General Info
Once part of Crawford County, Chippewa County was established in 1835. The area was first settled in 1839 by the McCann brothers as they built a home near present day Menomonie. A dam and mill were constructed in 1846 and early industry was dominated by lumbering. Its population had reached 615 by 1850 and in 1853 Chippewa Falls was selected as the county seat. It is one of the largest counties in Wisconsin by size with over 2.6 million acres. Today Chippewa County is home to approximately 60,456 residents.