Blanchard
Blanchard is on this site from the connection between Thomas Gavigan (Hotel Gavigan later the Ryan Hotel) along with other businesses. Someone in these files connects directly or indirectly to a Gavigan.
Alvin Blanchard was a merchant and businessman born in Truxton, NY. In 1840 his family moved to Wisconsin settling on a farm near Dodgeville. In 1855 he purchased a gristmill on the Pecatonica River, erected a sawmill and store, and moved his family to the site in 1856.
In 1857 with Cyrus Newkirk he platted the village of Blanchardville and began to sell lots. He secured a post office in 1858, and served as postmaster for many years. A resourceful and enterprising businessman, Blanchard was involved in practically every undertaking connected with the village. He built and operated the first cheese factory, was prominent in promoting a railroad through the community, and built many of Blanchardville’s private dwellings and business establishments.
Blanchardville had its beginnings in 1848 when a small group of Mormons, broken away from Brigham Young, settled on the banks of the Pecatonica River at what they deemed to be their Zarahemla, “City of God”. The river was dammed and a grist mill was built where Blanchardville Historical Society stands.
In 1855, Alvin Blanchard, whose name the town carries, purchased the mill and laid the foundations for the community to grow. In 1888, the arrival of the Illinois Central Railroad turned the community into a thriving trade center. Agriculture, and more specifically dairy, grew and there were 30 cheese factories within five miles of the village by 1907.
BLANCHARD (18 individuals)
Blanchard Genealogy
Genealogy (from Greek: γενεαλογία genealogia from γενεά genea, “generation” and λόγος logos, “knowledge”), also known as family history, is the study of families and the tracing of their lineages and history.