A Pictorial History of Williams Bay Wisconsin
Author: Michelle Bie Love
Publisher:
Published: 2017-07-14
Total Pages: 268
ISBN-13: 9781548461201
DOWNLOAD EBOOK →A Pictorial History of Williams Bay, Wisconsin On Beautiful Geneva Lake is an account of the settlement and development of the Village of Williams Bay from 1836 until 1939. The Village had a diverse and colorful history beginning with Chief Big Foot and the Potawatomi who made the bay a favored hunting camp and burial ground and its settlement by Captain Israel Williams, who left a comfortable and prosperous life in Massachusetts, bringing his family to the Northwest Territory for new opportunities. Later rugged pioneers, Norwegian immigrants, wealthy industrialists and progressive socialites would call the Village home. The arrival of the Chicago & North Western Railway in 1888 opened the Village to endless opportunities. Maintaining its quaint rural atmosphere, Williams Bay became the setting for camps, resorts, and the world-renowned Yerkes Observatory. Prominent astronomers from around the world viewed the universe with the Observatory's 40-inch refracting telescope. Incorporated in 1919 at the urging of leading Village residents who saw the potential the community had to offer.
