WAUSAU – Learn more about the history of Marathon County in January’s History Speaks and History Chats program hosted by the Marathon County Historical Society.
The History Speaks program is presented by Jonathan “Jay” Dick, a technology and land expert at Wisconsin Valley Improvement Co. The uniform flow of the Wisconsin River.
Meanwhile, the History Chat program focuses on the history of the famous bridges in the county: the Snake Bridge, the Tannery and Thomas Street Bridges, the bridges that cross at Little Bull Falls, and the Wausau Falls Bridge.
history speaks
Born at the turn of the 19th century, WVIC traces its roots from the heart of the Northwoods through the booming paper and power industries to the river valleys we know today. Hear a little bit about the history of WVIC and what it takes to “run” the Wisconsin River system.
This History Speaks program will be broadcast live on January 21 at 2:00 pm at the Woodson Historical Center, 410 McIndoe Street, Wausau, in partnership with the Marathon County Public Library. The presentation will be streamed live on Facebook and YouTube Live, and a recording of the program will be available on the Historical Society’s Facebook page and YouTube channel.
history chat
All History Chat programs are streamed live every Thursday at 12:30 PM on YouTube and Facebook Live. It will also be available for later viewing as a recorded program on the Historical Society’s YouTube channel, Facebook page, and Wausau’s Public Access Channel 980. These programs are published in collaboration with the Marathon County Public Library.
snake bridge, ben clark
January 5th
A number of bridges allowed locals to cross from Wausau to Rib Mountain. Ben Clark will look at the meandering bridge across the Big He Rib River.
Tannery and Thomas Street Bridge, Gary Gisselmann
January 12th
From the early Strollers’ Lane Bridge to the modern Thomas Street Bridge, Gary Gisselman shares the history of the river crossing Wausau’s south side.
Crossroads at Little Bull Falls, Ben Clark
January 19th
As one of the few communities to develop on the west bank of the Wisconsin River, Mossinny’s early settlers needed a way to cross one of Wisconsin’s most dangerous rapids. Ben Clark examines the history of Mossigny’s bridge.
Wausau Waterfall Bridge, Eric Connop
January 26th
One of the first places on Wausau that early residents had to cross was near Big Bull Falls. Erick Konop talks about the history of the Wausau Falls Suspension Bridge and why he had one of its early iterations on the prairies outside Lake Elwell, Montana.
MCHS is located at the Woodson History Center at McIndoe St. 410 in Wausau. Exhibition and office hours are 9 AM to 4:30 PM Tuesday through Friday and 1 PM to 4:30 PM Saturday and Sunday. Admission is free. The research library is open Tuesday through Friday from 9:00 am to 3:30 pm. Yorkie House Museum tours are available Tuesday through Sunday. Please contact us for hours and prices.
For more information, call MCHS at 715-842-5750, email info@marathoncountyhistory.org, or visit www.marathoncountyhistory.org.
