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View of Viroqua, Wisconsin, 1925 ca.

Elevated view of Viroqua. View the original source document: WHI 37773

Viroqua is the seat of Vernon County and is located in southwestern Wisconsin near four rivers: the Mississippi, Kickapoo, Bad Axe and Raccoon rivers. The first permanent white settlers arrived in the area in 1848 from Ohio and New York. The town and county were originally called Bad Axe, but the town was soon renamed Farwell and then, in 1854, finally changed to its present name, Viroqua.

Viroqua has been a farming community since its beginning, producing mainly wheat, oats and corn. It was also the site of much early political activism, and the Viroqua area became home to communities of former slaves before and after the Civil War. The small town experienced its worst disaster in 1865 when a tornado swept through the community, blowing away all the houses and injuring 150 people.

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• Viroqua, Wisconsin

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Source: WHS Library-Archives Staff, 2009