Rusk County is a county in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 census, the population was 14,188. The Chippewa and Flambeau rivers and their tributaries flow through the county. The land ranges from corn/soybean farms and dairy farms to lakes rimmed with vacation homes to hiking trails through the Blue Hills.

History

The forested wilderness that would become Rusk County was home to different Indian nations over the years. Some used the rivers to pass through, some camped, some buried their dead there. In 1790 Lakota warriors came up the Chippewa to attack the Ojibwe, but they were defeated, leaving the Ojibwe in control through the fur trade era.

thumb|left|The Flambeau Mission Church, the first church in the county, was built around 1884. It served the Ojibwe, loggers and settlers.

The first loggers and settlers came up the Chippewa River from the south, entering what would become Rusk County north of modern Holcombe, where the Flambeau River joins the Chippewa.

European-American settlement began near that Indian village in 1847, when Adolph La Ronge and his wife came from Canada. By the 1860s the Daniel Shaw Lumber Company had a farm two miles west (across from modern Flater's Resort) to support their operations.

One of these early tote roads was the Chippewa Trail, which followed west of the Chippewa from the south end of the county to the north end near Exeland, and beyond. Another trail called "The 101 Tote Road" followed up the Flambeau River. In 1872 there was no Ladysmith, but by then the trail reached Bruno Vinette's farm on the river a mile above the future Ladysmith, and another logging outpost called Hackett's Farm 20 miles beyond, on the Flambeau north of modern Hawkins. Another tote road reached Vinette's farm from the south, through what would become the Town of Grow. An 1888 map of Chippewa County shows more roads, including one to Flambeau Falls (Ladysmith).

Railroads reached the area in 1884. The Mississippi River Logging Company brought in a locomotive, cars and rails by sleigh from Bloomer to start a logging railroad. Weyerhaueser's company had tried driving logs down the streams from the Potato Lake and Soft Maple areas, but the streams proved too small, so they laid track and hauled logs to Big Bend, then rolled them into the Chippewa. As the timber in that area was cut off, this railroad, named the Chippewa River and Menomonie Railroad, shifted operations, moving its rails north of Bruce.

The Soo Line continued east in 1884 and 1885, creating other stations which would develop as the towns of Weyerhaeuser, Bruce, Warner (now Ladysmith), Deer Tail (now Tony), Miller's Siding (now Glen Flora), Ingram and Hawkins. This new railroad provided a way to get lumber out to markets. This was particularly helpful when logging turned from pine to hardwoods, which didn't float as well. Many of these little towns along the Soo Line had sawmills, and some of those sawmills were fed by their own little logging railroads, reaching out into the forests. The 1901 legislation also designated Corbett (now Ladysmith) as the county seat, which was challenged by other towns all the way to the state supreme court.

The area's economy was evolving. The peak of pine log drives on the Chippewa had been around 1885 and they ended around 1906. Hardwood lumbering started in earnest around 1900 and peaked from 1905 to 1915, then began to decline.

The private Mount Senario College served the area in various forms from around 1962 to 2002.

thumb

The Flambeau Mine was a controversial open pit mine near the Flambeau River a mile south of Ladysmith, which produced copper, gold and silver. In the 1970s the Kennecott mining company proposed a plan to mine there, but mining so near the Flambeau River was controversial, and that first plan was blocked by the local zoning committee. In 1987 Kennecott came back with a less risky proposal and it was approved. The mine operated from 1991 to 1999, excavating a pit 2,600 feet long and 220 feet deep, and producing 181,000 tons of copper, 334,000 ounces of gold, and 3.3 million ounces of silver. In the reclamation phase, the pit was back-filled and planted with native plants. It now offers walking trails open to the public.

Over the years, sawmills and cheese factories in the smaller towns have closed, but other industries have grown. The largest employers in the county are now Weather Shield in Ladysmith, Rusk County administration, the school districts, Wal-Mart, Artisans, the medical center in Ladysmith, and Rand Trucking.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has an area of , of which is land and (1.9%) is water.

Adjacent counties

  • Washburn County - northwest
  • Sawyer County - north
  • Price County - east
  • Taylor County - southeast
  • Chippewa County - south
  • Barron County - west

Major highways

  • 20px U.S. Highway 8
  • 20px Highway 27 (Wisconsin)
  • 20px Highway 40 (Wisconsin)
  • 20px Highway 73 (Wisconsin)

Railroads

  • Canadian National
  • Watco

Buses

Airport

  • KRCX - Rusk County Airport serves the county and surrounding communities.

Demographics