Readfield, Wisconsin facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Readfield, Wisconsin
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 Readfield, Wisconsin
Location in Wisconsin
Readfield, Wisconsin
Location in the United States
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| Country |  United States |
| State |  Wisconsin |
| County | Waupaca |
| Elevation | 267 m (876 ft) |
| Time zone | UTC-6 (Central (CST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-5 (CDT) |
| ZIP code |
54969
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| Area code(s) | 920 |
| GNIS feature ID | 1572120 |
Readfield is a small, unincorporated community in Waupaca County, Wisconsin. This means it's a group of homes and businesses that isn't officially a city or town. Readfield is located on Wisconsin Highway 96, just east of Fremont. Other important roads, like Waupaca County Trunk Highways H and W, also run through the community. Readfield has its own post office with the ZIP code 54969.
Contents
History of Readfield
Early Buildings and Roads
The Zion Evangelical Lutheran Church decided to build a church in Readfield in 1902. This church is still an active part of the community today.
Readfield was once part of a famous old road called the Yellowstone Trail. This trail was one of the first transcontinental (coast-to-coast) auto trails in the United States, started in 1915. The highway through Readfield was first named State Trunk Highway 18 in 1917. Later, in 1926, its name was changed to U.S. Route 10.
Construction began on what would become Waupaca County Highway W in the summer of 1928. This highway helps connect the nearby city of New London with Readfield.
Telephone Service
For many years, starting as early as the 1930s, the Larsen-Readfield Telephone Company provided phone service to the area. A larger company, Century Telephone (now called CenturyLink), bought the Larsen-Readfield company in 1989. Even in 2013, CenturyLink still had a special part of its company named after Larsen-Readfield.
Readfield School
In October 1960, the New London Board of Education approved plans to build a new school in Readfield. The school was designed to open in September 1961. It was ready to welcome about 220 students in its first year.
The new Readfield school helped combine smaller schools south of New London. Most of these smaller schools closed, and their students moved to Readfield. The Dale school, which had three rooms, also closed in the late 1960s. Its youngest students (kindergarten to third grade) then joined the Readfield school.
Highway Changes and Local Businesses
Many businesses in Readfield closed in 1982. This happened because U.S. Route 10 was straightened and improved for safety. The highway upgrades included new curbs and gutters along U.S. 10 in Readfield. County Road H was also rerouted to avoid a complicated three-way intersection with County Roads W and U.S. 10.
These highway changes led to the closure of popular spots like Vic & Myrts' Supper Club and Hanneman's Grocery Store and Rec Center. After these changes, only four businesses remained in Readfield at that time. Three of them were taverns, and the fourth was a small variety store.
On December 5, 2003, the main road through Readfield changed its name again. It went from being U.S. Route 10 to Wisconsin Highway 96. This change happened when a new, divided highway for U.S. 10 was finished between Greenville and Fremont.
