Marshfield owes its existence to the twin factors of railroads and timber. The first permanent white settlers, the Rivers brothers, built a two-room hotel in Marshfield because they heard that Wisconsin Central Railroad crews would travel through on the way to Ashland, Wisconsin. The brothers had a saloon, a sleeping room with bunk beds, and food ready and waiting when the railway crews arrived in 1872. Marshfield's central location made it a crossroads for up to five railroad lines, with 1,000 freight cars and 28 passenger trains passing through per day in 1893. Timber led to the...