Miller Valley in Milwaukee in Milwaukee County, Wisconsin — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)

Watertown Plank Road

Photographed by Paul F, circa September 11, 2009

1. Watertown Plank Road Marker

Inscription. Started in 1848 and completed in 1853, extended 58 miles west from Milwaukee on a course roughly paralleling State Street past the Frederick Miller Plank Road Brewery through Wauwatosa, Pewaukee, and Oconomowoc to Watertown. The $110,000 road of white oak planks provided a route for farm products, wood, lime, and passenger vehicles. It cut roundtrip travel time to three days, all at a toll of about one cent a mile.

Erected 1955 by Milwaukee County Historical Society. (Marker Number 36.)

Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Industry & Commerce • Roads & Vehicles. In addition, it is included in the Wisconsin Historical Society series list. A significant historical year for this entry is 1848.

Location. 43° 2.525′ N, 87° 57.752′ W. Marker is in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in Milwaukee County. It is in Miller Valley. It is on West State Street, on the right when traveling east. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Milwaukee WI 53208, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Southeast Wisconsin. It is also in the American Midwest,

on the Great Lakes,

and in the Corn Belt.

Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture

and also the Northwest Territory.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Menomonee Valley Campsites (about 400 feet away, measured in a direct line); Merrill Park (approx. half a mile away); Hank Aaron - Changing Times (approx. 0.9 miles away); A Changing Landscape (approx. 0.9 miles away); a different marker also named Hank Aaron - Changing Times (approx. 0.9 miles away); a different marker also named Hank Aaron - Changing Times

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(approx. one mile away); Johnny Logan (approx. one mile away); Felix Mantilla (approx. one mile away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Milwaukee.

Photographed by Paul F, circa September 11, 2009

2. Watertown Plank Road Marker

Credits. This page was last revised on February 16, 2023. It was originally submitted on May 24, 2010, by Paul Fehrenbach of Richfield, Wisconsin. This page has been viewed 1,721 times since then and 73 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on May 24, 2010, by Paul Fehrenbach of Richfield, Wisconsin. • Bill Pfingsten was the editor who published this page.