Published: Nov. 25, 2016
BARTON
Village annexed years ago proudly maintains its identity
ndettmann@conleynet.com 262-306-5043
Yes, Barton and West Bend became one 55 years ago in 1961.
But there are still signs out there that shows Barton is seperate from West Bend.
The biggest one is on the corner of Main Street and Barton Avenue: “Build, Boost, Buy in Barton.”
It’s one of the last pieces of evidence to prove those not around
50plus years ago there were two municipalities in Washington County next
to each other, just like Minnesota’s Twin Cities — Minneapolis and St.
Paul.
“The people
that live in the Barton, the Barton-ites, they’re proud of having Barton
as a village,” said Eileen Eckert, Barton Historical Society
president. “We were very self-efficient. The people in Barton were very
proud of their village. They still continue that today.”
But, how much longer is the question.
With time, former staples of the Barton community have gone away, including Barton Elementary School.
There are still establishments such as Barton Cafe and Barton Service.
And, of course, the name of the road that goes through “downtown
Barton” is Barton Avenue, formerly Main Street.
The introduction to a 1997 book by Richard H. Driessel says, “The
question probably arises whether a history of the village of Barton
serves any useful purpose at this time.”
To many, the answer is yes.
“They want to keep the Barton name alive,” Eckert said.
Barton was annexed by West Bend in November 1961. What helped settle Barton was the Milwaukee River.
Barton Salisbury, the town’s eventual namesake, built a saw mill along the river in 1845.
“Barton was originally a place like so many small villages and towns,
they had a mill,” Eckert said. “We gradually started growing. West Bend
and Barton really flourished with the railroad. Businesses took off
because of the railroad.”
In Driessel’s book, it says there is debate about which settled first: Barton, West Bend or Young America.
According to Driesel, “Barton Salisbury came to Barton in early 1845,
and the Buck family and a few others arrived later that year. Byron
Kilbourn, Jasper Vliet and James Kneeland marked the place for the
village of West Bend in November 1845. A squatter, E.N. Higgins, had
been there since late 1844 or early 1845. Morris Wait began a sawmill
and dam in Young America in 1851.”
In 1847, the mill was converted to a flour mill which Salisbury
operated with Edward and William Caldwell. The settlement became known
as Salisbury’s Mills.
Wisconsin became a state in 1848.
Salisbury’s Mills was officially named Newark in 1848 by the state
Legislature, but the Washington County Board renamed it Barton.
In 1849, Salisbury moved onto Newburg where he started to build
another mill and a hotel. During the hotel construction, Salisbury fell
from a rafter and was seriously injured. He died within hours at the age
of 36.
West Bend and
Barton operated well as separate municipalities for several decades. Ten
years after its founding, Barton had 1,095 residents. The milling
industry was a reason for Barton’s growth.
Then, according to Eckert, two things began to work against Barton, which ultimately led to the annexation.
West Bend as county seat was one reason — the sewer system was another.
The economy — and real estate values — also contributed.
Jeff Faber, in a 1989 research paper titled “The Decline of the
Village of Barton,” wrote “there was a depression in the 1870s. It seems
like the West Bend township survived it. But the Barton township
didn’t bounce back from it and the Barton township never competes with
the West Bend township like the earlier years.”
Faber also wrote, “there were more wealthy men living in the West Bend
township than were living in the Barton township in 1860. There were
14 percent of the West Bend township members worth over $2,500 compared
to 8 percent in the Barton township.”
It didn’t take long for talk of joining Barton and West Bend to start.
The talk lasted for decades, until it was accomplished in 1927.
Eventually, voters in West Bend favored the union 1,147-643 and voters in Barton agreed, 384-187.
If there is any animosity today, it’s fading.
“Most of the people that were against the annexation, a lot of them are gone,” Eckert said.
But the phrase painted on the side of the old Barton firehouse is one
way the Barton-ites are trying to preserve what was once a proud
history.
In some ways, they’re still proud of it.
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