Tomahawk's founder, William H. Bradley, was born in Bangor, Maine on February 25, 1838 and died in Milwaukee on January 7, 1902. After many years of traveling with his father, in 1886, in connection with the Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Paul Railroad, he organized the Tomahawk Land and Boom Company. A dam was built (at the present site of the paper mill) and in 1888 he erected his first Tomahawk Mill. Mr. Bradley had the largest shares in the Marinette - Tomahawk Railway and was instrumental in establishing the first school (which later became known as the Kindergarten Building. In 2000, this building became a part of the preservation of Tomahawk's history as an extension of the Tomahawk Historical Museum Complex). Mr. Bradley was willing to donate to anyone that was interested in building a church - in which moral character and good values would be established. Mr. Bradley was a man of public spirit, known for his strict integrity and whose word was as good as his bond. In the early days the Indians, who made this area their favorite hunting grounds, named this spot "Tomahawk" which means "made by natures own hands". The completion of the final treaty with the Chippewa Indians, by which they agreed to live on reservations at Odanah and Lac Du Flambeau, gave impetus to logging operations in this region. Prior to 1886, the sole mark of civilization was a trading post owned by Germaine Bouchard. In October 1886, through land grants William Bradley purchased from a Canadian trapper Nazaire Faufau, construction began on the camps of the Tomahawk Land and Boom Company in which Mr. Bradley became the first president. The first building to be erected on the present site of the city was put up by Angus Buie in October 1887 and was built of logs. The first frame building was built by C.C. Lincoln in July 1888 (on what is now Rice Avenue). The first store was built in 1887 by John Oelhafen, Sr. and burned on March 6, 1929. Pat and Mike Day, in September 1887, built the first hotel "The Somo House". The first doctor, J.D. Cutter, opened his practice on December 19, 1886. The following year the village was laid out to give a civilized community appearance. Tomahawk Buie was born April 30, 1887, son of Mr. and Mrs. Angus Buie. He was the first white child to be born in Tomahawk. Mattie Leverenz, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. William Leverenz, was the first child born in what is now the city proper. Tomahawk was incorporated in 1891, during the height of the lumbering boom in Wisconsin, with approximately 2,000 inhabitants - when 60-75 million feet of lumber were produced every year. Bradley Park, with its over 1,000 acres of pristine pine, provides a beautiful natural sanctuary. The City of Tomahawk purchased the park known as the "Hog's Back" from William Bradley for $10,000. On July 4, 1910, by a popular vote, the name was changed to Bradley Park to honor Mr. Bradley and what he did for Tomahawk. History and image of William H. Bradley were taken from Tomahawk Chamber of Commerce website. Tomahawk Chamber of Commerce (Submitted by Gordy Lovsletten) Wisconsin Avenue - 1960's (Submitted by Gordy Lovsletten) Wisconsin Avenue - 1920's (Submitted by Gordy Lovsletten)