|
The Arcadia
area in the Trempealeau Valley of the Upper
Mississippi River Valley had a great influx
of travelers, military personnel, political
figures, writers, lumbermen and artists
during the 1820's and the early 1830's.
Originally, the Mississippi River was the
primary access route for Trempealeau County,
but railroads freed the area residents from
their dependence on the Mississippi waterway
and towns began to grow in the sparsely
populated river valleys. Arcadia was
established in 1855 with the arrival of a
group of settlers looking for agricultural
land. These men registered homesteads in the
area of the crossroads, currently the
intersection of State Highway 93 & 95. At a
meeting, the women of the settlement were
given the privilege of naming the town. They
chose the name Arcadia because the area
reminded them of the Arkadhia Mountains of
ancient Greece. The business district, which
developed at these corners is referred to as
Old Arcadia, Arcadia on the Hill, or East
Arcadia. It distinguishes it from the area
of Arcadia then known as Arcadia Under the
Hill that developed after 1873 with the
location of the Green Bay and Minnesota
Railroad's. Arcadia was incorporated in 1878
and had a population of 710.
Within the last 3 decades, a great deal of
commercial and residential development has
returned to Arcadia on the Hill. |
