Cottonwood Township Home >
The first settlers in Cottonwood Township were Peyton Nichols and A. S. Van Patten in 1855. They were later joined by Conrad Kleinknecht, and William Winkelmann, who came as part of the Chicago Land Company in 1854. Cottonwood was one of the first townships established on June 28, 1858, along with Leavenworth. The township was named for the Cottonwood River, which was a translation of its Dakota name Waraju. The township formally organized on October 24, 1858. Cottonwood Township had a gristmill along the Cottonwood River and later a woolen mill built at the same location after the gristmill burned.
Theodore Reim Family