Mauston, Wisconsin

Mauston began as Maugh's Town, named for Milton M. Maughs, a lumberman who established the first settlement here when the Wisconsin River valley's timber industry was booming. When Juneau County was carved out of Adams County in eighteen fifty-seven, the new county needed a seat.

Maugh's Town beat out New Lisbon for the honor, and over time the unwieldy name compressed into Mauston. Juneau County itself honors Solomon Juneau, the Milwaukee founder and legislator. Today Mauston serves as the commercial hub for a sprawling rural county best known for its kettle lakes, state forest lands, and its position along the old Chicago, Milwaukee and Saint Paul rail corridor.