page_title: Black Creek, Wisconsin
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: Black Creek, Wisconsin / History
caption_attribution_description: English: Looking North from Main Street in Black Creek, Wisconsin c.1917
context_page_description: Black Creek is a village in north-central Outagamie County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 1,316 at the 2010 census. The village is located within the Town of Black Creek.
  Origins of the community trace back to 1862 when it was settled by American Civil War veteran, Thomas J. Burdick and his son, Abraham. Initially, the village had been referred to as Middleburg, due to its geographical proximity to Green Bay, Shawano, and Appleton. However, the name was later changed to reflect the dark-colored creek along the outskirts of the community following village incorporation in 1904.
  Today, Black Creek hosts a variety of community events including the annual Family Daze celebration.
context_section_description: In the Menominee language, Black Creek is known as Enāēnohnyah, "Little Walks Plainly", which is a man's name. The territory where Black Creek is today was originally occupied by several different Native American nations. The Menominee ceded the territory in the 1836 Treaty of the Cedars, while the Ho-Chunk were pressured into selling their land and illegally removed from the area before the eight year grace period guaranteed in their 1837 treaty.
  The village of Black Creek was then settled by American Civil War veteran, Thomas J. Burdick and his son, Abraham L. Burdick, in 1862. The community had been known as Middleburg, due to its geographical proximity to the larger communities of Green Bay, Shawano, and Appleton. After village incorporation in 1904, the settlement was renamed Black Creek to reflect the dark-colored creek along the northern edge of the community. Black Creek's first village president was, politician and businessman, Charles J. Hagen.
  In 1869, the country's first organized baseball team was formed in Black Creek by L.J. Cook. Thus, the village is known as the birthplace of Wisconsin baseball. At the time, the team played at the village's North Park. It was a part of the Dairyland League before the team disbanded in the mid-1990s. Black Creek's major rivalries were with the Navarino Rangers and the Nichols Nitros.  To commemorate the village's baseball history, a "Grudge Match" softball game is played annually.
  After the arrival of the Green Bay and Lake Pepin Railroad in 1871, the small lumbering settlement soon developed into a trade and shipping center for local farm and dairy products with the establishment of Black Creek Creamery in 1894 and Borden's Condensery in 1917.
  The village library was formed in 1901. The following year, 1902, a large fire destroyed part of the community, leading to the construction of the village fire department in 1904. In 1910, telephone service was made available to residents, with electricity making its debut in 1915. A north-south route of the Soo Line Railroad was constructed through the community in 1917.
  The Black Creek area was formerly the nation's leader in sauerkraut production. Thus, the village has supported multiple sauerkraut production facilities since the late 1880s until Frank Pure Food Company and Wolf River Kraut ceased operations in the village during the mid-1990s.
caption: Main Street looking north c.1917
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