repair to Mr. Le Roy's house at 1 P. M. of that day. The motion was carried, and in the afternoon thirty-nine voters assembled as agreed. Moses Smith was elected Chairman of the Board of Supervisors, and Charles G. Williams and Jacob Snyder, Side Supervisors ; Town Clerk, L. H. Taylor ; Road Commissioners, Hiram Warren, George McKerly and Earl Wright; School Commissioners, L. M. Moore, Sybrant Hall, Dewey K. Warren and Reuben Perry ; Assessors, Henry Cheney and John M. Hall ; Treasurer, Sylvanus Warren ; Constable,

Passage source: The History of Waukesha County, Wisconsin. Containing an Account of Its Settlement, Growth, Development and Resources; an Extensive and Minute Sketch of Its Cities, Towns and Villages--their Improvements, Industries, Manufactories, Churches, Schools and Societies; Its War Record, Biographical Sketches, Portraits of Prominent Men and Early Settlers; the Whole Preceded by a History of Wisconsin, Statistics of the State, and an Abstract of Its Laws and Constitution and of the Constitution of the United States, published 1880.

In early days, the postoffice was at Delafield, and the neighbors would club together and get it by turns about once in two or three weeks. In 1851, Samuel Breck became the first Postmaster, and, in 1855, George Sterzbach succeeded him. In 1859, Anthony Houser succeeded Mr. Sterzbach, and has been Postmaster ever since.

Passage source: The History of Waukesha County, Wisconsin. Containing an Account of Its Settlement, Growth, Development and Resources; an Extensive and Minute Sketch of Its Cities, Towns and Villages--their Improvements, Industries, Manufactories, Churches, Schools and Societies; Its War Record, Biographical Sketches, Portraits of Prominent Men and Early Settlers; the Whole Preceded by a History of Wisconsin, Statistics of the State, and an Abstract of Its Laws and Constitution and of the Constitution of the United States, published 1880.

Machine-read from a century-old scan, so expect the errors a machine makes: misspelled names, dropped words, stray characters.

Read the whole chapter on Waukesha City - 86,288 words on its settlement, mills, schools and churches.