History: Spencer (Marathon County, Wis.)
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Surnames: Ring, Robinson, Saunders, Ingham, Damon, Heath, Crowell, Richardson

----Source: The Spencer Centennial Book (Spencer, Marathon County, Wis.) 1874 - 1974, page 4

According to old records, the first settlers in the area were Reuben Ring of New York state accompanied by his brother, Isaac, his sister, Mrs. Saunders and their mother, Susannah. On January 3, 1871 Reuben had entered a claim in the U.S. Land Office to the following land: N ½ of NW 1/4, Section 7, Township 26 North, Range 2 East: now partly occupied by Land O’Lakes, The Farmer’s Co-op, The Breeze Inn, Spencer Park, and Soo Line right-of-way. The Rings later owned a farm west of town, now the property of David Ingham. Susannah Ring died there in 1899 and is buried in the West Spencer Cemetery.

The settlement of Spencer began with the completion of the Wisconsin Central Railroad, the first division from Menasha to Stevens Point having been completed in November of 1871. The town was first known as “Section 40” and then Waltham. Four blocks in the northwestern part of town, owned and plotted by James L. Robinson were named “Irene,” in honor of his wife. Finally the name of the station and post office was changed to Spencer, probably after a town in Massachusetts, several other towns to the north of us having been named for towns in that state.

There was money in the lumber business and now with a railroad on which to transport the products of the forest. Enterprising mill owners came in, set up their mills and built boarding houses and small stores. Mill hands, homesteaders and businessmen followed. The women and children joined them, coming on the train, and their household goods were transported on ox-carts. The Damon, Heath, Crowell, and Richardson families from Adams County all came in on the same train in 1874. The influx of families resulted in the building of more houses, stores, blacksmith and harness shops, and other places of business, the establishment of schools and churches and a form of government. The town grew and prospered to such a degree that by the time half of it was destroyed by the fire of 1886, it had all the appearance of a prosperous and up-to-date village of that day with well established places of business, doctors, lawyers, a newspaper, places for entertainment, civic organizations, clubs, lodges, and churches.

Homesteaders came in and filed claims to wooded acres even before the railroad was built, traveling with their families and household goods by means of ox-drawn vehicles through trails in the woods. They put up log buildings and began to clear their land and to dream of herds of cattle, pastures, fields, and frame houses and barns. These were followed by other pioneer farmers, with the same dreams and ambitions, who bought cut-over land left by the mill owners who had moved northward. They were of various nationalities, German, Scandinavian, Bohemian, British, and French, the largest percentage being German.

It is to the railroad and the lumber mills that Spencer owes its beginning, but it is to these sturdy, hard working, thrifty farm folk that Spencer owes its continuance and growth after the mills had left. With a prosperous surrounding farm area, Spencer passed from a mill town to a rural village, whereas in some instances after the mills left a town, it passed out of existence. Spencer merchants of that day were wont to say, “If it’s a good year for the farmers, it will be a good year for us.”

The building of the Spencer-Owen cut-off and the moving of the railroad division point to Spencer marked another year of growth. New railroad facilities were built or old ones enlarged and railroad workers and their families moved to town. Local mail and dray services increased as well as an increased shipment at the stock yards, all affording more employment.

By the time the railroad activity began to decrease, industry began to increase, and Spencer continued to grow until its phenomenal industrial growth in the year of 1970 won for it the Governor’s Award of Merit, in recognition of outstanding industrial development, Spencer being one of three communities honored on May 20, 1971, in the State of Wisconsin for Industrial Development.

To our pioneer settlers who came here and created a town and then fought so valiantly to save part of it from fire, to their courage and determination to remain and rebuild, to our pioneer farmers who created for themselves and their posterity fine and prosperous dairy farms, to their children and grandchildren who give evidence of their good stewardship by the many beautiful, modern and well kept farms that now dot our surrounding countryside, to our public spirited citizens and councilmen who have promoted our industrial growth and provided for our protection and safety, to all these we owe an immeasurable debt of gratitude.