Exhibit created and researched by John Paul Miller, History Department, Public History Program, University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire.

Our lives influence and change technology just as technology influences and changes our lives. Everywhere, this cycle of subtle change occurs, and the town of Chippewa Falls in northwestern Wisconsin is no exception. Between the 1890s and 1900s, a new technology was sweeping the United States, changing the way people traveled. That technology was the interurban railway, and the harnessing of electricity brought it to life. The electric railway was the first form of mechanical transportation geared solely towards providing transport for people; it was the first public transportation. Because of the emphasis on passengers and the locality of their use, many electric railways suffered little competition from the larger railroad companies with their steam engines meant for long distances.

In the Wisconsin city of Chippewa Falls, a small railway company developed. The Chippewa Valley Electric Railway Company began early in the development of the electric railway industry. It quickly developed an interurban line, connecting Chippewa Falls to the cities of Hallie and Eau Claire. No longer would the lines of communication between the cities of the Chippewa Valley (the Chippewa River and the valley it created) be dependent upon the whims of the rivers that linked the area. It created a bridge that linked the two cities, providing the inhabitants in and around the Chippewa Valley a chance to expand their identity to include the larger region.

This exhibit will explore the life of the Chippewa Valley Electric Railway from its birth as a dream of one man in 1897 to its demise in 1926. The story will be unfolded and revealed in reports issued by the company itself, the local newspapers, photographs, government records, and government maps. Come with us as we embark upon a journey down Memory Lane along the streetcar tracks that run down it.