Historical Whitewater

A CITY RICH IN HISTORY

Whitewater was established by the Potawatomi who settled here at the convergence of two rivers, a land rich in resources and potential.

Earlier Native Americans, the great mound builders of the late Woodland Period, created the burial ground that is now the Whitewater Effigy Mound Preserve at 288 S. Indian Mound Parkway.

A city is born

Due to the outcome of the 1832 Black Hawk War, the Native Americans in the area were displaced west of the Mississippi River.

In the year 1837, Whitewater was flooded with colonists looking for plots of land.

The city steadily grew until 1852 when the Milwaukee and Mississippi Railroads chose Whitewater as a stop between Milwaukee and Prairie Du Chien.

This caused an explosion of people flooding the streets, bringing commerce and goods right into the city.

Not only did it bring people, it allowed Whitewater’s industries to sell to outside markets causing them to grow and in return hire more workers.

The year 1881

Whitewater was growing exponentially in the years prior to 1881, but by the time the year began, a series of snowstorms had devastated the community, leaving the city in a state of peril.

Horses and wagons couldn’t get down the street and factories couldn’t open their doors to their workers.

One of the largest snowstorms during this time lasted more than 40 hours! In the end, the snow wasn’t the worst of it.

Because of the high amount of snow that accumulated during winter, when spring came around, the water flooded the area causing even more havoc and damage.

If giant snow banks and Main Street rivers weren’t enough, a number of fires leveled multiple blocks of the downtown area. After building new dams, bridges and infrastructure, Whitewater rebounded and in the process, learned a lesson or two.

Visit the Discover Whitewater office at 150 W. Main Street and pick up a Historical Landmark Guide and explore Whitewater’s past.

Visit the Whitewater Historical Society’s website at www. whitewaterhistoricalsociety. org to learn more about the city’s history.

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