History of Wicktonville
The Transcontinental Railroad (TRR) constructed a rail spur through the Yukkayak
Valley as part of the venture to join the Central Pacific Railroad (in Sacramento,
California) eastward and the Union Pacific Railroad (in Omaha, Nebraska) toward
the west during the 1860s. By the late 1890s, weary travelers regularly stretched
their legs while the engines refueled in the valley. In an early move of promoting
visitors to stay in town, a hotel, row of shops and stables were built -- and
Wicktonville Township was quietly born.
 |
Entrepreneur D. Antonio Neapolitan provided the financial backing to help
Wicktonville Township incorporate on August 8, 1907. Neapolitan, the inventor
of the three flavored ice cream packaged side-by-side, became one of the
first Township Council members, serving until his death in 1922. His revolutionary
product served as the inspiration for the town's flag as well as being a
cornerstone in the annual Founder's Day celebration since Wicktonville was
founded. |
Wicktonville began as a thriving whistle-stop depot for Transcontinental Railroad.
After TRR stopped operating, Wicktonville got a shot in the economic arm when
a booming cracker craze took the nation by storm. Wicktonville Wafers was founded
in 1921, and continues to be one of the largest manufacturers of salad croutons
on this side of the Mississippi.
Dismissed as barbaric, public floggings of disobedient, left-handed children
ended in 1934. There is no record when, or if, floggings for right-handed delinquents
was discontinued.
 |
The Seal of Wicktonville Township was first sketched by
Eleanor Kramer in 1914. (The seal was redrawn for computer, courtesy the
Multimedia Arts students at Wicktonville Community College.) The seal
represents several elements of the Township:
- The panda bears represent the community's on-going commitment and
support of the Golden Bamboo Panda Center -- the world's first and only
panda active retirement community (outside of China).
- The eternal glow in the distance, from the Yukkayak Valley Disposal
Site, symbolizes the Township's proximity to a toxic and nuclear waste
heap. (Despite local lobbying, government officials won their bid to
place the Site a few miles from town.) The clouds' eerie yellow glow
is a reminder that the Township will never be completely dark as a result
of the Site's presence.
|
