From: Handbook of Wisconsin by S. Silas, 1855
pg. 46-48
This County lies on the Wisconsin, and is also watered by the Lemonwier, Neceda, Yellow, Roche a Cre, and numerous smaller steams. The valley of the Lemonwier contains as good land for agricultural purposes, as any in the State. The valley is some forty miles long by twenty in width, is gently undualating, intersected by many beautiful streams of the purest soft water; and what adds much to the value of the land is the existence of water everywhere at a depth of ten to twenty feet below the surface.
The timber consists of black, white, and burr oak, with an occasional mixture of poplar, maple and basswood, oak openings predominate, yet there are many groves of dense forest. The soil there is warm, quick, and exceedingly productive. Pine of excellent quality is cut on the upper waters of the Lemonwier and Yellow Rivers, which has brought into existence numerous saw mills on the lower waters, and numerous thriving villages are springing up around them.
Between the Yellow and Lemonwier Rivers, the country is level, in the rest of the county generally undulating, and good for agriculture. There is much good subject to entry, and it will not be long before Adams county will contain a large population. The land office for nearly the whole of this county is at Steven's Point.
Germantown, on the Wisconsin, at the mouth of the Yellow River, is the county seat, and has a good location for future prosperity. It is in the centre of a fertile district which is rapidly settling. Eight saw mills on the Yellow River, and all doing a prosperous business, send their lumber down the River to the Wisconsin, at this place.
Mauston, on the Lemonwier, is the largest village, having the usual indications of growth in its hotels, stores, shops, &c. It is located at one of the best water powers on the river, on which are a saw mill, lathe and picket mill, &c. A flouring mill is soon to be erected. Most of the pine from above is manufactured into lumber at this point. Maugh's Mills is the name of the Post Office.
Quincy, Cascade, Dell Prairie, Neceda, Dustin's Mills, and Wauceda, are all new and flourishing villages.
The County is healthy, and affords good inducement, not only to the farmer, but to the mechanic of almost every kind.
The La Crosse and Milwaukee Rail Road passes through this county, following up the west side of the Wisconsin River to the Lemonwier, and up the Valley of this River to Monroe County.
By an act of the Legislature passed during the session of 1855, this county is divided by the Wisconsin River, making the County of Juneau on the west side, subject to approval by the voters of the County in November. There is little doubt the County will be so divided.
Links and Resources
Adams County Genealogy Links
Adams WIGenWeb Site- USGenWeb website maintained by webmaster Joan Benner. This site has valuable birth, death, marriage and history on Adams County, Wisconsin. Hosted on this site. (FREE)
Adams County USGenWeb Archives- Select Biographies, Cemeteries, Land, History, Military, Newspapers, Obituaries and Vital Records for Adams County (FREE)
Free Links by Joan-GoldenRuleGen.com- Although Joan is a professional genealogist, she believes in the concept of data being presented for free on the internet. She is the USGenWeb coordinator for Adams and Marquette county. She has transcribed a multitude of data for various county sites. Her professional focus is in Adams, Clark, Jackson, Juneau, Portage, Waushara, and Wood Counties, WI. (FREE)
Original Field Notes and Plat Maps- From Wisconsin Public Land Survey Records. his website provides access to scanned images of the original General Land Office survey field notes and plat maps. All of this material is based on the township, range and section descriptions of the Public Land Survey System (PLSS). To effectively use this material, you will need to know this description for the property you are researching. This legal description can be derived from topographic maps, land ownership maps, deeds and or property tax bills among other sources. Offsite link (FREE)
1901 County Maps - The Wisconsin county maps presented here were scanned in individually from the large Wisconsin map in the Rand McNally New Standard Atlas of the World, Rand, McNally & Co., Chicago, 1901. They should be of interest to genealogists because they show the locations of many places that no longer exist. Offsite link by Rick Hagen (FREE)
Current County Map- The Wisconsin Department of Transportation is pleased to provide highly detailed county maps online. Produced at a 1:100,000 scale the maps contain the following pieces of information: Major local road networks, Interstate corridors, U.S., state, and county routes, Recreation areas, Points of interest, Hospitals, Schools, Airports, Urban boundaries, Railroads, Town roads, Federal and state forest boundaries, Indian reservations, Township boundaries. (FREE)