144  Joseph  S chafer

There  are  numbers  of  rural  towns  in  Wisconsin,  as  well
as  villages  and  cities,  whose  history  deserves  to  be  written
in  the  large  and  published  for  the  benefit  of  their  own  chil-
dren as  well  as  for  the  benefit  of  the  state.  The  time  seems
ripe  for  a  movement  to  secure  a  good  many  individual  town
histories,  especially  since  every  community  is  anxious  now
to  honor  its  soldiers,  living  and  dead;  and  the  State  Histor-
ical Society  is  prepared  to  help  in  the  manner  indicated
herein,  and  in  all  other  j^racticable  ways.
TOWN  OF  NEWTON,  MANITOW^OC  COUNTY

MATERIAL  CONDITIONS

The  town  of  Newton  occupies  township  18  north  of
range  23  east,  in  the  southeastern  part  of  jManitowoc
County,  five  miles  southwest  of  ^lanitowoc.  It  lies  in  part
on  the  shore  of  Lake  Michigan,  the  lake  cutting  off  portions
of  sections  36,  25,  and  24,  grazing  also  the  southeast  corner
of  section  13  (see  plat).  The  surface  is  undulat'ng  and  it  is
well  watered  throughout,  the  principal  streams  being  Silver
Creek,  Yellow  Creek,  and  Paint  Creek,  all  flowing  southeast
into  Lake  Michigan.
Originally,  the  town  was  practically  covered  with  a  dense
forest  gr()Wth  which  included  birch,  linn,  sugar  maple,  ash,
cedar,  elm,  alder,  beech,  with  some  pine  and  tamarack  in
the  swamps,  also  some  oak,  especially  on  the  higher  parts.
The  swamps  were  rather  extensive  while  the  country  was
still  forest-covered,  as  shown  by  the  surveyor's  notes ;^
yet  the  township  averages  high  in  first-class  land,  and  none
of  it  was  described  as  poorer  than  second-class.  The  soil
near  the  lake  was  light,  but  yet  fertile,  while  most  of  the
balance  was  hea^aer  and  very  productive  when  cleared.
Much  of  the  wet  land  was  automatically  reclaimed  by
removing  the  covering  of  timber.
