The Historic Muscoda Mile
The Grain Elevators – in “Upper Town” Muscoda
Muscoda grew significantly with the coming of the railroad in the 1850’s. One of the more enterprising additions was a series of grain elevators that were a part of that growth in industry. As identified on the 1879 map, there were grain elevators located along the railroad tracks perpendicular to Wisconsin Avenue North on Front Street.
Thomas Graham and Jacob Bremmer were in business together as general merchants as well as dealers of grain and livestock. They had three warehouses in Muscoda. Their main elevator was erected in 1868. The building was 22′ x 60′ and two stories high. The elevator was powered by a six horse-power engine.
Graham & Bremmer also leased the “Klengelschmidt Warehouse” that was 30′ by 50′ and also two stories high. William McKittrick operated a general store. In 1868 he built a warehouse. McKittrick & Sons also erected an elevator in 1872 that was 24′ x 24′ and thirty feet high with two wings 24′ x 24′ and 24′ x 30′ and was able to hold about 16,000 bushels of grain.
These grain elevators and warehouses were located north of the tracks. The two warehouses were to the West of Wisconsin Avenue and the third to the East along Front Street.
To the South on Warehouse Street, extending from Iowa Street East to Wisconsin Avenue, was a lumber yard operated as Weston Mining & Company.
There was a Steam-Planing mill owned and operated by Grote and Umbarger, which was a two story frame structure measuring 22′ x 60′. A wide variety of sawing was part of their business utilizing a ten horse-power engine. They were known for manufacturing the “Creamery Churn”.
The Railroad Depot was located on the northern half within the block extending from Wisconsin Avenue to East Street and just South of Front Street. The Railroad Depot loading dock area was to the South of the building. The railroad tracks along the depot provide the length of two blocks west to Minnesota Street for multiple exchanges, as well as a set of tracks running along the North side of the depot to access the grain elevators and warehouses to the South of these buildings.
