Town of Mackford, Wisconsin

TOWN OF MACKFORD
To the north is the town of Green Lake. To the east is Fond du Lac County. To the South is Dodge County. To the west is the town of Manchester. This is the lush valley of the Grand River. One mile from Mackford is Markesan.
The first house in town was built in 1836 by H. McDonald. He broke up the land and raised the first staples on his farm. The first saw mill built in the county, was erected in 1843, by H. McDonald and in 1850 McDonald, Carhart and White erected a four story stone grist mill. A number of dwellings were added and the population of the village rose to 150 souls. The town derives its name from the first part of McDonald's name and a crossing place over the river. McCracken's mill was built in 1848 and a grist mill was added in 1855. It rose three stories high, with a capacity of seventy barrels of flour in twenty-four hours. Austin McCracken was the builder and owner of these mills. His homestead was across from the mills where he also owned the adjacent lands. From the mills to the village, it is about one and a half miles. In the villiage of Mackford there was a Post-office, a Mercantile, a Wagon Shop, a Blacksmith Shop, a Carpenter Shop, two Cooper Shops, a tailor, two Shoe Makers and the District's School. Land lying north of the river was open and somewhat broken rising gently. Lands to the north of the village had sandy soil and clay loam making for good cultivation. Leaving Mackford village to the south is a high hill covered with oaks, clay loam soil and then prairie as far as the eye can see. One of the most beautiful prairies in the midwest, it sways pleasantly like the roll of the sea, wave after wave falling to the horizon for miles upom miles. The north and west are fringed with trees, several glades and homesteads and farms dot the landscape. Here the bountiful increase of the land lays in golden stacks and field upon field of ripening corn sways in the prairie wind. Providence has directed the wandering footsteps of the pioneers to so rich a heritage as this. Here the heart of man may rejoice in his destiny. Here is a land to supply the wants of the body and the hopes of the mind. Rich furtile soil await the labor of a man's hand to reap the reward of hard work. The valley of the Grand River a mile wide, it is bordered by marsh and timber, on the south by hill that open to the prairie. Timber land rises from Grand River to Lake Maria to the west of the prairie. Good water can be found all over the town and is from six to ninety feet in depth. Lake Emily lies to the south of town, Lake Maria is to the southwest and covers about six hundred acres, one-half of which is in the town of Manchester. There is no known outlet to this lake. At high water it often overflows. The fish in this lake were killed out in the hard winter of 1848. They were smothered, as is believed, as the lake was entirely frozen over and a heavy body of snow some four feet deep. In the spring winrows of fish were cast ashore, since which time there has been no fishing. At it's greatest depth the lake is thirty feet. About three-fourths of this town is under cultivation. There are Christians churches for public worship nearby at Alto, Whitewater and Markesan. The Town of Mackford was organized in 1849.
The inhabitants are all Yankees!