Genesee Depot is a small unincorporated community in Waukesha County, Wisconsin, United States. It is located in the Town of Genesee, in southeastern Wisconsin between Milwaukee and Madison, and named for the train station, or depot, of the Wisconsin and Calumet Railroad (now the Wisconsin and Southern Railroad) that formerly served the town. Wisconsin State Highways 59 and 83 intersect in Genesee Depot.
The latitude of Genesee Depot is 42.966N and the longitude is -88.371, at an elevation of 909 feet. It is in the central standard time zone. (Brief History).[1]
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History
Genesee Depot was founded by people of many different heritages, but mainly by German, Welsh, Irish, and English immigrants in the late 1800s. Stillman Smith was the first to settle in the area in the summer of 1837. In 1838 Benjamin A. Jenkins built a log cabin inn at what is now the intersection of Hwys. 59 and 83. It served mainly travelers going to and from Milwaukee. Genesee Depot was given its boundaries on March 21, 1843.[citation needed] Jenkins later built a three-story mill and wagon factory. This was just the beginning of what was to be a bustling little town. “By the 1890’s there was a grain elevator, slaughter house, two stores, blacksmith shop, shoe shop, woolen factory, post office, lumber yard, and train depot with ticket, baggage, and waiting rooms, [and] storage buildings.”[1]
Genesee Depot garnered attention as a result of the Milwaukee and Mississippi railroads running through the community. Another aspect of the town's boom was the Johnston Quarry. Developed in 1842 on what is now Hwy. 59, the quarry provided jobs and led to the development of business in the area. The quarry provided the stone for many Wisconsin buildings, including the state capitol in Madison, the Milwaukee Sentinel building, and Carroll University’s earlier buildings.[1]
Historical sites
Many buildings in Genesee Depot are the originals from the late 1800s and early 1900s, including “the original section of St. Paul’s Catholic Church (Hwy 83 & D), built in the early 1870’s; the James Proctor House (Hwy 83 by bridge spanning Genesee Creek) also dating back to the 1860’s, behind which stood the Genesee Woolen Mill; and the new railroad depot built in 1897 after the first one burned down. This station building was relocated slightly south of where it originally stood on Hwy 83 and serves diners today as the Genesee Depot Café.”[1] The original town hall, now the Wales-Genesee Lions and Lioness Club, was built in 1912 and is on the National Register of Historic Places.
Another historic site in Genesee Depot is Ten Chimneys, the home of Alfred Lunt and Lynn Fontanne, so known because among the three buildings on the site, there are ten chimneys. Lunt and Fontanne's residence in Genesee Depot was their summer home and a popular gathering place for theater people. It is decorated with original pieces and collections of the Lunts from the early 1900s.[2] Each room was carefully decorated with the passion that Alfred and Lynn shared for theater and art. It is now open as a house museum.[2]
Education
Magee Elementary, in the Kettle Moraine School District, serves students in grades K through 5th. Named after John Magee, who helped bring the railroad through Genesee Depot, the school was completed and opened in 1922.[1] It was remodeled in 1989 to accommodate a larger enrollment, which stands at about 320 students.[3]
The mission of Magee Elementary is to inspire students to think, reflect, achieve, create and be kind. [4]
Churches
Saint Paul Parish
Saint Paul Parish was founded in 1863. In 1961 a new church was built just down the road from the original site, to accommodate the growing congregation. A K-8 school was also built, and remodeled in 1997 (Directory, 3). In 2006 the second church was torn down and a new one completed in the fall of 2007. The parish consists of just under 4,000 parish members, with about 150 students enrolled in the school.[5] Saint Paul Parish operates a number of volunteer and outreach programs, including “St. Ben's Meal Program, Loaves and Fishes, Kettle Moraine Food Pantry, Health and Healing Ministry, Linden Grove Nursing Home, Cooperating Churches of Waukesha County, Christmas Giving Tree, Bereavement Committee, St Paul Parish Breakfast Ministry, Heavenly Babies Layette Project, Communion to the Home Bound, Food Baskets, Clothing Exchange, and Interfaith Caregiving Network”. The parish is also a sister parish to Christ Our Peace Parish (Parroquia Cristo Nuestra Paz) in Guatemala.[5]
References
Coordinates: 42°58′00″N 88°22′16″W / 42.9666667°N 88.37111°W
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