Whittlesey, Wisconsin

Whittlesey is a census-designated place in the town of Chelsea, Taylor County, Wisconsin, United States. Its population was 105 as of the 2010 census.[1]

Whittlesey, Wisconsin
Census-designated place
Whittlesey, Wisconsin is located in Wisconsin
Whittlesey, Wisconsin
Whittlesey, Wisconsin
Coordinates: 45°13′23″N 90°19′44″W
CountryUnited States
StateWisconsin
CountyTaylor
Area
 • Total1.127 sq mi (2.92 km2)
 • Land1.127 sq mi (2.92 km2)
 • Water0 sq mi (0 km2)
Elevation
1,476 ft (450 m)
Population
 (2010)[1]
 • Total105
 • Density93/sq mi (36/km2)
Time zoneUTC-6 (Central (CST))
 • Summer (DST)UTC-5 (CDT)
Area code(s)715 & 534
GNIS feature ID1576708[2]

The community of Whittlesey was started in the 1870s when the Wisconsin Central Railroad Company built its line up through the forests, heading for Ashland. The railroad placed a station seven miles north of Medford where the line touched the Little Black River. It named the station Whittlesey, probably for Asaph Whittlesey, an early state legislator from Ashland,[3] or possibly for geologist Charles Whittlesey who surveyed the area.[4]

Several sawmills operated in Whittlesey starting in the 1880s. One built a 240-foot dam across the river, producing a 12-foot head of water.[5] Another sawmill operated a mile and a half west of town, hauling its sawn product on carts over a pole line (a track of hardwood poles) to ship from the station at Whittlesey.[6] A brickyard also operated there.[5]

A Village of Whittlesey was platted in 1892, initiated by G.W. and Emma Norton.[7] But when the timber was exhausted, the sawmills closed. The highway bypassed most of the town to the east. The rail line closed in 1988.[8]

As of 2023 Whittlesey is a quiet cluster of homes scattered among the trees a short drive north of Medford, with the Pine Line bike trail passing through on the old railroad right-of-way.[9]

References
  1. "U.S. Census website". U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved April 20, 2011.
  2. U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Whittlesey, Wisconsin
  3. Martin, Roy L. (January 1941). History of the Wisconsin Central (Bulletin No. 54). Baker Library, Harvard Business School: The Railroad and Locomotive Society, Inc. pp. 41–42.
  4. "Whittlesey". Wisconsin Historical Society. Retrieved October 9, 2023.
  5. Rusch, Gordon (January 2012). "Taylor County Logging and Lumbering". In Kalmon, Lars (ed.). Our Home - Taylor County Wisconsin - Vol 1. Taylor County History Project. pp. 18–19.
  6. Rusch, Robert P. (January 2014). "The Twelve Railroads of Taylor County, Wisconsin". In Kalmon, Lars (ed.). Our Home - Taylor County Wisconsin - Vol 2. Taylor County History Project. pp. 19–20.
  7. Ruesch, H.O. (January 2012). Kalmon, Lars (ed.). Taylor County Historical Sketch. Taylor County History Project. p. 12.
  8. "Pine Line Trail". WisconsinBikeTrails.com. Retrieved October 9, 2023.
  9. "Pine Line Trail: Westboro to Medford". WisconsinBikeTrails.com. Retrieved October 9, 2023.


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