OTHER VILLAGES

Transcribed by Ken Wood

The platted villages of Clark County in addition to those incorporated are Weston's Rapids, Humbird, Willard, Osborn, Poznan, Columbia, Allison, Atwood, Lynn, Chili and Eidsvold. Weston's Rapids was platted Feb. 10, 1859, on lots 3 and 7, and the Northeast quarter of the Southeast quarter of Section 2, Township 24, Range 2 West. It was surveyed by Moses Clark for Samuel Weston. Humbird, formerly Rocky Mound, was platted on land of Almond Alderman, in 1869. Eidsvold was platted June 14, 1884 on land of Jacob Bye & Co. Lynn was surveyed in Sections 5 & 8, Township 24, Range 1 East, Feb 12, 1890, by George Ure on land of James G. and Henry Sternitzky. Chili was platted Nov 13, 1891 on land owned by Ira, F.C. and S. E. Fike, and the Neillsville Manufacturing Co. Columbia was platted Aug 4, 1893, for the Columbia Improvement Co. Poznan, sections 34 and 35, Township 29, Range 3 West was platted Aug 16, 1895, on land of the Sterling Lumber Co. Willard was platted June 11, 1911, on land of the N.C. Foster Lumber Co. Atwood was platted May 15, 1910, on the northeast quarter of Section 27, Township 28, Range 1 West, for the Tri-State Land Co. Osborn was platted on the Northeast quarter of Section 17, Township27, Range 1 East, by the same company. Allison was platted Oct. 15, 1914, on lots 6 and 7, Township 23, Range 3 West, for the Wisconsin Railway Light & Power Co.

Mapleworks, a stagecoach stopping place, now abandoned, was located about a half mile northeast of the present village of Granton. At one time it was a busy little rural center with two stored, a saloon, a post office and several residences. The village had its beginning with Nelson Marsh and was platted years later by Sylvester Marsh.

Nelson Marsh reached this vicinity in 1857, coming with an ox team by way of Sparta and cutting a temporary road through the trackless forest. He located not far from the present village of Granton, and established a farm and tavern and stopping place on the old stage route from Neillsville to Stevens Point which was established in 1858. There was a post office in his house--Mapleworks by name, although it should have been Maplewoods, the chirography of the early settlers being deciphered wrong by the postal authorities at Washington. The stage route was maintained until the railroad came through and on the old maps of the county Mapleworks is one of two or three places marked in Clark County.

Charles Cornelius came her in 1877. At that time the post office was at the home of Nelson Marsh, and a Grange Store had been started. He bought out the Grange Store, and induced Mike Grasser to open a blacksmith shop, and Henry Limburg a wagon shop. Ernest Crevecoeur opened a furniture establishment, and a physician, Dr Keller settled here. Later, Mr Cornelius sold his dry goods department to his brother-in-law, Adam Reichert, and his hardware department to S.L. Marsh. The Reichert store was burned, but the Marsh store was moved to Granton. The little hamlet grew until 1890, when Granton was established, when the business of the village was transferred to the new site.

Windfall was one of the earliest community centers in Clark County. It received its name from the fact that the heavy winds of the pioneer days had left a large area of devastated forest and fallen trees. A schoolhouse was built at the cross roads, a number of farmers settled in the vicinity, and the name became well known. The schoolhouse was afterward moved to Granton, and enlarged, being now used as the ward school of that place.

Riplinger is a flourishing village with good prospects. It is located in Section 17, Unity, on the "Soo" line between Spencer and Owen. Formerly known as Osborn, it has received new life in the past few years, and is growing rapidly, being well situated in regard to the surrounding agricultural country. It is an important shipping center for cattle, wood and wood pulp. It has a sawmill, two stores, a meat market, a blacksmith shop, a garage, two saloons, a schoolhouse and a public hall.

Eidsvold is a small station on the "Soo" line, in the town of Thorp, between the villages of Thorp and Stanley. In 1887, it was already a point of some importance. An Article written in 1887 says: "Eidsvold contains a combined saw, shingle, and hoop mill, employing about fifty men, a blacksmith shop, a boarding house, a post office and a general store. The Eau Claire Lumber Co. has a dam across the North Fork of the Eau Claire River near this place, and Jacob Bye & Co., proprietors of the sawmill, plan to build another in the spring for the purpose of forming a pond to hold logs." The principal industries in the village are the cheese factory and general store.

Longwood, on the old maps, occupies a position equal almost in importance to the county seat, while the now prosperous villages of Owen, Thorp and Withee are not to be found. It was a post office and important trading station in the early days, but since the advent of the rural mail carrier is serene in the history of the olden times and its assurance that the development of the surrounding country must ever be its support even if other places outstrip it in importance. It is, however, still a busy little center with a store, a blacksmith shop, a cheese factory, a town hall, church and schoolhouse.

Hemlock is an abandoned village in Warner Township, deriving its name from an island of hemlock trees now washed away. In 1890 it was written: Hemlock is the location of the dam of the Black River Logging Company's dam, also a grist-and-saw mill, the latter owned by N.H. Withee. The dam was completed in 1879 at a cost of $21,000, and is one of the most complete works of improvement in the county. Of other improvements, the grist-mill was finished in 1879 and is supplied with three run of stone. It is of frame, four stories high, and does a large local business. The saw-mill is also of frame, two stories high, and is furnished with a rotary and upright saw. The total investment is between $10,000 and $15,000. The settlement is connected with Neillsville by telephone, erected in 1879 at a cost of $800." Nothing now remains but the ruined dam and the abandoned buildings.

Columbia is a station on the Omaha Line between Neillsville and Merrillan. It has a good looking school building, and several nice homes. Several years ago Columbia was boomed by a land company, but the exploitation was overdone and that part of the county until recently has suffered from the after effects of too much publicity.

Columbia now has a store, a warehouse, a cheese factory, a hall and church.

Shortville, in Washburn Township, has a store, a cheese factory, a school and a church. It was founded by James, Andrew, John, Stephen and George Short.

Brook, in Sherwood Township, has a store, a cheese factory, a town hall, a church and a school.

Yolo, in Fremont Township, on the Omaha, about a mile west of Chili. It was formerly the location of a number of large charcoal pits.

Globe is an inland town, in Weston Township, ten miles north of Neillsville in the center of a prosperous farming community. It has a creamery, a large German Lutheran Church and school, and a store.

Christie is located on the old tote road, between Neillsville and Greenwood, and for years was an important postoffice in the county. It now has a store, two churches and a school.

Wilcox, also known as York Center, is a cross-roads center in York Township, with a store, a Woodman Hall, a town hall and a church.

Spokeville is one of the oldest hamlets in the county. It is located in the boundary, between Sherman and Loyal, on the "Soo" line, netween Marshfield and Greenwood. Formerly, it had a large sawmill. Now it has a store, a cheese and butter factory, a boarding house and a church.

Willard is a thriving place on the Fairchild & Northeastern, between Fairchild and Greenwood. It has two stored, a cheese factory, a boarding house, a CAtholic Church and a school. A few years ago Ignatz Ceznic started to organize a colony of Slavs and kindred nationalities in the wilderness in the Town of Hendron. Today that country is dotted with scores of prosperous farms, and the village of Willard is the market place for them. Mr Ceznic had the backing of the Foster Lumbering Company, of Fairchild, in his work.

Tioga is located in Section 31, Hendren Township, on the Fairchild & Northeastern, between Fairchild and Greenwood. It has two stores and a hotel.

Shilling is located Section 30, Beaver, on the Fairchild & Northeastern, between Fairchild and Owen. It has a railroad station, a store and a cheese factory.

Coles' Corner, in the northwest part of Section 14, Sherman, is a community center with a town hall, a cheese factory and a schoolhouse.

Veefkind is located in Section 34, Sherman Township, between Marshfield and Greenwood. It has a store and a cheese factory, a Catholic Church and a sawmill that is not now operated.

Atwood is a new village in Section 21, Green Grove, on the "Soo" line, from Spencer to Owen. It contains the railroad station, a store and a saloon.

Bright is located in Section 20, Greenwood, on the Fairchild & Notheastern, between Greenwood and Owen. It has a railroad station, a store and a cheese factory. The old sawmill is no longer operated.

Reseburg, located at the cornering of Sections 8, 9, 16 and 17, in Reseburg Township, is a trading center with a store, saloon, blacksmith shop, cheese factory, church and schoolhouse. The locality is also known as Mattes' Corners, and Ampe's Corners.

Butler is a neighborhood center in Section 14, Butler Township. There is a cheese factory and a schoolhouse there.

There are also a number of community center and railroad sidings which bear local names. Some of them were formerly post offices. West Bridge Junction is in Thorp Township, at the point where the Otter Creek Stub branches from the Stanley, Merrill and Phillips Railroad. Omaha Junction is in Fremont Township, where the Omaha crosses the St. Paul Railroad. Sydney, Tay and Trow are stopping places on the Omaha, between Neillsville and Merrillan. Gorman's and Owego are shipping points on the Fairchild & Northeastern in Hendren Township. Mentor is a shipping point on the same road in Mentor Township. Coxie is a shipping point on the same line, in Section 6, Beaver. Irene, Nevens and Dewhurst are inland centers in Dewhurst Township. Pleasant Ridge is an inland center in Grant, Snow, between Lynn and Fremont, Carlisle, between Levis and Washburn, and Ralph in Hoard. Cedarhurst in Fremont, and Kurth in Grant are shipping points on the Omaha. Boynton and Sawyers Siding in Lynn are shipping points on the St. Paul. Weston's Rapids and Staffordsville are early abandoned villages north of Neillsville.

Page 662-666 The History of Clark County