Before the Tourists: History of Northwest Wisconsin

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Join Rick Brimacomb, a second-generation Birch Island Lake cabin owner and Webb Lake tourist of 55+ years, as he explores the history of Northwest Wisconsin and the events leading up to the local recreation culture. A fascinating tale spanning receding glaciers, original indigenous peoples, rival first nations, and the arrival of Europeans. As the French and English moved westward, followed by the then newly created Americans, three industries took hold in the Upper Midwest: the fur trade, the timber industry and the most impactful cultural accelerant, the railroads. As the wilds of Wisconsin were settled, growing numbers of urban dwellers longing for adventure could access the area, and the “Sconnie” tourism industry was born.