Editing Gays Mills, Wisconsin (section)

== History ==
[[File:AppleOrchardsGaysMillsWisconsinWIS171.jpg|thumb|left|Orchards east of Gays Mills]]
In 1847 James B. Gay, a native of Indiana, built a dam and a sawmill on the [[Kickapoo River]], which proved to be a flourishing success. When his health started to fail, James convinced his brothers John and Thomas to move to the area. In 1865 John  Gay built the first flour mill south of the saw mill.  In 1872 Thomas Gay and family organized the First Congregational Church, the first church in Gays Mills and in 1898 the church building itself was finished. In the years between 1848 and 1865, many families moved into the community, which came to be known as Gays Mills in honor of the founder and his brothers.

Gays Mills was also the home of the Twining apple-growing family. One of the Twinings took his apples to the World's Fair, where they were a great success, generating mild fame for Gays Mills.  Twining and his companions are honored with a historical marker on a hill overlooking the village. Consequently, apples are grown heavily in Crawford County, with numerous commercial orchards surrounding the village.<ref>[http://www.gaysmills.org/history.html History of Gays Mills, Wisconsin - Apple Capital of Wisconsin.<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>

===Flooding===
[[File:GaysMillsFloodDamage2010.jpg|thumb|left|Flood damage in 2010]]
[[File:GaysMillsWisconsinRelocation2010WIS131.jpg|thumb|left|Relocation beginning in mid-2010]]
Almost 60 homes were substantially damaged by flooding on the Kickapoo River in 2007 and 2008.<ref name="PostCrescent20081021" /> In 2008, a meeting was held to discuss moving the village to higher ground because of repeated flooding, which damaged the local economy.<ref>[http://www.channel3000.com/news/16644466/detail.html?rss=c3k&psp=news Channel3000.com WISC-TV]{{Dead link|date=December 2019 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} article: More Than 200 Attend Meeting On Moving Gays Mills: Board Member Says Decision Could Go To Referendum</ref> In October 2008, the [[Federal Emergency Management Agency]] (FEMA) released a 72-page report asking residents and businesses to relocate from the Kickapoo River flood plain.<ref name="PostCrescent20081021">{{cite news|title=Study gives Gays Mills relocation options|date=October 21, 2008|publisher=[[The Post-Crescent]]|page=A-4}}</ref> Relocation is estimated to cost $1.7 million to purchase {{convert|30|acre|m2}} {{convert|1|mi|km|adj=on}} north of the existing location.<ref name="PostCrescent20081021" /> About 150 of the village's 230 houses lie in the flood plain.<ref name="PostCrescent20081021" /> As of October 2008, village leaders were considering what course to take.<ref name="PostCrescent20081021" />

In March 2010, a grant of $4.31 million was awarded by the [[Economic Development Administration]] to the Village of Gays Mills and the Redevelopment Authority of Gays Mills to develop a strategy for relocating the Village’s commercial district outside of the floodplain.<ref>[http://www.eda.gov/NewsEvents/PressReleases/WIcombo032610] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100328220941/http://www.eda.gov/NewsEvents/PressReleases/WIcombo032610|date=March 28, 2010}}</ref>

In September 2016, July 2017, and August 2018 Gays Mills was once again hit by flooding.