The Unchanging Nature
of Red Banks

Do you ever wonder how places get their names? Sometimes a town is named for the people who lived there, or for a special landmark in the area. The names of cities and landmarks stay the same, even though many different people live there throughout history.

In Shawano County along the banks of the Wolf River, there is a small stretch of river called "Red Banks." Many believe it was named by Indians long ago because of the reddish color of the soil. The Indians living there had a "sugar camp" near Red Banks because there was a forest of sugar maple trees. An old trail ran through the area that linked Shawano Lake to the Fox River Valley. Recently, children playing in the cool woods along Sheldon Creek near Red Banks found arrowheads and flint chips where a Native American arrowmaker had his lodge 200 years ago. They could see old corn beds where Indians farmed long ago.

Years after the Indians lived there, others came to Red Banks. People came together to square dance and take boat rides. Some came there to fish, just like the Indians did before them. The Indians used torches to light up the night so they could catch fish. They caught washtubs full of fish each night. Many thought the river would never run out of fish. Today, we know that it is important to limit the number of fish that are caught and there are rules help make sure that there will be fish in the rivers for many years.

Today people have summer homes near Red Banks. Some live there all year long. They have seen black bear, coyote, a cougar, a bald eagle and sandhill cranes in the area. The Indians and early settlers saw these same animals years ago. Even after hundreds of years, Red Banks has kept its name. People come and go for many different reasons, but sometimes nature can take a very long time to change.

Source: Navarino History Committee, Timbers and Trails. Amherst, WI: Palmer Publishing, 1992.