Donald, Wisconsin | |
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Coordinates: 45°15′09″N 90°53′49″W / 45.25250°N 90.89694°W | |
Country | United States |
State | Wisconsin |
County | Taylor |
Elevation | 366 m (1,201 ft) |
Time zone | UTC-6 ( Central (CST)) |
• Summer ( DST) | UTC-5 (CDT) |
Area code(s) | 715 & 534 |
GNIS feature ID | 1564049 [1] |
Donald is an unincorporated community located in the town of Pershing, Taylor County, Wisconsin, United States, [1] where the Canadian National Railway crosses County Highway M.
Donald was founded in 1903, [2] where the Fountain-Campbell Lumber Company built a sawmill on the Eau Claire, Chippewa Falls, and Northeastern Railway (a.k.a. the Omaha). [3] The community was named for Donald Campbell, the son of the president of Fountain-Campbell. Before that, the spot was called Fountain Spur, for the other principal of that company. [2]
A post office was established at Donald in 1904, and remained in operation until it was discontinued in 1942. [4] Around 1905 the J.S. Owen Company built a line for the Wisconsin Central Railway heading northwest for Superior - now part of the Canadian National Railway. [5] Donald grew to boast a school and a church. [6]
But after the local timber was depleted, the sawmill shut down. The Omaha Railroad stopped running in the late 1930s and track was pulled up. [7] Since then Donald has gradually withered until in 2023 only a few homes and the Canadian National remain.