Wilson, Wisconsin
Discover the Heart of Dunn County’s Northern Border
Learn About Wilson
Location and Founding of the Town of Wilson
Established in 1886, the Town of Wilson was the 22nd—and final—political township to form in Dunn County, Wisconsin. It lies in Township 31 North, Range 12 West, along the county’s northern border with Barron County. Wilson is bordered by the Town of Sand Creek to the east, the Town of Sheridan to the west, and the towns of Otter Creek and Hay River to the south.
In 1866, the area belonged to Grant Township, along with what would later become Sand Creek (1876) and Otter Creek (1877). After those separations, the land that would eventually become the Town of Wilson remained part of the Town of Sheridan for another decade, until it became its own township in 1886.
How the Town of Wilson Got Its Name
The Town of Wilson was named after Thomas Blair Wilson Sr., a surveyor and one of the original members of the Dunn County Board. According to the 1925 History of Dunn County, Wilson was known for being modest and generous, often giving anonymously and avoiding attention.
He was the son of Captain William Wilson, a key figure in the early logging industry. Around 1840, Captain Wilson helped lay the groundwork for what would become Knapp, Stout & Co., by encouraging investors like John H. Knapp to bring capital to the region. This company grew to be Dunn County’s largest employer, shaping the area's early economy and settlement patterns.
The Village of Ridgeland
The Village of Ridgeland is the only remaining incorporated municipality within the Town of Wilson, home to about 280 residents. It occupies the entire northeast quarter of Section 6—160 acres—and contains the township’s last active post office, following the disappearance of earlier settlements like Tonnar and Blairmoor.
Despite its name, Ridgeland was historically described as a "level site" in 1925. While small hills approach the village from three directions, its center was once a swampy lowland formed by the South Fork of the Lower Pine Creek.
Before it became Ridgeland, the area was known as Annsburgh (circa 1890–1900), located just across the Barron County line. Annsburgh had a cheese factory and a store, and mail was delivered twice a week. In 1899, Woodbury Steven Grover sold the 160-acre parcel to John Franklin Henrich, who then sold it to the Ridgeland Land Company. On March 24, 1900, the village was platted by Sidney B. Jones, who officially gave it the name “Ridgeland.”
Early Land Ownership and Development
Plat maps created around the time the Town of Wilson was established show that the land was held by the U.S. Government, railroad companies, and Cornell University. This land became U.S. territory in 1783 after the American Revolutionary War.
Railroads like the Chicago, St. Paul, Minneapolis, and Omaha Railway Company and the Wisconsin Central Railway Company were granted large tracts of land. Any land they didn’t need for building tracks was sold to lumber companies like Knapp-Stout and Weyerhaeuser, who encouraged the development of new communities.
Some of the earliest settlers in the area—including this writer’s great-grandfather Christian Lee and 2x-great-grandfather Peter Gregerson Eika—purchased their land directly from the railroads.
Cornell University's Land in Wisconsin
One of the largest holders of forest land in Wisconsin during this era was Cornell University of New York. Under the Morrill Act of 1862, states without available public land received “land scrip,” which could be used to buy federal land in other states.
Ezra Cornell, founder of the university, persuaded the State of New York to use its land scrip to acquire land in Wisconsin and other western states. Instead of selling the scrip cheaply (as many states did), Cornell bought approximately 500,000 acres, including land in what would become the Town of Wilson. The proceeds from selling that land to settlers and lumber companies helped fund the university’s early development.
The First Peoples of the Area
The first Indigenous people on written record in this region were from the Sioux Nation (Santee Dakota), followed later by the Ojibway Nation. These First Peoples inhabited and traveled through the area for generations before the arrival of European settlers.
