Editing Sigel, Wood County, Wisconsin (section)

==History==
In 1839 a crew working for the U.S. government [[Surveying|surveyed]] the south border of the six mile square that would become the town of Sigel. In June 1851 another crew came back and surveyed the east and west sides. That November another crew marked all the [[Section (United States land surveying)|section corners]], walking through the woods and wading the swamps, measuring with [[Gunter's chain|chain]] and [[Solar compass|compass]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Land Survey Information|url=http://digicoll.library.wisc.edu/SurveyNotes/SurveyInfo.html|publisher=Board of Commissioners of Public Lands|accessdate=March 26, 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Field Notes for T23N R5E|url=http://digicoll.library.wisc.edu/cgi-bin/SurveyNotes/SurveyNotes-idx?type=PLSS&twp=T023NR005E|work=Original Field Notes and Plat Maps, 1833-1866|publisher=Board of Commissioners of Public Lands|accessdate=May 24, 2013}}</ref> When done, the deputy surveyor filed this general description:
<blockquote>''The character of this Township is good, particularly the North Eastern part there is some good farming Lands the timber being mostly [[Acer saccharum|Sugar]] [[Elm]] [[Ostrya virginiana|Ironwood]] + [[Betula alleghaniensis|Birch]] the Southern + Western part is generally of a 2d rate quality the timber being mostly Birch [[Eastern white pine|Pine]] [[Acer saccharinum|soft Maple]] [[Fraxinus|Ash]] etc the streams are fed by the swamps & are not durable. there is some good scattering Pine mixed in with the Hard wood but no heavy Bodies of Pine were seen in this Township - the surface is generally level & somewhat stony. the stone being of reddish color''<ref>{{cite web|last=Ellis|first=Albert G.|title=Interior Field Notes (Nov. 1851)|url=http://digicoll.library.wisc.edu/cgi-bin/SurveyNotes/SurveyNotes-idx?type=article&byte=2780429&twp=T023NR005E|publisher=Board of Commissioners of Public Lands|accessdate=2013-05-24|author2=Ellis, Frederick S. }}</ref></blockquote>

The town of Sigel was established in 1863, and named after [[Franz Sigel]], an officer in the Civil War.<ref>{{cite book | url=http://www.mcmillanlibrary.org/files/docs/placenames.pdf | title=Wood County Place Names | publisher=The University of Wisconsin Press | author=Rudolph, Robert S. | year=1970 | pages=77}}</ref>