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"History of Eau Claire County Wisconsin, 1914, Past and Present"
Chapter 7 - Townships
by Frank L. Clark
Washington Township
(-As transcribed from pages 40 - 41)
"History of Eau Claire County Wisconsin, 1914, Past and Present"
Chapter 7 - Townships
by Frank L. Clark
Washington Township
(-As transcribed from pages 40 - 41)
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 est 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 Fall 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 styled 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 yard, the city paying in lieu of grading $2,000.