Editing Waunakee, Wisconsin (section)

==History==
When the [[Chicago and Northwestern Railway]] wanted to expand its line from Madison to [[Saint Paul, Minnesota|Saint Paul]], a door was opened for the development of a town. Its original location was intended to be at Packham's Mill, about where Mill Road crosses the railroad track today two miles southeast downtown. But two local settlers, Louis Baker and George Fish, platted a village on their land two miles further northwest along the railroad. Railroad officials agreed to move a train depot to the new community in exchange for $1,500 and two miles of right of way.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.vil.waunakee.wi.us/103/History-of-Waunakee|title=History of Waunakee|website=Village of Waunakee|access-date=May 11, 2019}}</ref> The village was founded in 1871 and formally incorporated in 1893.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.waunakeechamber.com/pages/WaunakeeHistory|title=Village of Waunakee History|website=Waunakee Area Chamber of Commerce|access-date=May 11, 2019}}</ref>

Baker and Fish did not want credit for naming the community, so they asked Simeon Mills and Mr. Hill of Madison to come up with a list. The name "Waunakee" has a Native American origin meaning "fair and pleasant valley." In their "Dictionary of Wisconsin History", on the other hand, the Wisconsin Historical Society has the village's name deriving from the [[Ojibwe|Chippewa]] name of "a friendly Indian" from the area, "Waunaki", meaning "he lives in peace".<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.wisconsinhistory.org/Records/Article/CS14158|title=Dictionary of Wisconsin History|website=Wisconsin Historical Society|access-date=October 3, 2024}}</ref>

[[Robert F. Kennedy]] and [[Ted Kennedy]] each visited the village to campaign for their brother [[John F. Kennedy|John]] before the contested Wisconsin presidential primary in March 1960.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://waunakeelibrary.newspaperarchive.com/waunakee-tribune/1960-03-03/|title=Around Town|date=March 3, 1960|work=The Waunakee Tribune|access-date=May 11, 2019}}</ref> Former First Lady [[Barbara Bush]] visited the village to campaign for her son [[George W. Bush|George]] for president in October 2000.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.hngnews.com/waunakee_tribune/news/regional/article_cabde745-d7f5-5927-a638-bc1773580fc9.html|title=Barbara Bush touched hearts in Waunakee, too|last=Baumann|first=Roberta|date=April 26, 2018|work=The Waunakee Tribune|access-date=May 11, 2019}}</ref> In October 2024, [[Donald Trump]] held a rally in the village at Dane Manufacturing, the first visit by a Republican presidential nominee to Dane County since 1996.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Bahl |first=Andrew |date=October 1, 2024 |title=Trump in Waunakee isn't trying to win Dane County, just get to 24% |url=https://captimes.com/news/elections/trump-in-waunakee-isnt-trying-to-win-dane-county-just-get-to-24/article_b883eab2-802d-11ef-bb69-db0e3e748f63.html |access-date=February 27, 2025 |website=The Cap Times |language=en}}</ref>

The landmark [[Waunakee Railroad Depot]], in the central part of town, is listed on the [[National Register of Historic Places]]. It now houses the Waunakee Area Chamber of Commerce offices.