The soil of these areas is called Merrill till, except for meltwater stream sediment along the Big Rib River.

The west end is the terminal moraine of that last glacier, with choppy glacial sediment interrupted by the sandy bottoms left by ice-walled lakes.

In early 1862, the same crew marked all the section corners in the township, walking through the woods and swamps, measuring with chain and compass.

[5][6][7] When done, the deputy surveyor filed this general description for the western six by six square: The surface of this Township is level and the soil good - well adapted for agricultural purposes.

[8]Around 1873, the Wisconsin Central Railroad built its line just west of what would become Greenwood, up through the forest that would become Medford heading for Ashland.

To finance this undertaking, the railroad was granted half the land for eighteen miles on either side of the track laid - generally the odd-numbered sections.

The remainder of the land was still mostly in large blocks, with the Wisconsin Central Railroad still holding many of the odd-numbered sections.

The surviving large blocks are distributed between various owners, including U.S. Leather, Medford Manufacturing Co., and Wausau Lumber Co. on the east end.

[14][15] Two years later, on a 1913 plat map, Brehm Post Office is shown in a different location, across from St Ann's church.