Burlington, WI nestled on the shores of Echo Lake and the Fox and White Rivers...offers a multitude of recreational activities for visitors and residents. Boating, canoeing, swimming, hiking, biking, skiing, skating, golf courses, riding stables -- all are located within minutes of downtown Burlington.
Known around the world for the Burlington Liars Club, Burlington offers you the Tall Tales Trail. Make the Burlington Area Chamber of Commerce your first stop so you can pick up the trail map, as well as the current book of "lies," containing fibs from throughout the 70+ year history of the club. Then visit many businesses and stores around the city, view the bronze plaques and enjoy the unique brand of American humor, featuring some of the championship lies collected through the club's more than sixty year history. Another popular walking tour book available at the Chamber is the self-guided Walking Tour of Historic Burlington.
Home of Nestle Chocolate & Confection, Burlington celebrates with an annual three-day Chocolate Fest, which includes carnival rides, Taste of Chocolate Tent, children's activities, exhibit tent, musical entertainment for all tastes and ages and a parade. The event is always held the weekend after Mother's Day.
Burlington lays claim to several beautiful parks located on our lakes and rivers. Echo Park, along Hwy 36, has feathered residents the entire year who are very appreciative of the bread crumbs visitors enjoy tossing to them. Echo Park also offers a nice picnic and playground area in warmer weather and a lighted ice skating area in the winter. The city maintains the ice and clears one area for general ice-skating and another for ice hockey. If fishing is the water sport of choice, kids can participate in the Kid's Fisheree at Echo Park. This early May event is open to children to age 16 and offers free food and soda as well as prize drawings all day. Prizes are also awarded for the biggest fish and a door prize for a new bicycle. Sponsored by the Burlington Conservation Club, you can call 262-763-9968 for additional information. --
Fischer Park on Brown's Lake is home to the Aquaducks Water Ski Show which is presented free to the public every Saturday evening at 6:00 pm from Memorial Day through Labor Day. Wehmhoff Square Park, downtown next to the Public Library, boasts a new gazebo and the restored Pioneer Cabin, authentic to 1850. Around the block is the Burlington Historical Society Museum and Legacy Gardens. The Burlington Historical Society also maintains an authentic 1840's recreated school room, Whitman School. The Historical Society can be reached at 262-767-2884.
In all probability, Lemuel Smith may have been the first settler in Burlington, but it was his brother Moses and a man named William Whiting who made the first "jack-knife" claim by carving their initials and the date in a tree in the spot where the Standard Press building now stands.
Our settlement officially became "Foxville" when Moses Smith opened the first post office. Later, E.D. Putnam, who came from the state of Vermont, is credited with giving the settlement its current name.
Living conditions in the early years were challenging, with cold, hard winters and warm, sticky summers. Game was abundant if you had the powder and shot or traps and snares. Staples like flour, salt and lard were scarce and high in price, brought by way of a long and slow journey from Chicago. Flour was $15 a barrel, pork $25 a barrel, butter 50 cents a pound and cheese and ham 15 to 30 cents a pound. All this when good pay was $1.50 to $2.00 per day.
On April 20,1836, the Wisconsin Territory was established. Moses Smith and Samuel Vaughn constructed a sawmill making it the first frame bulding in the new village. Later came a grist mill for making wheat flour and grinding corn for feed. Milwaukee, Racine and Kenosha all depended upon Burlington for their flour supply.
Land was available for $1.25 per acre, the minimum government price, and the community continued to grow. In 1838 the first school was started in a 16 square foot cabin.
The Baptists were probably the first religious group to organize about 1843, followed by Catholics, Presbyterians, Unitarians, Methodists and Mormons establishing churches and congregations. In the later 1800s, several Jewish settlers also established a place in the town.
In this decade, Burlington's earliest industries were started and became the firm foundation for its future growth and prosperity. The grist mill was replaced by a larger four-story stone structure, and a factory made the first roll of cloth turned out in Wisconsin. In a short time the excellence of cashmere, tweeds, flannels and yarns became known far and wide. Lemuel Smith brought the first flock of sheep to the area, giving a local source of wool for the Perkins woolen mill.
Other industries included a plow shop, wagon makers, a foundry and machine shop and a cooper shop. There was a shoemaker, a harnessmaker, a sawmill and general mercantile business.
Wages for farm hands were $13 per month less board. Cord wood for the local market brought 75 cents a cord, while tea cost $1.50 per pound - a day's work cutting and hauling wood could be exchanged for a half-pound of tea. Eggs were 7 cents a dozen and butter 5 cents a pound.
