Population Outagamie County: Latest 150,048 Wisconsin
became a state in 1848. Outagamie County was created from Brown County in 1851.
The Fox Cities are 12 communities along the Fox River. Appleton, Neenah,
Menasha, Kaukauna, Kimberly, Combined Locks, Town of Grand Chute, Little Chute,
Freedom, Town of Neenah, Town of Menasha, Town of Vandenbroek. Early residents
of the area included the Menomonee, Outagamie and Winnebago tribes. Although the
Menomonees are the oldest known residents, the history of the area comes from
the Outagamie Indians whom the French nicknamed "les renards," meaning foxes.
Hence the name Fox Cities.
In 1634, French explorer Jean Nicolet was the first
European to the area followed soon by French fur traders. One of these traders,
Charles Grignon (GREEN-YO), built his mansion in the woods in 1837, the oldest
home in Outagamie County. Other ethnic groups settling here include Dutch,
German, Polish, Irish and, more recently, Laotian.
The first mills in the area using water power from the
Fox River were flour and woolen mills. These were converted to paper-production
when the wheat crop failed and farmers turned to dairy cows for their
livelihood. The early giants of the paper industry, Kimberly-Clark, Appleton
Papers, Wisconsin Tissue Mills and Menasha Corporation have earned the area its
nickname--the Paper Valley. While paper-making is still the largest industry
here, insurance, finance service and hospitality are also important to the
economy. Lawrence University, the second oldest co-educational college in the
country, was established in 1846 by Amos Lawrence with 5,000 acres of land and
$10,000. Its reputation as a fine liberal arts and music school brings it
national attention.
Outagamie County History - Appleton Public Library
Wednesday, 20-Nov-2024 03:23:36 CST
[an error occurred while processing this directive]