Bridge Creek Town

Frank L. Clark

In the early days ere history was written, the water of Bridge creek babbled on to the sea. It is not even written how long it had babbled when men and women came to make the country through which it flowed fit for their habitation. Geologists have told us that it marks the southern extremity of the vast area of that first formation that arose out of the chaos of the waters that covered the earth ere the sun or the moon obeyed the creative behest: "Let there be light." But whatever the geologists may tell us, or whatever the philosophers may reveal unto us is not of particular interest to us just now, and was of much less interest to those sturdy i:)ioneers who came to establish a civilization and realize the fruition of a bountiful promise.

When Eau Claire county was organized by an act of the legislature in 1856, there were but few settlers in the eastern part thereof. Probably the first settler was Andrew Thompson, who came, it is said, iu 1854, and settled and built a house on what was later Henry Brown's pasture in Otter creek. The valley was named Thompson valley. If he came in 1854, he was here at least a year, perhaps more, before the coming of others. In 1856 when the county was organized, Charles Hale, L. D. McCauley and J. A. Bride had settled in what has since been known as Scott's valley; Lorenzo and William Bennett and Charles and Scribner Chadbourne had located in Thompson valley ; George Diamond had settled on the Diamond farm in Diamond valley, and a little bunch of pioneers, James Woodbury, E. L. Hull, William Young and perhaps a few more, had settled near where the village of Augusta was soon to be. These, together with the first settlers in Augusta, Charles Buckman, S. E. Bills, John P. Stone and a few more, constituted at that time the population of the town of Bridge Creek.

When Eau Claire county was organized there was quitt' a settlement at Eau Claire, and the act of the legislature wliiuh created the county provided that the government of the county should be vested in the town board until the next annual town meeting. The county was divided into the towns of Half Moon, Brunswick and Bridge Creek. The town of Bridge Creek comprised nearly all the east half of the county, or, to be more particular, what is now the towns of Fairchild, Bridge Creek, Ludington, Otter Creek and Clear Creek.

The first town meeting was held at the house of William Young, just east of the schoolhouse on Main street, Augusta. The date of the town meeting was April 7, 1857. The officers elected were as follows:

Supervisors, William Young, chairman ; L. Bennett and Joseph Sargent, sideboard. Clerk, J. C. Ilackett. Treasurer, James Mc- Cauley. Assessor, Charles Buckman. Justices, L. M. Underwood, J. F. Stone, S. E. Bills and R. E. Scott. Constables, William Buck, Anas Brown and W. A. Bennett. Sealer of weights and measures, John A. Bride.

The voters adopted a resolution to appropriate the sum of $150.00 for roads and bridges, and $150.00 for schools. A resolution was also adopted providing that "hogs shall not be allowed to run at large, or that hogs shall not be considered free commoners." It was ordered that notices of the adoption of this resolution be "duly posted according to law." The four justices of the peace elected "drew lots" for the one-year and two-year terms, and Messrs. Stone and Underwood got the long term and Messrs. Scott and Bills had to take the short term. And so the town of Bridge Creek was organized and officered. It was a big town and but sparsely settled. What is now the town of Ludington was an unsettled wilderness ; the three eastern townships were little better. The southeast portion of the town was a rolling country of a rich sandy loam soil and covered with a low growth of oak. It was well watered and has since developed into the finest farm country in the Northwest. The heavy pine that covered the timbered portion of the town, and much of the hard- . wood, has since been cut off and many good lands have been opened. There is still much good land, however, that has not been broken and there is yet room for many more good farms.

The second annual town meeting was held April 6, 1858. J. E. Perkins was elected chairman of the town board, and Josephus Livermore and James Sargent, supervisors. J. C. Hackett was elected clerk, L. Bennett, treasurer, and Charles Buckman, assessor. The sum of !i>400 was voted for incidental expenses; $100 for roads and bridges, and $200 for sehools. A resolution was adopted to prevent the running at large of calves under one year old, and also geese ; the former under a penalty of 50 cents for the first otfense and $1.00 for every subsequent offense. Tlie penalty for geese was 25 cents for the first oft'ense, and 50 cents for all subsequent offenses. It was also discovered that the resolution of 1857 relating to hogs was without a penalty clause, and the matter was remedied by making the penalty $5.00 for the first offense and $10.00 for offenses thereafter. These resolutions were "posted according to law." jL19S6I2^

July 4, 1857, the first fourth of .luly celebration in the town was held at the farm of Simon Kaudall. He had bought the William Young place and the people gathered there and had a regular old-fashioned good time. In the evening they had a dance and Alfred Bolton played the fiddle. Allen Randall was a little fellow at that time, five years old, and he had a regular Buster Brown of a time. That celebration and that dance were the first events in the social life of Augusta and Bridge Creek, and for years thereafter the spirit of fellowship and good will grew and the social life was of that wliolesome kind, unmarred by class distinctions that prevails when tlie people live near to Nature's heart. There Avas no fol-de-rol, no nonsensical tommyrot, nor any of that superior culture that marks the upper stratum of the modern social life. The people were hearty in those days, good-souled, and between the hours of toil had sense enough to have a good time.

At the town meeting in the spring of 1859 the old officers were all re-elected, and the town records do not disclose that anything of special interest was done.

The town meeting in 1860 resulted in the election of Harris Searl as chairman and Josephus Livermore and Charles Hale as supervisors; C. W. Warren was elected clerk, J. C. Smith, treasurer, and Charles Bvickman, assessor. Mr. Smith refused to qualify as treasurer and the board appointed Charles Buckman in his place and then appointed J. C. Hackett as assessor, the office to which Mr. Buckman had been elected. The bond of Mr. Buckman as treasurer was $3,200. The first bills audited by the town board that are of record were those of J. C. Hackett for clerk, salary $32.33, and H. C. Putnam for surveying, $3.50. These claims were audited and paid in June, 1860. At the town meeting that year R. E. Scott made a motion that a committee be appointed to investigate the doings of the town officers since its organization. There is no record that the committee ever made a report. The total amount of claims paid and town orders issued was $672.60. The accounts were audited and the orders cancelled by the board of audit March 26, 1861. The record also discloses the fact that William Young was elected superintendent of schools at the town meeting in 1860. Just what his duties were the writes does not understand, but they were probably similar to those of the county superintendent of schools at the present time.

In 1861 the old board Avas re-elected with William Maas as clerk, Charles Buckmau, treasurer, and J. C. Smith and S. W. Crockett as assessors. The town was too big for one assessor, and so they elected two. Both of the assessors refused to qualify, however, and C. W. Chadbourne and J. M. Woodbury were appointed in their stead. The total amount of orders drawn for incidental expenses that year was $481.94.

. The result of the election in 1862 was the choice of Josephus Liverraore as chairman, C. H. Hale and Orriu C. Hall, supervisors; Harris Searl, clerk; Charles Buckman, treasurer, and R. E. Scott, assessor. A committee consisting of Messrs. F. Dighton, Peter Lundeville and William Young was appointed by the voters at the town meeting to look into certain doings of the town board. The committee made the investigation during the day, and before the meeting adjourned brought in two reports. The majority report was by Messrs. Dighton and Lundeville in effect that the board had an undoubted right to purchase a map. Mr. Young made the minority report which declared that $25.00 for a map is unnecessary in these times of high taxes. The majority report Avas adopted by the electors. The total vote volled at the election was 75. A tax of five mills was levied for highAvay purposes.

The war Avas on and the country Avas calling for brave men to come to the front and offer their lives upon the altar of their country. The call Avas not unheeded, even among the little band of pioneers of Bridge Creek. On September 5 Supervisor Hale and Treasurer Buckman resigned their offices to take up arms in defence of liberty, and Messrs. James Sargent and li. Blair Avere appointed to the respective positions. On September 19 Orrin C. Hall resigned as supervisor and Daniel Russell was appointed in his stead. He went to the war and never returned. J. L. Ball also resigned as justice of the peace, and M. B. Riekard Avas chosen at a special election to take his place. Thus the toAvn of Bridge Creek Avas organized, and had already assumed au importance as an economic, political factor in the history of northern Wisconsin. In fact, when Governor Barstow, in 1856, wanted a few hundred votes to re-elect him, they were forthcoming from Bridge Creek, even though there were not twenty-five people in the town. The game worked for a short time, but the courts took the matter in hand and Barstow gave up the executive office in compliance with the judicial determination.

These were strenuous years in Bridge Creek. The flower of the young manhood went to the war; the country was new and taxes were high. On March 3, 1864, a special town meeting was called to vote upon a proposition to raise $5,000 to pay bounties to the volunteers and men drafted to fill the quota called for by President Lincoln. There were 50 votes cast on the proposition, all in the affirmative. A resolution was passed directing the clerk to draw orders on the fund as the claims were allowed. Anotlier special town meeting was held and $4,000 was appropriated for the same purpose. There were 48 votes cast, of which 47 were for the appropriation and 1 against. February 25, 1865, another special meeting voted $1,000, and March 25 $2,000 more was voted. These various funds were largely made up by personal subscriptions, thus avoiding the necessity of a tax levy. To raise so large a sum of money, $12,000, among a people where 50 votes was the entire voting population, was a task of no mean proportions, but it was done and out of the effort the people came forth unscorched by the fires of distress and ready to bear still greater burdens.

In 1867 the town of Otter Creek was organized and set off from Bridge Creek. It comprised what is now the towns of Otter Creek and Clear Creek. In the division of the town funds after all debts had been paid Otter Creek had $232.94, and Bridge Creek had $412.18.

Meanwhile the village of Augusta had grown, and there were those who had an idea that there should be provided places where booze might be purchased. In conformity with this idea G. J. Hardy made application to the town board. The application was favorably acted upon and the license to sell spirituous and malt liquors was granted. The license fee M-as fixed at $75.00. Soon thereafter Ren Halstead and H. S. Baldwin were granted a license for the same purpose at the same time. Later it was discovered that the license fee as fixed by the town board was excessive, and it was reduced to $20. In 1870 the fee was again raised to $75.00. In 1873, June 24, a special town meeting was called to vote $2,500 to build a bridge across the Eau Claire river where the main river bridge now is. The proposition was de- feated by a vote of 66 to 16. This was about the voting strength of the town at that time. In 1877 the towns of Ludington and Fairchild were organized and set off from Bridge Creek. The village of Augusta was organized and set off in 1883. This left Bridge Creek with less than three townships.

In the eai'ly days nearly all of the northern and eastern portions of the town were covered by forests and these were watered by numerous small streams, tributaries to the Eau Claire river. Game and fish abounded and the territory was the paradise of the hunter and the fisherman. The southern and western portions of the town as it originally was and as it is now presents a prospect that to the agriculturist is a dream of pure delight.

The original population was mostly of Yankee descent, but since the war the Germans have come, and with their industry and persistence have practically possessed the land. Dairying and diversified farming is the principal occupation of the people, who are earnest, honest and industrious, and nowhere in the world can be found a more patriotic people.

Brunswick Township, which contains about thirty-six square miles, was formed in 1857, and is bounded irregularly on the north by the Chippewa river, which divides it from the town of Union; on the south by the town of Drammen, on the east by the towns of Washington and Pleasant Valley, and on the west b.y Dunn county. Besides being abundantly watered by the Chippewa river at its northern extremity, the town is intercepted by Taylor's, West and Coon creeks. It had a population according to the census returns of 1910 of 706. Porter's Mills were the only manufacturing industries of this township. This was formerly called Porterville and was surveyed and platted with that name in the fall of 1883. It had a station on the Chippewa Valley division of the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul railway, described as "Porter's Mills." Among the early settlers in close proximity to it were Nelson Cooley, in 1855, and Washington Churchill, in 1856. This location was selected as the site for a sawmill in 1863 by Charles Warner, who began the erection of a structure of this description. It was completed in the following year by Messrs. Porter, Brown and Meredith. The capacity of the mill was then 20,000 feet a day of twelve hours. It was burned down in October, 1866, and rebuilt by Gilbert E. Porter and D.. R. Moon during the following winter, and its capacity increased to 40,000 feet. The business was carried on under the firm name of Porter & Moon, and in 1869 the capacity of the mill was again increased with an output of 60,000 feet per day. When the first mill was started in 1865 there was only one house at this place. It was occupied by the few men then required to run the business. According to the census returns for 1890 the population of the village was 1,194. There was no industry here other than those controlled by this company. A Scandinavian Lutheran frame church was erected and dedicated in 1889, and a tine school house was built.

Fairchild Township was formed in 1874, and is identical in size and sliape with one of government survey. It is bovinded on the north by the town of Bridge Creek, on the south by Jackson county, on the east by Clark county, and on the west by the town of Bridge Creek. It is watered by Coon and Bridge creeks and their tributaries. Its business center is the village of the same name, which is located in the extreme southeast corner of the county and the township, and was settled in 1868, about the time when the then West Wisconsin railway was constructing its roadbed. The land at this time was covered with a low growth of bushes, but is now made into fine farms and country homes. One of the first settlers there was Mr. Yan- Auken, who built the first steam sawmill and sold it to another earl.y settler, G. S. Graves, in 1870. It was twice burned down, the second time in 1874, and was not rebuilt.

Lincoln Township is irregular in line on the north. Its greatest length from north to south is nine miles, while the distance from east to west is eight miles. It contains a fraction over sixty square miles and is settled chiefly by an agricultural community. It is bounded on the north by the towns of Seymour and Ludington, on the south by the towns of Clear Creek and Otter Creek, on the east by Ludington and Bridge Creek, and on the west by the town of Washington. The Eau Claire river runs through the towns from northeast to northwest, and it is also watered by the tributaries, Fall and Bear's Grass creeks. According to the census of 1910 it had a population of 1,189.

Otter Creek Township, which contains sixty-six square miles, with a population, according to the census of 1910, of 703, Avas set off in April, 1867. It is bounded on the north by the town of Lincoln, on the south by Trempealeau county, on the east by the town of Bridge Creek and on the west by the town of Clear Creek. The upper portion of the town is watered by Otter, Bear's Grass and Thompson's creeks. The nearest shipping point is Augusta, which is eleven miles distant. This town is essentially agricultural and lias splendid farms owned by a thrifty people.

Pleasant Valley Township was set off in 1858 and first given the name of Machas, which was afterwai'ds changed by the county board to its present name. It is principally a farming country with good land and prosperous people. It contains fifty-four square miles, and is oblong in shape, being six miles wide from east to west, and nine miles long from north to south. The water supply is ample, Low's creek, Pine and Clear creeks intersecting the country in almost every direction. Fine homes and farms are to be found here and happiness and prosperity abound.

Washington Township is rectangular in shape, but irregular in outline and contains sixty-six square miles. It was set off in January, 1866, and is bounded on the north by the city of Eau Claire and the town of Seymour, on the south by the towns of Clear Creek and Otter Creek, on the east by the town of Lincoln and on the west by the city of Eau Claire and the town of Brunswick. Otter creek runs through the town from the extreme southeast to the extreme northwest, and Low's creek waters the western portion of it. It has a population, according to the census returns of 1910, of 1,489, exclusive of the city of Altoona, which has 824. This place was originally East Eau Claire, and was surveyed and platted as a village with that name, in September, 1881. It was afterwards changed to Altoona, and incorporated as a city in 1887. It is located on the Eau Claire river and Otter creek and is distant four miles east from the city of Eau Claire. There were only two houses here in 1882 when the Chicago, St. Paul, Minneapolis & Omaha railway selected it as the site for machine shops and the roundhouse. As these buildings were constructed the population rapidly increased, and in the Pall of that year at least a dozen habitations had been erected. In the following year hotels, stores and residences went up in all directions. A postoffice was established, a union frame church was erected in 1884 and the graded school house with three departments.

Since 1884 Altoona has experienced a steady and prosperous growth ; new people have come in, churches of all denominations have been established; improved schools have been erected, and while it may be stjded one of the smallest cities in the United States, it is nevertheless a hustling business place which promises to improve with rapidity with the addition of its transportation facilities of the interurban railway line from Eau Claire, which has recently been completed. Originally what is now the Omaha Railway Company, in 1880 deemed it essential to locate a division point at some place nearly equidistant between Saint

Paul and Elroy. They were urged to make that point Eau Claire. This they claimed they could not do, as it would make the eastern division much longer than the western. They had purchased the land necessary at Fall Creek and had commenced operations. The citizens of Eau Claire realized that this was detrimental to its prosperity. W. F. Bailey took the matter up with Mr. Porter, president of the road, the latter agreeing if a suitable place having a half mile of level track was nearer Eau Claire, and other conditions suitable, he would consider a proposition to locate the division there. Mr. Johnson, the company's engineer, and Mr. Bailey went over the line and place where Altoona is located and found suitable. If an abundance of a suitable water could be found and the city of Eau Claire would grade the yards Mr. Porter agreed to locate there. Water was found, the city paying the expense. Subsequently it was agreed that the company would grade the j-ard, the city paying in lieu of grading $2,000.

Clear Creek Township was organized in 1882, and is strictly agricultural. It contains thirty-six square miles and is bounded on the north by the towns of Washington and Lincoln, on the south by Trempealeu county, on the east by the town of Otter Creek and on the west by Pleasant Valley. The northern half is watered by Clear, Bear's and Otter creeks; its popidation, according to the census returns of 1910, are 728.

Drammen Township is identical in size and shape with a township of government survey. It is bounded on the north by the town of Brunswick, on the south by Buffalo county, on the east by the town of Pleasant Valley, and on the Avest by Pepin county. In 1873 this town was set off from Brunswick imder the name of Lant, which was afterwards changed to its present name of Drammen. The water supply is furnished by Rock and Hoyt's creeks and their tributaries. Its population for 1910 was 869.

Ludington Township is sixteen miles in length from east to west, six miles in Avidth and contains 96 square miles, with a population for 1910 of 989. It is bounded on the north by Chippewa county, on the south by the towns of Lincoln and Bridge Creek, on the east by Clark county and on the west by Seymour and Lincoln. It is well watered by the north fork of the Eau Claire river aud Twelve Mile Pine, Sand, Hay and Muskrat creeks. ' It is stocked with an abundance of hard wood, and in its west center is located the great maple sugar district.

by Chippewa county, on the south by the towns of Washington and Lincoln, on the east by the town of Ludington and on the west by the city of Eau Claire. The Eau Claire river runs nearly the whole length of the farther extremity of the town, and other portions of it are intersected by the river's tributaries. Its population in 1910 was 588.

Union Township was first laid out as the town of Randall, but afterward changed to Union. It has thirty-four square miles, a little less than a regular township, with a population in 1910 of 1,090. It is bounded on the north by Chippewa county, on the south by the town of Brunswick (the Chippewa river dividing the two towns), on the east by the city of Eau Claire and on the west by Dunn county. Truax is a station on the Chicago, St. Paul, Minneapolis & Omaha railway four and one-half miles northwest of Eau Claire. The Eau Claire county poor farm and asylum is located in this town, which contains many fine farms and farm buildings.