Little Wisconsin: Soldiers Grove

Village of Soldiers Grove, Crawford County
"America's First Solar Village"

Incorporated July 14, 1888
Population: 582

Soldiers Grove Snippets

★ The Kickapoo River has wreaked havoc for Soldiers Grove residents for more than 100 years. The first major flood occurred in 1907 – then again in 1912, 1917, and 1935. In 1962 Congress approved a flood control plan that included a dam, but construction never began. Another disastrous flood occurred in 1951. Still wrangling with the U.S. government, the community was hit in July 1978 with the largest flood in history. That fall the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development granted the village $900,000 so Soldiers Grove could relocate to higher ground. Started in 1979 and completed in 1983, “Solar Village” is located adjacent to U.S. Highway 61. All the buildings are energy efficient and solar heated, meeting stringent thermal performance standards, and at least half of the heating energy comes from the sun -- making the new Soldiers Grove business district the nation’s first “solar village”.

Another catastrophic historic flood hit Soldiers Grove in August 2007. The Kickapoo River did not recede for about ten days. The park was destroyed, but everything was quickly repaired. None of the buildings in Solar Village were damaged.

★ Soldiers Grove resident Beauford T. “Andy” Anderson joined the U.S. Army in 1942 and was assigned to the newly-activated 96th Infantry Division. Anderson received the nation's highest award for combat heroism for his actions on Okinawa in April 1945. Anderson, then a staff sergeant, was credited with single-handedly defeating a predawn Japanese counterattack against his unit. On Memorial Day 1946, in a ceremony at the White House, President Harry S. Truman placed the Medal of Honor around the neck of Technical Sergeant Anderson

Soldiers Grove Wisconsin, America's First Solar Village

SWNews4U.com: Are You Ready For Soldiers Grove Dairy Days?

Soldiers Grove is a Driftless Wisconsin Area Community
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Soldiers Grove is located in Crawford County.

Wisconsin Historical Society "Official" Marker 112:
"James Davidson"
was erected in Soldiers Grove in 1961.
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Wisconsin Historical Society "Official" Marker 403:
"Soldiers Grove Origin"
was erected in Soldiers Grove in 1998.
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