It is located within the Midwestern Driftless Area and is known for its history of lead mining and its cheese industry.

Shullsburg was founded during the 1820s in parts by Jesse Shull and Henry Gratiot and due to their ventures into lead mining.

Following the Black Hawk War conflict Gratiot's Grove (Wisconsin) and other small settlements consolidated into Shullsburg.

In 1841 Missionary Priest Samuel Mazzuchelli platted the Northeast section of town and named the streets after the virtues of life.

[5] After arrival of railroad in the 1880s the Water Street Commercial District saw the construction of its many brick and limestone buildings.

[6] In 1974 the Emily Franz Scholarship Fund was formed to help high school students pay for college and is today worth 1.8 million dollars.

During the 1890s an "impoverished artist" was hired to paint the Stations of the Cross and are known today for the beautiful depictions.

In 1907 the steeple was felled in a storm and was replaced the following year along with the placement of the stained glass windows.

[11] In 1949 a gymnasium was built of matching limestone with crews provided by the Motherland Works Progress Administration.

[12] According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 1.11 square miles (2.87 km2), all of it land.