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History · Otter Creek

Otter Creek’s post office opened in 1858, and 40% of its homes were built before 1940

Below: maps from 1940 on and the census since 1990.

1858first post office
0on the National Register
40%homes built before 1940
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Quick answers

How Otter Creek began

When was Otter Creek founded?

1858

The Otter Creek post office opened in 1858, the earliest record of the town by name.

First census: 459 in 19902020 census: 427168 years
Founding year: the first Otter Creek post office (Blevins & Helbock, CC0).

What stands out about Otter Creek’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A history waiting to be writtenNo old photos of Otter Creek are in the public archives yet. The rest are in attics and albums.Old housesHalf of Otter Creek’s homes were built before 1956.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Otter Creek’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Otter Creek’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
0 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
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The story so far

Otter Creek, in brief

Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Otter Creek yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.

The Town of Otter Creek is located in Eau Claire County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 427 at the 2020 census. The unincorporated community of Hale Corner is located in the town.

Its first post office opened in 1858. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population fell from 500 to 427 (-15%).

Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.

From the old history books

What they wrote about Otter Creek in 1914

Passages that mention Otter Creek, cut from the printed page as they were published.

In 1867 the town of Otter Creek was organized and set off from Bridge Creek. It comprised what is now the towns of Otter Creek and Clear Creek. In the division of the town funds after all debts had been paid Otter Creek had $232.94, and Bridge Creek had $412.18.
History of Eau Claire county, Wisconsin, past and present1914 · page 37Read the page →
Read the text

In 1867 the town of Otter Creek was organized and set off from Bridge Creek. It comprised what is now the towns of Otter Creek and Clear Creek. In the division of the town funds after all debts had been paid Otter Creek had $232.94, and Bridge Creek had $412.18.

Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.
Otter Creek Township, which contains sixty-six square miles, with a population, according to the census of 1910, of 703, Avas set off in April, 1867. It is bounded on the north by the town of Lincoln, on the south by Trempealeau county, on the east by the town of Bridge Creek and on the west by the…
History of Eau Claire county, Wisconsin, past and present1914 · page 39Read the page →
Read the text

Otter Creek Township, which contains sixty-six square miles, with a population, according to the census of 1910, of 703, Avas set off in April, 1867. It is bounded on the north by the town of Lincoln, on the south by Trempealeau county, on the east by the town of Bridge Creek and on the west by the town of Clear Creek. The upper portion of the town is watered by Otter, Bear's Grass and Thompson's creeks. The nearest shipping point is Augusta, which is eleven miles distant. This town is essen-

Text read by machine from the scan; it may contain errors.

Scans and text from the Internet Archive. Books published in 1930 or earlier, which are in the public domain.

Timeline

Otter Creek, 1858 to 1940

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 19th century
  2. 1858Post officeThe Otter Creek post office opens
  3. 20th century
  4. 1903Post officeThe Otter Creek post office closes
  5. 1940On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

No old photos in the archives yet

Weddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.

Be the first to add onePhotograph a print flat, in daylight, no flash.
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On the map

Otter Creek on the map, 1940 to 1984

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Otter Creek. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Otter Creek on the 1940 USGS mapOtter Creek on the 1968 USGS mapOtter Creek on the 1984 USGS map1940Osseo sheet · 1:62,500

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Otter Creek.

People over time

Otter Creek, census by census

010020030040050020002020Peak: 531

Between 427 and 531 people in every census since 1990.

4 censuses, 1990–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Otter Creek’s Wikipedia page.

Famous people

Famous people close to Otter Creek

Nobody well known was born in Otter Creek itself, so here are the best known from just nearby.

See all →
Carole LandisAmerican actress · b. 1919
Roderick StrongAmerican professional wrestler · b. 1983
Justin VernonAmerican singer-songwriter · b. 1981
G
George N. Gillett, Jr.American businessman · b. 1938
Stanley BlystoneActor · b. 1894
Jake McCabeAmerican ice hockey player · b. 1993
Places that used to be

Lost post offices, old corners, places now gone and burying grounds

Otter Creek had its own post office from 1858 to 1903.

Otter Creek
1858–1903
18501940today
Hamlets and corners on the map
Hale Corner
Gone or out of use
Hale Corner SchoolschoolPlainview SchoolschoolPride SchoolschoolScott Valley SchoolschoolThompson Valley SchoolschoolYule Schoolschool
1cemetery inside Otter Creek
Thompson Valley

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

LincolnIts storyB−SumnerIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townClear CreekIts storynot graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its townBridge Creek1 historic placeB−

Questions about Otter Creek’s history

What year was Otter Creek founded?

The Otter Creek post office opened in 1858, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records).

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
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Sources

Where this page comes from

Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021). How TownRatings grades history →

From U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock), the USGS Geographic Names Information System and old county and town histories (Internet Archive). Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.