The first lumber yard in Janesville was established by Elbridge G. Fifield.

The evidence

• “In 1843 the first lumber yard was established at Janesville by Elbridge G. Fifield, near the west end of where now the Court street bridge is situated.”

  1908-brown-rock-county/26-history-of-janesville.md, Vol. 2, PDF p. 21 / book p. 536

  Brown, William Fiske, editor. Rock County, Wisconsin: A New History of Its Cities, Villages, Towns, Citizens and Varied Interests, from the Earliest Times, Up to Date. Chicago: C. F. Cooper & Co., 1908. 2 vols. archive.org/details/rockcountywiscon01brow, archive.org/details/rockcountywiscon02brow.

  Grade A: Found on a page of one of our sources