Wisconsin’s Counties - a Photo Portfolio - Rusk County

RuskCounty
Rusk County was created in 1901 from Chippewa County. Located in northwest Wisconsin, the county seat is Ladysmith. At the time of the great forests, when Rusk County was just starting to grow, this area hosted a booming rail center and economy. With the coming of the lumber barons many small communities grew and then died when the logging industry dwindled. Ladysmith and Rusk County survived, and the beauty of the "olden days" is still here. It is a very rural county, with a 2000 census of 15,347.
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Bisons

Traveling on Hwy 8 east of Ladysmith, in the town of Tony, I spotted a Bison farm. There are about 150 Bison producers in Wisconsin with about 10,000 animals. Many people prefer it to beef.
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Ladysmith

In her day, when the logging industry was strong, Ladysmith was a booming rail center. This station was built by the Soo Line and now is used by Canadian National for offices.

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This is “Old Smokey,” a Soo Line steam engine SOO 1011 Model 2-8-2. The Soo Line had several engines with this number, but the engine in Ladysmith is arguably the most famous.

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Soo Line 500A on display.

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Ladysmith is on the Flambeau River, frozen thick during winter in this scene
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