In the early 1840s, after several years of failed crops and as food became scarce, much of the canton of Glarus in Switzerland found itself deep in poverty.

Authorities established the Glarus Emigration Society in 1844, which offered loans to help residents purchase land in the New World.

In 1845, magistrates in Glarus dispatched two men, Nicolas Duerst and Fridolin Streiff, to find a suitable location for a colony in the New World.

In the early days of July 1845, they then traveled north to Galena, Illinois, after which they arrived at the land office in Mineral Point, Wisconsin.

The men investigated several tracts of farm and timber land in the southern Wisconsin territory before deciding on two square miles along the Little Sugar River.

Without any knowledge of the whereabouts of Duerst and Streiff, the former residents of Glarus left Baltimore searching for the two men who arrived before them and the land chosen for their new home.

Shortly after arriving in Galena, the settlers from Switzerland were excited to learn Duerst and Streiff were alive and had already secured land for their new settlement.

[10] Many of the pioneers were carpenters, mechanics, and farmers; trades that proved useful as the settlers prepared for their first winter in the Wisconsin Territory.

A sum of $1,000 was used by the settlers that winter to purchase tools, cattle, seed, and other provisions, all of which had to be repaid with the price of the land within ten years of the formation of the colony.

[7] Twelve families stayed in the community's only wooden hut that first winter, which was built on the same property where the Swiss United Church of Christ is presently located.

To earn money to survive their first winter, the settlers worked in the nearby lead mines in Exeter and Mineral Point.

The Swiss Miss Textile Mart and Lace Factory in New Glarus made chevrons and insignia for U.S. military uniforms during World War II.

Walter Gabriel Schindler, who was born in New Glarus, fought in that same war and received the Navy Cross and Silver Star.

This stock was the birth of dairy farming and cheese making in New Glarus, a trade many had learned from their fathers and forefathers in Switzerland.

He later built America's first Swiss cheese (also known as Emmental in Switzerland) factory on the Dietrich Freitag farm outside of New Glarus in Washington township.

[13] Following the end of the Civil War, and with the evolution of the cheese production, the prosperity of New Glarus and neighboring communities grew.

It bought large quantities of milk from farms in the area, and as a result, most of the local cheese factories closed.

In 1962 Pet Milk Company closed its condensing plant in New Glarus, forever changing the fabric of the small town.

Cheese factories, farm equipment dealerships, feed mills, hardware stores, and other businesses that profited from local agribusiness were soon gone.

But the plant's closure also spurred the development of tourism as a new source of income for New Glarus, as it promoted the village's ethnic history as a Swiss colony.

In the years leading up to World War II, an economic crisis affected much of the agriculture and dairy industry in New Glarus.

Swiss chalet-style architecture began appearing throughout the village and festivals, once intended for local consumption, became frequented by tourists from throughout the upper Midwest.

Arnold Wieser, owner of the Swiss Miss Textile Mart and Lace Factory, became a de facto ambassador for New Glarus.

In the early 1970s Bright played on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson with the Emmy Award-winning Frankie Yankovic.

Chicago, New York, and Toronto were also considered, but New Glarus was ultimately chosen because of its central location and the large concentration of Swiss Americans in the vicinity.

The Swiss Center includes a research library, historical archive, exhibits, conference rooms, and offices.

Service to and from New Glarus ceased in 1972, ten years after the Pet Milk plant in the village closed, which provided most of the freight carried on the rail line.

The village of New Glarus is a popular tourist destination best known for its Swiss heritage, old world architecture, ethnic dining, small independently owned craft brewery, and outdoor festivals.

Old World meat markets, restaurants, and a Swiss bakery are also found in downtown New Glarus, along with folk art, museums, and Swiss-style shops.

Many Swiss customs are still alive in New Glarus, including the card game Jass, yodeling, and flag tossing.