Cedar Creek (Wisconsin)

The lower section through Cedarburg is notable for its the steep slope, and early settlers made use of this by building several mills and accompanying dams.

[citation needed] The lower portion of the creek through downtown Cedarburg until its confluence with the Milwaukee River is impacted by the milldams and PCB pollution produced by Mercury Marine and Amcast automotive.

[5] Several mills dammed the lower portion of Cedar Creek in the mid and late 19th century.

By the late 1960s, all the mills had either ceased operations, and some buildings have been converted to commercial uses, while others were abandoned unused or demolished.

In 1881, a sudden spring melt caused severe flooding that washed out all the dams on Cedar Creek except the one at the Cedarburg Mill.