Chippewa Falls

The Beginning (Over 1,000 years ago)

The Ojibwa people began a 500-year journey from "somewhere on the shores of the Great Salt Water in the East," which concluded on Madeline Island about 1394. In 1767, British explorer Jonathon Carver reported that every summer, Ojibwa from Northern Wisconsin met with fur traders at "the Falls," a place which, when recorded on his map, became one of the earliest records of Native American activity in the Chippewa Falls area. Michael Cadotte, a French-Canadian-Ojibwa fur trader, set up a trading post south of the Falls in 1797.

The complex role of Native Americans in the history of Wisconsin and Chippewa Falls was diminished as they were steadily displaced by a white society eager to carve out a community amidst a seemingly endless supply of natural resources. However, the history of Chippewa Falls would be incomplete without acknowledging the significant contributions of Native Americans to this community which, in fact, continue to the present time.

The Lumbering Era (1836-1911)

In 1836, French native, Jean Burnet, was hired by the American Fur Company out of Prairie Du Chien to oversee the construction of a sawmill on the Chippewa River at "the Falls." Chippewa Falls was home to the largest mill under one roof from 1836-1911.

By the mid 1850's, the sawmills were producing 100,000 board feet of lumber each day. With 90 saws in motion at one time, the mill yard was frequently full of lumber, shingles and laths produced by mill workers earning $1 a day.

Log jams were common as sawed lumber piled up in the rivers. Usually the logs gave way and came downriver without loss; however, sometimes bridges and dams were carried away by a jam of logs.

A City of Diversity (Early to Mid 1900's)

The lumbering industry began to decline in the early 1900s. Chippewa Falls continued to thrive due to efforts made to diversify away from a sole reliance on lumber. Some of the major industries that were well established include:

• Five shoe factories
• Two brick yards
• Machine shops
• A flour mill
• Chippewa Foundry and Machine Works
• Chippewa Woolen Mill
• Six cigar factories
• Wood working companies
• Chippewa Candy Company
• A tobacco warehouse
• A broom factory
• Two cement works
• Chippewa Paper Box Factory

Downtown's Survival (Mid 1960's)

With the introduction of more vehicle orientated highway strip malls and shopping malls. Many department stores, smaller retail and service businesses moved out of downtown. Increased vacancies lead to lack of maintenance and modernizations to historic buildings. Property values declined and residents shopping habits shifted to outlying areas.

Due to the passion of Chippewa Falls' residents and business owners, Chippewa Falls did not fall victim to the wrecking ball.