University of Wisconsin-River Falls
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Polk County History

Back before this land was known as Polk County, it was inhabited first by Sioux and then by Chippewa Native Americans. White men were visiting the area as early as the later 1600’s. Such men included Daniel Greysolon De Dulhut, along with a group of French Canadians, who came down the St. Croix River and to trade with the Native Americans. Another man that came around this time was Father Louis Hennepin.

Polk County was under many different territories prior to becoming part of the Wisconsin Territory. To start with, it was part of the Northwest Territory after the victory over the British. It was later part of the Michigan Territory. Finally, in 1836, it became part of the Wisconsin Territory.

The first settlement came in 1837 by Franklin Steele, George W. Fitch, Emerson Maginnis and other individuals in the St Croix Falls area. At this time, logging and lumbering (Edman Logging Company inPolk County, ca. 1895) were the main reasons for settling there. Also, there was land to be had by homesteading. (Hanson cabin in Polk County, ca.1880)

The Polk County Press, formerly called the St. Croixian, was the first newspaper of Polk County. The St. Croixian began publication in 1860 in St. Croix Falls by J.D. Reymert and Junious A. Bartlett. Samuel Fifield took it over shortly thereafter and the newspaper moved to Osceola for a number of years. A later newspaper, the Osceola Sun, (editor of the Osceola Sun, ca. 1918) began in the same city in 1897 and is still publishing today.

Wisconsin became a state in 1848 and Polk County was formed in 1853. The county was named after President James K. Polk, 11th president of the United States. In 1855, the population of Polk County numbered about 550 persons. The county seat was at Osceola Mills. A number of buildings served as the courthouse until 1862, when a permanent structure was secured. In 1899 however, a new courthouse (ca. 1918) was built in Balsam Lake, chosen by the voters because it is centrally located in the county. That courthouse has since become the Polk County Museum.

Polk County was home to a teacher's college called the Polk County Normal School, a two-year institution which prepared individuals for the teaching profession. It was located in St. Croix Falls from 1904 to 1960, then moved to Frederic where it continued until its closing in 1971.

Visitors and residents alike enjoy the area's many recreational activities all year long. Today the population of Polk County is over 42,000 and thriving. [compiled by Rachel Osterloth and ARC staff, 2005]

Additional Polk County Images:

Hunky Dory Farm in Balsam Lake, Polk County, ca. 1915.
Street view of Farmington, Polk County, ca. 1918.
Students gathered outside of Osceola high school, 1926.
Volga School children and teacher gathered outside of the one-room school house, ca. 1912.
Hunky Dory Farm in Balsam Lake, ca 1915
Street view of Farmington, undated.
Students gathered outside of Osceola high school, 1926.
Volga School children and teacher gathered outside of the one-room school house, ca. 1912.

View more Polk County Images.

 

Sources:
Osceola Historical Society. (1994). Osceola: A Village Chronicle.

Pfeifer, Muriel Morgan. (2004). A Whisper in the Wind.

Polk County Historical Society. (1978). Polk County Memories.

Polk County Recreation. (n.d.). Polk County Wisconsin Recreation. http://www.co.polk.wi.us/tourism/recreation.html. Retrieved September 12, 2005.

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