| Revision as of 16:24, 5 February 2014 edit67.209.89.10 (talk) →Tourism: added more about the river tubing culture which is a main part of the local tourism← Previous edit | Revision as of 16:27, 5 February 2014 edit undoSPACKlick (talk | contribs)Extended confirmed users, Pending changes reviewers, Rollbackers4,193 edits Undid revision 594060450 by 67.209.89.10 (talk) Undid Addition of large unsourced section. Content looked like it could be salvaged with sources. Couldn't find anyNext edit → | ||
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| ==History== | ==History== | ||
| Somerset has a lengthy and colorful history. Before the turn of the century Somerset was bordered on the south by cranberry bogs. The terrain naturally lent itself to the production of cranberries as a result of the hilliness of the area, which is dotted with ponds, sloughs, swamps and bogs. These wet areas became of greater interest to the local population during Prohibition. These same low spots where water collected became ideal for collecting water for the production of moonshine (homemade alcoholic beverages). Indeed Somerset already had a history of being a rough logging town, and it was only a natural progression to become the supplier of bootlegged alcohol to the twin cities of Saint Paul and Minneapolis. After Prohibition ended, the citizens of Somerset returned to the more humble activities of logging and farming. | Somerset has a lengthy and colorful history. Before the turn of the century Somerset was bordered on the south by cranberry bogs. The terrain naturally lent itself to the production of cranberries as a result of the hilliness of the area, which is dotted with ponds, sloughs, swamps and bogs. These wet areas became of greater interest to the local population during Prohibition. These same low spots where water collected became ideal for collecting water for the production of moonshine (homemade alcoholic beverages). Indeed Somerset already had a history of being a rough logging town, and it was only a natural progression to become the supplier of bootlegged alcohol to the twin cities of Saint Paul and Minneapolis. After Prohibition ended, the citizens of Somerset returned to the more humble activities of logging and farming. | ||
| '''Somerset’s Early History * Pre-European:''' | |||
| The glaciers that sculpted areas in the Township left deposits of sand and gravel called glacial moraines. The layers of sandstone covered by the glaciers can be seen in the cliffs along the Apple and St. Croix Rivers. Over time either the Anishinabeg or the Dakota lived here but finally established the land east and north of the St. Croix for the Anishinabeg and west of the Mississippi for the Dakota. | |||
| '''Rivers - Highways for Explorers, Fur Traders, Lumbermen:''' | |||
| Historians suggest two origins for the name St. Croix (Holy Cross): either for the natural stone cross in the rocks at St. Croix Falls or in honor of an explorer, Mons St. Croix, who was buried near the mouth of the river at Prescott. In 1680 explorer Daniel Greysolon, Sieur DuLhut, passed the Somerset area as he traveled the Brule-St. Croix river route from Lake Superior in his search for a water route to the Pacific. Fur traders, many of them French-Canadians, made good use of this route. In the early 1800’s lumbering activity increased and in 1839 the first saw mill on the St. Croix was built at Marine-on-the-St. Croix. | |||
| '''First Somerset Settlers:''' | |||
| In 1850 brothers Joseph and Louis Parent from French-speaking Canada came up the St. Croix looking for a good place to homestead. They settled on the bluffs above the mouth of the Apple River. They found potatoes grew well here and named the spot “La Pointe de la Pomme de Terre” (“Pointe” for the river junction and “Pomme de Terre” (apples of the earth) for the potatoes). Many of their family and neighbors soon followed from Canada, settling on both the north and south sides of the Apple River. | |||
| '''General Sam Harriman named Somerset:''' | |||
| Samuel and Hud Harriman, brothers born in Maine of English parents, came to the Apple River in 1856 to found a mill, store and logging empire. The area closest to the St. Croix River was already settled. They ventured upstream locating their dam for a mill where Main Street crosses the Apple River today. They also built a general store and platted streets and lots for a village they named Somerset. It is thought Somerset was for their father’s birthplace, Somerset County, England. Sam served as a general in the Civil War from 1862 to 1865. After the war he pursued many business interests including developing Harriman’s Landing on the St. Croix (thus “Landing Hill” on Hwy 35/64) to bring people and goods to Somerset. He was also instrumental in bringing the railroad through the county and into northwestern Wisconsin. | |||
| '''From Territory to Township:''' | |||
| When the Wisconsin Territory was established in 1840, St. Croix County extended from Lake Superior to the Mississippi where St. Paul and Minneapolis now are and Dakotah (now Stillwater) was the county seat. In 1848 Wisconsin became a state with the St. Croix River its western border. St. Croix County went from above Danbury to below Prescott and the county seat was moved to Buena Vista (now Hudson). The current, smaller county boundaries were set in 1853. By 1856 Somerset residents wanted to locally manage roads, schools, and boundary disputes and made a formal request to the county for township status. The County agreed and in Nov. 1856 the first official meeting was held. The Town Hall was built in 1886 by Harriman’s nephew, Edward E. Mason. | |||
| '''Churches:''' | |||
| Priests and ministers visiting Somerset would hold mass in a settler’s home. Already by 1856 the Catholic population had outgrown the farmhouses. Somerset’s first church, St Vincent de Paul, was built on a 5-acre parcel donated by Francois Parent. The small church overlooked the two rivers. In order to be more centrally located the congregation built the Church of St. Anne across the river from the Village in 1874-75. The original building was torn down in 1916 to make way for the present church designed by E.L. Masqueray, architect for the St. Paul Cathedral and Minneapolis Basilica. The Christ Lutheran congregation was formed by primarily German settlers in 1896. Their first church was built about two miles southwest of the Village in 1899. Fire destroyed this building in 1917 and the following year they built a new church on the south side of the Village. The congregation moved to the north end of the Village in the early 1970’s. The Emmanuel Lutheran congregation formed in May of 1894 and built a church that fall on the southwest side of the Township. | |||
| '''Bridges & Roads:''' | |||
| Somerset’s two earliest bridges across the Apple River were made of wood. One was a foot bridge near the St. Croix River. The other for commerce was in the Village south of the present Main Street bridge. The road between these two bridges was the first to be maintained by the Township. The village bridge was rebuilt in 1861 and again in 1893. A new Township bridge was built close to the falls in 1882. The five-span steel arch Soo Line Railroad “High Bridge” over the St. Croix River, completed in 1911, was for many years the largest of its kind in the world. It is listed on the Wisconsin National Register of Historic Places. | |||
| '''Schools:''' | |||
| The first Somerset teacher was Mrs. Julia (Francois) Roi, who taught classes in the Audette home near the Apple River falls starting about 1858. A few years later a small school was built not far from the St. Vincent de Paul church. A bigger building, the Apple River Falls school was built in 1909 along the road to the falls. Other rural schools: Lakeside (1876), Sand Hill (1876), Landing Hill (1886), Pine Lake (1897), North Bass Lake (1914), and Horse Collar (1938). In the Village classes were held in homes for two years until the first school was built in 1864 on Spring Street. About 1890 a new Village school for grades one to eight was built several blocks north. In 1917 grades nine and ten were added. The first parish school opened in the fall of 1890. The Sisters of St. Joseph of Concordia, Kansas came to teach about forty students in the two-room frame building. In 1907 a three-story brick building was built to house both the school and the sisters. The Sisters of St. Joseph at Crookston, Minnesota came in 1909 to teach the school’s then 185 students. | |||
| '''John Till, the Plaster Doctor:''' | |||
| From 1905 to 1908 hundreds came every day to the Octave Cloutier home in Somerset seeking to have their health problems cured by John Till, an Austrian immigrant. His secret salve drew infection out of wounds and his plaster produced very painful blisters that drew poisons out of the body. Till also treated with internal medicines and was skilled at setting broken bones. This was a very busy time for the Cloutier family where Till lived rent free and Octave was his assistant. It was also a time when Somerset rig drivers, stores, hotels and restaurants made good money serving the visitors. Till had no set fee but was reputed to have made good money from what people paid him. A song was even published about Till in 1907. He was a memorable personality who wore gold earrings, sometimes went barefoot but had a sincere way of helping the sick. He was put on trial many times for practicing medicine without a license but was never convicted while in Somerset. After taking the Cloutier family to Austria in 1908, Till built a large clinic in Turtle Lake that people flocked to. In 1919 he was sentenced to six months in jail in Barron, Wis. Somerset businessman A.J. Vanasse so impressed Gov. Blaine by gathering 6,500 signatures on a petition for his release that the Gov. authorized Till’s early release. In 1922 the court forced Till to leave the country. He went back to Austria but returned in 1946 after World War II, settling near Hudson, and died in 1947. | |||
| <ref>http://www.townofsomerset-wi.org/about_history.html</ref> | |||
| ==Tourism== | ==Tourism== | ||
Revision as of 16:27, 5 February 2014
Village in Wisconsin, United States| Somerset, Wisconsin | |
|---|---|
| Village | |
 Location of Somerset, Wisconsin | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Wisconsin |
| County | St. Croix |
| Area | |
| • Total | 2.75 sq mi (7.12 km) |
| • Land | 2.75 sq mi (7.12 km) |
| • Water | 0 sq mi (0 km) |
| Elevation | 961 ft (293 m) |
| Population | |
| • Total | 2,635 |
| • Estimate | 2,656 |
| • Density | 958.2/sq mi (370.0/km) |
| Time zone | UTC-6 (Central (CST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-5 (CDT) |
| Area code(s) | 715 & 534 |
| FIPS code | 55-74700Template:GR |
| GNIS feature ID | 1584175Template:GR |
Somerset is a village in St. Croix County, Wisconsin, along the Apple River. The population was 2,635 at the 2010 census. The village is located within the Town of Somerset.
Government
Somerset's current Village President is Jeffrey Johnson.
Geography
Somerset is located at 45°7′30″N 92°40′30″W / 45.12500°N 92.67500°W / 45.12500; -92.67500 (45.125189, -92.6752).Template:GR
According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of 2.75 square miles (7.12 km), all of it land. The Apple River runs through Somerset.
Demographics
| Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | 2,635 | — | |
| 2012 (est.) | 2,656 | 0.8% |
2010 census
As of the census of 2010, there were 2,635 people, 990 households, and 654 families residing in the village. The population density was 958.2 inhabitants per square mile (370.0/km). There were 1,102 housing units at an average density of 400.7 per square mile (154.7/km). The racial makeup of the village was 93.1% White, 1.0% African American, 0.6% Native American, 0.8% Asian, 2.0% from other races, and 2.5% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 5.1% of the population.
There were 990 households of which 44.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.8% were married couples living together, 14.8% had a female householder with no husband present, 7.4% had a male householder with no wife present, and 33.9% were non-families. 23.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 6% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.64 and the average family size was 3.15.
The median age in the village was 29.6 years. 32.1% of residents were under the age of 18; 8.7% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 36.3% were from 25 to 44; 17.4% were from 45 to 64; and 5.5% were 65 years of age or older. The gender makeup of the village was 48.9% male and 51.1% female.
2000 census
As of the censusTemplate:GR of 2000, there were 1,556 people, 635 households, and 391 families residing in the village. The population density was 844.1 people per square mile (326.5/km²). There were 659 housing units at an average density of 357.5 per square mile (138.3/km²). The racial makeup of the village was 96.85% White, 0.77% Black or African American, 0.45% Native American, 0.06% Asian, 0.45% from other races, and 1.41% from two or more races. 1.16% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 635 households out of which 39.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 40.8% were married couples living together, 14.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 38.4% were non-families. 26.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 8.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.45 and the average family size was 2.99.
In the village the population was spread out with 30.1% under the age of 18, 13.4% from 18 to 24, 36.8% from 25 to 44, 12.9% from 45 to 64, and 6.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 27 years. For every 100 females there were 93.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 94.8 males.
The median income for a household in the village was $45,194, and the median income for a family was $47,426. Males had a median income of $36,827 versus $25,605 for females. The per capita income for the village was $19,170. About 6.3% of families and 7.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 7.8% of those under age 18 and 29.0% of those age 65 or over.
Education
- Somerset High School is the local high school. Students in grades ninth through twelfth go here. The current principal is Chris Moore. Somerset Middle School is the local middle school. Students in grades fifth through eighth attend the middle school. The current principal is Sarah Eichten. Somerset Elementary School is the local elementary school, in which students starting in junior kindergarten up through fourth grade attend. The current principal is Darren Kern.
Sports
Somerset High School offers the following sports: Baseball, Boys Basketball, Boys Golf, Boys Hockey, Boys Soccer, Boys Tennis ,Cheerleading, Cross Country, Football, Girls Basketball, Girls Golf, Girls Hockey, Girls Soccer, Softball, Track, Volleyball, Wrestling
Activities
Somerset High School offers the following activities: Academic Decathalon, Destination Imagination, Danceline, Drama, Dynamics,,FBLA,Forensics, Marching Band, Mock Trial, Pep Band, Jazz Band, NHS, STAND, Show Choir, and Yearbook.
History
Somerset has a lengthy and colorful history. Before the turn of the century Somerset was bordered on the south by cranberry bogs. The terrain naturally lent itself to the production of cranberries as a result of the hilliness of the area, which is dotted with ponds, sloughs, swamps and bogs. These wet areas became of greater interest to the local population during Prohibition. These same low spots where water collected became ideal for collecting water for the production of moonshine (homemade alcoholic beverages). Indeed Somerset already had a history of being a rough logging town, and it was only a natural progression to become the supplier of bootlegged alcohol to the twin cities of Saint Paul and Minneapolis. After Prohibition ended, the citizens of Somerset returned to the more humble activities of logging and farming.
Tourism
Somerset has several camping establishments along the Apple River.Outfitters in and around Somerset provide rentals and transportation for this popular tubing river. The first half of the trip offers relaxed family floating. The last half features a wild rapids area with a walkway along the side for the less adventurous. Every summer concerts are held at the Somerset Amphitheater. The Avett Brothers, Slipknot, and Pretty Lights are previous headliners at these concerts. Somerset also holds other events such as Tough Mudder and The Border Battle Beer Fest. Highlight of our famous visitors, came Charles Kuralt, of the famous "On the Road Show," of the Walter Cronkite hour, on June 13, 1972. The campsites and concerts bring thousands of people to Somerset every summer, which brings business to the growing town.
Culture
- On the Mystery Science Theater 3000 episode, Alien from LA, Tom mentions to Mike, that Mike grew up in Somerset.
- On an episode from Pinky and the Brain, they fly over a map of the U.S. with Somerset being the only highlighted city.
- During the 2002-2003 Season, Somerset High School's Football Team, led by longtime coach Bruce Larson, won the WIAA Division 5 State Championship, the first state title the school had ever won in football. Since then, the Somerset Football team has been to the state championship game four times, winning the WIAA Division 4 title over the Big Foot Chiefs, in 2012.
- The TV Show 'Wife Swap' featured the Schachtner family from Somerset, Wisconsin, switching with a family from Florida. (Schachtner/Martincak). The show aired in 2006, and is shown in re-runs.
Notable people
- Jenny Hansen, NCAA All-Round Gymnastic Champion
- Samuel Harriman, Union Army general
- Michael Schachtner, basketball player
References
- ^ "US Gazetteer files 2010". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 2012-11-18.
- ^ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 2012-11-18.
- "Population Estimates". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 2013-06-24.
- Village of Somerset -- President and Trustees, 2010, "", August 5, 2010
- http://www.somerset.k12.wi.us/ActivitiesandAthletics.cfm
- http://www.somerset.k12.wi.us/ActivitiesandAthletics.cfm
- http://www.travelwisconsin.com/rafting-tubing/apple-river-200206
- http://appleriver.com/history_of_rivers_edge_81543.html
- Kentucky Athletic Hall of Fame, August 2010
- Harriman, Col. Samuel (1826-1897)
- Court Side Basketball Agency 2010, August 5, 2010
External links
| Municipalities and communities of St. Croix County, Wisconsin, United States | ||
|---|---|---|
| County seat: Hudson | ||
| Cities |  | |
| Villages | ||
| Towns | ||
| CDPs | ||
| Unincorporated communities | ||
| Footnotes | ‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties | |